how to write an art history essay

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Resources – how to write an art history paper, introduction to the topic.

There are many different types of assignments you might be asked to do in an art history class. The most common are a formal analysis and a stylistic analysis. Stylistic analyses often involve offering a comparison between two different works. One of the challenges of art history writing is that it requires a vocabulary to describe what you see when you look at a painting, drawing, sculpture or other media. This checklist is designed to explore questions that will help you write these types of art history papers.

Features of An Art History Analysis Paper

Features of a formal analysis paper.

This type of paper involves looking at compositional elements of an object such as color, line, medium, scale, and texture. The goal of this kind of assignment it to demonstrate how these elements work together to produce the whole art object. When writing a formal analysis, ask yourself:

• What is the first element of the work that the audience’s eye captures?
• What materials were used to create the object?
• What colors and textures did the artist employ?
• How do these function together to give the object its overall aesthetic look?

Tips on Formal Analysis

• Describe the piece as if your audience has not seen it.
• Be detailed.
• The primary focus should be on description rather than interpretation.

Features of a Stylistic / Comparative Analysis

Similar to a formal analysis, a stylistic analysis asks you to discuss a work in relation to its stylistic period (Impressionism, Fauvism, High Renaissance, etc.). These papers often involve a comparative element (such as comparing a statue from Early Antiquity to Late Antiquity). When writing a stylistic analysis, ask yourself:

• How does this work fit the style of its historical period? How does it depart from the typical style?
• What is the social and historical context of the work? When was it completed?
• Who was the artist? Who commissioned it? What does it depict?
• How is this work different from other works of the same subject matter?
• How have the conventions (formal elements) for this type of work changed over time?

Tips for Stylistic and Comparative Analysis

• In a comparison, make a list of similarities and differences between the two works. Try to establish what changes in the art world may account for the differences.
• Integrate discussions of formal elements into your stylistic analysis.
• This type of paper can involve more interpretation than a basic formal analysis.
• Focus on context and larger trends in art history.

A Quick Practice Exercise...

Practice - what is wrong with these sentences.

The key to writing a good art history paper involves relating the formal elements of a piece to its historical context.  Can you spot the errors in these sentences? What would make the sentences better?

• “Courbet’s The Stone Breakers  is a good painting because he uses texture.”
• “Duchamp’s work is in the Dada style while Dali’s is Surrealist.”
• “Pope Julius II commissioned the work.”
• “Gauguin uses color to draw in the viewer’s eye.”

Answers for Practice Sentences

• Better: “Courbet’s  The Stone Breakers  is a radical painting because the artist used a palette knife to create a rough texture on the surface.”
• Better: “The use of everyday objects in Duchamp’s work reflects the Dada style while Dali’s incorporation of absurd images into his work demonstrates a Surrealist style.”
• Better: “In 1505, Pope Julius II commissioned the sculpture for his tomb.”
• Better: “The first element a viewer notices is the bold blue of the sky in Gauguin’s painting.”

Adapted by Ann Bruton, with the help of Isaac Alpert, From:

The Writing Center at UNC Handouts ( http://writingcenter.unc.edu/handouts/art-history/ )

The Writing Center at Hamilton College ( http://www.hamilton.edu/writing/writing-resources/writing-an-art-history-paper ) 

Click here to return to the “Writing Place Resources” main page.

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• Cite Sources UT Austin Guide Learn more about what citations are and how to manage them. Includes information about citation tools like Noodle Tools and Zotero.
• UT Austin University Writing Center A resource for help with your writing. The Writing Center includes one on one consultations as well as classes.
• OWL Purdue - Chicago Style The OWL Purdue is a great resource for writing and citation help. Chicago Style is the preferred citation format for art history. The OWL also includes citation help for other styles include APA and MLA.

Writing Aids and Publication Manuals

Write about Art

• Last Updated: Oct 20, 2023 7:31 AM
• URL: https://guides.lib.utexas.edu/art

Purdue Online Writing Lab Purdue OWL® College of Liberal Arts

Writing in Art History

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Copyright ©1995-2018 by The Writing Lab & The OWL at Purdue and Purdue University. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, reproduced, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without permission. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our terms and conditions of fair use.

These OWL resources provide guidance on typical genres with the art history discipline that may appear in professional settings or academic assignments, including museum catalog entries, museum title cards, art history analysis, notetaking, and art history exams.

The following resource includes writing strategies for anyone within the art history discipline. Many of these sources pertain to assignments that students might face either at the introductory level or in intermediate art history or museum studies courses. This resource provides sources on how to write a museum catalog entry, how to write a museum title card, art history formal and stylistic analysis, studying iconography, compare and contrast essay, taking notes, citing art, and preparing for an exam, as well as academic sources for anyone in the art history discipline.

In this section

Art History Writing Guide

I. Introduction II. Writing Assignments III. Discipline-Specific Strategies IV. Keep in Mind V. Appendix

Introduction

At the heart of every art history paper is a close visual analysis of at least one work of art. In art history you are building an argument about something visual. Depending on the assignment, this analysis may be the basis for an assignment or incorporated into a paper as support to contextualize an argument. To guide students in how to write an art history paper, the Art History Department suggests that you begin with a visual observation that leads to the development of an interpretive thesis/argument. The writing uses visual observations as evidence to support an argument about the art that is being analyzed.

Writing Assignments

You will be expected to write several different kinds of art history papers. They include:

• Close Visual Analysis Essays
• Close Visual Analysis in dialogue with scholarly essays
• Research Papers

Close Visual Analysis pieces are the most commonly written papers in an introductory art history course. You will have to look at a work of art and analyze it in its entirety. The analysis and discussion should provide a clearly articulated interpretation of the object. Your argument for this paper should be backed up with careful description and analysis of the visual evidence that led you to your conclusion.

Close Visual Analysis in dialogue with scholarly essays combines formal analysis with close textual analysis.

Research papers range from theoretic studies to critical histories. Based on library research, students are asked to synthesize analyses of the scholarship in relation to the work upon which it is based.

Discipline-Specific Strategies

As with all writing assignment, a close visual analysis is a process. The work you do before you actually start writing can be just as important as what you consider when writing up your analysis.

Conducting the analysis :

• Ask questions as you are studying the artwork. Consider, for example, how does each element of the artwork contribute to the work's overall meaning. How do you know? How do elements relate to each other? What effect is produced by their juxtaposition
• Use the criteria provided by your professor to complete your analysis. This criteria may include forms, space, composition, line, color, light, texture, physical characteristics, and expressive content.

Writing the analysis:

• Develop a strong interpretive thesis about what you think is the overall effect or meaning of the image.
• Ground your argument in direct and specific references to the work of art itself.
• Describe the image in specific terms and with the criteria that you used for the analysis. For example, a stray diagonal from the upper left corner leads the eye to...
• Create an introduction that sets the stage for your paper by briefly describing the image you are analyzing and by stating your thesis.
• Explain how the elements work together to create an overall effect. Try not to just list the elements, but rather explain how they lead to or support your analysis.
• Contextualize the image within a historical and cultural framework only when required for an assignment. Some assignments actually prefer that you do not do this. Remember not to rely on secondary sources for formal analysis. The goal is to see what in the image led to your analysis; therefore, you will not need secondary sources in this analysis. Be certain to show how each detail supports your argument.
• Include only the elements needed to explain and support your analysis. You do not need to include everything you saw since this excess information may detract from your main argument.

Keep in Mind

• An art history paper has an argument that needs to be supported with elements from the image being analyzed.
• Avoid making grand claims. For example, saying "The artist wanted..." is different from "The warm palette evokes..." The first phrasing necessitates proof of the artist's intent, as opposed to the effect of the image.
• Make sure that your paper isn't just description. You should choose details that illustrate your central ideas and further the purpose of your paper.

If you find you are still having trouble writing your art history paper, please speak to your professor, and feel free to make an appointment at the Writing Center. For further reading, see Sylvan Barnet's A Short Guide to Writing about Art , 5th edition.

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Howe Writing Center

Writing in art history.

This guide provides a brief introduction to writing in the field of art history through the lens of threshold concepts. It includes:

• A statement of threshold concepts in art history

“So you’re taking an art history course”: A Description of Writing Characteristics Valued in Art History

• “This is how we write and do research in art history”: Resources for Writers

A Statement of Threshold Concepts in Art History

“Seeing comes before words, the child looks and recognizes before it can speak.” (John Berger, Ways of Seeing )

“Seeing establishes our place in the world.” (John Berger, Ways of Seeing )

“We do not explain pictures: we explain remarks about pictures.” (Michael Baxandall, Patterns of Intention )

Threshold Concept #1: Connections between Looking and Writing

The statement: It is not easy to write what you see. If seeing establishes our place in the world, art history is a tool to make sense of the visual world in which we all live.

What this means for our students: Looking well is a time-intensive and skilled practice. Visual information is not self-evident, and writing about what is seen involves thinking about how and why visual information is understood in a particular way.

Where/how we teach this Threshold Concept : Visual analysis assignment in ART 285; Short essays in 100-level courses. Writing about and describing what is seen is also modeled in class examples and discussions.

Threshold Concept #2: Context Matters

The statement: All art is conditioned by historical and cultural circumstances. Art history endeavors to understand these circumstances or contexts in order to explain the crucial role art occupies in humanity. The contexts that produced the work of art help art historians contextualize why art matters.

What this means for students: Art is never understood by its visual appearance or form alone. The goal of art history is to place a work of art within its historic, religious, political, economic, and aesthetic contexts. Students should also understand that various contexts do not stand on their own, but usually overlap. Only by unpacking the circumstances that give rise to a work of art is one able to communicate how art matters and how its meanings change through time and place.      

Where/how we teach this Threshold Concept: 100-level courses engage with this concept while upper-level courses provide students with practical applications through the execution of research and writing assignments.

Threshold Concept #3: Frames of interpretation

The statement: Art historical writing involves multiple frames of interpretation and—perhaps more importantly—the ability to hold multiple frames in suspension at the same time while producing an original argument. While there is no one “right” interpretation of a work of art, there are interpretations and scholarly arguments that have more quality or staying power than others. (See below for examples of quality art historical arguments)

What this means for students: Research done in preparation for writing is framed not only as a search for facts to be relayed to the reader through writing, but also as discourses of interpretation within which the writer seeks to interject. This kind of writing involves a conversation with artworks, contexts, and prior interpretations and scholarship in service of an original argument.

Where/how we teach this Threshold Concept: Research papers in upper level courses, at the end of Art 285 and the Art 480 seminar, and as part of the capstone project and honors theses ideally move students through this threshold. Being able to do this involves building upon awareness and skills gained in Threshold Concepts 1 and 2.

Art history is rooted in the study of visual, performed, and material expression. Goals for our work include interpretation, producing frameworks, narratives, and histories to understand the human experience and condition, and the expansion of what is considered “art”. We want you to know that there are some key things that we value in our field. We value the complexity of seeing and the diversity of different ways of seeing . We tend not to value or prioritize subjective opinion and unsubstantiated claims.

What is considered effective or good writing in our field varies by genre and purpose, but overall we expect to see:

• a direct address of the subject or work of art.
• an interpretive analysis of a work of art backed by research from credible sources.
• engagement with significant interpretive and theoretical frameworks.

Writers in our field must provide evidence for their claims. We understand evidence to include:

• Formal analysis. Formal analysis is the description of the visual and material features of an object to support an argument. It can include a consideration of color, line, size, weight, form, shape, depth. Formal analysis is often a place to generate questions for research.
• Biographical records or artists’ statements
• Archival records
• Ethnographic data
• Historical events
• Significant secondary literature
• Adjacent artistic and cultural production (music, literature, theatre, etc.)

Writers in our field seem credible when they:

• Address current and historical debates about the interpretation of a topic
• Demonstrate an awareness of the historical and cultural context of a topic
• Cite credible sources accurately. Credible sources include peer-reviewed journals, books, or websites from reputable institutions and organizations.
• For more information on citing sources accurately, see the “ Quick Guide to Citations for Art Historical Writing ”

This is how we write and do research in Art History

Art historical writing is about analyzing works of art to make a point or argument. Not every student in our classes needs to be able to write in the professional way of the field. However, depending on the reasons for taking our courses, we want students to become proficient and comfortable with analyzing art and the important place writing occupies in that process. Students taking an art history course should expect to write in the following genres:

• research papers
• exhibition reviews/evaluations
• book reviews
• visual analyses
• reading reflection/canvas posts
• museum labels
• essay exams

Writing goals and outcomes are different depending on the level of the course. For example:

• Undergraduates taking Miami Plan (100-level) or elective courses should recognize the relationship between how to develop a thesis and employ visual evidence in support of that thesis. Such a skill is undoubtedly useful for all students since looking closely coupled with the ability to make sense of what one sees are crucial for many other kinds of writing and ways of thinking. We argue the complexity and diversity of “looking deeply” is too often taken for granted in the visual world in which we live. In 100-level classes, students start to become familiar with how to write and think about art.
• Undergraduates majoring in our field should recognize that art historical writing is approached as a conversation or dialogue. As students progress through the major, being able to place a topic and research paper within previous published and ongoing debates is crucial. In other words, students should start to understand that writing in Art History is about creating a dialog between one’s ideas and the sources the student engages. We also want our students to understand the value of inserting their own voice when writing. Over time, majors will need to become skilled at synthesizing their ideas and arguments with original research. This very process is how objects tell us something distinctive about their historical context and their value within human history.  

Resources for Art History Writers

The following resources were developed by Miami University Art History faculty with their undergraduate students in mind:

• Revision and the Writing Process
• Locating and Engaging Credible Sources
• Quick Guide to Citations for Art Historical Writing
• Annotated Sample Paper: Art 188: History of Western Art (Renaissance to Modern)
• Annotated Sample Paper: Read, Look, Reflect Essay on Michelangelo’s Sonnets & Awakening Slave

This guide was co-created by HCWE graduate assistant director Caitlin Martin and Art History faculty Dr. Annie Dell’Aria, Dr. Jordan Fenton, and Dr. Pepper Stetler.

ARTS - Herzberg: Writing Essays About Art

• Art History
• Current Artists and Events
• Local Art Venues
• Video and Image Resources
• Writing Essays About Art
• Citation Help

What is a Compare and Contrast Essay?

What is a compare / contrast essay.

In Art History and Appreciation, contrast / compare essays allow us to examine the features of two or more artworks.

• Comparison -- points out similarities in the two artworks
• Contrast -- points out the differences in the two artworks

Why would you want to write this type of essay?

• To inform your reader about characteristics of each art piece.
• To show a relationship between different works of art.
• To give your reader an insight into the process of artistic invention.
• Use your assignment sheet from your class to find specific characteristics that your professor wants you to compare.

How is Writing a Compare / Contrast Essay in Art History Different from Other Subjects?

You should use art vocabulary to describe your subjects..

• Find art terms in your textbook or an art glossary or dictionary

You should have an image of the works you are writing about in front of you while you are writing your essay.

• The images should be of  high enough quality that you can see the small details of the works. 
• You will use them when describing visual details of each art work.

Works of art are highly influenced by the culture, historical time period and movement in which they were created.

• You should gather information about these BEFORE you start writing your essay.

If you describe a characteristic of one piece of art, you must describe how the OTHER piece of art treats that characteristic.

Example:  You are comparing a Greek amphora with a sculpture from the Tang Dynasty in China.

If you point out that the color palette of the amphora is limited to black, white and red, you must also write about the colors used in the horse sculpture.

Organizing Your Essay

Thesis statement.

The thesis for a comparison/contrast essay will present the subjects under consideration and indicate whether the focus will be on their similarities, on their differences, or both.

Thesis example using the amphora and horse sculpture -- Differences:

While they are both made from clay, the Greek amphora and the Tang Dynasty horse served completely different functions in their respective cultures.

Thesis example -- Similarities:

Ancient Greek and Tang Dynasty ceramics have more in common than most people realize.

Thesis example -- Both:

The Greek amphora and the Tang Dynasty horse were used in different ways in different parts of the world, but they have similarities that may  not be apparent to the casual viewer.

Visualizing a Compare & Contrast Essay: 

Introduction (1-2 paragraphs) .

• Creates interest in your essay
• Introduces the two art works that you will be comparing.
• States your thesis, which mentions the art works you are considering and may indicate whether the focus will be on similarities, differences, or both. 

Body paragraphs 

• Make and explain a point about the first subject and then about the second subject 
• Example: While both superheroes fight crime, their motivation is vastly different. Superman is an idealist, who fights for justice …… while Batman is out for vengeance. 

Conclusion (1-2 paragraphs) 

• Provides a satisfying finish 
• Leaves your reader with a strong final impression. 

Downloadable Essay Guide

• How to Write a Compare and Contrast Essay in Art History Downloadable version of the description on this LibGuide.

Questions to Ask Yourself After You Have Finished Your Essay

• Are all the important points of comparison or contrast included and explained in enough detail?
• Have you addressed all points that your professor specified in your assignment?
• Do you use transitions to connect your arguments so that your essay flows into a coherent whole, rather than just a random collection of statements?
• Do your arguments support your thesis statement?

Art Terminology

• British National Gallery: Art Glossary Includes entries on artists, art movements, techniques, etc.

Lee College Writing Center

Writing Center tutors can help you with any writing assignment for any class from the time you receive the assignment instructions until you turn it in, including:

• Brainstorming ideas
• MLA / APA formats
• Grammar and paragraph unity
• Thesis statements
• Second set of eyes before turning in

Contact a tutor:

• Phone: 281-425-6534
• Email:  w [email protected]
• Schedule a web appointment: https://lee.mywconline.com/

Other Compare / Contrast Writing Resources

• Southwestern University Guide for Writing About Art This easy to follow guide explains the basic of writing an art history paper.
• Purdue Online Writing Center: writing essays in art history Describes how to write an art history Compare and Contrast paper.
• Stanford University: a brief guide to writing in art history See page 24 of this document for an explanation of how to write a compare and contrast essay in art history.
• Duke University: writing about paintings Downloadable handout provides an overview of areas you should cover when you write about paintings, including a list of questions your essay should answer.
• << Previous: Video and Image Resources
• Next: Citation Help >>
• Last Updated: Jun 19, 2023 4:30 PM
• URL: https://lee.libguides.com/Arts_Herzberg

Tips for Writing an Art History Paper

Hero Images/Getty Images

• Art History
• Architecture
• Ph.D., Art History, City University of New York Graduate Center
• M.A., Art History, State University of New York at Binghamton
• B.A., Art History, State University of New York at Binghamton

You have been assigned an art history paper to write. You would like to finish your assignment on time with a minimum of stress, and your instructor fervently hopes to read an engaging, well-written paper. Here are some dos and don'ts to guide you, written by an art history professor who has graded thousands of these papers ranging from the superlative to the good, the bad and the phenomenally ugly.

Choose a Topic You Love

• Look through an art history book, slowly and leisurely.
• Look through our list of art history topics for ideas. Good starting points are our lists of movements , artists' bios, and image galleries .
• Pick a topic based on eye appeal and compelling personal interest.

Fill Your Brain with Information

• Remember: a car works on gas, a brain works on info. Empty brain, empty writing.
• Research your topic using websites, books, and articles.
• Read the footnotes in the books and articles - they can lead to creative thinking.

Be an Active Reader

• Ask yourself questions while you read and look up what you can't find or don't understand on the page.
• Take notes.
• Search the internet with the words, names, titles you learn.
• Write down interesting facts and thoughts that come to mind while you read.

Writing Your Introduction

• Compose a thesis statement. Declare that you have noticed something about the art, building, artist, architect, critic, patron, or whatever your focus is for your analysis.
• Then, "frame" your thesis. Tell your reader about discovering information that can help us understand the work of art/building better. (For example, the French artist Paul Gauguin moved to Tahiti late in life. Your thesis analyzes his late paintings in terms of his Tahiti lifestyle. You've read his biography, Noa, Noa and other sources for ideas to support your thesis.)
• If you are focusing on artworks, remember to put the artist's name/artists' names, the title(s) of the work(s) and the date (s) in the first paragraph. You can refer to the title(s) alone thereafter.

Describe and Point Out What You Want the Reader to Notice

• If you are going to include the artist's/architect's biography, begin with a short summary. Unless your paper is a biography of the person, most of your paper should be about art, not life.
• Make sure your arguments are constructed in a parallel fashion: Establish a sequence of information.
• Consider the paragraph a unit of information. Each paragraph should discuss one topic within the quantity of information you plan to cover.
• Ideas for units of information or topics: appearance, medium and technique, narrative, iconography, history, artist's biography, patronage, etc. - whatever will help you support your thesis.
• Iconography might require more than one paragraph, especially if your whole paper is about analyzing the iconography of a work of art.
• Write about the connections between what you described in these analyses and what you declared in the thesis statement
• Follow the same sequence of ideas for the second artwork, building, artist, architect, critic, patron, etc.
• Follow the same sequence for the third artwork, building, artist, architect, etc.
• When you have analyzed all the examples, synthesize: compare and contrast .
• Comparison: Dedicate one paragraph to discussing what is the same about the artworks, the building, the architects, the artists, the critics, the patrons, etc.
• Contrast: Dedicate one paragraph to discussing what is different about the artworks, the building, the architects, the artists, the critics, the patrons, etc.

What Do You Want Your Reader to Learn from Your Essay?

• Reiterate the thesis.
• Remind your reader about your findings in a summary sentence or two.
• Persuade the reader that you have demonstrated that your thesis is soundly based on your findings.
• Optional: state that your analysis is important in terms of understanding a larger picture (but not too large). For examples, the artist's other work from that period, the artist's work all together, the artwork's relationship to the movement or the artwork's relationship to that moment in history. The connection should not open a new topic, but simply offer the reader food for thought and then declare this investigation is beyond the scope of your paper. (It demonstrates that you thought of it, but you're not going to go there.)
• DO NOT write that art history is wonderful and you've learned a lot. You are writing to your teacher, and s/he is tired of reading that sentence for the umpteenth time. Leave a good impression and avoid being trite.
• Be sure to footnote/cite your sources in the body of the paper when you use information or an opinion from a book, article, website, etc.
• Make a list of your sources at the end of the paper. Follow your teacher's instructions and/or visit a website on citation style or bibliography style. Ask the teacher which citation style s/he prefers.
• Titles for works of art should be in italics: The Birth of Venus
• First and last names begin with a capital letter. Exceptions include place and familial indicators including "da," "del," "de," "den" and "van," among others, unless the last name begins the sentence. ("Van Gogh lived in Paris.")
• Months and days of the week begin with a capital letter.
• Language, nationalities and country names begin with a capital letter.
• Leonardo is not called da Vinci .
• Do not wait until the last minute to begin your essay.
• Start your research after midterms.
• Start to write at least one week before the paper is due.
• Take the time to EDIT, EDIT, EDIT - be concise and clear.
• Ask your professor for help and advice as you write your paper - s/he will enjoy discussing the topic with you.
• How to Write a Research Paper That Earns an A
• How to Write a Solid Thesis Statement
• 10 Tips for Art History Students
• How to Write a Good Thesis Statement
• An Introduction to Academic Writing
• The Introductory Paragraph: Start Your Paper Off Right
• What Is Expository Writing?
• How to Help Your 4th Grader Write a Biography
• Formatting Papers in Chicago Style
• Tips on How to Write an Argumentative Essay
• Writing a Paper about an Environmental Issue
• Definition and Examples of Analysis in Composition
• The Five Steps of Writing an Essay
• Write an Attention-Grabbing Opening Sentence for an Essay
• 10 Topic Ideas for Art History Papers
• How To Write an Essay

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How to write art history

Available online, at the library.

Art & Architecture Library (Bowes)

More options.

• Find it at other libraries via WorldCat
• Contributors

Description

Creators/contributors, contents/summary.

• Introduction: How to use this book
• Chapter 1: Introducing art history
• Chapter 2: Formal analysis
• Chapter 3: Contextual analysis
• Chapter 4: Writing art history essays and papers
• Chapter 5: Navigating art history examinations
• Chapter 6: Art history's own history Glossary Bibliography Table of parallel illustrations in art history surveys Index Picture credits.
• (source: Nielsen Book Data)

Art History Resources

• Guidelines for Analysis of Art

Formal Analysis Paper Examples

• Guidelines for Writing Art History Research Papers
• Oral Report Guidelines
• Annual Arkansas College Art History Symposium

Formal Analysis Paper Example 1

Formal Analysis Paper Example 2

Formal Analysis Paper Example 3

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