Name the artists, figure out the clue
Think back, way back, before the beginning of the current semester. (I know, it seems like a long time ago, doesn’t it?) Just before the Christmas break, the History in Art department launched their challenging Christmas Quiz—a visual puzzle that was equal parts art knowledge and brain teaser.
Now, the winners have been announced. Congratulations go out to overall winner Emerald Johnstone-Bedell, who won the main prize of a drum painted by Jason Bill, plus runners-up Terry Rodgers and Atri Hatef, both of whom received gift vouchers to the university bookshop.
“It was quite a challenge but I got most of the answers right,” says Johnstone-Bedell, a fourth-year History in Art student who won a beautiful drum, hand-painted by artist Jason Bill. “I like word puzzles.”
Christmas quiz winners Atri Hatef (left) and Emerald Johnstone-Bedell
While she was familiar with some of the art, Johnstone-Bedell says she could “generally assume what style/culture/time it belonged to” when she didn’t know it. And while she didn’t always need all the clues to solve the word puzzles, she did search the Fine Arts image database in DIDO when she did need some assistance. What about next year’s quiz? “If I do my Master’s at UVic, I would probably do it for fun next year, but someone else should get a chance to win a cool prize,” she says.
Runners-up Hatef and Rodgers are also HIA students, each of whom won gift vouchers to the UVic Bookstore. Hatef is a first-year Master’s student and Rodgers is in the Honours BA program, hoping for acceptance into the Master’s this September. “I answered seven questions out of the eight,” says Hatef, who found it “really challenging.” (No kidding!) She says she knew some of the images, but looked to both the library and the internet for others. “It was really funny and exciting.”
Quiz master Marcus Millwright with runner-up Terry Rodgers
Rodgers pulled six out of eight correct answers and says she was “thrilled to win as runner-up!” When asked if it was a challenge, Rodgers agreed it was. “I had some answers right away within each question, but often had to really search for the complete answer.”
She also used DIDO, as well as other popular online sites like ARTstor, Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the website for London’s National Gallery. Rodgers is also keen to try again next year. “Absolutely!!” she says. “It was great fun and I was determined to finish as much as I could. Next year I’ll start earlier!”
For complete answers to the quiz, please click here.