The art of critique: analysing and interpreting artworks
I can analyse and interpret artwork to engage with critical thinking.
The art of critique: analysing and interpreting artworks
I can analyse and interpret artwork to engage with critical thinking.
These resources will be removed by end of Summer Term 2025.
Lesson details
Key learning points
- Analysis helps viewers appreciate the historical, cultural, and social contexts of artwork, deepening understanding.
- Engaging with art fosters critical thinking by evaluating art elements, leading to more informed interpretations.
- We can use alternatives to writing when annotating and analysing work.
- A 'crit' is a place for discussing ideas about our own work and that of others in a supportive way.
Keywords
Critical - questioning, examining, and thinking deeply about an art work, rather than accepting things at face value
Analysis - looking closely at all the parts of the artwork to understand how it was made and what it means
Describe - use words to give an account or detailed explanation of something
Common misconception
Critical analysis in art is just about writing facts about artists.
Critical analysis goes beyond facts; it involves interpreting the artwork, understanding its context, and evaluating its impact and meaning.
To help you plan your year 10 art and design lesson on: The art of critique: analysing and interpreting artworks, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your year 10 art and design lesson on: The art of critique: analysing and interpreting artworks, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
We use learning cycles to break down learning into key concepts or ideas linked to the learning outcome. Each learning cycle features explanations with checks for understanding and practice tasks with feedback. All of this is found in our slide decks, ready for you to download and edit. The practice tasks are also available as printable worksheets and some lessons have additional materials with extra material you might need for teaching the lesson.
The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
Our video is a tool for planning, showing how other teachers might teach the lesson, offering helpful tips, modelled explanations and inspiration for your own delivery in the classroom. Plus, you can set it as homework or revision for pupils and keep their learning on track by sharing an online pupil version of this lesson.
Explore more key stage 4 art and design lessons from the Foundation workshops: selecting primary sources and recording observations unit, dive into the full secondary art and design curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.
Equipment
Provide unseen images of various art, craft, and design with recognisable features for the descriptive task, paper, drawing materials, timer, and internet for research.
Licence
Lesson video
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Starter quiz
6 Questions
leads to deeper understanding and interpretation
observing colours, shapes, textures, and meaning
helps explore new perspectives in art
helps artists reflect on and identify how to improve their work
encourages creativity, exploration and innovative thinking
Describe the mood created by the colours and their interaction.
Discuss the arrangement of elements and their balance.
Describe how smooth, rough, or bumpy the surface looks.
Express the feelings or mood the artwork evokes.
Focus on the direction and type of lines used in the piece.
Identify what is depicted, like people or objects.