EN 101
Instructor: Adam Weinstein
Paper #2: "Art is art. Everything else is everything else.”
Type of Paper: Description/Compare+Contrast
Length: 1000 words
Due: Thursday, September 20, by 12 midnight on class blog
Essay model: "Decoration of War” (on class blog)
You don’t have to be an art critic to understand art. Art is
comprehensible—it’s made to be so. It’s yet another example of one
person trying to communicate something to someone else. If your idea of
art is ART, with a capital “A,” try to get out of that thinking. We’re
going to look at a student art exhibit and try to simply understand
what the artists were trying to communicate; and then you will judge
how effectively they communicated that idea.
Assignment: At the art exhibit, pick (at least) two pieces that
interest you. Take copious notes on each piece.
For the essay, begin by describing the two pieces—what they depict, and
what you might know about the artists or their intentions. Your
description should lead to some thoughts on what you think the artists
are trying to communicate in their work.
Next, compare and contrast the pieces. Take into consideration that
each artist is simply trying to communicate an idea, and discuss how
effectively that idea seems to be rendered in comparison.
Finally, make a conclusion as to how you react to the work, whether it
had an impact on you, and, above all, if the artist communicated
anything to you. Rate the exhibit based on those conclusions—
effectiveness, and make a recommendation to your audience as to whether
or not they should go see the exhibit.
Remember: As in all essays in this class, one of the main goals
(besides coherence) is creativity. Think about how you might make this
essay/assignment unique to you. Take some risks. Go out of your way to
think about various ways you might reinterpret this assignment. There
are many ways you might tackle this task—part of your individual
success depends on how you go about interpreting and executing the
assignment.