Art Criticism - Talking About Art with Your Kids

What is Art Criticism?

It is simply talking about art - a way to aid children in gaining an appreciation for art!

Art criticism involves asking questions. The questions can be very simple such as, " What is this?"or "What does it mean?" But with young children those questions can be broken down into even more direct and specific questions and discussions. Here are some examples:

- Given the name of the piece, why do you think it has that title?

- What does the art tell you about?
o What do you see in the piece? – people, animals, things?
o What’s happening?
o What time of day is it?
o Does it look like the action is happening now or a long time ago? Why?

- How was it made?
o What materials do you think the artist used to make this?
o Does it look like it was made with any materials that you have used before?
o It is a painting, collage, drawing, print, sculpture?

- Can you find….?
o Can you trace a line with your finger? Is it straight or curved?
o Can you trace a shape with your finger? What is the shape?
o Can you point to all the places that the color (red, blue, etc) is used?
o Do you see any patterns?

- What is the same or different?
o Can you find the longest(smallest, thickest, etc.) line?
o Can you findthe biggest circle?
o Is there more red or blue?
o Which person looks older?

- What comes next?
o What do you think will happen next? What do you think happened before?
o What do you think might be inside of this?
o What do you think might be behind this?
o Who do you think lives here?

- Can you do?
o Can you stand just like this person?
o Can you make your face look like this person’s face?
o Can you pretend to (action) like this person?

- How does it make you feel?
o How do you think this person feels?
o How would you feel if you were here?

- Personal taste
o Do you like this? why or why not?