Fine Arts Graduate Program - Core Examination Questions

Core Examination Sample Questions

The core examination is designed to test the student’s general understanding of concepts and materials implicit in the program of core courses (minor). The goal is to demonstrate an ability to relate general issues and concerns common to all the arts.

THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS REPRESENT THE TYPES OF ISSUES
ASSIGNED BY EXAMINATION COMMITTEES
DURING THE PAST
YEARS. (most recent questions are listed first).

Theatre directors occupy a curious position. On the one hand, the director is an interpreter of a text – namely, the play’s script – and as such is forced to consider the sorts of questions that arise for all interpreters: To what extent does the meaning of the text depend on the author’s actual intentions? Is the meaning of a text something that awaits discovery, or is meaning constructed by the interpreter?

On the other hand, the director is a creator (or co-creator) of works of art – stage performances. (Compare: a movie projectionist, who does not create works of art.) The director’s choices for a performance, then, are at once acts of interpretation (of the play’s script) and acts that are themselves evaluable from the aesthetic point of view; the eventual performance is at once the responsibility of the director and the playwright. (Not to mention the contribution of the producers, the actors, and the myriad other forces that contribute to the eventual production of a performance.)

What is the director’s responsibility vis-à-vis the play’s script? Are the author’s intentions to be respected? To what extent? How and to what extent does a play’s script constrain performances of it? Who, if anyone, is ultimately responsible for a performance? How are theatre directors different, in this regard, from other sorts of artists – painters, novelists, musicians?

Discuss the notion that art defines culture. How can art be used to help people experience and come to an understanding of the world? Does knowing about art, or doing art help a person learn about the world, or refine skills that are useful in functioning in the world? In your response, address both contemporary and one historical culture, including music, philosophy, theatre, and visual art (excluding film and TV) in your discussion.

What subjects are essential to a primary school education? Incontrovertibly, English, mathematics, and science (say), but it is not obvious to most that music belongs on this list. And while literacy is incontrovertibly crucial in a person’s education, music literacy (i.e. the ability to read and write music notation) is not. Zoltan Kodály, for one, maintained that, on the contrary, an education in music is the right of every student, and that a successful musical education is part of a complete spiritual and intellectual life.

Does music belong on such a list of essential subjects? Suppose that it does; what explains the importance of music education? What does an education in music teach one, other than how to create music? And what sort of music curriculum (if not the sort that is currently common) would warrant taking music as seriously as these other subjects?

Visual art and theatre, as much as music, are ‘inessential’ subjects in primary schools. (And certainly both are ‘inessential’ in high schools and colleges, inasmuch as they are not required subjects.) If there is currently a neglect of music education (and a neglect of a certain sort), is there a similar neglect of visual art and theatre education (and a neglect of the same sort)? Do Kodály’s claims about music (or yours, in reply to the questions above) apply, mutatis mutandis, to the visual arts and to theatre?

Certain critics of the current movie "Crash" have argued that the film is flawed because, in its concern with making a point, it hits the viewer over the head with its message; in some sense, it tells you what to feel rather than just having you experience the relevant feelings in some more authentic manner. Setting aside the question of assessing that particular film, consider the distinction between the different ways artworks have of communicating emotional qualities. (Some philosophers have, for example, tried to draw significant distinctions between expressing, betraying, evoking, and describing an emotion or such distinctions? Does it make sense at all, for example, to say that some modes of emotional communication are artistically superior (or better suited to particular art forms) than others? Why or why not?

Examining illustrations from visual art, music, and theatre, discuss emotive communication in the arts, and the question of whether there may be salient differences in such communication between the various arts.

While most people in the arts feel that federal or state funding for the arts is appropriate, and that such funding agencies often support programs of advocacy and education which help shape cultural policy, there are those who are opposed to such programs. Those who are opposed to federal or state funding often feel that the private sector should fund the arts and be advocates for artistic endeavors.

Discuss those areas of advocacy, policy, or education that are appropriate to government support and those that might more properly seek support in the private sector. Identify at least one program from each side of the problem that illuminates your position. Is it possible for the arts to exist in early 21st century society without some form of governmental support? If art does, indeed, define a society, why is external support necessary? Be sure to include visual arts, theatre, music and philosophy in your discussion.

Some assert that racism and sexism continue to be major problems in the arts. Give us a brief overview of the history of black women in the arts, i.e., how we got to this point. Determine the extent to which racism and sexism constitute contemporary issues for the arts. Are racism and sexism simply ethical and/or political problems, or are they distinctively artistic problems as well? Do race and sex challenge contemporary aesthetic principles? If so, how do they do this? Suggest changes and offer plans for creating those changes. Don't hesitate to refer to your own experiences, but provide, in addition, a logical rationale for a discussion incorporating art, music, philosophy, and theatre.

Theatregoing, in short, is one of a dwindling group of activities that bring Americans into communication with each other; it is, therefore, an enterprise that preserves some vestige of belief in the possibilities of society, if not of communion. It may also be one of the last remaining shreds of evidence that we are a people, and not just an isolated mass of frightened fantasists, barricaded in our homes, seeking safety from a sinister and threatening external world.

To my question, “Who needs theatre?”, then, I would reply, we all do – not for its superior aesthetic qualities, which it reveals so rarely, certainly not for its comfort or convenience, not even for its capacity to move forward in space and time in a culture of canned images, but because it represents social history in the making, both on the stage and in the audience. It signifies that community we have forsaken, the accidents and risks we would rather avoid, the sweat and gristle we prefer to disguise, the labor of humans working against odds.

--Robert Brustein, Who Needs Theatre:
Dramatic Opinions. New York, 1987. 4.

How do the arts foster communication? Is that communication one-on-one – uniquely between the artist and the spectator – or is it plural: between the artist and the entire audience? Is communication among the audience a significant phenomenon? Is one of art’s central functions to reinforce society and its norms? Alternatively, should art have some other relationship to societal norms – for example, to criticize and challenge it?
In your response, include specific examples from music, the visual arts, and theatre, making reference to ideas from philosophical aesthetics.

During the period between 1865 to 1935 (the end of the civil War to the end of the Harlem Renaissance), African-American arts gradually emerged into the awareness of “mainstream” Americans. In many instances, when they came into contact with commercialism at the turn of the 20th century, African American arts were taken over and controlled.

With an example of each, explore this phenomenon in music, theater, and visual art. Consider, also, whether philosophies of art extant during that era facilitated or created resistance to a greater awareness of African-American arts.

In what ways did commercial forces, art criticism, and philosophical positions affect African-American artists in terms of their artistic decisions and productions in this period?

Barnett Newman (the abstract expressionist artist) famously said "Aesthetics is for the artists like ornithology is for the birds."

Arthur Danto (who dabbled in abstract expressionism himself, apparently), art critic and philosopher, insisted that in the late 20th century art was sometimes almost indistinguishable from philosophy, and that in any case aesthetic theory was absolutely essential to the practice and understanding of art in this period. What do you take to be the proper relation between art theory (philosophical aesthetics) and the practice of art? Is what philosophers study and argue and propose at all relevant to the activity of artists? Is it relevant to the activity of art critics, or to others engaged in the practical aspects of the institution of art? Why might one think so (with Danto, perhaps)? Why might one think not?

In your assessment, examine arguments on both sides of this question and be sure to draw on illustrations from the various arts of theatre, music, and visual art.

Artmaking is such a widespread activity among members of our species that it has often been characterized as natural--a universal (or almost universal) product of human nature and evolution. But many forms of contemporary art seem hard to make sense of from such a perspective. Much contemporary art seems highly theoretical. Its comprehension and appreciation appear to require the possession of a substantive body of theoretical knowledge. And even apparently non-theoretical contemporary art often seems to call for understanding in terms of a rich body of art history and art theory. Can this be squared with the putatively natural and universal character of art? If so, how? Or should we reject the idea that artmaking is a natural activity?

Make sure you address the visual, performing, and musical arts as well as philosophy.

Many theorists have thought that there are important distinctions to be made between fine art on the one hand and popular art or mass art on the other. Opposing theorists have dismissed the attempt to distinguish these categories. Are there significant distinctions to be made between these categories? More specifically, are there differences between these categories that are relevant for criticism (i.e., evaluation, interpretation, and appreciation)? If so, how might one go about making these distinctions? How are these distinctions critically important (or why aren’t they)? If you do not think the distinctions are significant, explain why the distinctions are still frequently invoked.

Make sure you reference examples in the visual arts, music, theater and dance, and provide a philosophical base for your position.

Some theorists have argued that knowledge about the context in which a work of art was made is crucial to our appreciation and understanding of it; others have argued that such knowledge is not important to our engagement with art.

How important is knowledge of historical context to artistic appreciation and understanding? What can one get from a work of art without knowledge of context? What might be missing? Is there an important distinction between knowledge of general historical context and knowledge of art-historical context (i.e., knowledge of the history of art)? Are there general answers to the aforementioned questions, or do the answers depend on the form of art in question?

Use examples from theater, music and the visual arts, and make reference to philosophical theorists that you have studied in your core classes.

At least twice during the last century, with the early 20th-century avant-garde and the much later conceptual art movements, artists have produced works that directly call into question the nature of art itself. Partly in reaction to such movements, philosophers have in turn been led to re-conceive their own efforts at defining art. Instead of focusing on time-worn criteria involving, for example, imitation or expression, certain theorists have suggested that we have to look beyond appearances to other factors in order to grasp that something is a work of art. Thus, Arthur Danto famously asserts that seeing an object as a work of art requires something “the eye cannot descry,” and other theorists, understanding it as a product of a cultural institution, or as part of an on-going historical narrative, and in any case against an understanding of its art-historical and perhaps, more broadly, cultural context.

Discuss one of these watershed periods in 20th-century art, using illustrations from across the arts. Go on to explain what it is about avant-garde or conceptual works that might be thought to suggest the inadequacy of traditional theories of art. Finally, spell out the particulars of one of the recent philosophical theories of art that might be seen to have arisen in response to the radical goings-on in the activities of artists.

Often, programs that purport to be interdisciplinary may, in fact, be termed multidisciplinary. What are the criteria for being “interdisciplinary” or “multidisciplinary”? Do meanings ascribed to the terms, or the importance given to the terms’ meanings, vary in their usage within specific disciplines? To the degree that you discover such disciplinary biases, provide a concise explanation as to why they may have developed.
What should the boundaries of an interdisciplinary fine arts program be? What does it mean to have a program in the fine arts? Which arts should be included in such a program, and why?

Describe actual programs, if any, involving the fine arts that truly meet interdisciplinary expectations. Propose an authentically interdisciplinary program that involves the fine arts, specifying the ideal amounts of coursework in various arts and collateral areas, ideal models for inter-arts relationships, and ideal models for interdisciplinary relationships among arts and collateral studies. Identify reasons for disparities between actual programs and ideal circumstances.
Include references and examples from visual arts, theatre, music, and philosophy.

The costume designs of Natalia Goncharova for the Russian ballet, Le coq d'or, fit unusually and importantly into the contexts of art, music, and even literature, as she was a descendant of the family of Aleksandr Pushin who first fashioned a folktale into a narrative poem as “Zolotoi Petushok” (“The Golden Cockerel”). Additionally Goncharova's consciousness was shaped by Marxism and Russian Revolutionary feminism as it impinged upon the emergent political context of the Russian theater.

How important is knowledge of historical context to artistic appreciation and understanding? Are appreciation and understanding of a work of art possible without knowing the political or cultural environment in which it was produced? Is it sufficient to have knowledge of the history of art or must the patron or observer have an understanding of the general historical context of the work?

Use examples from theatre, music, and the visual arts, and refer to philosophical theorists that you have studied in your core classes.

As under-prepared students become an increasingly central topic in the national K-12 educational debate, the arts have been largely ignored by those dictating curriculum reform and national standards. Using a philosophical argument supported by concrete curricular examples, discuss how recent trends and regulations have impacted K-12 arts education in the arenas of theater, dance, music, visual art, and aesthetics. How do such changes buttress or weaken content in the arts?

Discuss what policies you might promote to emphasize each of the arts as a vital contributor to general education. Include your rationales for these policies.

What is the relationship between performance and pedagogy? Does all performance have a pedagogical aspect? How important is it that pedagogues in the performing arts be performers themselves? Can pedagogy in the arts be divorced from actual performance? Are there essential skills or insights that can only be learned from performance, and not from any pedagogue? What is the most effective means of blending the two – effective regarding excellence in both performance and pedagogy – and what constitutes a blend that is not effective?

Use examples from music, art, theatre, and dance, and make reference to philosophical inquiry regarding such questions.

Discuss the notion of "anti-establishment art." An example would be to contrast the murals of Diego Rivera with graffiti art. Do works created to protest establishment principles have value as art? Present a philosophical rationale that supports your position and/or provides rational means to evaluate the effect of such works, whether they be termed "art" or "anti-art".

How do "out of the box" artists influence the traditional creative artist? Identify artists, playwrights, and composers who may be characterized as anti-establishment artists and discuss the effect their work has had on the mainstream artists in their disciplines.

Perhaps, in a perfect world, artists would always possess adequate resources to do their work; they would not need to rely on the financial backing of wealthy patrons or subsidies from the state in order to create artworks. Alas, that has never been generally the case and, for a variety of reasons, it has of course become commonplace for works of art and the exhibition / performance of works to be supported not only by wealthy, interested patrons, but by the general public through its payment of taxes.

Any such public support for the arts raises a number of questions. Consider two in particular: (1) What is the best way to justify the state subsidizing art through its collection of tax monies? (Why, after all, shouldn’t art pay its own way?) And (2) What special dangers do the arts face by virtue of such support? (In a democratic state, are there serious risks of censorship or, at a minimum, some untoward influence on artistic creativity in such a relationship?)

Emphasize one but discuss each of these questions by means of actual historical or current examples from each of the arts (music, theatre/dance and visual art).

The “modern system of the arts,” as Kristeller labels it, has been in place for a couple hundred years. This way of thinking of the fine arts of music, painting, sculpture, theatre, and the literary arts as somehow “of a piece” forms the basis of such things as the administrative association of the first four of them within a distinct college here at Texas Tech. But is there any special value to conceiving music, the visual arts, and theatre and dance as unified? In what sense are they unified at all? Do any of these art forms actually challenge the conception that they share important properties? Discuss both theoretical and practical reasons on both sides of the question of the integration of the arts. (If it helps, you might think of yourself as a college administrator arguing before a board of regents that your university should or should not be organized along such lines.)

Naturally, discussion of this topic will require consideration of works and processes that one finds across all of these art forms.

Peter Brook has said that "Social authority wishes for a nice, decent, convenient image to be given to the world." On the other hand, "the basic function of theatre is to be anti-government, anti-establishment and anti-social. What we all recognize as feeble theatre is the theatre that enters into the public lie of pretending that everything's okay."

It is often on the sexual level that artists have chosen to challenge social authority; "The Naked Maja", Ibsen's Ghosts, The Rites of Spring, Angels in America, jazz, and rock'n'roll, for examples, have caused controversy for their real or imagined sexual provocation.
To what extent is using sexual provocation to challenge social authority an appropriate goal for artists? Aside from the sexual, on what other levels might such agitation be considered appropriate? Can sexual provocation contribute to artistic achievement?

Discuss the ways art challenges authority, using examples from the visual arts, music, and theatre, and relating your discussion to your readings in philosophy.

Many works of art in the Western tradition were created with distinctively educational purposes in mind; other works that were not so created may be used to fulfill educational objectives. What sorts of educational purposes may artworks be used for? Are some forms of art more suited for educational purposes than others? Are the educational values of a work of art independent of its artistic or aesthetic value, or may educational values contribute to artistic/aesthetic value? For example, might an artwork be great for teaching with, but lousy considered as an artwork (or vice versa)? What would explain such a divergence, or conversely, what might explain the convergence of educational and artistic values? Make reference to examples in the visual arts, music, and theater or dance, as well as to the philosophy of art.

Philosophers often distinguish between two kinds of interpretation: critical interpretation (an activity engaged in by critics and ordinary audience members) and performance interpretation (an activity engaged in by performers). Explore the role of artists' intentions in both critical and performance interpretation. What is the relevance of information about artists' intentions to these two species of interpretation? Must interpretation be guided by information about intentions? Should it be so guided? Is it ever a good idea to take intentions into account in interpreting? Is it ever a bad idea? Make sure you consider whether performance interpretation (or something akin to it) has a role to play in the visual arts.

You should address the visual arts, music, theater and philosophy in your answer.

While images and sounds are generally accepted as the medium of expression in the arts, consider the notion of color in the arts. Visual arts, theatre and music all utilize color to generate or heighten an emotional response in the audience member. Since color is another manifestation of frequency spectra it follows that the use of color as an expressive device can be central to all the arts. Discuss the distinct senses of “color” in the several arts: the term "color" is uniquely literal when it comes to the visual arts, and quite different from its use in music and other art forms. On the other hand, what does the use of color have in common in the arts to justify the similar label? How does color affect the senses to produce an aesthetic response? Identify uses of color in the various arts and discuss the emotional expectations of each.

Be sure to establish a firm philosophical base for your discussion.

In the 18th Century, a distinction was commonly made between the “fine arts” such as music, dancing, and painting, and the “useful arts” such as silvercraft and furniture-making. Article I of the Constitution affirms the power of Congress to “promote the progress of science and useful arts,” but makes no mention of the fine arts. Today, supporters of arts education often make their appeals to higher authorities to enhance ú or at least not to eliminate ú their programs on the basis of the utility of the arts and arts education.

What are the best arguments to support the argument that the visual arts, theatre arts, and music are useful? Are there other arguments for governmental support for the arts that do not relate to their usefulness? Is there some sense in which arguments based on utility are beside the point of the arts, or might be harmful to the cause? Furthermore, is there any sense in which arguments based on usefulness might be based on questionable cultural presumptions ú for example, that what may be useful to one class or sector of society is good for the country as a whole? Who and what is included or excluded by any given definition of utility?

When pursuing careers in the arts, young artists often face a conflict between their own personal artistic ideals and goals, and a society that may not recognize those ideals as viable and requires that the artist compromise ideals for practicalities.

How is the young professional to mediate between idealism and the need to become established? Is the product of compromise art if it does not fulfill the vision of the artist? Does compromise of this sort undercut the value of artistic production? Does such compromise call into question the very status of an object or performance as art? Might compromise lead to artistic benefit in the long run? Under what conditions?

Be sure that visual art, theatre, music, and philosophy are included in your discussion.

Explore some of the significant relationships between art and money. Can the concern for--and pursuit of--money be detrimental to artistic pursuits? Explain and give examples. Can the concern for--and pursuit of--money be good for art, art making, and our enjoyment of art? Explain and give examples. Why might someone think that there is an inherent tension between art-making and the pursuit of money? Is there such a tension?

Be sure to include examples from visual art, theater art, and music in your discussion.

Many of us think of art as a singular process and the artist as a singular detached entity. Because of this, artists are often thought of and written about as loners, geniuses, as eclectic, and detached from cultural contexts. Explore how such traditional definitions of art/artists belie the realities of contemporary arts approaches and arts practices? How does collaboration impact contemporary definitions of art? What impact does cultural and/or political context have on the product or the process? Use your discipline as an example/guide, applying examples of music and the visual arts.

In the history of the arts there have often been groups of artists made up of practitioners of visual art, music, and theatre (or literature), who gathered together to discuss needed reforms, proposed new directions in the arts, offered criticism of trends, etc. Briefly identify several such groups and comment on their influence both immediate and long range. Chose one particular alliance of artists to discuss more fully, taking into account their individual contributions to their own art form as well as influences the group may have had on the condition of art in their own time.

As always, be sure to include visual art, theatre, music, and philosophy in your discussion.

With the full admission of performance art into the academy and the world of fine arts, we can see that the blurring of boundaries between low and high art, between popular culture and elitist culture, and between traditional art forms and contemporary art forms (modern and postmodern) is well underway. Over ten years ago, Philip Auslander (Presence and Resistance: Postmodernism and Cultural Politics in Contemporary American Performance) helped us understand how the mediatization of American Culture informed this blurring of boundaries within art forms.
Fine arts institutions and university academic departments are challenged to admit these new kinds of art to the fine art venues. Visual arts programs reluctantly admitted photography and later computer graphics, music admitted jazz studies and electronic music, and theatre admitted film and video. Now, the doors are flung open to consider performance art, tatooing, hip hop, and a host of new electronic media reflecting the cultural landscape as legitimate candidates for cultural presentation.

You, as a fine arts administrator, must develop a rationale for selecting among all these forces to maintain a standard of quality in your task of preserving and promoting "good" art. What are the issues and what is your rationale on these matters? Select arts events that are "at the edge" of the issue as you see it to define your position.

Many theorists have thought that there are important distinctions to be made between fine art on the one hand and popular art or mass art on the other. Opposing theorists have dismissed the attempt to distinguish these categories. Are there significant distinctions to be made between these categories? More specifically, are there differences between these categories that are relevant for criticism (i.e., evaluation, interpretation, and appreciation)? If so, how might one go about making these distinctions? How are these distinctions critically important (or why aren't they)? If you do not think the distinctions are significant, explain why the distinctions are still frequently invoked.

Make sure you refer to examples in the visual arts, music, and theater or dance.

Discuss the relationship between art and society. In what ways does art influence events in society. In the reverse, how is art influenced by society? Is there a clear pattern of either art or society dominating the other? Identify and discuss several events that can be used to make your point. Be sure that visual arts, theatre, music and philosophy enter your discussion.

Photos in the New York Times of a current production of Henry V show actors costumed in 20th century combat fatigues. Hardly, I thought, historically true to the original Shakespearean production. But what, after all, constitutes historical accuracy? And what is (or ought to be) the object/point of such accuracy? Standard examples, drawn from practitioners of historically authentic performance in music, would focus on the use of period instruments and historically accurate performance practices, ornamentation, etc.

Consider and discuss alternative analyses (and their implications) of what goal might properly be served by such performances. Is the goal a reasonable one and, if it is, is it best served by what conventionally passes for historically authentic performances? You might also consider whether (and, if so, how) the standards used in historically correct performance fundamentally differ from the standards one should consider in any performance. In your discussion, be sure to include illustrations from, and applications to, the various arts. If you see differences between the arts with respect to this question, elaborate on those distinctions.

Discuss the responsibilities of art to society. Does it make sense to talk about art having responsibilities rather than individual artists? If so, explain the sources of the responsibilities-are they inherent to art, or do they come from outside the domain of art? If not, explain why one might think there are such responsibilities. How does the ability of art to influence society bear on the question of responsibility?

Compare issues in Taiwan with those in the United States. What are the similarities and differences between the two cultures in the use of art and the responsibilities of artists? Be sure that you include visual art, theatre, philosophy and music in your discussion.

Because artists commonly challenge the thinking and values of conventional society, their works often occasion controversy.

How does controversy impact a work of art? How does controversy about a work of art impact the culture? For example, can it detract attention from the work’s essential value? Choose individual works from music, the visual arts, and theatre (as well as written drama) and discuss controversies they have aroused. To what extent did the artists seek, welcome, or abhor these controversies? Do their intentions matter? To what extent did their opponents call into question the art forms themselves (e.g. painting, theatre) as well as the artists’ particular statements?

It is a commonplace that exposure to a wide range of the fine arts is crucial to fully understanding and appreciating any individual form of fine art. In addition, many people believe that knowledge of the fine arts also aids in understanding and appreciating the popular arts.
Critically ex-am-ine these views, making sure that you clarify your approach to distin-guishing the fine arts from popular art. Then consider whether (and under what conditions) knowledge of the popular arts aids in our understanding and appreciation of the fine arts. Make reference to examples in the visual arts, music, and theater or dance, as well as to the philosophy of art.

There appear to be two distinct kinds of interpretation: performance interpretation (an activity engaged in by performing artists) and critical interpretation (an activity engaged in by critics and ordinary audience members).

Characterize these two activities, and then explore their relationship(s). What are the similarities and differences between the two activities? Do they share a common purpose (or common set of purposes)? How can the two activities interact? Is it misleading to call both activities ‘interpretation’, or does this capture something important? Do the differences between the activities underlie any important differences between the arts? Make reference to examples in the visual arts, music, and theater or dance, as well as to the philosophy of art.

What is the relationship between performance and pedagogy? Does all performance have a pedagogical aspect? How important is it that pedagogues in the performing arts be performers themselves? Can pedagogy in the arts be divorced from actual performance? Are there essential skills or insights that can only be learned from performance, and not from any pedagogue? What is the most effective means of blending the two ú effective regarding excellence in both performance and pedagogy ú and what constitutes a blend that is not effective?

Use examples from music, art, theatre, and dance, and make reference to philosophical inquiry regarding such questions.

Many theorists have argued that art is essentially a matter of the expression of emotion. Even if this is false, it seems plausible that many works of art involve expression. What is it for a work of art to express emotion? Do all forms of art express in the same way? How does the fact that a particular work of art expresses emotion bear on its evaluation and interpretation? Be sure to include examples from visual art, theatre art, music, and philosophy in your discussion.

Some visual and performing arts are highly valued. Historically, institutional privilege and power has been given to select groups, and disciplines have established rhetoric defining arts categories, as to which of them are to be valued, and even specific characteristics to be valued. A correlative of this is that academics and critics often describe mainstream culture(s) as inundated with bland/uneducated audiences that prefer low-level arts experiences (such as kitsch art, muzac, Hollywood movies, etc.) over museums, symphonies, etc.

Who is/are responsible for defining which arts really count as real arts? How might that situation be changed? What theoretical issues might be implicated? How do race, class, and gender relate to these issues both practically and theoretically? Is the academy complicit in the existing state of affairs? Be sure to include examples of music, philosophy, theater, and the visual arts in your answer.

What are the best arguments to support the argument that the visual arts, theatre arts, and music are useful? Are there other arguments for governmental support for the arts that do not relate to their usefulness? Is there some sense in which arguments based on utility are beside the point of the arts, or might be harmful to the cause? Furthermore, is there any sense in which arguments based on usefulness might be based on questionable cultural presumptions for example, that what may be useful to one class or sector of society is good for the country as a whole? Who and what is included or excluded by any given definition of utility?

How is the young professional to mediate between idealism and the need to become established? Is the product of compromise art if it does not fulfill the vision of the artist? Does compromise of this sort undercut the value of artistic production? Does such compromise call into question the very status of an object or performance as art? Might compromise lead to artistic benefit in the long run? Under what conditions?

Be sure that visual art, theatre, music, and philosophy are included in your discussion.

Be sure to include examples from visual art, theater art, and music in your discussion.

As always, be sure to include visual art, theatre, music, and philosophy in your discussion.

Fine arts institutions and university academic departments are challenged to admit these new kinds of art to the fine art venues. Visual arts programs reluctantly admitted photography and later computer graphics, music admitted jazz studies and electronic music, and theatre admitted film and video. Now, the doors are flung open to consider performance art, tatooing, hip hop, and a host of new electronic media reflecting the cultural landscape as legitimate candidates for cultural presentation.

Many theorists have thought that there are important distinctions to be made between fine art on the one hand and popular art or mass art on the other. Opposing theorists have dismissed the attempt to distinguish these categories. Are there significant distinctions to be made between these categories? More specifically, are there differences between these categories that are relevant for criticism (i.e., evaluation, interpretation, and appreciation)? If so, how might one go about making these distinctions? How are these distinctions critically important (or why aren't they)? If you do not think the distinctions are significant, explain why the distinctions are still frequently invoked.

Make sure you refer to examples in the visual arts, music, and theater or dance.

Consider and discuss alternative analyses (and their implications) of what goal might properly be served by such performances. Is the goal a reasonable one and, if it is, is it best served by what conventionally passes for historically authentic performances? You might also consider whether (and, if so, how) the standards used in historically correct performance fundamentally differ from the standards one should consider in any performance. In your discussion, be sure to include illustrations from, and applications to, the various arts. If you see differences between the arts with respect to this question, elaborate on those distinctions.

Because artists commonly challenge the thinking and values of conventional society, their works often occasion controversy.

How does controversy impact a work of art? How does controversy about a work of art impact the culture? For example, can it detract attention from the work’s essential value? Choose individual works from music, the visual arts, and theatre (as well as written drama) and discuss controversies they have aroused. To what extent did the artists seek, welcome, or abhor these controversies? Do their intentions matter? To what extent did their opponents call into question the art forms themselves (e.g. painting, theatre) as well as the artists’ particular statements?

Critically ex-am-ine these views, making sure that you clarify your approach to distin-guishing the fine arts from popular art. Then consider whether (and under what conditions) knowledge of the popular arts aids in our understanding and appreciation of the fine arts. Make reference to examples in the visual arts, music, and theater or dance, as well as to the philosophy of art.

Characterize these two activities, and then explore their relationship(s). What are the similarities and differences between the two activities? Do they share a common purpose (or common set of purposes)? How can the two activities interact? Is it misleading to call both activities ‘interpretation’, or does this capture something important? Do the differences between the activities underlie any important differences between the arts? Make reference to examples in the visual arts, music, and theater or dance, as well as to the philosophy of art.

Archived Questions