Writing a Thesis Statement for an Art History Paper Images PDF

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Writing'a'Thesis'Statement'for'an'Art'History'Paper' ! A!thesis!statement!appears!in!the!introductory!paragraph!of!your!essay!and!informs!the!reader! of!the!purpose!of!your!essay.!In!one!or!two!sentences,!the!thesis!statement!will!set!forth!an! argument!about!the!artwork!under!analysis.!Your!argument!will!develop!from!the!observations! you!made!in!your!formal!analysis!and!your!research!into!the!artwork.!! ! During!the!research!and!writing!process,!you!will!likely!develop!a!working!thesis!statement!that! will!evolve!as!you!write!your!paper.!Your!final!thesis!statement!can!evolve!substantially!from! your!original!statement!if!you!are!properly!responding!to!the!existing!research!and!refining!your! ideas!accordingly.! ! Tips'for'Writing'a'Thesis'Statement:' • Clearly!state!your!thesis!in!the!first!paragraph!of!your!essay! • Include!the!artist!and!title!of!the!artwork!in!your!thesis!statement! • It!is!helpful!to!use!the!phrase!"I!will!argue..."!to!alert!the!reader!to!your!thesis!statement! • The!best!thesis!statements!are!focused!and!avoid!broad!generalizations! • Reiterate!your!thesis!statement!in!your!concluding!paragraph! • A!thesis!statement!can!be!simple!or!more!complex,!as!the!examples!below!illustrate! ! Thesis'Statement'Examples:' In!this!essay,!I!will!argue!that!James!Abbott!McNeill!Whistler's! painting!Nocturne)in)Black)and)Gold)-)The)Falling)Rocket!(c.!1875)! exemplifies!the!ideals!of!Aestheticism!through!the!artist’s!use!of! abstraction!and!musical!terminology!in!the!painting's!title.! '

' Through!an!analysis!of!Joyce!Wieland's!quilt-work!Reason)over) Passion!(1968),!I!will!argue!that!the!traditionally!feminine!practice!of! quilt!making!is!elevated!to!the!status!of!fine!art!through!the!artist's! engagement!with!twentieth-century!avant-garde!movements.! '

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By!comparing!John!Constable's!The)Hay)Wain!(1821)!to!Thomas! Gainsborough's!Landscape)in)Suffolk!(between!c.!1747–50),!I!will! argue!that!Constable!departed!from!eighteenth-century! conventions!for!landscape!painting!by!embracing!naturalism!in!art.! ' ' '

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! Through!an!analysis!of!Kara!Walker's!The)End)of)Uncle)Tom)and)the) Grand)Allegorical)Tableau)of)Eva)in)Heaven!(1995),!I!will!argue!that! the!artist!draws!from!nineteenth-century!forms!such!as!the! cyclorama!and!history!painting!to!address!the!realities!of!the!history! of!slavery!and!racism.! ' ! ! In!this!paper,!I!will!demonstrate!how!Henri!Matisse's!painting!The) Open)Window!(1905)!challenges!inherited!notions!of!representation! through!its!subject!matter!and!style.!By!depicting!an!open!window! using!flat,!non-descriptive!colour,!Matisse!prompts!viewers!to! question!the!idea!that!paintings!should!serve!as!windows!into!an! illusionistic!world.! ' ' ' '...