ARHT2645 China: Art and Empire
In this exercise, you will write a short (~500 words) essay on each of the three pairs of slides
below. Be sure to iden8fy each of the images/objects clearly as part of your essay. The goal is to
analyze the images through a comparison of visual, material, formal, and/or cultural terms.
You are strongly encouraged to look at the images early and begin to consider what you know
about them and what you would like to know.Addi8onal research may be helpful, but the
primary focus should be on what you see in the images themselves. Please remember to cite all
research appropriately.Please also note that Wikipedia, Baidu, and other crowd-sourced or nonreviewed
web resources are not acceptable sources please ask if you have doubts.
Successful essays will a) find one or more clear themes through which to develop the
comparison; b) clearly develop an argument around that theme or themes; c) root the argument
in specific descrip8ve analysis of the images, rather than generalized statements about them;
and d) speak about the images together, moving back and forth between them in the course of
the comparison, rather than describing one completely and then moving to the other.
In addi8on to the above guidelines, essays will be assessed according to the following criteria: Engages formal issues: genre, style, medium, format Engages ques8ons of ar8s8c inten8on and/or audience recep8on (where possible/
appropriate) Constructs an argument linking and contras8ng the two works Wri8ng is clear, concise, and ar8culate; spelling, grammar and style rules are observed Essay is well structured, including clear introduc8on, ordered argument and conclusion Essay engages in compara8ve visual analysis as opposed to serial descrip8onFinally, be sure to iden8fy each work of art clearly by name, ar8st, date, etc. at some point in
your essay.