ASSEB HSLC Fine Art (E) cheat sheet

Seven elements of art: line, shape, form, value, texture, space, colour; principles organize these elements into compositions.

Line types: contour defines edge, gesture captures movement, hatching and cross-hatching build tone, implied line directs the eye without being drawn.

Shape is flat and two-dimensional (circle, square); form is three-dimensional and encloses volume (sphere, cube, cylinder, cone).

Value is relative lightness or darkness; a value scale of 1-10 runs from black to white, and contrast is the gap between extremes.

Colour element splits into hue (name), value (lightness), and intensity/saturation (purity); texture is actual (tactile) or simulated (visual).

Space: positive space is occupied by subject, negative space is the surrounding area; overlapping, size reduction, placement, and detail loss create depth.

Principles include balance (symmetrical, asymmetrical, radial), contrast, emphasis/focal point, movement, rhythm, pattern, proportion, scale, unity, and variety.

Asymmetrical balance uses unequal visual weights; radial balance radiates from a centre point; emphasis is created by contrast, isolation, convergence, or placement.

Golden ratio is approximately 1:1.618; the rule of thirds divides the picture plane into a 3x3 grid with focal points at intersections.

One-point perspective: one vanishing point on the horizon line; front-facing planes stay true, receding edges converge to that point.

Two-point perspective: two vanishing points on the horizon; vertical edges stay vertical, horizontal edges converge to left or right VP.

Three-point perspective adds a third vanishing point above (bird's-eye) or below (worm's-eye) the horizon for vertical convergence.

Horizon line equals the viewer's eye level; objects above it show their underside, objects below it show their top surface.

Foreshortening compresses forms along the line of sight; overlapping, atmospheric perspective, and diminishing scale reinforce depth.

Shading types: hatching (parallel lines), cross-hatching (crossed lines), stippling (dots), blending, and continuous tone.

Light logic: highlight, mid-tone, core shadow, reflected light, cast shadow; the terminator separates lit from shadow side.

Ellipses in perspective become wider (more open) as the eye level approaches and flatter as it recedes; cylinders and circles follow this rule.

Chiaroscuro is strong light-dark modelling of form; sfumato is soft, hazy blending of edges without hard outlines.

Primary pigments: red, yellow, blue (traditional/RYB); additive light primaries are red, green, blue (RGB); subtractive print primaries are cyan, magenta, yellow (CMY).

Secondary colours mix two primaries: orange, green, violet; tertiary colours mix a primary with an adjacent secondary.

Complementary colours sit opposite on the colour wheel and produce maximum contrast; analogous colours sit adjacent and harmonize.

Split-complementary uses one hue plus the two colours adjacent to its complement; triadic uses three hues evenly spaced on the wheel.

Warm colours (red, orange, yellow) advance visually; cool colours (blue, green, violet) recede; this affects perceived depth.

Value and saturation are independent of hue: a hue can be light or dark and dull or vivid; tints add white, shades add black, tones add grey.

Simultaneous contrast: a colour appears different against different backgrounds; afterimage is the complementary colour perceived after staring.

Colour schemes: monochromatic (one hue plus tints/shades), analogous, complementary, split-complementary, triadic, tetradic.

Local colour is an object's inherent colour; optical colour results from light and atmosphere; in painting, warm light yields cool shadows and vice versa.

Assam's Sualkuchi is a weaving centre known for muga (golden) and pat silk; motifs include the jaapi, gamosa, and floral buta designs.

Jaapi is a conical bamboo-and-cane headgear; the gamosa is a white cloth with red border used as a mark of respect.

Assam's manuscript painting tradition (Hastividyarnava, Bhagavata) uses natural pigments on sanchi bark and handmade paper, with stylized figures.

Madhubani (Mithila) painting from Bihar uses line work, double outlines, and motifs of fish, lotus, and peacocks; traditionally done by women on walls and paper.

Warli painting from Maharashtra uses white rice paste on mud-brown ground with geometric figures (triangle bodies, circle heads) and spiral motifs.

Pattachitra from Odisha uses cloth-based scroll painting with bold outlines and natural colours; Kalamkari from Andhra Pradesh uses pen and vegetable dyes on cloth.

Kalamkari has two styles: Srikalahasti (pen-drawn, narrative) and Machilipatnam (block-printed).

Phad from Rajasthan is a scroll painting tradition depicting folk deities; Gond art from Madhya Pradesh uses dots and lines to fill animal and nature forms.

Tanjore painting from Tamil Nadu uses gold foil, gesso relief, and glass stones; Mysore painting is known for delicate gold work and muted colours.

Indus Valley art: steatite seals, the bronze 'Dancing Girl', terracotta figurines, and the bearded priest-king figure show early modelling skill.

Mauryan period: polished sandstone pillars with animal capitals (Lion Capital at Sarnath); Sanchi stupa railings and toranas carry Jataka narratives.

Buddhist cave art: Ajanta murals (fresco-secco, tempera-like) depict Jataka tales; Ellora spans Buddhist, Hindu, and Jain caves including Kailasa temple.

Gupta period is called the golden age: classical Buddha figures at Sarnath, Mathura school, and refined stone sculpture with serene expression.

Chola bronzes: lost-wax casting; Nataraja as cosmic dancer; temple architecture with gopurams and vimanas in Dravidian style.

Mughal painting: Akbar's court workshops, Basawan and Daswanth; features include fine detail, portraiture, and Persian-derived flat perspective.

Raja Ravi Varma blended European realism with Indian subjects; Bengal School (Abanindranath Tagore) revived wash technique and Indian themes.

Modern movements: Progressive Artists' Group (1947) included F.N. Souza, S.H. Raza, M.F. Husain, and K.H. Ara; they fused modernism with Indian identity.

Amrita Sher-Gil combined post-impressionist colour with Indian village life; Jamini Roy drew on Kalighat folk idioms with bold outlines.

Renaissance (14th-16th c.): linear perspective, anatomy, and humanism; Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Raphael; sfumato and chiaroscuro.

Impressionism (1870s): broken colour, visible brushwork, light effects; Monet, Renoir, Degas, Pissarro; en plein air painting.

Post-Impressionism: Cézanne (structure), Van Gogh (expressive colour and impasto), Gauguin (flat colour, Synthetism), Seurat (pointillism).

Cubism (Picasso, Braque): multiple viewpoints, fragmented forms, analytic then synthetic phases; collage introduced in synthetic phase.

Expressionism (Munch, Kirchner, Kandinsky): emotional distortion of colour and form; Fauvism (Matisse) used non-naturalistic vivid colour.

Surrealism (Dalí, Magritte, Ernst): dream imagery, automatism, juxtaposition of incongruous objects.

Pop Art (Warhol, Lichtenstein, Hamilton): mass-media imagery, screen printing, comic-strip style, consumer culture.

Abstract Expressionism (Pollock, Rothko, de Kooning): action painting, colour field, gestural abstraction; New York became art centre post-1945.

Bauhaus (1919-1933): unified art, craft, and design; Klee, Kandinsky taught; influenced modern typography and functional design.

Watercolour is transparent, uses gum arabic binder, and relies on paper white; wet-on-wet and wet-on-dry are key techniques.

Oil paint uses linseed oil binder, dries slowly allowing blending; impasto is thick application; glazing is thin transparent layers.

Acrylic uses synthetic polymer emulsion, dries fast, can mimic watercolour or oil; it is water-soluble when wet.

Gouache is opaque watercolour with added white or chalk; tempera uses egg yolk binder and dries matte and fast.

Fresco: buon fresco applies pigment to wet lime plaster (permanent); fresco-secco applies to dry plaster (less durable).

Charcoal, graphite, and conte crayon are dry media; fixative prevents smudging; kneaded eraser lifts tone without abrasion.

Printmaking: relief (woodcut, linocut), intaglio (etching, engraving), planographic (lithography), and stencil (screen printing).

Sculpture methods: additive (modelling in clay/wax), subtractive (carving stone/wood), casting (lost-wax bronze), and assemblage/construction.

Canvas preparation uses gesso; supports include canvas, panel, and paper; varnish protects finished oil paintings.

Feldman's four steps of art criticism: description, analysis, interpretation, judgement, in that order.

Description states what is seen (subject, elements); analysis explains how elements and principles are organized; interpretation suggests meaning; judgement evaluates success.

Aesthetics studies the nature of beauty and art; theories include imitationalism (resemblance to reality), formalism (significant form), emotionalism, and instrumentalism.

Formalism judges art by formal qualities (line, colour, composition) rather than subject or emotion.

Contextual criticism considers historical, social, and cultural conditions of production and reception.

Iconography decodes symbols and subject matter; iconology studies their cultural meaning.

Art appreciation distinguishes craft (technical skill) from expression (communicated feeling); both can coexist.

Museum/gallery conventions: label information (artist, title, date, medium), provenance, and attribution affect interpretation.

Semiotics in art reads signs: icon (resemblance), index (causal link), symbol (convention).