describe : what do i see?

• landscape, portrait, people, still, animals, religious, historic...
• foreground/background
• time of day, season
• place or setting / inside or outside
• abstract / realistic
• horizontal / vertical
• old vs. modern vs. contemporary
• action - what is going on?
• story?

analyze: how is the work organized?

• elements of art: line, color, value, texture, form, space
• principles of design: contrast, emphasis, rhythm, pattern, movement, balance, unity, repetition
• how do the elements and principles of design work together?
• how does the artist use the elements and principles to get your attention?
• what is the composition?

interpret : what is happening?

• it is about...
• it makes me think about...
• the artist is saying...
• mood and feeling: calm, violent, sad, joyful, angry, hopeful, scared, etc
• the artist wants you to see...
• the artist wants you to think about...
• this reminds me of...
• i want to know...
• if i could ask the artist a question, i would ask...
• what are the symbols, metaphors, meaning and context?
• what is the relationships between all the individual parts of the work?

judge: what do i think about this?

• the best part of the work is...
• the strenghts of the work are...
• the weaknessses of the work are...
• the artist communicates ideas by...
• i learned...
• i like... because...
• i dislike... because...
• i would or wouldn't choose to have this because...
• other people should know about this because...
• this work has survived the test of time because...
• whydo different people see and understand this piece differently?

--

songs

pitch/melody

• does it have a small or wide range?
• is it repetitive?

voices:

• does it sound aggressive, sad, happy, gentle...
• is the melody smooth (legato) or jumpy (staccato)

instruments

• does any instrument dominate the song?
• what instruments can you hear?
• are any instruments using special effects?
• are there any unusual instruments?

rhythm

• regular or irregular? even or dotted? syncopated? repetitive?
• performed by drum kit/percussion, bass or other?
• is it an ostinato?
• is it used to create an ethnic style?

tempo

• is it steady or changing?
• how fast is the beat?

dynamics

• is the volume consistent throughout?
• if the volume changes, where does it change?
• does the drop in dynamics add to the interpretation of the song?

texture

• is it a thin or thick texture?
• monophonic, homophonic, polyphonic
• does the texture change during the song?