Castilla y León PAU History of Art study plan
Castilla y León PAU History of Art · Give each week a clear focus.
8 weeks · About 7 hours per week
Ancient and Classical art (Mesopotamian, Egyptian, Greek, Roman) & Art historical method, terminology, and formal analysis (iconography, technique, function, context)
Build a one-page visual timeline of Mesopotamian, Egyptian, Greek, and Roman art, placing at least 25 representative works in chronological order with approximate dates
Identify and describe the formal conventions of Egyptian canonical sculpture (frontal pose, blocklike mass, hieroglyphic inscription) using three examples you can sketch from memory
Distinguish the Greek Archaic, Severe, Classical, and Hellenistic phases by naming two diagnostic features and two works for each
Apply a four-step formal-analysis routine (identify, describe, analyse, contextualise) to three works from different ancient cultures
Explain the difference between iconography, iconology, technique, and function using one Roman work as a running example
Your checkpoint
A 1,500-word annotated timeline with 25 dated works and a glossary of 20 method terms, each defined in one sentence with an example
Ancient and Classical art (Mesopotamian, Egyptian, Greek, Roman) & Medieval art (Early Christian, Byzantine, Romanesque, Gothic, Islamic art in the Iberian Peninsula)
Compare Greek temple orders (Doric, Ionic, Corinthian) and Roman architectural types (basilica, thermae, amphitheatre, triumphal arch) in a comparative table with six rows
Analyse Roman portrait types (republican verism, imperial idealisation) and explain what each says about political context
Map the transition from Roman to Early Christian art by contrasting one Roman relief or fresco with one catacomb painting and one sarcophagus
Describe the iconography of Christ as Good Shepherd and as Pantocrator and state where each appears
Practise writing a 20-minute exam commentary on a single ancient work without notes
Your checkpoint
A side-by-side comparative table of eight architectural or sculptural works plus one written 400-word practice commentary scored against a self-made rubric
Medieval art (Early Christian, Byzantine, Romanesque, Gothic, Islamic art in the Iberian Peninsula)
Outline the formal and structural features of Byzantine art (gold ground, hieratic scale, inverted perspective) with three dated examples
Identify the parts of a Romanesque church (nave, aisles, transept, apse, ambulatory, tribune) and explain how pilgrimage and monastic reform shaped them
Explain the structural logic of Gothic architecture (pointed arch, rib vault, flying buttress) and trace how it enabled larger windows
Compare Romanesque and Gothic sculpture programmes using a portal as the main example
Describe the distinctive features of Islamic architecture in al-Andalus (horseshoe arch, hypostyle prayer hall, muqarnas, epigraphy) with two monuments
Your checkpoint
A labelled hand-drawn floor plan and section of one Romanesque and one Gothic church, each annotated with at least ten structural or symbolic elements
Medieval art (Early Christian, Byzantine, Romanesque, Gothic, Islamic art in the Iberian Peninsula) & Art historical method, terminology, and formal analysis (iconography, technique, function, context)
Write full commentaries on three works from domain 2 (one Byzantine, one Romanesque or Gothic, one Islamic) in exam format within time limits
Explain how function and patron shape form, using a monastic church, a cathedral, and a mosque
Identify recurring medieval iconographic types (Majestas Domini, Theotokos, Last Judgement, mihrab orientation) and their sources
Self-mark your commentaries against a checklist of identification, description, analysis, context, and terminology
Review and correct the five weakest entries in your glossary from week 1
Your checkpoint
Three timed written commentaries (400-500 words each) with a marked checklist and a list of five specific errors to fix
Renaissance and Mannerism in Europe and Spain & Baroque and Rococo in Europe and Spain
Distinguish Renaissance from Mannerist style by listing five diagnostic features of each and matching them to dated works
Explain linear perspective, chiaroscuro, and sfumato and locate each in a named work
Compare Italian, Spanish, and Northern European Renaissance painting in a table covering colour, patronage, and subject matter
Characterise Baroque art (dynamism, tenebrism, theatrical light, total artwork) with four examples from Italy, Flanders, and Spain
Contrast Spanish Baroque realism (polychrome sculpture, Zurbarán, Velázquez) with Italian and Flemish Baroque, and outline Rococo's decorative vocabulary
Your checkpoint
A comparative essay of 800 words arguing how one formal device (light, perspective, or movement) changes meaning across Renaissance, Mannerist, and Baroque works, with at least six cited works
Baroque and Rococo in Europe and Spain & 19th-century art (Neoclassicism, Romanticism, Realism, Impressionism and Post-Impressionism)
Build a timeline of 19th-century movements (Neoclassicism, Romanticism, Realism, Impressionism, Post-Impressionism) with two works and one defining feature each
Explain how political and social change (revolution, industrialisation, photography, urban life) shaped subject matter in Realism and Impressionism
Compare academic finish with Impressionist facture using two works, and describe Post-Impressionist departures from Impressionism in three artists
Analyse a Spanish 19th-century work (Goya's late work or a history painting) in its political context
Write two 25-minute commentaries on one Baroque and one 19th-century work without notes
Your checkpoint
A 12-work annotated timeline of the 19th century plus two timed commentaries marked against your rubric
20th-century and contemporary art (avant-gardes, modern architecture, postwar movements)
Map the principal avant-gardes (Fauvism, Cubism, Futurism, Expressionism, Dada, Surrealism, abstraction) with dates, key figures, and one work each
Explain Cubism's break with single-point perspective using one analytic and one synthetic example
Describe the formal and ideological premises of early modern architecture (functionalism, new materials, open plan) with two buildings
Outline postwar movements (Abstract Expressionism, Pop Art, minimalism, conceptual art) and what each reacted against
Analyse how a contemporary work uses medium, site, or audience participation to make meaning
Your checkpoint
A one-page movement map (at least ten movements with dates, artists, and defining features) plus a 500-word analysis of one contemporary work
Ancient and Classical art (Mesopotamian, Egyptian, Greek, Roman) & Medieval art (Early Christian, Byzantine, Romanesque, Gothic, Islamic art in the Iberian Peninsula) & Renaissance and Mannerism in Europe and Spain & Baroque and Rococo in Europe and Spain & 19th-century art (Neoclassicism, Romanticism, Realism, Impressionism and Post-Impressionism) & 20th-century and contemporary art (avant-gardes, modern architecture, postwar movements) & Art historical method, terminology, and formal analysis (iconography, technique, function, context)
Sit two full mock exams under timed conditions using only unseen works, and mark them with the official-style criteria you have built
Revisit your error log and rewrite the five weakest commentaries from earlier weeks
Consolidate a one-page summary sheet per domain covering key works, dates, terms, and context
Drill image identification: name, date, style, and one formal feature in under 60 seconds per work
Rehearse a short method statement you can apply to any unseen work in the first five minutes of the exam
Your checkpoint
Two completed timed mock exams with self-marked scores, a corrected error log, and seven one-page domain summary sheets
Milestones
Week 2: You can place 25 ancient works on a timeline and write a 400-word commentary on an unseen ancient work in 25 minutes using the four-step routine
Week 4: You can identify Romanesque, Gothic, Byzantine, and Andalusi Islamic features on sight and score at least 7/10 on your own commentary checklist for three timed medieval commentaries
Week 6: You can distinguish Renaissance, Mannerist, and Baroque works by formal criteria alone and explain one 19th-century movement's social context in 200 words without notes
Week 8: You complete two full timed mock exams, identify unseen works across all six content domains, and can state a method for approaching any new image within five minutes