WACE ATAR Visual Arts flashcards
WACE ATAR Visual Arts · Build recall with a focused review session.
32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.
- Formal elements
- The basic visual components used to build any artwork: line, shape, form, colour, tone or value, texture, and space. They are the vocabulary of visual analysis.
- Principles of design
- Organising devices that arrange the formal elements: balance, contrast, emphasis, movement, pattern, rhythm, scale, proportion and unity. They describe how an artwork is composed and held together.
- Hue, value, saturation
- Three dimensions of colour. Hue is the colour family (red, blue); value is its lightness or darkness; saturation is its intensity or purity. Changing one alters the others perceptually.
- Complementary colours
- Colours opposite each other on the colour wheel, such as red and green. Placed together they intensify contrast; mixed as pigment they neutralise toward grey or brown.
- Analogous colours
- Colours adjacent on the colour wheel, such as blue, blue-green and green. They produce harmonious, unified schemes with low contrast and are common in atmospheric landscape work.
- Simultaneous contrast
- A perceptual effect in which a colour appears different depending on surrounding colours. A grey looks warmer on blue and cooler on orange, so context changes perceived hue and value.
- One-point perspective
- A linear perspective system with a single vanishing point on the horizon line. Parallel lines receding into depth converge there, giving the illusion of three-dimensional space on a flat surface.
- Atmospheric perspective
- A depth cue in which distant forms appear paler, cooler, lower in contrast and less detailed. It mimics the effect of atmosphere and is common in landscape painting.
- Figure–ground relationship
- The perceptual distinction between the main subject (figure) and the surrounding area (ground). Ambiguous or reversible figure–ground creates visual tension and is used deliberately in design.
- Negative space
- The empty or unoccupied area around and between subject matter. Skilled use of negative space can define form, create balance and direct the viewer's attention.
- Rule of thirds
- A composition guide dividing the frame into a three-by-three grid. Placing key elements on the grid lines or intersections often produces a more dynamic, balanced image than centring them.
- Chiaroscuro
- Strong, dramatic contrast between light and dark used to model form and heighten mood. Associated with Renaissance and Baroque painting, especially the work of Caravaggio.
- Impasto
- Paint applied thickly so that brush or palette-knife marks stand up from the surface. It creates physical texture and catches light, emphasising the materiality of paint.
- Glaze
- A thin, transparent layer of paint applied over a dried underlayer. Light passes through and reflects back, producing luminous depth; many glazes build rich, subtle colour.
- Wash
- A dilute, fluid application of ink, watercolour or acrylic that produces a broad, even or graded tone. Washes are used for ground tones, atmosphere and loose expressive effects.
- Collage
- An artwork made by adhering found materials such as paper, fabric or photographs to a surface. It challenges traditional painting and was central to cubist and dada practice.
- Readymade
- An ordinary manufactured object presented as art with minimal alteration, as in Duchamp's urinal. It raises questions about authorship, context and what counts as art.
- Appropriation
- The deliberate use of existing images or objects in a new artwork. It questions originality and authorship, and raises copyright and cultural-ownership issues in contemporary practice.
- Modernism
- A broad movement from roughly the 1860s to the 1960s characterised by experimentation, formal innovation and a break with academic tradition. It includes impressionism, cubism and abstraction.
- Postmodernism
- A cultural condition emerging from the 1960s that questions grand narratives, originality and fixed meaning. It favours pastiche, irony, pluralism and self-referential, media-savvy art.
- Abstraction
- The reduction or distortion of observed reality toward essential form, colour or gesture. It may be partial, retaining recognisable references, or non-representational, referring to nothing outside itself.
- Site-specific work
- Art made for, and dependent on, a particular location, responding to its architecture, history or environment. Removing the work would change or destroy its meaning.
- Installation art
- A constructed environment or arrangement of objects occupying a space, experienced by the viewer bodily. It often combines media and invites interaction rather than passive viewing.
- Artist statement
- A short first-person text explaining the intent, process and context of an artwork or body of work. It should connect conceptual aims to specific material and formal decisions.
- Visual analysis sequence
- A structured response order: describe what is present, analyse how elements and principles are used, interpret possible meanings, then evaluate success relative to intent and context.
- Artist–artwork–audience–context
- The four-part framework for interpretation. Meaning is produced by the interaction of the maker's intention, the work's form, the viewer's position and the historical or cultural setting.
- Cultural protocols
- Rules governing respectful engagement with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art, including permission, attribution and avoidance of restricted imagery. They recognise continuing cultural ownership.
- Papunya Tula movement
- A Western Desert painting movement beginning in 1971 at Papunya, translating body and sand designs into acrylic on canvas. It is central to contemporary Indigenous Australian art.
- Heidelberg School
- An Australian plein-air painting movement of the 1880s–1890s, associated with Tom Roberts and Arthur Streeton. It depicted bush and rural life with natural light and nationalist intent.
- Folio development
- A documented record of an artwork's evolution: initial ideas, research, trials, refinements and final resolution. It evidences decision-making and is directly assessed in production work.
- Referencing and plagiarism
- All sources, including images, must be cited in a recognised style such as Harvard or APA. Unattributed use of others' words or images is plagiarism and breaches examination rules.
- Material and technique choice
- Selection of media and processes to serve concept: for example oil for blended depth, watercolour for translucency, or digital media for reproducibility. Choice carries meaning and should be justified.