BGCSE Art & Design (0596) cheat sheet

Primary source = the actual object or scene observed directly; secondary source = a photograph, print, or another artist's copy of it.

Sighting measures relative proportion by holding a pencil at arm's length and marking the apparent length of one edge against another.

Negative space is the area around and between objects; drawing it checks silhouette accuracy without relying on assumed object shape.

Basic unit method: choose one small observed dimension as the unit, then express every other dimension as a multiple or fraction of it.

Plumb line and horizontal reference: a vertical dropped from a fixed point reveals alignment errors in a standing figure or still life.

Foreshortening makes receding forms appear compressed; an arm pointing at the viewer shortens dramatically relative to its true length.

Contour drawing follows the visible edge only; cross-contour lines run across a form and describe its three-dimensional volume.

Ellipses in cylindrical objects widen as the eye level approaches and flatten as the object rises above or falls below eye level.

Value observed under a single light source shows a core shadow, reflected light, and cast shadow; the highlight sits nearest the light.

Graphite grades run 9H (hardest, palest) through HB to 9B (softest, darkest); harder grades suit fine linear work, softer grades suit tonal mass.

Watercolour is transparent and works light to dark; white is preserved as untouched paper because opaque white paint destroys luminosity.

Gouache is opaque water-based paint; layering light over dark is possible, unlike pure watercolour.

Acrylic dries quickly and cannot be re-wetted once dry; oils dry slowly and allow wet-in-glue blending over days.

Ink wash value is controlled by dilution; successive glazes darken tone only after each layer is fully dry.

Collage builds an image from adhered cut or torn materials; torn edges give soft transitions, cut edges give hard ones.

Printmaking reversal rule: relief and intaglio prints mirror the plate, so lettering must be cut or etched in reverse.

Pastel and charcoal are dry media fixed with fixative; work proceeds from light to dark in charcoal because erasure lifts tone.

Subtractive processes (carving) remove material; additive processes (modelling, construction, casting) build or deposit it.

Armature: an internal support of wire or timber carries the weight of soft modelling material and prevents collapse.

Casting requires a mould; a waste mould is destroyed to release the cast, while a flexible mould is reused.

Slab building suits clay boxes and tiles, coil building suits rounded vessels, and throwing suits symmetrical round forms on a wheel.

Clay shrinkage: greenware loses water, and firing causes further contraction, so joints and thickness must be even to avoid cracking.

Glaze is a glass layer fused in firing; it must be applied evenly because thick pools craze or run and thin patches expose the body.

Joints in wood and metal are strongest when they interlock; butt joints rely on glue or fasteners and fail under shear.

Kinetic and assemblage sculpture use found objects; the structural fixings must be hidden or treated as part of the design.

Design cycle: brief, research, specification, ideation, development, prototype, testing, evaluation, refinement.

A design brief states the client need and constraints; a specification converts it into measurable criteria used later for evaluation.

Form follows function: the intended use constrains shape, material, and construction before surface decoration is considered.

Annotation on design sheets records material choice, dimensions, and reason for each decision, not merely description of the drawing.

Ergonomics matches a product to human body dimensions; anthropometric data such as grip span and reach drives handle and control sizing.

Iteration is evidenced by dated successive versions showing a changed variable and the reason for the change.

A prototype tests one or more specification criteria; the evaluation judges the outcome against those criteria, not against taste.

Signage and layout hierarchy: scale, colour contrast, and position determine reading order before typeface style is chosen.

Visual elements: line, shape, form, tone, colour, texture, pattern, and space.

Primary pigments are red, yellow, and blue; mixing two primaries yields a secondary, and a primary with its adjacent secondary yields a tertiary.

Complementary colours sit opposite on the colour wheel and, placed side by side, raise each other's apparent intensity.

A colour's value changes with its surroundings: a mid grey looks darker on white and lighter on black.

Warm hues advance and cool hues recede, a cue used to build depth without linear perspective.

Compositional devices include the rule of thirds, diagonal emphasis, framing, and the balance of asymmetric visual weight.

Tone is the lightness or darkness of a hue; a value scale of nine steps is a standard reference for judging it.

Texture may be actual (tactile surface) or implied (drawn marks suggesting surface); both contribute to contrast.

Formal analysis describes what is visible; contextual analysis relates the work to its period, patron, function, and beliefs.

A structured response covers subject matter, formal elements, media and technique, then interpretation and evaluation.

Cubism (c. 1907-1914, Picasso and Braque) fractured form into multiple viewpoints and introduced collage into fine art.

Pop Art (1950s-60s) drew on mass media, advertising, and comic imagery, blurring fine art and commercial design.

The Bauhaus (1919-1933) united craft and industry, and its preliminary course tested material, colour, and form experimentally.

Impressionism (from the 1870s) worked outdoors with broken colour and visible brushwork to record transient light.

Islamic art characteristically uses geometric interlace and arabesque rather than figurative imagery in religious contexts.

African sculptural traditions such as the carved mask influenced early twentieth-century European modernism, a documented cross-cultural borrowing.

A personal response is evidenced by a stated theme, a chosen subject, and decisions traceable to the artist's own observation or experience.

Primary investigation records direct observation; secondary investigation records library, gallery, or online sources with citation.

A visual journal holds thumbnails, studies, annotations, and failed experiments; process evidence outweighs finished outcomes alone.

Artist research is useful when it names a specific technique or formal device and shows how that device was then applied in own work.

Mind mapping around a theme generates strands; selecting and rejecting strands is itself evidence of developing judgement.

Sequential development: each study should alter one variable (media, scale, viewpoint, colour) so the change can be evaluated.

A final outcome should be traceable through the preparatory sheets to the initial brief and the investigated sources.

Reflective annotation answers three questions: what was attempted, what happened, and what will be changed next.