IB Visual arts resolved artworks (SL): structure and steps
The resolved artworks task is the internally assessed Visual arts component for SL students. It is a rationale of at most 700 words on 2 screens, with 5 artworks, marked on 3 criteria for 32 marks. This structure has 3 sections: the rationale, the artwork files with their details, and a list of sources and AI assistance.
Some details on this page are still being checked against the IB guide.
At a glance
| Task | Resolved artworks (SL) |
|---|---|
| Guide | Visual arts guide, first assessment 2027 |
| Sessions | May 2027, November 2027 and May 2028 |
| Levels | SL |
| Assessment | Internal, moderated by the IB |
| Weighting | 40% at SL |
| Limit | A rationale of at most 700 words on at most 2 screens, for 5 artworks, with videos of at most 3 minutes each for time-based work. Examiners stop reading at the limit. |
| Criteria | A Coherence of body of artworks (8), B Conceptual realization (12), C Technical resolution (12): 32 marks. |
| What is changing | New course from May 2027: every Visual arts task is new, replacing the comparative study, process portfolio and exhibition of the 2017 guide, which were last assessed in 2026. |
The structure, section by section
1. Rationale
Required by the IB · Criterion: Coherence of body of artworks, Conceptual realization, Technical resolution
A rationale covering any of the intentions, the key technical, stylistic and conceptual choices, the links between the works, how the intentions evolved and a critical analysis of individual works, within 700 words and 2 screens.
- State the intentions behind the body of work.
- Explain your key technical, stylistic and conceptual choices.
- Show how the 5 works relate to each other.
- Note how your intentions changed.
- Stay within 700 words and 2 screens.
2. Artwork files with details
Required by the IB · Criterion: Coherence of body of artworks, Conceptual realization, Technical resolution · Submitted separately
5 image or video files, each with its title, medium and size, and up to 2 supporting images for each artwork.
- Photograph or film each work clearly.
- Enter its title, medium and size.
- Add up to 2 supporting images where they help.
3. List of sources and AI assistance
Required by the IB · Outside the word count
Every source or AI tool used, listed at the end of the text and left out of the count.
- Log each source when you first use it.
- Place the list at the end of the rationale.
What counts toward the limit
Every word visible on a screen counts, typed or handwritten, including words inside scanned material; title pages, artwork details (title, medium, size), words that are part of an artwork, citations, and the list of sources and AI assistance do not. The counter cannot read images, so you declare the words visible in each image yourself, after cropping, blurring or covering any text you want left out.
The limit: A rationale of at most 700 words on at most 2 screens, for 5 artworks, with videos of at most 3 minutes each for time-based work. Examiners stop reading at the limit.
Graphs and visuals
- The student's own resolved artworks Image, very common
Required in the internal tasks: 5 artworks, each with title, medium and size and up to 2 supporting images. Time-based work goes in as a video of at most 3 minutes, submitted as a file.
The frequencies are our estimates, from what the IB guide expects and what teachers advise. We did not count them in marked work.
Citations
The IB prescribes no style and your school chooses; MLA 9 is a common choice for artworks. Sources and any AI assistance go at the end of the text.
The workspace keeps your sources and writes the bibliography in MLA 9th to start with. You can switch to APA 7th, Chicago author-date, Chicago notes (footnotes) or Harvard at any point.
Pitfalls
- A rationale over 700 words or 2 screens: examiners assess only what falls inside the limits.
- Leaving out the list of sources and AI assistance at the end of the text where either was used.
- A video of an artwork over 3 minutes.
- A collaborative artwork or an item without 1 clearly identified author: neither can be submitted.
- Scanned handwriting left in view: it counts toward the limit unless you crop, blur or cover it.
Write it in the workspace
These sections in order with their steps, a word counter that counts the way this page says, your sources and a bibliography, and graphs from your own data. Export to Word or PDF.
The workspace is free with an account, and it never writes or rewrites your text. What we will and will not do with your coursework →
Sources
- IB, Visual arts guide, first assessment 2027 (published Feb 2025)
- IB, Visual arts subject brief, first assessment 2027
- IB, "Study visual arts" course page
- IB, "Read curriculum updates" (page last updated 24 March 2026)
- Visual arts guide, first examinations 2017 (published 2014, updated Feb 2017)
The IB documents behind this page, checked 29 October 2026. The linked ones are on ibo.org; the others are IB documents we read in copies hosted elsewhere, so we name them without a link. Everything above is in our own words: the official wording is in your subject guide, which your coordinator can give you. LimeAdmissions is independent of the International Baccalaureate Organization, which has not endorsed this page. Every coursework structure →