User:De.small1/Evaluate an Article

Evaluate an article
This is where you will complete your article evaluation. Please use the template below to evaluate your selected article.


 * Name of article: Alice Neel
 * Briefly describe why you have chosen this article to evaluate.
 * I wanted to pick an artist who I knew would have a decently sized ariticle with enough detail for me to evaluate it thoroughly. I liked the self portrait we looked at in class and so I figured I could learn about her while doing this excersise.

Lead

 * Guiding questions


 * Does the Lead include an introductory sentence that concisely and clearly describes the article's topic?
 * Does the Lead include a brief description of the article's major sections?
 * Does the Lead include information that is not present in the article?
 * Is the Lead concise or is it overly detailed?

Lead evaluation
The lead gives an overview of what artisitc movements Neel's work fits into and the relevant time periods in her life. While it includes information on why she is notable and the popularity of her work, it could be more concise. It spends time explaining the male gaze and objectification when it could instead bring up the kinds of materials she worked with, or better summarize where she created her works.

Content

 * Guiding questions


 * Is the article's content relevant to the topic?
 * Is the content up-to-date?
 * Is there content that is missing or content that does not belong?

Content evaluation
The content is relevant and appears up to date. There is information in the exhibitions, collections, and recogntiion sections that go up to the present year, 2022. The content on individual portraits, especially those that created controversy, had useful details and in-depth explanations of their relevance to understanding who Neel was as an artist. Her political involvement is referenced slightly and in multiple places; it made it difficult to understand how much it influenced her work and how relevant it was in her career. It may have been better to spend more time on it in a specific section if relevant.

Tone and Balance

 * Guiding questions


 * Is the article neutral?
 * Are there any claims that appear heavily biased toward a particular position?
 * Are there viewpoints that are overrepresented, or underrepresented?
 * Does the article attempt to persuade the reader in favor of one position or away from another?

Tone and balance evaluation
The tone of the article is toeing the line between explaining controversy around the artist and making a statment about it. The article handles it well enough, though by referencing what others have said rather than try to make a statement itself. By showing reactions from all sides to her works, the reader gets the impression that it is important regardless of it is coreect to like it or not. The article at times does use language that feels informal or conversational. For instance the article describes Neel's family growing up as "straight-laced" and it isn't clear if those words were chosen from the writer or from the source. If from the writer, I think it could be misinterpretted and come off as making comments about her family/past.

Sources and References

 * Guiding questions


 * Are all facts in the article backed up by a reliable secondary source of information?
 * Are the sources thorough - i.e. Do they reflect the available literature on the topic?
 * Are the sources current?
 * Check a few links. Do they work?

Sources and references evaluation
There are many sources and the writing is backed up frequently throughout the article. The source links appear to work and come from a variety of years/locations. They range from newpapers to academic journals and so seem to be thorough.

Organization

 * Guiding questions


 * Is the article well-written - i.e. Is it concise, clear, and easy to read?
 * Does the article have any grammatical or spelling errors?
 * Is the article well-organized - i.e. broken down into sections that reflect the major points of the topic?

Organization evaluation
The article is well written with the few faults mentioned above. There were no obvious grammar/spelling mistakes in the article. The organization of the article could be improved somewhat. For instance in the article section "Neel's self portrait and last paintings" it would make more sense to switch the orders of the paragraphs. That way the article's main section ends in correct chronological order with her death instead of discussing another painting.

Images and Media

 * Guiding questions


 * Does the article include images that enhance understanding of the topic?
 * Are images well-captioned?
 * Do all images adhere to Wikipedia's copyright regulations?
 * Are the images laid out in a visually appealing way?

Images and media evaluation
The images used work well. Heover, I think sections that sepcifically describe a portrait, especially if described as controversial, should have that image in the article. Since she is a visual artist, having visuals of more of her paintings would allow readers to grasp what is being described to them.

Checking the talk page

 * Guiding questions


 * What kinds of conversations, if any, are going on behind the scenes about how to represent this topic?
 * How is the article rated? Is it a part of any WikiProjects?
 * How does the way Wikipedia discusses this topic differ from the way we've talked about it in class?

Talk page evaluation
This is rated as B-Class, Low imporatnce and it is in several WikiProjects including WikiProject Biography / Arts and Entertainment, WikiProject Visual arts, and WikiProject Women artists. There is also a note that "This article was created or improved at an Art+Feminism edit-a-thon in 2015." The talk page has a discussion around sources and imrpoving sections that are vague like the section that describes her work "disappearing". The focus is on discussing relevance and sources more than argumentitive style writing which is what is typically done in art history.

Overall impressions

 * Guiding questions


 * What is the article's overall status?
 * What are the article's strengths?
 * How can the article be improved?
 * How would you assess the article's completeness - i.e. Is the article well-developed? Is it underdeveloped or poorly developed?

Overall evaluation
Overall I feel like I got a good understanding of her life and the timeline of her work. The article could use some simple reorganization and the writing needs to be cleaned up/neutralized slightly. Overall I'd give it about an 8 out of 10.

Optional activity

 * Choose at least 1 question relevant to the article you're evaluating and leave your evaluation on the article's Talk page. Be sure to sign your feedback

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