Recall — GCSE Flashcards
🎨 GCSE Art & Design Flashcards
Techniques, artists and the formal elements — 10 free revision cards. Study them below, or add the whole deck to Recall and let FSRS spaced repetition schedule your revision so it actually sticks.
Name the seven formal elements of art.
1. Line
2. Shape
3. Form (3D)
4. Tone
5. Texture
6. Pattern
7. Colour
These are the visual building blocks every artwork uses.
2. Shape
3. Form (3D)
4. Tone
5. Texture
6. Pattern
7. Colour
These are the visual building blocks every artwork uses.
What are the primary, secondary and tertiary colours?
Primary: red, yellow, blue (cannot be mixed from others).
Secondary: orange, green, purple (mix of two primaries).
Tertiary: mix of a primary and adjacent secondary (e.g. red-orange).
Secondary: orange, green, purple (mix of two primaries).
Tertiary: mix of a primary and adjacent secondary (e.g. red-orange).
What are complementary colours?
Colours opposite each other on the colour wheel — they create maximum contrast.
Pairs: red/green, blue/orange, yellow/purple.
When placed side by side they appear more vibrant; when mixed they make brown/grey.
Pairs: red/green, blue/orange, yellow/purple.
When placed side by side they appear more vibrant; when mixed they make brown/grey.
Who is Pablo Picasso and what is Cubism?
Spanish artist (1881-1973), co-founder of Cubism with Georges Braque.
Cubism shows objects from multiple viewpoints simultaneously, breaking them into geometric facets. Key work: Les Demoiselles d'Avignon (1907).
Cubism shows objects from multiple viewpoints simultaneously, breaking them into geometric facets. Key work: Les Demoiselles d'Avignon (1907).
What is Impressionism?
Late 19th-century French movement focused on capturing light and momentary impressions with visible brushwork.
Key artists: Monet, Renoir, Degas, Pissarro. Often painted en plein air (outdoors). Reaction against academic painting.
Key artists: Monet, Renoir, Degas, Pissarro. Often painted en plein air (outdoors). Reaction against academic painting.
What is chiaroscuro?
The strong contrast between light and dark to create a sense of three-dimensional form.
From Italian chiaro (light) + scuro (dark). Mastered by Caravaggio, Rembrandt, Leonardo.
From Italian chiaro (light) + scuro (dark). Mastered by Caravaggio, Rembrandt, Leonardo.
What is the rule of thirds?
A composition guide: divide the image into a 3×3 grid. Place key subjects on the intersections or along the lines for a balanced, dynamic composition.
Used in painting, photography and film.
Used in painting, photography and film.
Name three printmaking techniques.
Relief (woodcut, lino) — cut away what won't print.
Intaglio (etching, engraving) — incised lines hold ink.
Screen printing — ink pushed through a stencilled mesh.
Also: monoprint, lithography.
Intaglio (etching, engraving) — incised lines hold ink.
Screen printing — ink pushed through a stencilled mesh.
Also: monoprint, lithography.
What is perspective in drawing?
A technique for creating the illusion of depth on a 2D surface.
Linear perspective: parallel lines converge at a vanishing point on the horizon. 1-point, 2-point and 3-point variations.
Aerial/atmospheric: distant objects appear paler and less detailed.
Linear perspective: parallel lines converge at a vanishing point on the horizon. 1-point, 2-point and 3-point variations.
Aerial/atmospheric: distant objects appear paler and less detailed.
Who was Frida Kahlo and what defines her work?
Mexican painter (1907-1954) known for autobiographical self-portraits.
Themes: identity, pain (after a bus accident), gender, Mexican folk culture. Bold colour, symbolism, surreal elements. Wife of Diego Rivera.
Themes: identity, pain (after a bus accident), gender, Mexican folk culture. Bold colour, symbolism, surreal elements. Wife of Diego Rivera.
These 10 cards are a free starter deck — a companion for memorising the core facts, not a complete course. In the Recall app you can also paste your own class notes and have AI build decks for the topics your exam board covers.