← Visual Arts syllabus

EnglandVisual Arts

Critical and contextual studies

4 dot points across 4 inquiry questions. Click any dot point for a focused answer with worked past exam questions where available.

How do you analyse an artist or artwork beyond simple description?

Analysing artists and artworks using the formal elements and context, moving from description to analysis and critical judgement to inform your own practice.
A focused guide to analysing artists and artworks for AQA A-Level Art and Design: using the formal elements and context to move from description to analysis and critical judgement that informs your own work.
10 min answer →

How do art movements and contexts help you place and use other artists' work?

Understanding art movements, periods and cultural contexts so you can place artists, recognise influences and draw on a wide range of sources for your own practice.
A focused guide to art movements and contexts for AQA A-Level Art and Design: how understanding periods, movements and cultures lets you place artists, trace influences and widen the sources for your own work.
10 min answer →

How do you build the visual vocabulary needed to talk and write about art?

Building a visual vocabulary of formal elements and subject terminology so you can analyse, annotate and write about art with precision.
A focused guide to building a visual vocabulary for AQA A-Level Art and Design: the formal elements and subject terminology you need to analyse, annotate and write about art with precision.
9 min answer →

How do you use galleries, exhibitions and research effectively in your project?

Using galleries, exhibitions and research methods to gather first-hand contextual sources, record responses and feed analysis into your own practice.
A focused guide to using galleries, exhibitions and research for AQA A-Level Art and Design: how to gather first-hand contextual sources, record your responses and feed them into your own analysis and practice.
9 min answer →