ThatQuiz Test Library Take this test now
Portrait painting - Quiz
Contributed by: Currie
  • 1. Which emperor commissioned the 'Portraits of Confucius and Seventy-two Disciples'?
A) Kublai Khan
B) Araniko
C) Emperor Gaozong
D) Yang Qian
  • 2. Where were the portraits of Confucius and his disciples displayed during the Song dynasty?
A) On the walls of the city gate
B) In a forest near the capital
C) In the Emperor's private palace
D) On a stone tablet at the Imperial University
  • 3. What was the purported moral purpose of the Song dynasty portrait commission?
A) To highlight the wealth of the dynasty
B) To document fashion trends
C) To educate students as a moral code
D) To celebrate the Mongol conquest
  • 4. What did scholars argue was the hidden political motive of Emperor Gaozong?
A) To claim his policies were supported by Confucianism
B) To establish a new religion
C) To increase tax revenues
D) To improve relations with foreign empires
  • 5. Who painted the portraits of Kublai and Chabi?
A) Yang Qian
B) Emperor Gaozong
C) Confucius
D) Araniko
  • 6. In the portrait of Yang Qian, what does the bamboo symbolize?
A) Moral rightness
B) Reclusion from nature
C) Loyalty to the Mongol government
D) Financial wealth
  • 7. What does the background of Yang Qian's portrait represent?
A) The standard interior of a scholar's study
B) The potential choice between reclusion and political service
C) A specific historical battle site
D) The absolute rejection of the Mongol government
  • 8. What techniques did Araniko use to reinforce the shape of figures in his portraits?
A) Pure ink wash without coloring
B) Outlining with ink and reinforcing with color
C) Charcoal sketching and water wash
D) Oil layering and brush strokes
  • 9. Which aesthetic influenced the highlights on Empress Chabi's jewelry?
A) Himalayan
B) European
C) Japanese
D) Song Chinese
  • 10. How does the composition of the Yuan dynasty imperial portraits differ from the Song dynasty style?
A) They avoid the use of color
B) They focus heavily on emotional spirit
C) They are highly symmetrical and rigid
D) They are more fluid and narrative
  • 11. What feature of the Yuan dynasty portraits creates a 'confrontational impact' on the viewer?
A) The use of bright, contrasting landscapes
B) Full frontal orientation and centered pupils
C) The blurred facial expressions of the sitters
D) The inclusion of handwritten inscriptions
  • 12. How does the Yuan dynasty imperial portrait style compare to the Song dynasty in terms of capturing spirit?
A) Yuan portraits lack the emphasis on the sitter's spirit
B) Yuan portraits emphasize spirit more than Song portraits
C) Song portraits lacked spirit compared to Yuan
D) Both emphasize the capture of spirit equally
  • 13. What dilemma did the Chinese intelligentsia face during the Yuan dynasty?
A) Choosing between landscape and portrait painting
B) Choosing between Buddhism and Confucianism
C) Choosing between moving to the Himalayas or staying in China
D) Choosing between reclusion or new political careers
  • 14. Which artist is known for using non-naturalistic and garish colors for skin tones in his portraits?
A) Pablo Picasso
B) Henri Matisse
C) Gustav Klimt
D) Otto Dix
  • 15. Which artist incorporated gold paint and Byzantine motifs into his portraits?
A) Max Beckmann
B) Gustav Klimt
C) Oskar Kokoschka
D) Amedeo Modigliani
  • 16. Who was the pupil of Gustav Klimt known for portraiture of the Viennese upper class?
A) Otto Dix
B) Oskar Kokoschka
C) Max Ernst
D) Francis Picabia
  • 17. How did Pablo Picasso treat the likeness of subjects in his cubist portraits?
A) Highly simplified
B) Hyper-realistic
C) Traditionalist
D) Grossly distorted
  • 18. Olga Boznańska was an artist associated with which movement?
A) Dadaism
B) French impressionism
C) Vorticism
D) Cubism
  • 19. Max Beckmann was particularly notable for producing which type of work?
A) Self-portraits
B) Landscapes
C) Sculptural reliefs
D) Abstract murals
  • 20. Which artist is associated with the Art Deco era and used streamlined curves and sharp angles?
A) Max Ernst
B) George Bellows
C) Tamara de Lempicka
D) Olga Boznańska
  • 21. Who painted the 1922 modern collegial portrait titled All Friends Together?
A) Robert Henri
B) Max Ernst
C) Andy Warhol
D) George Bellows
  • 22. Which artist painted the 'Helga' series?
A) Lucian Freud
B) Chuck Close
C) Jamie Wyeth
D) Andrew Wyeth
  • 23. How many studies were included in Andrew Wyeth's 'Helga' series?
A) 100
B) 27
C) 247
D) 500
  • 24. Which artist's portrait titled Benefits Supervisor Sleeping sold for $33.6 million in 2008?
A) Francis Bacon
B) Chuck Close
C) Lucian Freud
D) Andy Warhol
  • 25. What is the primary characteristic of Francis Bacon's portraiture?
A) Byzantine motifs
B) Streamlined Art Deco style
C) Nightmarish quality
D) Hyper-realistic detail
  • 26. Which artist is famous for huge, hyper-realistic wall-sized 'head' portraits?
A) Andy Warhol
B) Chuck Close
C) Jamie Wyeth
D) Alex Katz
  • 27. Which work by Andy Warhol features the pop singer Prince?
A) Orange Shot Marilyn
B) Benefits Supervisor Sleeping
C) Orange Prince
D) All Friends Together
  • 28. Who is the artist famous for painting subjects ranging from presidents to pigs?
A) Robert Henri
B) Jamie Wyeth
C) George Bellows
D) Andrew Wyeth
  • 29. Which group represented British art in the early 20th century through portraiture?
A) Expressionists
B) Dadaists
C) Impressionists
D) Vorticists
  • 30. Which of the following is NOT listed as a medium for portraits?
A) Photography
B) Digital art
C) Lithography
D) Sculpture carving
  • 31. How is a portrait that depicts the whole body described?
A) Three-quarter view
B) Bust
C) Half-length
D) Full-length
  • 32. What part of the face does Gordon C. Aymar suggest is the most reliable for information?
A) The chin
B) The eyes
C) The mouth
D) The ears
  • 33. What painting is mentioned as an example of a subject not facing the viewer?
A) Mme. Charpentier and her children
B) Portrait of George Washington
C) Portrait of Madame X
D) Christina's World
  • 34. What was the average number of sittings for a portrait?
A) Fifty
B) About four
C) One hundred
D) One
  • 35. What does a self-portrait require the artist to use?
A) A second painter
B) A mirror
C) A photograph
D) A professional model
  • 36. Which artist is known for requiring over 100 sittings?
A) Cézanne
B) Goya
C) Raphael
D) Gilbert Stuart
  • 37. What is the common term for a 'head and shoulders' portrait?
A) Full-length
B) Bust
C) Profile
D) Three-quarter
  • 38. In the 18th century, how long did it typically take to deliver a completed portrait?
A) A month
B) A week
C) A year
D) A day
  • 39. What was the result of Gilbert Stuart's retort regarding a 'potato' and a 'peach'?
A) A commission success
B) A lower price
C) A masterpiece
D) A client's dissatisfaction
  • 40. In which ancient civilization were depictions of rulers as gods abundant?
A) Greece
B) Rome
C) Egypt
D) China
  • 41. During which century BC did Egyptian portraiture start placing more emphasis on likeness?
A) 10th century BC
B) 20th century BC
C) 14th century BC
D) 5th century BC
  • 42. How far back do Chinese portraits of notables likely go?
A) 2000 BC
B) 500 AD
C) Over 1000 BC
D) 100 AD
  • 43. What evidence exists for the presence of portraiture in ancient Greek painting?
A) Surviving canvas paintings
B) Papyrus sketches
C) Literary evidence
D) Stone murals
  • 44. Which ruler's head was first added to coins by his successors?
A) Theodosius I
B) Pliny the Elder
C) Alexander the Great
D) Constantine I
  • 45. What is the primary location for the survival of Roman-era painted portraits?
A) Byzantium, Turkey
B) Fayum, Egypt
C) Rome, Italy
D) Athens, Greece
  • 46. Who complained that Roman portrait art was declining?
A) Constantine I
B) Pliny the Elder
C) Socrates
D) Alexander the Great
  • 47. What happened to the interest in individual likeness in the Late Antique period?
A) It increased significantly
B) It remained the same
C) It focused only on children
D) It declined considerably
  • 48. What type of images did Early Christian art evolve for religious figures?
A) Caricatures of historical figures
B) Abstract geometric shapes
C) Highly realistic individual portraits
D) Fairly standardized images
  • 49. Which artist is credited with creating a self-portrait in 1152?
A) Robert Campin
B) Jan van Eyck
C) Hildegard of Bingen
D) Leonardo da Vinci
  • 50. What is the Wilton Diptych (ca. 1400) a portrait of?
A) Cosimo I de' Medici
B) Charles IV
C) Richard II of England
D) Henry VIII
  • 51. Which of the following was a master of Early Netherlandish portrait painting?
A) Michelangelo
B) Sandro Botticelli
C) Rogier van der Weyden
D) Raphael
  • 52. What medium allowed Northern European artists to achieve greater realism in the 15th century?
A) Fresco
B) Tempera
C) Oil colors
D) Watercolor
  • 53. Why did artists switch from wood to canvas in the 16th century?
A) Canvas resists cracking better than wood
B) Canvas was cheaper than wood
C) Canvas allows for faster drying
D) Canvas was easier to find
  • 54. Which painting by Jan van Eyck is considered a landmark of Western art for its depiction of a full-length couple?
A) Ginevra de' Benci
B) The Arnolfini Marriage
C) School of Athens
D) The Mona Lisa
  • 55. Which artist is known for making a sequence of self-portraits beginning at age thirteen?
A) Albrecht Dürer
B) Leonardo da Vinci
C) Hans Holbein the Younger
D) Lucas Cranach
  • 56. What subject did Hans Holbein the Younger famously paint in 1527 while in England?
A) Richard II
B) Charles IV
C) Sir Thomas More
D) Henry VIII
  • 57. What is the primary characteristic of the 'Mona Lisa smile' according to the text?
A) Perfect symmetry
B) Exaggerated width
C) Absence of teeth
D) Subtle asymmetry
  • 58. Which artist is noted for being one of the first child portraitists?
A) Leonardo da Vinci
B) Masaccio
C) Titian
D) Raphael
  • 59. Who painted the portrait of Cosimo I de' Medici showing the ruler in armor with a wary eye?
A) Agnolo Bronzino
B) Raphael
C) Titian
D) Leonardo da Vinci
  • 60. Which artist moved to Spain and emphasized an 'inner vision' over physical appearance?
A) Hans Holbein the Younger
B) El Greco
C) Albrecht Dürer
D) Agnolo Bronzino
  • 61. Who is credited with creating the first caricatures?
A) Rembrandt
B) The Accademia degli Incamminati
C) Diego Velázquez
D) Frans Hals
  • 62. Which artist painted 'Las Meninas'?
A) Peter Paul Rubens
B) Diego Velázquez
C) Frans Hals
D) Sir Anthony van Dyck
  • 63. What did Sir Joshua Reynolds believe was most important in a portrait?
A) Using very long brushes
B) Painting only the background
C) Observing exact similitude of every feature
D) Taking the general air
  • 64. Which artist introduced humor into portraiture with his 'Self-portrait with Pug'?
A) John Trumbull
B) Thomas Gainsborough
C) William Hogarth
D) Gilbert Stuart
  • 65. Which American artist was known for painting over 100 replicas of George Washington?
A) John Singleton Copley
B) John Trumbull
C) Gilbert Stuart
D) Charles Willson Peale
  • 66. What technique did Rembrandt use in 'The Night Watch' to create unconventional lighting?
A) Pointillism
B) Chiaroscuro
C) Fresco
D) Impasto
  • 67. Who was the French painter known as a chronicler of royalty, painting five French kings?
A) Élisabeth Vigée-Lebrun
B) François Boucher
C) Hyacinthe Rigaud
D) Peter Paul Rubens
  • 68. Which female painter is mentioned as a notable portraitist of the 18th century?
A) Madame de Pompadour
B) Angelica Kauffman
C) Élisabeth Vigée-Lebrun
D) Rosalba Carriera
  • 69. What style did female portrait subjects often wear in the late 18th and early 19th centuries?
A) Diaphanous gowns
B) Ornate floral corsets
C) Traditional armor
D) Heavy velvet robes
  • 70. Which French painter is known for painting a mirror behind the subject to show a rear view?
A) Jacques-Louis David
B) Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres
C) Eugène Delacroix
D) Gustave Courbet
  • 71. Which romantic artist is known for a series of portraits depicting mental patients?
A) Piotr Michałowski
B) Honoré Daumier
C) Théodore Géricault
D) Francisco de Goya
  • 72. Which artist is described as a transitional figure between realism and impressionism?
A) Édouard Manet
B) Gustave Courbet
C) Mary Cassatt
D) Thomas Eakins
  • 73. Who was considered the last major exponent of the British portrait tradition?
A) Edgar Degas
B) Cecilia Beaux
C) John Singer Sargent
D) Giovanni Boldini
  • 74. Which American artist was known as the 'female Sargent'?
A) Edith Mahon
B) Jane Avril
C) Cecilia Beaux
D) Mary Cassatt
  • 75. Which of these painters was famous for his caricatures of his contemporaries?
A) Pierre-Auguste Renoir
B) Claude Monet
C) Honoré Daumier
D) Jacques-Louis David
  • 76. Who painted the portrait of the Bellelli Family?
A) Gustave Courbet
B) Edgar Degas
C) Édouard Manet
D) Thomas Eakins
  • 77. From which group did the convention of non-individualized features in Persian miniatures derive?
A) Mongol Ilkhanids
B) Ottoman Empire
C) Qajar dynasty
D) Mughal Empire
  • 78. What orientation was normal for individual portraits in the Mughal tradition?
A) Full-back view
B) Profile
C) Frontal
D) Three-quarter view
  • 79. What condition did Emperor Akbar the Great likely have?
A) Poor eyesight
B) Dyslexia
C) Blindness
D) Color blindness
  • 80. What feature often appeared on the portraits of Mughal emperors to show status?
A) Crowns
B) Halos
C) Swords
D) Jeweled turbans
  • 81. Who were the primary audience for the small, exaggerated portraits of the Ottoman imperial family?
A) Foreign dignitaries
B) Religious leaders
C) The general public
D) A very restricted circle
  • 82. Which dynasty used large oil paintings for royal portraits?
A) Ottoman
B) Ilkhanid
C) Mughal
D) Qajar
  • 83. What kind of features did the chief figure in a court scene have in the Persian miniature tradition?
A) Chinese-looking features
B) European-looking features
C) Abstract shapes
D) Highly individualized features
  • 84. Which group was an exception to the lack of likeness in portraits?
A) Imperial palace guards
B) Buddhist clergy
C) Confucian bureaucrats
D) Taoist merchants
  • 85. Who was allowed to pay homage to imperial ancestor portraits?
A) The general public
B) All government officials
C) Foreign dignitaries
D) The most senior ministers
  • 86. What practice did Taoist scholars study during the Han dynasty?
A) Mathematics
B) Calligraphy
C) Physiognomy
D) Astronomy
  • 87. How often could senior ministers visit the imperial gallery of ancestor portraits?
A) Only upon the death of an emperor
B) Once per decade
C) Once a year
D) Every month
  • 88. Who founded the Western Jin dynasty in 266 AD?
A) Gu Kaizhi
B) Sima Yan
C) Ruan Xian
D) Rong Qiqi
  • 89. What is the length of the relief painting found in the Nanjing tomb?
A) 96 inches
B) 150 inches
C) 200 inches
D) 35 inches
  • 90. How many figure portraits are contained in the Jin dynasty thread-relief painting?
A) Seven
B) Four
C) Eight
D) Ten
  • 91. Which figure in the relief is not one of the Seven Sages of the Bamboo Grove?
A) Ji Kang
B) Rong Qiqi
C) Liu Ling
D) Ruan Ji
  • 92. What activity is Liu Ling depicted doing in the relief painting?
A) Dancing
B) Drinking alcohol
C) Playing the flute
D) Writing literature
  • 93. What musical instrument is Ruan Xian shown playing in the portrait?
A) A harp
B) A flute
C) A zither
D) A drum
  • 94. What kind of vessel is Liu Ling holding in the painting?
A) An erbei
B) A bowl
C) A vase
D) A goblet
  • 95. Which Jin dynasty artist wrote the book 'On Painting'?
A) Gu Kaizhi
B) Sima Yan
C) Shan Tao
D) Ruan Xian
  • 96. Which dynasty saw an increase in the humanization and personalization of portrait painting?
A) Ming dynasty
B) Song dynasty
C) Han dynasty
D) Tang dynasty
  • 97. What religious influence contributed to more realistic portrait features during the Tang dynasty?
A) Confucianism
B) Buddhism
C) Taoism
D) Shintoism
  • 98. What concept in Mahayana Buddhism linked an image's presence to the presence of a real person?
A) Temporal incorruptibility
B) Imperial legitimacy
C) Chronological succession
D) Spiritual consonance
  • 99. How many emperors were depicted in the scroll commissioned by Emperor Taizong?
A) Fifteen
B) Twelve
C) Thirteen
D) Ten
  • 100. How did Emperor Taizong use costumes to indicate his opinion of the emperors in the scroll?
A) Informal costumes indicated bad rulers, formal dress indicated high achievements
B) Only the Tang dynasty emperors wore formal attire
C) All emperors were dressed in identical royal robes
D) Informal costumes indicated wise scholars, formal dress indicated warriors
Created with That Quiz — where test making and test taking are made easy for math and other subject areas.