MATSEC IM Art cheat sheet

The four formal elements of visual analysis are line, shape/form, colour and texture; tone, space and scale are treated as supporting elements in Maltese marking schemes.

Colour theory: primary pigments are red, yellow and blue; mixing two primaries gives a secondary (orange, green, violet); mixing a primary with its adjacent secondary gives a tertiary.

Complementary pairs sit opposite on the colour wheel (red–green, blue–orange, yellow–violet) and produce maximum contrast and neutralised greys when mixed.

Tonal value is judged on a scale from white (highest) to black (lowest); a work is described as high-key when most values sit near white, low-key when most sit near black.

Linear perspective: parallel lines receding to a vanishing point converge on the eye level (horizon line); one-point, two-point and three-point systems differ only in the number of vanishing points.

Composition vocabulary: focal point, rule of thirds, leading lines, foreground/middle ground/background, negative space, and the balance terms symmetrical, asymmetrical and radial.

Drawing media are classified as dry (graphite, charcoal, pastel, conte) or wet (ink, wash, watercolour); fixative is used on dry friable media such as charcoal and soft pastel.

Printmaking is distinguished by process: relief (linocut, woodcut) cuts away non-printing areas; intaglio (etching, drypoint) holds ink in incised lines; planographic (lithography, monotype) prints from a flat surface.

A sustained observational study is built in stages: light construction lines, blocking of major shapes, tonal mapping, then refinement of edges and detail.

Sketchbook evidence for coursework is assessed on quantity, annotation and progression: dated entries, thumbnails, colour notes and records of failed attempts all count as evidence of process.

Safe studio practice: solvent-based media require ventilation; spray fixative is applied at arm's length in a ventilated area; oil-based rags are stored in a sealed metal container to prevent spontaneous combustion.

When comparing two artworks in a written answer, the standard structure is subject matter, formal analysis, technique/medium, then context (artist, date, movement) and personal judgement.

Maltese art-historical reference points include the neolithic temple carvings and figurines, the Baroque altarpieces of Mattia Preti in Valletta, and the twentieth-century modernists associated with the Atelier group.

A written art response is marked for subject-specific vocabulary, evidence drawn from the work itself, and coherent structure - unsupported opinion without visual evidence loses marks.

Time-based examination strategy: divide the allotted time proportionally across preparatory studies, the resolved final piece, and any written annotation, and keep the final piece within the stated size limits.

A final piece is judged on resolution: whether the chosen media, scale and composition carry the stated intention, not on the number of hours spent.