Copied from AP Central website (5/5/2010)
Exam Content
The first AP Art History Exam was administered in 1972. In 1998, the AP Art History Exam
premiered the long essay question requiring informed discussion of art beyond the European
tradition.
Changes to the AP Art History Exam beginning with the 2010 exam administration:
1. As of 2010, the color images that accompany Section 1, Part A, and Section II of the AP Art
History Exam are provided to each student in the form of printed color inserts. See Printed Color
Images for the 2010 AP Art History Exam for more information about this change.
* Slides and slide projectors are no longer used in the exam administration.
* Questions are based on color images in Section I, Part A, and Section II: While it is
recommended that students spend the suggested amount of time responding to each question, time
management is ultimately each student's responsibility. Students working on the parts of the exam
based on color images will be able to move freely from question to question within each part,
during the time allotted for each part.
2. Change in the order of the free-response questions:
* Questions 1 and 2 will be 30-minute essay questions. Question 1 will require students to
incorporate in their response at least one example of art beyond the European tradition.
* Questions 3 through 9 will be 5- or 10-minute essay questions based on color images
and/or text.
3. Decision to not count prehistoric examples:
* The AP Art History Development Committee has been concerned over the years about
students' use of prehistoric examples when answering the 30-minute long essays. These long
essays typically ask the student to provide contextual information about the work of art, but there
is little known about the particular cultures that produced prehistoric art. Students who use
prehistoric examples cannot earn full credit because they cannot provide a factual discussion of
the context. Therefore, beginning with the 2010 exam, prehistoric examples such as the Woman
of Willendorf, the caves of Lascaux, and Stonehenge will not be accepted as appropriate
examples.
4. Emphasis on using examples from non-Western cultures other than Egypt and the Ancient
Near East:
* The Development Committee is also concerned about the overuse of Egyptian and
Ancient Near East examples for the essay question that asks students to discuss art beyond the
European tradition. To address this issue, the committee will add the following statement to the
Course Description for 2010: "One of the 30-minute essay questions requires students to
incorporate at least one example of art beyond the European tradition into their essays. Ancient
Egypt and the Ancient Near East are fully covered in the multiple-choice questions in Part I and
the short-answer essays in Part II of the exam. The intent of this essay question is to draw from
areas such as Africa (beyond ancient Egypt), the Americas, Asia, Islamic cultures, and Oceania."
From: Ms. S. ;)
The following essay questions are from 1998 to 2009.
Noted before each question is a suggestion of which volume of Gardner’s Art Through the Ages
to look for images to discuss in the questions.
Good luck and God bless!
30 minute essay topics Section 2 “Part A” of the AP Art History Exam. 2010
1998
1st•Many cultures designate spaces or create structures for religious devotion. Choose two
specific examples, each from a different culture. At least one culture must be non-European or
non-European based. Identify your examples and their cultures. Discuss the ways in which your
examples create places appropriate for religious devotion in each culture. Consider (if applicable)
plan, orientation, site, structure, ornamentation, etc.
2nd•Select two portrait paintings (NOT SELF PORTRAITS), each of a single individual by
different artists, and from different periods. Identify each work by the title and artist. How does
each work reflect the stylistic tendencies of the artist’s own time? Compare and contrast how
each artist portrays the person’s individuality.
1999
1st In many cultures, artist have produced images for religious use. Name two images, such as
wall decorations, sculptures, or other objects, each from a different culture. At least one image
must e from a non-European or non- European-based culture. Discuss how the images conform to
the beliefs of the culture in which they were produced, and in what ways each contributed to
reinforcing those beliefs.
2nd The representation of light in painting has been used to serve a variety of purposes. Identify
two artists, each from a different art historical period, who have explored the effects of light.
Discuss the function and use of light in specific works by each artist.
2000
1st Choose two specific images of power and authority, each produced in a different culture. At
least one must come from a non-European-based tradition. How does each work of art convey
that particular culture’s notion of what constitutes power and authority?
2nd Many artists radically transform actual observation and experience in order to express their
unique artistic vision. Select TWO works, each by a different artist. Discuss ways in which each
artist has radically transformed observed reality in order to achieve a personal vision.
2001
1st Virtually all of the world’s cultures have defined sacred spaces for religious purposes. The
design and appearance of these spaces vary greatly. Fully identify two specific sacred spaces, at
least on of which must be from beyond the European tradition. For each choice, discuss the
relationship between the appearance of the space and its religious function.
2nd Representations of the human body vary considerably in different periods and cultures. Fully
identify two specific representations of the human figure, each from a different period or culture.
Discuss how each work reflects the cultural values of it’s time period or the place where it was
made.
2002
1st or 2nd Many cultures use architecture to express or reinforce power and authority.
Choose two works of architecture from different cultures, identifying each work as fully as
possible. At least on work must come from beyond the European tradition. Discuss how each
work conveys power and authority.
2nd Works of art often combine images with text.
Choose and fully identify two specific works made after 500 C.E. that combine images with text.
The works must come from different art historical periods. Note: do not choose works with text
consisting only of names, labels, or artists’ signatures.
Discuss the relationship between text and image in the tow works you have chosen.
2003
1st or 2nd The human body is often highly stylized or abstracted in works of art.
Fully identify two works from different cultures in which the body has been highly stylized or
abstracted.
At least one of your choices must be a work from beyond the European tradition. Discuss how the
stylization or abstraction of each figure is related to cultural and/or religious ideas.
1st or 2nd In order to understand works of art fully, one must understand their original or intended
settings. For example, most works of art in museums have been removed from their original
settings. Often a work’s original setting has been altered or destroyed or was never completed as
planned.
Fully identify two works of art that have been removed from their original settings. Each example
must come from different cultures. Discuss how knowledge of the original settings contributes to
a more complete understanding of each work.
2004
1st or 2nd This question asks you to explore the stylistic relationships between the form and
content of figurative art.
How a culture is perceived is often expressed in depictions of the human figure. Choose two
specific representations of the human body from different cultures. Only one of your choices may
be from a European artistic tradition. Discuss significant aspects of each culture that are revealed
by the way in which the human body is depicted.
1st or 2nd The relationship between and artist or architect and a patron very often shapes the form
and content of a work of art or architecture.
Identify two works, each from a different art historical period, and name the specific persons who
commissioned them. Discuss how the specific interests and intentions of the particular patrons are
revealed in each work.
2005
1st or 2nd Most cultures have made use of art’s narrative function.
Select and fully identify two works of art that visually convey a narrative. At least one of your
choices must be from beyond the European tradition. Identify the subject of each narrative and
discuss the means used to convey the narrative.
1st or 2nd Frequently in the history of art, artists and architects have challenged established
traditions.
Select and fully identify two works that challenged established traditions. One example must have
been produced before 1800 C.E. Discuss how and why each work constituted a significant
challenge to accepted artistic conventions of its time.
2006
1st or 2nd Representations of the natural world or motifs from nature are found in the art of all
times and place.
Choose and fully identify two appropriate works of art from two different cultures. One of your
choices must be from beyond the European tradition.
Explain why and how each work uses representations of the natural world or motifs from nature.
1st or 2nd Throughout history, works of art have included symbolic or allegorical images.
Select and fully identify two works of art that include symbolic or allegorical images. Your
choices must be from different art historical periods. Discuss how each work uses symbols or
allegory to convey meaning.
2007
1st or 2nd Throughout history, art representing hostility or violence has been used for a variety of
purposes.
Select and fully identify two such works of art from two different cultures, one of which must be
from beyond the European tradition. Explain how and why each work of art communicates
hostility or violence.
1st and 2nd Throughout history, technological developments have enabled artists and architects to
express ideas in new ways.
Choose and fully identify two works of art or architecture and the specific technological
development that made each work possible. One of your choices must date before 1800 CE and
one must date after 1800 CE. For each work, analyze how the technological development enabled
the artist or architect to express ideas in new ways.
2008
1st or 2nd Cultural attitudes about women are often revealed in art.
Select and fully identify two works of art that depict one or more women. The works must come
from two different cultures, one of which must be from beyond the European tradition. Explain
how each work reveals its culture’s attitudes about women.
2nd Art since the 1960’s encompasses a wide variety of approaches.
Address this variety of approaches through the careful choice and detailed discussion of two
works of art made between 1960 and the present. The two works must be by different artists OR
in different media.
Be sure to fully identify each work.
2009
1st or 2nd Cultures designate sacred space in a variety of ways to accommodate both religious
beliefs and practices.
Select and fully identify two examples of sacred spaces from different cultures, on of which must
be beyond the European tradition. Discuss how each space accommodated both religious beliefs
and practices within its culture.
2nd Self-portraiture provides a wide range of information about the artist in addition to physical
appearance.
Choose and fully identify two self-portraits, in any medium, each from a different art-historical
period. Analyze how each self-portrait conveys information about the artist and his or her era.