MFA Sculpture and Three-Dimensional Art 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which sculptural technique involves building up a form by adding material, such as clay or wax, to create a positive shape?
- Subtractive modeling
- Additive modeling (Correct answer)
- Cast construction
- Assemblage
Correct answer: Additive modeling
Additive modeling involves adding material (clay, wax, plaster) to build up a form, contrasted with subtractive methods like carving.
Question 2: In lost-wax casting (cire-perdue), what happens to the wax model during the casting process?
- It is preserved as the final artwork
- It is melted and replaced by molten metal (Correct answer)
- It is coated in resin and retained inside the cast
- It is removed mechanically after cooling
Correct answer: It is melted and replaced by molten metal
In lost-wax casting, molten metal is poured into a mold and the wax original melts away ('is lost'), leaving a metal replica.
Question 3: Which artist is most closely associated with the development of the readymade as a sculptural concept?
- Constantin Brancusi
- Alberto Giacometti
- Marcel Duchamp (Correct answer)
- Alexander Calder
Correct answer: Marcel Duchamp
Marcel Duchamp introduced the readymade with works like 'Fountain' (1917), challenging definitions of art by designating ordinary manufactured objects as sculpture.
Question 4: What distinguishes a relief sculpture from a sculpture in the round?
- Relief sculpture is always made of stone
- Relief sculpture projects from a flat background and is viewed from one side (Correct answer)
- Relief sculpture must be cast in bronze
- Relief sculpture uses only additive techniques
Correct answer: Relief sculpture projects from a flat background and is viewed from one side
Relief sculpture projects from a flat or curved background and is intended to be viewed from the front, unlike sculpture in the round which is freestanding.
Question 5: Alexander Calder's hanging, motor-driven or air-powered sculptures are called:
- Stabiles
- Mobiles (Correct answer)
- Constructions
- Earthworks
Correct answer: Mobiles
Calder coined the term 'mobile' for his kinetic sculptures that move in response to air currents or motors, while his stationary abstract works are called stabiles.
Question 6: Which term describes a sculpture created by joining together found objects or pre-existing materials?
- Casting
- Carving
- Assemblage (Correct answer)
- Modeling
Correct answer: Assemblage
Assemblage is a sculptural technique in which artists combine found objects, disparate materials, or pre-made items into a unified three-dimensional work.
Question 7: In contemporary MFA sculpture programs, what does 'site-specificity' mean in relation to a work of art?
- The artwork is sold only to buyers in a specific city
- The artwork is designed to exist in and respond to a particular location (Correct answer)
- The artwork must be made entirely from locally sourced materials
- The artwork is archived at the site of its creation
Correct answer: The artwork is designed to exist in and respond to a particular location
A site-specific work is conceived and created in response to a particular environment or location, so that the site itself becomes integral to the meaning of the piece.
MFA Sculpture and Three-Dimensional Art 1
Which sculptural technique involves building up a form by adding material, such as clay or wax, to create a positive shape?