A series of artworks includes two or more pieces that relate to and rely upon one another and are meant to be seen as a whole. One example could be a series of three photographs taken of the exact location at different times of day. A second example might be a series of illustrations depicting the same narrative in three parts. 

It is advised that artworks are not shared on social media until after the examination results have been released.

Students can include work completed for IB as part of university, scholarship, or camp portfolio applications.

A clear exhibition photograph of a student's artwork is required for the IB Upload. Any artworks that aren't being used in their Exhibition upload should not appear in this arrangement. However, it is okay to have additional works made by a students physically present in an exhibition. Any "non IB" artwork should be separate from the IB display to ensure this doesn't confuse the moderator.

For IB, it is okay for students to be used as the subject of an artwork. However, it is essential to consider the cultural context of each school and any school regulations for minors to ensure that the way an individual student is represented aligns with the school's philosophy and rules.

Yes, it is okay for a student to work within one medium. However, to be successful in this, it is essential that they work within a range of techniques and processes within this one medium to be successful against the Technical Competence criterion. In addition, they should consider how their choice of media furthers or connects with their ideas under the Conceptual Qualities criterion. 

✏️ NOTE: Please don't confuse the choice of media in the Exhibition with the Process Portfolio: throughout their IB experience, a student must work with a variety of media in the Process Portfolio (see below).

3-Dimensional: Include the height, width, and length. The pedestal does not need to be included in the size.

Time-Based Media: Include the length of the video using minutes and/or seconds. For example, 3m25s or 45 seconds. Note: The maximum size for IB time-based media is 5 minutes.

Lens-Based/Digital Media: Any media created on or exists on a computer should be labeled in size according to the format used in the exhibition. If an artwork is displayed on a monitor, the size of the artwork seen within this display can be used. Alternatively, if a photo or digital illustration is printed, use the dimensions of the printed media in the exhibition text. 

For the Exhibition component, the following file types and sizes include:

Photos: JPG, JPEG, PNG, TIF (5 MB max)

Video: F4V, M4V, MOV, MP4, (5 minutes/500 MB max)

➡️ For other components, see more here.

If a student has worked from a reference image or an artwork as inspiration for their piece, they should acknowledge their sources. This reference does not need to be formally cited, but should be mentioned in the Exhibition text to give credit.

➡️ Example 1: "In my artwork, I was inspired by Van Gogh's 1889 oil painting Starry Night..."

➡️ Example 2: "Using an image of Zendaya's ballgown by Givenchy, found in the article "Met Gala 2024" in the New York Times (May 2024), I..."

As this is a complex topic, please see the following resources for more information. Please read the comments, too, as often, when issues arise on IBIS, other teachers share their insights in our comments section.

➡️ Uploading the Internal Assessment.

Not every student will be selected for sampling, as the IA (Exhibition) is a moderated Visual Arts component. This process takes place in the spring. We recommend completing this process at least 10 days before the upload deadline.

Before a list of sampled students is visible on IBIS, a few things need to happen:

1. Subject teachers enter Predicted grades
2. Teachers upload their component marks for each candidate (out of 30).
3. Once submitted, this information must be verified by the Diploma Coordinator and then a moderated sample is generated by the DP Coordinator. The moderated sample will be visible on the teacher end of IBIS.

4. Then, the teacher can upload their criteria marks for the sampled candidates along with their IA comments.

5. Finally, the IA/Exhibition upload can begin for each sampled candidate.

Only some students will be selected for sampling, as the IA (Exhibition) is a moderated Visual Arts component. This process takes place in the spring. We recommend completing this process at least 10 days before the upload deadline.

Before a list of sampled students is visible on IBIS, a few things need to happen:

1. Subject teachers enter Predicted grades
2. Teachers upload their component marks for each candidate (out of 30).
3. Once submitted, this information must be verified by the Diploma Coordinator and then a moderated sample is generated by the DP Coordinator. The moderated sample will be visible on the teacher end of IBIS.
4. Then, the teacher can upload their criteria marks for the sampled candidates along with their IA comments.
5. Finally, the IA/Exhibition upload can begin for each sampled candidate.

➡️ Learn more about Uploading the Internal Assessment here.

We don't have a one-size fits approach to this problem as it is an interface issue that IB needs to resolve. However, several teachers have shared these tips to troubleshoot this issue:

1. Save the files as new images in a different format (i.e. from .jpg to png)
2. Try opening the files with a different editing program from what you typically use and resave them.
3. Take photos with a camera for reliable formatting as many images made in HEIC format (phone photos) create problems once converted to other formats.

HL students must work with at least three different art-making forms from at least two columns.

SL students must work with at least two forms from two columns.

➡️ See here for more information about the art-making forms table and related forms. 

✏️ NOTE: The 2023 subject report declared a concerning number of candidates did not meet this requirement and their assessments faltered as a result (the maximum a student can score in Criterion A is 3 points out of 12, so this is a significant deduction). Review this material, even if you are familiar with the IB.

Formally speaking, these a sketchbook is not required. However, the use of one will further several aims of the PP (especially Criteria A & C). Sketchbooks or visual journals are encouraged as part of the PP experience in the IB Visual Arts syllabus. By utilizing this format, students become more accustomed to sketching out ideas and visualizing their results.

Students increasingly prefer using digital tablets to paper; this format is also okay, especially for developing ideas, annotating artwork images, and/or writing reflections. However, this format is very limited for testing materials or techniques (Crit. A) that aren't digital.

No, a student could work entirely in their sketchbook for the duration of IB. However, their work should be legible, so if their handwriting is clear (neatly written in pen), this won't be a problem. The work must be scanned and saved as a multi-page PDF. Remember that anything written in pencil may need to be retraced if the work is too light for the scanner to detect delicate linework. The student may want to add references/sources digitally for clarity.

Yes, resolved artworks are allowed in the PP. Earlier information for this syllabus contradicted this, but the IB Syllabus maintains that this is permissible. Note: resolved artworks do not show any processes or, on their own, meet any of the PP criteria. However, when used as a reflection or self-critique tool, students can use resolved artworks to meet some criteria.

The 2023 Subject Report suggests that showing less artworks, with deeper analysis, often yields better results. Specifically, the Subject experts mentioned 4 to 6 artworks and that these pieces, when focused in depth, allowed candidates to go into more depth when showing their techniques, development of ideas, and reflections. Weaker pieces may pull down students' overall results, so this is worth considering.

Students can be included artworks in their Process Portfolio that are not included in their Exhibition (these are separately assessed, i.e. not seen by same examiner). Therefore, if a student has an unresolved artwork or a piece that they decided not to include in the Exhibition (for any number of reasons), it is still possible that their exploration, practical experimentation, idea development, research, or reflections from that piece are still relevant and help satisfy the PP criteria.

This is okay as long as the teacher is in consultation with the student enough to ascertain that they created the work independently without additional help. In the best case scenario, these conversations happen before new work commences so that the teacher can check in with the student on their progress as a follow-up. In addition, there should be enough documentation of a student's artistic process to ensure that any work made outside of class remains relevant to the IB's PP criteria.

Students' ideas often come from personal experiences, which relates to Criterion C: Communication of ideas and intentions. While it's okay for students to explain the background to their idea briefly, it's essential that the description of their personal narrative does not become a lengthy, central focus to their PP slides.

It is okay if projects are not connected within the PP. However, when students develop ideas from previous experiences, they will likely meet many criteria at higher levels. For example:

• Criterion A: Skills, Techniques, and Processes: when a student uses the same materials or techniques more than once, they have the opportunity to develop more expertise within a domain
• Criterion B: Critical Investigation: it often occurs that when a student investigates the same artist more than once in reference to more than one artwork, they enable the opportunity to develop depth and can show connections of this investigation to their own artwork with more clarity
• Criterion C: Communicating Ideas & Intentions: students might choose to build upon ideas or subject matter used in a previous artwork. Instead of starting their brainstorming from scratch, they might go back to an old set of ideas or research and reference that as they come up with new variations.
• Criterion D: Reviewing, Refining, and Reflecting: students can review and reflect upon past artworks and use this a tool for promoting growth and confidence in their work for future pieces. Similarly, they might refine their use of techniques when trying something the second time around.

IB maintains that AI can be used as a tool. However, a student must acknowledge the involvement of AI and how they've used or implemented this as a tool. Most importantly, AI should not be used as a short-cut thinking processes, but rather as a tool to further expand upon existing ideas. 

➡️ See more in AI in IB education.

✏️ NOTE: In the 2023 Subject Report, examiners stated that many students fail to properly cite AI appropriately.

Whenever an external source is utilized for inspiration, research, or to support student understanding, students must acknowledge this at the first introduction of a source. At a minimum, students should:

• Label all artwork images with the title, medium, artist's name, year, size.
• Acknowledge textual resources with in-text citations.
• Apply quotation marks for directly copied text and the author's name. Students are advised to limit copying and keep this to a minimum.
• Label their own resolved artwork as "my artwork"
• Maintain a reference list for the final slide of their PP as a formal bibliography. [This slide will not count against the total number of required PP slides]

➡️ View more information on Referencing & Citing Sources.

When a student does not meet the minimum requirements, it is unlikely that their research, experimentation, idea generation, or reflections are deep or ample enough to meet the criteria beyond the lower or middle mark bands. One could make an argument for more dense pages, as this might result in fewer pages than those that are almost empty or overly-spacious. Remember that each slide's content should be legible and effective. Where possible, encourage students to meet the minimum.

PDF max file size allowed is 50 MB ( n.b. large file sizes can sometimes upload very slowly depending on internet connection

• Teachers do not need to record feedback on the Process Portfolio since the progress of the PP in usually witnessed directly in the classroom; only the work submitted for the Comparative Study and the Exhibition is addressed.
• The 6VACAF can only be uploaded alongside the PP, which is the latest of all the Visual Arts deadlines. The later deadline offers teachers a few extra days to complete this form after all the other uploads (!!) are said and done.

This is a common question! Here is a quick checklist. If you can answer yes to at least one of these questions, the pieces selected should be on the right track.

✔️ At least two of the artists come from different time periods.

✔️ At least two of the artists come from different cultures in a way that has impacted their lives - i.e. this could be related to religion, language, class, education, etc.

✔️ At least two of the artists come from different geographical regions - this needs to be culturally different, so two regions within the same country may not count unless they have different customs, economies, languages, etc.

➡️ Read more about Cultural Contexts here.

Students need to make connections between their artistic practice and the works studied in their CS. As such, students should look at the work that they've made over time and be able to form connections. When an artwork is made to satisfy Criterion F alone, only connecting to this one piece will likely limit the scope of connections that a student can formulate. In addition, taking time out to make a CS artwork should also consider the student's exhibition. If a student chooses to create an artwork to connect to the CS directly, they should decide if and how they want it to fit into their exhibition, too.

➡️ Read more on HL Connections for ideas.

IB does not give any guidance or restriction on the number of words used. Importantly, students should meet the minimum or maximum number of slides and the screens should be a balance of text and visual elements. We recommend a 50% balance of text to visuals.

The IB does not give a formal requirement, however we encourage students to use 11-12 point font for the body of the text. Some fonts are larger than others, however, so use your best judgement. Examiners are not required to zoom into a screen, so if the text is too small, it's possible that the typing will not be reviewed.

➡️ See more in the Student Guide to setting up a CS.

When a student does not meet the minimum requirements, it is unlikely that their research, analysis, investigation, interpretation or reflections are deep or ample enough to meet the criteria beyond the lower or middle mark bands. Where possible, encourage students to meet the minimum.

✏️ NOTE: HL students must meet two sets of requirements. First, they must complete the full comparative study (10-15 slides), but they must also complete the HL criterion F (3-5 slides). In both cases, they should meet the minimum. Especially with the final criterion F, it is unlikely that with 1-2 slides alone, the student can sufficiently make connections. This part of the CS is worth almost 30% of the assessment mark.

Artworks made by unknown artists can be studied. Importantly, the student should select an artwork with enough information about the artist community or tradition.

However, an artwork with an unknown artist, where the year made, place of creation and cultural context are not known are not advised for study. Artworks with too little known information will result in a very limited study; hence, it will be diffcult for a student to successfully reach the research required for in-depth analysis, interpretation and evaluation.

There are many popular artworks that routinely surface in students' Comparative Studies each year.

Pros: A lot of credible information will be available from museum and scholarly websites. Quality documentation of the artwork will be easy to find. A student who is capable of handling a lot of sources will have incredible opportunities for developing detailed analyses.

Cons: Some students will find the amount of available information overwhelming. In addition, many famous artworks will be already be known by examiners. If students are inaccurate with their writing, research and analysis, any inconsistencies in their work will likely stand out to examiners.

In theory, if the criteria are applicable, but this could make things more difficult than necessary. When looking at time-based media, selecting a single still frame or scene limits the scope of the original artwork. One might even say this is like zooming in and just choosing to focus upon a small section of an artwork, rather than considering the piece as a whole. A scene or a still frame will not make for an easy or even comparison when looking at another artwork seen in full (i.e. a sculpture, painting, installation).