Advanced Placement- Arts

The Advanced Placement courses are taken by students in their high school in order to gain extra points in their college application by proving that they can do these college-level courses competitively. Students can opt to do as many AP courses are they need while in high school thereby considerably reducing the cost of their college education and also saving time during their hectic college-life schedules.

This program is offered by the College Board and though it isn’t mandatory for students to take the courses, students generally take at least 3 AP courses so that they can graduate sooner in college. They offer 38 courses as of now in this program ranging from subjects like Biology and Chemistry to Arts and Design.

Courses Offered in AP Arts

The three fields in which AP Arts have courses are Design, History and Music. The Design course is further split into three different courses which deal with 2-D art, 3-D art, and Drawing. The courses in all will be-

• AP Arts and Design
  • AP 2-D Arts and Design
  • AP 3-D Arts and Design
  • AP Drawing
• AP Arts History
• AP Music Theory

AP Art and Design Program

This course is for students who want to develop certain skill sets that are used by artists and designers. They will be encouraged to create a portfolio at the end of the work which will be assessed to get their AP score. Students will be able to explore the materials, processes, and ideas that artists and designers use. They will be encouraged to practice and experiment all the while revising the art forms they deal with until they can create original works of their own. Once students have explored and practiced enough, they will be able to communicate their ideas relating to art and design and put them forward in the portfolio they create.

Prerequisites

The AP Art and Design course do not have any prerequisites knowledge in creating art and design work outside of class are necessary to be able to scrape a decent grade in the course. While students who are interested in inquiry-based thinking and making are all eligible for the course, students who have not taken prior classes relating to art or design generally need assistance in understanding the course more than students who have some experience in the field.

Courses Offered in AP Art and Design

• AP 2-D Art and Design- Students will learn about art that is based in photography, collage, printmaking, graphic design, etc. in the two-dimensional medium and create art in the same medium. Taking this AP course is considered equal to taking a semester of an introductory college course in 2-D art and design.
  
• AP 3-D Art and Design- Students will be able to develop their skills in the 3-D medium of art which reflects itself in sculpture, architectural models, metalwork, ceramics, etc. They will be required to produce artworks in this medium which are created from original ideas and skills that have been acquired from the course.
• AP Drawing- Students will have to develop their skills in drawing by exploring different mediums and approaches. Then they should be able to use their knowledge into reflecting their own ideas into art.

Portfolio Exam Structure for AP Art and Design

The Portfolio exams of the AP Art and Design course consist of two sections. One is the section of selected works which consists of 40% of the grade and the other is of sustained investigation which takes up the rest of the 60 % of the total score.

Course	Portfolio- Selected Works	Portfolio- Sustained Investigation
AP 2-D Art and Design	5 physical works/printed reproductions of physical works	15 digital images of works of art and process documentation
AP 3-D Art and Design	10 digital images with 2 views of 5 works	15 digital images of works of art and process documentation
AP Drawing	5 physical works/ high quality printed reproductions of physical works	15 digital images of works of art and process documentation

AP 2-D Art and Design Portfolio Requirements

• Images submitted must demonstrate sustained investigation of materials, processes, and ideas which has been achieved through practice, experimentation, and revision.
• Students must identify the questions that led to the sustained investigation and the ways in which it shows proof of experimentation, practice, and revision. This should be stated in writing in less than 1200 words.
• The portfolio should not be in video format. Still images from videos or films can be used.
• The format used in the portfolio can be graphic design, digital imaging, photography, collage, fabric design, weaving, printing, etc.

AP 3-D Art and Design Portfolio Requirements

• Students should focus on the 3-dimensional elements of art including volume, mass, variety, rhythm, proportion, scale, etc.
• Images submitted must demonstrate sustained investigation of materials, processes, and ideas which has been achieved through practice, experimentation, and revision.
• Students must identify the questions that led to the sustained investigation and the ways in which it shows proof of experimentation, practice, and revision. This should be stated in writing in less than 1200 words.
• The format used in the portfolio can be figurative/ non-figurative sculptures, architectural models, metal works, ceramic, etc.
• Video clips are not allowed. Still images from videos or films can be used.

AP Drawing Portfolio Requirements

• Students should focus on improving their drawing skills like mark-making, light and shade, composition, etc. along with their knowledge on the relationships of marks and ideas.
• Images submitted must demonstrate sustained investigation of materials, processes, and ideas which has been achieved through practice, experimentation, and revision.
• Students must identify the questions that led to the sustained investigation and the ways in which it shows proof of experimentation, practice, and revision. This should be stated in writing in less than 1200 words.
• The formats used in the portfolio can be both digital or analog drawing along with painting, printmaking, and other mixed media work.
• Video clips cannot be included as a part of the portfolio. Still images and composite images from videos or films can be used.

AP Art History

This course deals with the history of art from all over the world from the prehistoric era to the present time. Historical works have to be perused and works of art must be analyzed through observation, reading, and research. The student will have to write an exam at the end of the course which has a duration of 3 hours in order to clear the course. Doing this AP course is equivalent to completing 2 semesters of college introductory art history.

Prerequisites

There are no prerequisites for the course.

Course Content in AP Art History

The course content of the course has been split into 10 different units. These units are-

• Global History from 30,000-500 BCE
• Ancient Mediterranean, 3500 BCE to 300 CE
• Early Europe and Colonial Americas, 200-1750 CE
• Later Europe and Americas, 1750-1980 CE
• Indigenous Americas, 1000 BCE- 1980 CE
• Africa, 1100-1980 CE
• West and Central Asia, 500 BCE-1980 CE
• South, East, and Southeast Asia, 300 BCE-1980 CE
• The Pacific, 700-1980 CE
• Global Contemporary, 1980 CE to Present

Exam Structure for AP Art History

Section 1- Multiple Choice Questions- There are a total of 80 questions in the multiple-choice section which has to be completed in under an hour and hold 50% of the total score in the test.

The questions will be provided in sets of 2-3 or as individual questions where the questions are generally based on the images of works of art.

Questions asked

• To analyze elements of works of art linking them to larger artistic traditions.
• To compare works of art.
• To analyze historical interpretations of art.
• To place works of art beyond their set image.

Section 2- Free Response- There will be a total of 6 questions in this section which can be answered in under 2 hours and hold 50% of the total score.

Questions asked

1. Long Essay-Comparison
2. Long Essay-Visual/Contextual Analysis
3. Short Essay-Visual Analysis
4. Short Essay-Contextual Analysis
5. Short Essay-Attribution
6. Short Essay- Continuity and Change

AP Music Theory

This course contains topics like musicianship, theory, and other information relating to musical materials and procedures. Students learn the ability to identify, understand and describe the materials and processes involved in tonal music. They also learn to develop their aural skills along with notational skills, speed, and fluency in performing music.

Prerequisites

There are no mandatory prerequisites for the course. But it is recommended that students applying for this course should have basic knowledge in reading and writing musical notations along with basic performance skills.

Course Content for AP Music Theory

The course content for this course is spread over 8 units which is arranged in a logical sequence helping students learn music theory from scratch.

1. Music Fundamentals 1- Pitch, Major Scales and Key Signatures, Rhythm, Meter, and Expressive Elements
2. Music Fundamentals 2- Minor Scales and Key Signatures, Melody, Timbre, and Texture.
3. Music Fundamentals 3- Triads and Seventh Chords.
4. Harmony and Voice Leading 1- Chord Function, Cadence, and Phrase.
5. Harmony and Voice Leading 2- Chord Progressions and Predominant Function.
6. Harmony and Voice Leading 3- Embellishments, Motives, and Melodic Devices.
7. Harmony and Voice Leading 4- Secondary Function.
8. Modes and Form.

Exam Structure for AP Music Theory

Section 1

• Multiple-choice: Aural- This section contains 41-43 questions and has to be completed within 45 minutes.
• Multiple-choice: Non-Aural- This section contains 32-34 questions in all and has to completed within 35 minutes.

Section 2

• Free-response- This section contains 7 questions and has to be completed in 70 minutes of time.
• Sight-seeing- This section contains 2 questions and is given a maximum of 10 minutes of time.