AP Art History : AP Art History

Study concepts, example questions & explanations for AP Art History

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Example Questions

Example Question #511 : Ap Art History

Bd hunefer

The Egyptian work of art shown here depicts ___________________.

Possible Answers:

a priest performing a religious ritual

a god creating the world

a man entering the afterlife

a pharaoh being coronated

Correct answer:

a man entering the afterlife

Explanation:

The work of art shown here, known as the Last Judgment of Hu-nefer, depicts the scribe Hu-nefer going through the process of transitioning from life into the afterlife. Specifically, it is contained in a "Book of the Dead" that was intended as a guide for the dead individual to successfully make it through the steps that would ensure a progression through the underworld Duat to becoming an Akh, or blessed spirit.

Image is in the public domain, accessed through Wikipedia Media Commons: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:BD_Hunefer.jpg

Example Question #512 : Ap Art History

Bd hunefer

The production of this text was most likely begun by ______________________.

Possible Answers:

the communal work of an entire group of society

the person with whom it was entombed

the command of the pharaoh for whom the man pictured worked

a professional artist seeking payment

Correct answer:

the person with whom it was entombed

Explanation:

A Book of the Dead, in which this work known as The Last Judgment of Hu-Nefer was contained, was made specifically for the individual with whom it was entombed. In this case, the scribe Hu-Nefer would have made his personal copy before his death to make sure he was well prepared to pass through the afterlife. Although not a pharaoh or even a member of the royal family, Hu-Nefer still could only produce a personal Book of the Dead due to being an important and well-educated member of society.

Image is in the public domain, accessed through Wikipedia Media Commons: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:BD_Hunefer.jpg

Example Question #513 : Ap Art History

This lamassu was placed in the citadel of which king?

625px human headed winged bull profile

Possible Answers:

Hammurabi

Sargon II

Nimrud

Tutankhamen

Shamash

Correct answer:

Sargon II

Explanation:

This lamassu was placed outside the citadel of Sargon II. It dates back to 720-750 B.C.E. in what is today Khorsabad. These lamassus were placed at the gates as guardians and also bore the weight of the gates' arches. (Shamash and Hammurabi were figures in Babylonian history and myth, Tutankhamen was an Egyptian pharaoh, and Nimrud was another city in Assyria.)

Image is in the public domain, accessed through Wikipedia Media Commons: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Human_headed_winged_bull_profile.jpg

Example Question #514 : Ap Art History

Where is this lamassu located now?

625px human headed winged bull profile

Possible Answers:

The Philadelphia Museum of Art, Philadelphia

Museum of Natural History, New York

The Louvre, Paris

The British Museum, London

LACMA, Los Angeles

Correct answer:

The Louvre, Paris

Explanation:

This lamassu is now found at the Louvre in Paris, France. The lamassus are set up to be between an archway, as they would have been set up in King Sargon II's citadel. Some of the other museums mentioned also have Assyrian art on display, but not necessarily lamassus such as this one.

Image is in the public domain, accessed through Wikipedia Media Commons: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Human_headed_winged_bull_profile.jpg

Example Question #1 : 2 D Art In Global Islamic Traditions

Ornate calligraphy and designs featuring words and letters are stylistic features of art from __________.

Possible Answers:

Native American culture

Russian culture

Islamic culture

Sub-Saharan African culture

Correct answer:

Islamic culture

Explanation:

In the Quran, images of all kinds are proscribed, as they are too close to idolatry and attempting to act like God. As such, many Islamic artists focused on geometric shapes and calligraphy in their art. Over time, Islamic art began to be highly ornate and developed around these non-representational images.

Example Question #2 : Analyzing 2 D Art In Global Islamic Traditions

165px-Bichitr_-_Jahangir_Preferring_a_Sufi_Shaikh_to_Kings,_from_the_St._Petersburg_album_-_Google_Art_Project.jpg

In Bichitr’s watercolor painting Jahangir Preferring a Sufi Shaikh to Kings, the artist expresses the emperor’s supremacy over all aspects of Mughal life—both secular and sacred—in which of the following ways?

Possible Answers:

The painting shows no discernible European design elements, a testament to the Mughal court's distaste for Western culture and promotion of Jahangir's personal artistic tastes above all else

Jahangir is pictured as a teacher of his people, instructing them in the humanist tradition

The emperor, ringed in a halo of light and pictured at the center of the sun and moon, is seated above international rulers, the artist, and a representation of time itself

Jahangir is paying his respects to the artist, demonstrating the important court position of painters in the Mughal dynasty and emphasizing the emperor's high degree of cultural refinement and sophistication

The painting includes angels painted in a European style, symbolizing the emperor's dominance over the Judeo-Christian world

Correct answer:

The emperor, ringed in a halo of light and pictured at the center of the sun and moon, is seated above international rulers, the artist, and a representation of time itself

Explanation:

Jahangir is shown as dominant because of his position in the painting-- superior to the artist and rulers from Turkey and England. He passes the Koran to an important Muslim Holy Man, Shaikh Husain, who takes it with reverence. His position at the center of the sun and moon, ringed in a halo of light, and seated atop an hourglass, which symbolizes time, emphasize his eternal importance.

Example Question #2 : Analyzing 2 D Art In Global Islamic Traditions

Which of the following is typically associated with Islamic art?

Possible Answers:

Portraits of Mohammed

Patterns of plants and geometric designs

Images of desert animals

Lunettes

Correct answer:

Patterns of plants and geometric designs

Explanation:

Arabesques, which combine plants and geometric patterns in graceful designs, are a primary feature of Islamic art. Depictions of animals or people are forbidden in sacred buildings. A "lunette" is a semicircle at the end of a cross in early Christian art.

Example Question #2 : 2 D Art In Global Islamic Traditions

Bahram gur kills the wolf 1336.jpg blog

The work of art shown here was initially part of an illuminated manuscript of ___________________.

Possible Answers:

an epic poem

a religious scripture

a law code

an historical record

Correct answer:

an epic poem

Explanation:

The work of art shown here, Bahram Gur fights the Karg, was originally placed in a lengthy illustrated manuscript of the Persian epic poem the Shahnama. Recounting and greatly embellishing the deeds and actions of the real Persian kings from ancient history to the present. This image depicts Bahram Gur, a Persian Sasanian King of the fifth century, fighting a legendary beast, the Karg, also known as a horned wolf, adding to his legend and depiction.

Work is in the public domain, image accessed through Wikipedia Media Commons: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Demotte_Shahname_002.jpg

Example Question #512 : 2 D Art

What form of art was developed by Islamic artists who did not draw living figures because of proscriptions in the Quran?

Possible Answers:

Sculpture

Landscaping

Painting

Calligraphy

Architecture

Correct answer:

Calligraphy

Explanation:

The Quran, the Islamic holy book, made Muslim artists pursue calligraphy for two different but related reasons. Calligraphy was the easiest mode of transmission for the written Quran in the early years of the religion. Additionally, Quranic prohibitions on creating figurative art made many Muslim artists pursue the geometrical and literary art of calligraphy.

Example Question #1 : 2 D Art In Global Islamic Traditions

The earliest style of calligraphy used to copy the Koran is known as __________.

Possible Answers:

Shahadah

Bismallah

Kufic

Hijazi

Correct answer:

Kufic

Explanation:

Kufic calligraphy, easily identifiably by its blockier style, was the first form of calligraphy used by Muslims to transcribe the Koran in the seventh through ninth centuries. Although hardly used today, it is the basis for modern Arabic calligraphy, including those used for the Shahadah, the key creed of Islam, and the Bismillah, the invocation of God's name, which are common themes of Arabic calligraphy. Kufic led to the development of more "cursive" styles of calligraphy like Hijazi and Diwani.

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