Reading 21st century ideas and issues into past and present artworks

What this note covers

1. Treat contemporary context as a lens, not a date label
2. Foreground a twenty-first-century issue through visual evidence
3. Bring a second context into a purposeful relationship
4. Read historical work from the present without erasing history
5. Compare how two works position a present audience
6. Convert the lens into an exam-ready line of reasoning
7. Worked contemporary reading: bring climate evidence into relation with a historical vessel
8. Worked thesis and paragraph plan: keep the contemporary lens evidence-led

8 sections · 10 key terms & formulas · 6 common mistakes