● Kings, queens, divine beings = How is their power conveyed?
● Objects, buildings, materials that are associated with power = how can we visually see that POWER and / or AUTHORITY?
● The human relationship and interaction with the natural world
● Landscape / nature as metaphor for deeper message
● How does the landscape reflect the cultural concerns (context)
● How does the body depicted reflect cultural concerns?
● Does the body depicted reflect the class / place of a person within a culture?
● What religion is the sacred space associated with?
● How does the worshipper experience the space?
● How does the space reflect the beliefs of that religion? How does the space accommodate the practices of that religion?
● What religious belief is the pilgrimage associated with?
● Why do those pilgrims make a sacred / spiritual journey to that building AND/OR site?
● What do the pilgrims do when they get to the building AND/OR site?
● What religious / spiritual belief system does this divine being come from? What do they represent?
● Does the way that they are rendered in visual form help symbolize anything about the religion they represent?
● Are their common visual motifs / features / colors associated with the divine being?
● Building: how does the building accommodate domestic life? How does it reflect the time period during which it was built?
● How is domesticity represented? What does the space look like (what is within it that is typical of most domestic spaces)? What activities are people doing that are usually done within a home?
● What is the relationship of the family unit depicted (i.e. mother and daughter, husband and wife, an entire family...)
● WHY is the family depicted? Is it to show generations? Power of the family / lineage? Tradition?
● Is the image of this family unit painted in a political / social context?
● Architecture in the city, how it “fits” with the area around it.
● Sculpture within the urban environment - why is it there? How did (do) viewers interact with it?
● What story is being told? Why?
● What method(s) did the artist(s) use to communicate the narrative?
● Is the narrative historical, political, or social in nature?
● How does the artist(s) challenge tradition when it comes to art making with: Material? Method of making the work with the material? Subject Matter (content)? Place / method of display?
● What is the public OR the art establishment’s response to the challenging of tradition?
● Race, sexuality, gender, culture, religion, nationality, personal history and experiences, family, profession, experiences.
● How does the artist communicate his/her identity in the work? Consider: content, materials, placement, intended audience
● What type of violent and / or hostile act is depicted in the work?
● What visual traditions / ideas come from what culture or artist?
● How are the cultures fused?
● Why are these two cultures converging in this work?
● Beliefs in the afterlife
● Funerary practices ART IN PUBLIC SPACES
● Where is the work (if still there)? What space was the work intended to be in? Why?
● How do viewers interact with the work?
● What materials were used? Why?
● Who (or what collective body) payed for the artwork to be made? Why?
● Where was the artwork displayed? Does that matter in understanding the work OR the audience response to the work?
● What new materials, techniques or technology does the artist use?
● Do these new materials / techniques / technology reflect the era in which the artist was living?
● How is light used by the artist(s) in the work?
● Why do they use light? What does it symbolize?
● How is text featured in the work? How does it add meaning to the work? Does it help add to the overall understanding of the piece? Is the audience supposed to read the text?
● Where was the work originally intended to be displayed? Why isn’t it there anymore?
● Is their visual evidence that reminds us it is no longer
● How does the artist visually show the inner psyche? Emotions? Memory? Nostalgia? Etc...