These trivia questions are a great way to kick your knowledge of the art world up a notch. Maybe you’re looking for a fun and engaging way to education your kids, or perhaps you’re just an art lover looking to test yourself and your friends. Whatever the occasion may be, this art trivia quiz is certain to be entertaining for everyone involved.
It doesn’t matter if you’re an art novice or an expert, this trivia quiz contains questions for all levels. This makes it perfect to use in the classroom, during road trips, or even during family game night. And don’t worry if you don’t know all of the answers, we’ve included both the solutions and an extra fun fact for each question.
So, why not give this art trivia quiz a try? Choose from a variety of easy, historical, and fun questions about art.
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Easy Art Trivia Questions
Who is the artist famous for painting “Starry Night”?
Answer: Vincent Van Gogh.
Vincent Van Gogh is said to have painted nearly 900 paintings in just 10 years.
Fill in the blank: “The Birth of ____”
Answer: Venus.
The artist of this painting is Sandro Botticelli.
In which museum can you find the “Mona Lisa” painting?
Answer: The Louvre.
This painting is much smaller than most people would expect, measuring 77cm x 53cm.
What is a primary color?
Answer: A color that can’t be created by combining other colors.
The word primary means “fundamental,” “earliest,” or “original.”
Can you name the three primary colors?
Answer: Red, blue, and yellow.
These colors are the source of all other colors.
What are the three secondary colors?
Answer: Orange, green, and violet (purple).
A secondary color is made by combining two primary colors, while a tertiary color is made by mixing a primary color with a secondary color.
What kind of artwork is made using cutouts from magazines, books, photos, fabric, and other miscellaneous materials?
Answer: A collage.
The term “collage” comes from the French word that means “to glue.”
Black and white are not actually colors. What are they?
Answer: Shades.
Black and white aren’t colors because they are not visible on the light spectrum.
What is the real term for colors in art?
Answer: Hue.
Hue is also the name of a city in Vietnam.
What does “Renaissance” mean?
Answer: The Rebirth.
The Renaissance movement signalled the end of the Middle Ages in Europe.
Where in the world was the famous Great Sphinx located?
Answer: Egypt.
The Great Sphinx is estimated to have been built around 2500 BC.
Which American city should you go to if you want to visit the Museum of Modern Art?
Answer: New York City.
The MOMA was established by local modern art collectors.
Which art movement is Pablo Picasso famous for being part of?
Answer: Cubism.
Cubists wanted to create work that showed the true structure of objects.
Which artist was famous for being associated with Pop Art and Marilyn Monroe?
Answer: Andy Warhol.
Andy Warhol was for in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania in the year 1928.
What did the first known paintings of the prehistoric age contain images of?
Answer: Animals.
This type of art is often called a “cave painting.”
Painted images of people, often showcasing their personalities, are known as what type of artwork?
Answer: Portraits.
Portrait painting is an art form that has existed for many centuries.
Which artist painted “The Scream”?
Answer: Edvard Munch.
Edvard Munch was a Norwegian painter who painted The Scream in 1893.
Who was the sculptor who created the statue of “David”?
Answer: Michelangelo.
Michelangelo created “David” from marble between the years 1501 and 1504.
Which artist is known for painting melting clocks?
Answer: Salvador Dali.
Salvador Dali’s most famous work is called “The Persistence of Memory”.
Who painted the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel?
Answer: Michelangelo.
Michelangelo lived from March 6, 1475 to February 18, 1564.
What do you call a point with no end in art?
Answer: A line.
A straight line is the shortest distance between two points.
Which European city is also known as “the city of art”?
Answer: Athens.
Athens is the oldest capital city in Europe.
Art History Trivia Questions
Which French artist is known for paintings of water lilies?
Answer: Claude Monet.
Monet made 250 paintings of water lilies in 30 years.
What is the name of the world-famous street artist from Bristol?
Answer: Banksy.
Banksy was once nominated for an Oscar.
How many times has the Mona Lisa successfully been stolen?
Answer: One time.
The Mona Lisa was stolen on August 21, 1911.
Which painting technique lays paint thickly onto a surface, often thick enough that the texture of brush or painting-knife strokes are visible once dry?
Answer: Impasto.
Vincent Van Gogh famously used this technique to create “Sunflowers”.
What is a goddess shown standing on in Botticelli’s painting, “The Birth of Venus”?
Answer: A large seashell.
Sando Botticelli is credited with painting 137 artworks.
What does “negative space” mean in art?
Answer: Areas left empty in an artwork..
Negative space is used to frame, organize, and highlight elements of an artwork.
What type of metal did makers of Medivial illuminated manuscripts use to embellish the documents?
Answer: Gold.
What is the French term for the type of paintings that look so real that they trick the eye?
Answer: Trompe l’oeil.
In English, people often refer to this type of work as an optical illusion.
Which type of paints are made by mixing pigments with egg yolks?
Answer: Tempera paints.
Tempera paints are long-lasting and fast-drying.
In the period of the Renaissance, what did artists need to study before they could paint people?
Answer: Anatomy.
Dissections of the human body are documented to have occurred as early as the third century BC in Alexandria.
Which instrument is most commonly featured in Picasso’s art?
Answer: The guitar.
Picasso created guitars from paper, sheet metal, and included them in his paintings.
Which famous painting by the artist Grant Wood depicts a farmer and his daughter?
Answer: “American Gothic”.
“American Gothic” is currently in the Art Institute of Chicago.
What is the name of the female Mexican artist who is famous for her self-portraits?
Answer: Frida Kahlo.
Frida Kahlo was married to Diego Rivera.
Which artist painted “The Last Supper”?
Answer: Leonardo Da Vinci.
This painting can be viewing at the Convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie in Milan.
What is the name of the artist who painted “The School of Athens”?
Answer: Raphael.
The full name of Raphael was Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino.
Who is usually considered to be the pioneer of the abstract art movement?
Answer: Wassily Kandinsky.
Wassily Kandinsky had a career as a lawyer in Russia.
What is the term for the Japanese art of paper folding?
Answer: Origami.
It is said that making 1000 origami cranes will fulfill wishes.
Which art movement was led by artist Henri Matisse?
Answer: The Fauvism movement.
Henri Matisse led the Fauvism movement along with Andre Derain and Maurice de Vlaminck.
What is the name of the French artist who is famous for often painted ballerinas?
Answer: Edgar Degas.
Degas often painted ballerinas when they were getting ready for a performance backstage.
What is the name of artist Gustav Klimt’s most famous painting?
Answer: The Kiss.
Gustav Klimt painted 161 artworks during his time as an artist.
Where did Pop Art get its name?
Answer: Popular objects and iconography.
Pop Art artist Andy Warhol was famous for painting cans of Campbell’s tomato soup.
“Less is More” was the mantra behind which art movement?
Answer: The minimalist movement.
The minimalist movement reached the height of its popularity between the 1950’s and 1970’s.
Who was the designer of the famous Guggenheim Museum located in New York City?
Answer: Frank Lloyd Wright.
Frank Lloyd Wright was an American architect, designer, writer, and teacher.
During the fifteenth century, a painter named Masaccio revived which art movement that had been lost in The Dark Ages?
Answer: Realism.
Realism describes an art movement that wishes to paint subjects as they really exist.
Who was the artist famous for their unique and up-close perspective paintings of flowers?
Answer: Georgia O’Keeffe.
Georgia O’Keeffe was an American artist who was born in Wisconsin and died in New Mexico.
Which art movement was Realism a reaction against?
Answer: Romanticism.
Romanticism was a movement that prioritized emotions, feelings, and dreams.
Which Spanish artist is considered the last of the old masters and one of the earliest modern artists?
Answer: Francisco Goya.
Many of Francisco Goya’s works are said to have reflected contemporary social issues and upheavals.
Johannes Vermeer is famous for his painting of a woman that features what type of accessory?
Answer: A pearl earring.
Johannes Vermeer was a Dutch artist who is known for painting daily life in the 17th century.
What style of art did Rembrandt paint?
Answer: Baroque painting.
Rembrandt is known for his masterful painting of light and shade.
Around how long ago was the first known human work of art created?
Answer: 100,000 years old.
Some of the oldest artworks created by humans are Petroglyphs on cave walls.
Fun and Tricky Art Trivia Questions
Which artist famously cut off a piece of his ear?
Answer: Vincent Van Gogh.
Vincent Van Gogh created “Starry Night” in a mental health facility.
What do most consider to be the 2 most unusual things about Leonardo da Vinci’s painting, the “Mona Lisa”?
Answer: She has no eyebrows and a strange smile.
The Mona Lisa is one of the most valuable paintings ever, but some people think that it may be unfinished.
How many words does Pablo Picasso’s full name have in it?
Answer: 23 words.
Pablo Picasso’s first word is said to have been “lapiz”, a word that means pencil in Spanish.
What is the most frequently visited museum in the world?
Answer: The Musee de Lourvre in Paris.
Beyonce famously rented out the Louvre to film a music video with her husband, Jay-Z.
Which artist designed and invented the kite?
Answer: Leonardo Da Vinci.
According to historians, Leonardo Da Vinci did not receive much formal education.
What type of paint dries the fastest?
Answer: Acrylic paint.
Most acrylic paints are water-based.
What is the name of the wealthy and successful Italian family who were known as patrons of the arts during the Renaissance?
Answer: The Medici Family.
The Medici Family was so influential that multiple members of the family became Popes.
What is the name of the Indian painter who was exiled for the subject matter of his work?
Answer: M.F. Hussain.
M.F. Hussain lived from 1915 to 2011.
What did people use to create paint in the prehistoric era?
Answer: Natural pigments from plants, animals, and minerals.
Some natural materials used as pigments included charcoal, calcite, and bones.
What is the name of the last painting created by the painter Raphael?
Answer: “Transfiguration”.
This painting was created between the years 1516 and 1520.
What is the name of the largest hammered copper statue in the world?
Answer: The Statue of Liberty.
The Statue of Liberty was given to the United States by France in the late 19th century.
What’s the name of the famous government building that took 570 gallons of paint to completely repaint?
Answer: The White House.
The White House contains 132 rooms and 6 levels.
Who designed the Eiffel Tower?
Answer: Alexander Gustave Eiffel.
The Eiffel Town was the tallest man-made structure in the world for nearly four decades.
Which 21st century art museum looks like a huge floating island?
Answer: The Museum of Art in Kanazawa, Japan.
This museum was designed by architects Kazuyo Sejima and Ryue Nishizawa.
What is the name of the largest art festival in the world?
Answer: Edinburgh Festival Fringe.
This festival usually takes place in the summer months.
What do you call the Japanese art form of flower arrangement?
Answer: Ikebana.
Ikebana is also known as kado, which means “way of flowers”.
What are the most popular mediums used by graffiti artists?
Answer: Spray paint and marker pens.
The word graffiti comes from the Greek word “graphein,” which means “to write.”
Who commissioned the most famous portrait of Napoleon?
Answer: The King of Spain.
Napoleon Bonaparte lived from 1769 to 1821.
Which Japanese artist is known for her use of polka dots and pumpkins?
Answer: Yayoi Kusama.
Yayoi Kusama apparently ate a large amount of pumpkin during World War II.
In which city can you visit the Rijksmuseum?
Answer: Amsterdam.
The Rijksmseum was founded in the year 1798.
