Complete Guide on Writing Your Art Research Paper as Required by the Strictest Instructors

Writing guide
Posted on December 18, 2018

A full understanding of how to complete a solid art research paper will help you attain the good results in this intellectual activity. In general, all the college undergraduates majoring in Fine Arts, Performing Arts or Art History are required to have the particular knowledge in writing some different academic assignments – essays, reviews, analyses, research papers, etc. The strong research, critical and writing skills always help students complete their projects on various topics related to such a discipline as Art. Since this discipline is a broad field of study, it involves a significant number of categories that might be discussed in the research papers. As a result, students that have a great passion for the arts often face some challenges in selecting a good research topic they would like to cover on. The list of the interesting topics for the research papers may include the history of art, the art of different nations and peoples, the difference between the artistic movements, styles, or figures, and the other issues.

It is a high time to provide the detailed description of a well-written research paper. What is it? In general, it denotes that you need to do scientific writing on a particular topic. As opposed to an essay assignment, research paper writing is the task that is usually given to the students at higher academic levels – colleges and universities. The structure of a good research paper should include some important elements like:

  • the definition of the issue examined in a research paper – Introduction;
  • the description of different studies related to this issue – Literature Review;
  • the presentation of research methods used to explore this issue – Methodology, etc.

In the process of writing this academic assignment, it is important to provide some interesting materials that could be useful for further studies regarding any given topic. Whereas an essay is mostly built on your knowledge of a particular problem, a research paper includes not only your thoughts but also the academic publications that provide the additional information regarding the research topic.

It is common knowledge that every writing assignment should have a specific purpose. Taking into consideration the discipline of Art, the main purpose of your research paper is to provide the readers with a detailed description and analysis of the issue mentioned in the title of the paper.

Select a Topic for Your Art Research Paper

A right choice of a topic of your further research can be regarded as the main factor that improves your chances to write a well-structured research paper of high quality. While selecting a topic for your paper, you should take into account two aspects of it. On the one hand, it is important to have the particular knowledge regarding the topic you want to research. On the other hand, if your knowledge leaves something to be desired, you should have at least a great interest in studying this issue as well as in searching for the additional materials related to the topic of the research paper. At the very beginning, students are recommended to choose a specific topic on the Art. Then, they should narrow down it to the most interesting side of the investigation that will engage college undergraduates in completing academic research projects.

Firstly, since Art is considered to be a broad subject field, you should identify the activities of the arts that kindle your strong interest as well as your careful attention. Such activities may involve painting, music, dancing, architecture, sculpture, and different performing arts. In most cases, students are more likely to select research topics related to the fields of music and painting. Regarding the issue of music, you may research the impact of the particular music genre on the development of the society in a selected country. One of the greatest examples of such art research paper is entitled as “The Impact of Jazz on the Development of the American Culture”. As for the field of painting, the majority of modern students chooses topics that are related to the prominent artists’ creative legacy or the differences between the art styles. For instance, if you are interested in this field of art, you can write a research paper comparing the painting techniques of Leonardo Da Vinci and Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn.

5 Top Art Research Papers Topics Our Writers Advise

  • The Effects of Painting on the Development of Ancient Civilization Societies;
  • What Changes Occurred in the World of Art as the Result of the Renaissance Period?
  • Top Differences Between the Art Forms Existed in the USA and European Countries;
  • The Analysis of the Musical Compositions Applied in the Shakespearean Tragedies;
  • The Development of Piano Music in the Cultural Revolution.

5 Pre-Writing Techniques to Start a Good Art Research Paper

After the process of selecting a topic, you need to pass through the prewriting stage. Follow some effective pre-writing tips that bring some great benefits to you. Firstly, you start writing your research paper. Secondly, you start writing it as many experienced research writers do. That way, you maximize your chances to submit a well-researched/structured academic paper.

  1. When you are done with choosing the topic of your interest, it would be a great idea to brainstorm the different research ideas that can be included in your art paper.
  2. Make a list of keywords. Since it is the art research paper, use some art terms, artistic concepts, etc.
  3. Find credible information sources that are related to the issue in question.
  4. Make the well-organized notes regarding the topic of your research paper. It’s up to you what methods of note-taking to use. But still, take notes as many as possible to simplify the writing process.
  5. Before beginning to write a research paper, you should develop the outline that will help you finish the paper considerably faster.

How to Structure and Organize Your Art Research Paper

Write an Abstract for an Art Research Paper

First of all, an abstract is an essential element of the research paper structure that you shouldn’t forget to include. In simple terms, this element is considered to be a summary of the content discussed in the research paper. You can be asked to write an abstract of two types. In most cases, an abstract is an informative part of a research paper that is written by a researcher after writing the entire paper. Usually, this section contains from 300 to 500 words that reflect the important points related to the research paper.

In accordance with the structure of the abstract, this part of the academic assignment should include 4 main elements that are essential for writing a perfect art research paper abstract:

  • A comprehensive and inclusive description of the research problem in question;
  • The framework of a research paper. In this case, it is needed to analyze the structure of your art research paper and explain the use of theoretical, methodological, and historical basis of the writing;
  • A brief description of the main arguments provided in a research paper;
  • A concise summary of the paper’s findings/results.

Another type of the text summary is a descriptive abstract. Usually, it contains less than 150 words. The main purpose of this structural element is to provide the readers with a brief description of the research paper.

Write an Outline to Know How to Structure Your Research Paper

First of all, it should be mentioned that an outline is a good way to represent the overview of the content in any written work. It can be used as a separate assignment and a pre-writing tool to organize the whole research project. In fact, developing an outline provides you with a general framework within which you need to work to write well-structured art research papers. We can provide you with the important details of an outline using the art history research paper for the illustrative purposes. In this case, the topic of the potential research paper is “The Impact of Ancient Egyptian Art on the Modern Society’s Perception of Art”. Since it is required to write a basic outline that will consist of 3 major parts – an introduction, main body, and conclusion.

While writing an outline, you should not provide the detailed description of all the points you are going to mention in your paper. In fact, you need to depict the concise and clear arguments that will define the scope of your art research paper writing. In the introduction, which is the opening part of your assignment, it is critical to introduce an effective thesis statement related to the topic that will be discussed in your art research paper. In this case, you can write the following thesis statement, “The Ancient Egyptian culture has a significant impact on modern society and enjoys great popularity up to this day. The reasons for this impactful influence include the beauty and uniqueness of their art and the development of crafting that can be regarded as the art movement as well.”

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In the main body, it is recommended to provide no less than three different arguments that support your thesis statement. The strongest argument mentioned in the research paper should be the final point that proves the accuracy of the paper’s focus. In the last paragraph, which is regarded as a conclusion, you are required to summarize all the points mentioned in the paper. In addition, in this part of the outline, you have to reiterate the thesis statement as well as your major findings of this research paper.

3 Main Parts Included in the Basic Structure of a Research Paper

The title page of the research paper is the first point the readers pay attention to. Using the effective heading, you have more chances to explain what issue will be considered in the paper. In the case, don’t neglect the use of keywords that are essential for your research topic. All of them should be included on the front page. As an example of relevant keywords used in the title of an art research paper, we can offer the following one “The Impact of the Ancient Egyptian Culture on the Modern Society’s Perception of Art”. All the main points that will be presented in a research paper on Art have been already given in the title. And it is a correct way of dealing with any type of writing.
In general, the structure of the art research paper should include an introduction, the main body with at least three main parts, and a conclusion.

  1. The introductory paragraph always provides the readers with the overall view of the issue discussed in the paper. Apart from the background knowledge regarding the topic, the introduction should include the effective thesis statement. Since our topic is related to the culture of the Ancient Egyptians, in this paragraph, we should introduce it to the full extent.
  2. Regarding the main body parts, each of them should present a separate argument related to the topic. What is more, the body paragraphs always begin with a topic sentence. In the art research paper, we can provide three main arguments that include the notion of the obelisk and its impact on the modern European culture, the popularity of the Egyptian hieroglyphics, and the increased tendency of the nineteenth century to use the Egyptian themes in the fields of art and architecture. All the arguments should be supported by the evidence taken from the credible academic sources.
  3. The last two sections of this research paper include a conclusion and the list of references. In the concluded paragraph, you should summarize the main points mentioned in the paper. If you want to write a good art research paper, you should remember that all the sections should be correlated regarding the content as well as the logical sequence of the research ideas.

3 Post-Writing Steps That Polish Your Research Paper

1. Take into Consideration Some General Aspects of Good Writing

Before you start proofreading the art research paper thoroughly every sentence, make sure that all the large aspects of this writing assignment are revised accordingly. What are these large aspects? Check for:

  • The whole organization of the academic paper. Is the research paper content coherent?
  • The development of the paper sections and paragraphs. Are the logically completed?

2. Proofread a Research Paper like a Real Pro

In the process of proofreading the completed research paper, real experts proofread the text in both the print-out and computer screen versions. In favor of the latter, every student can say, “I always choose any online tool to edit my paper”. However, all experienced research paper writers, who have already written a significant number of different college writing assignments, are knowledgeable of the effectiveness of using both ways of proofreading papers.

  • You can use some useful computer functions that allow them to identify some small grammatical errors and spelling mistakes. So using some available programs on the Internet, which are known as the computer spelling checkers, you have the opportunity to examine the accuracy of the text only.
  • Print out your research paper as the human brain and eyes are capable of following the flow of ideas expressed on paper. While looking through a printing out paper, you can use a blank sheet of paper or ruler aimed at covering the whole text located below the string that you began to read out every sentence.

3. Edit a Paper According to the Formatting Style Needed

In general, an academic style is characterized by an objective, consistent way of writing. It is ensured by adhering to a basic format. Don’t forget to check what formatting style you are required to stick to (APA, MLA, Harvard, etc.) But if you aren’t given an instruction on what style to use and you doubt, consider the main difference between two basic formats, APA and MLA:

  • Whereas APA (American Psychological Association) format is used in such fields as Social Sciences to which Psychology, Sociology, Nursing, Business Studies belong, MLA (Modern Language Association) refers to writing in the Humanities such as Literature and Languages, History, Philosophy, the Arts, or Religion.

Find your field of study in the MLA guidelines? Don’t hesitate to look through all the headings/subheadings, citations, references, and so on. Besides, it is highly recommended to check the issues of spacing and indentations that should be the same in every paragraph of the paper. However, academic writing leaves open the possibility to write in any possible format. And every formatting style has its specific rules the details of which can be easily found on the Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL) website.

Needless to say, research paper writing on any subject is quite time-consuming. Do this, do that… What is more, do it excellently. Otherwise, you risk losing some marks for the poor quality of research or the occurrence of some grammar mistakes. The last but not least useful advice is to ask someone from aa research paper writing service who knows all the angles of academic writing to examine your art research paper carefully in the attempt to find the inaccuracies that you might have skipped. Do it before a paper submission date.

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