# AP 2-D Art and Design exam guide > A portfolio course with no timed exam: build a sustained investigation and five selected works in two dimensions. - Canonical page: https://www.arcadesacademy.com/exams/ap-2d-art-and-design - Markdown source: https://www.arcadesacademy.com/exams/ap-2d-art-and-design/llms.txt - Exam family: AP exams - Governing body: College Board - Official exam information: https://apstudents.collegeboard.org/courses/ap-2-d-art-and-design - Who takes it: Art and design students building a two-dimensional body of work for college credit, placement, or portfolio review. - Follows the fall 2026 course and exam description, from 7 May 2027 - Guide structure last checked against official sources: August 30, 2026 ## Overview AP 2-D Art and Design is assessed by portfolio, not by a timed exam. Over the year you develop a body of work using two-dimensional design elements and principles — line, shape, value, texture, color, space, balance, contrast, repetition, and unity — in media such as graphic design, digital imaging, photography, collage, printmaking, painting, and illustration. The portfolio has two components. Sustained Investigation is fifteen images documenting an inquiry you define and pursue through practice, experimentation, and revision, accompanied by written responses about your guiding questions and process; it is weighted 60%. Selected Works is five works that demonstrate synthesis of materials, processes, and ideas, each with brief written commentary; it is weighted 40%. Because everything is produced over months and uploaded to the AP Digital Portfolio, the practical risks are logistical rather than academic: undocumented process, poor photography, and last-minute uploading. Building documentation habits from the first week is the single highest-value change most students can make. ## Exam format - **Structure:** Two components: Sustained Investigation (15 images plus writing) and Selected Works (5 works plus writing) - **Timing:** No timed exam; work is produced across the course - **Weighting:** Sustained Investigation 60%, Selected Works 40% - **Delivery:** Submitted digitally through the AP Digital Portfolio by College Board's spring deadline; confirm the exact date for your exam year - **Score range:** 1 to 5 ## Scoring There is no multiple-choice or free-response exam. Trained AP readers score the submitted portfolio against published rubrics, with Sustained Investigation weighted 60% and Selected Works weighted 40%, producing a single AP score from 1 to 5. Written responses are scored as evidence alongside the images, so weak writing can lower an otherwise strong portfolio. ## Portfolio components AP 2-D Art and Design is organized into 2 portfolio components. Each one below lists its published weighting where the governing body publishes one, the topics it covers, and study tips specific to it. ### 1. Sustained Investigation - Position: 1 of 2 - Published weighting: 60% - Page: https://www.arcadesacademy.com/exams/ap-2d-art-and-design/sustained-investigation Fifteen images document an investigation driven by your own questions. Images may show finished works, in-progress states, experiments, and process documentation, and you supply typed responses explaining the inquiry and how practice, experimentation, and revision moved it forward. This component is weighted 60% of the portfolio score. #### Topics - **Inquiry and guiding questions** — A question specific enough to generate many works and open enough to change as you learn. - **Practice, experimentation, and revision** — Visible evidence that you tried alternatives, evaluated them, and reworked pieces in response. - **Process documentation** — Sketches, tests, and in-progress images that show thinking rather than only outcomes. - **Written evidence** — Typed responses that state the inquiry plainly and connect it to specific images in the portfolio. - **Two-dimensional elements and principles** — Deliberate use of line, shape, value, color, texture, and space with balance, contrast, and rhythm. - **Image quality and citation** — Clean, well-lit documentation and citation of any source imagery you did not create. #### Study tips - Write your guiding question in one sentence early, then revise it in writing as the work changes. - Photograph every stage as you go; process images cannot be recreated after a piece is finished. - Schedule regular critique with your teacher and keep notes on what you changed as a result. - Draft the written responses months before the deadline so they can be revised, not improvised. ### 2. Selected Works - Position: 2 of 2 - Published weighting: 40% - Page: https://www.arcadesacademy.com/exams/ap-2d-art-and-design/selected-works Five works are submitted as images with brief written identification of the materials, processes, and ideas behind each. These works are chosen to show skillful synthesis rather than range for its own sake, and they may but need not come from your Sustained Investigation. This component is weighted 40% of the portfolio score. #### Topics - **Synthesis of materials, processes, and ideas** — Works in which technique and concept clearly serve one another rather than sitting side by side. - **Selection strategy** — Choosing five works that show your strongest thinking rather than your five newest pieces. - **Written commentary** — Concise statements of the materials, processes, and ideas behind each submitted work. - **Documentation and presentation** — Photography that reproduces color, edges, and surface accurately, cropped to the work itself. - **Originality and source use** — Making work that is your own, with cited sources where existing images or designs are referenced. #### Study tips - Lay out candidate works together and cut anything that repeats a strength already shown. - Shoot final documentation in consistent lighting rather than photographing pieces one at a time over months. - Write the commentary as if to someone who cannot see the work; vague statements waste the space. ## Study strategies - Work backward from College Board's spring portfolio deadline with monthly targets for finished pieces and uploads. - Keep a process journal with dated entries; it becomes the raw material for your written responses. - Upload images to the AP Digital Portfolio throughout the year instead of in one session at the end. - Seek critique from outside your usual circle; unfamiliar viewers reveal whether the inquiry reads clearly. - Read the published scoring rubrics early and evaluate your own portfolio against them mid-year. - Photograph work in consistent, neutral light so weak documentation never undercuts strong pieces. ## Frequently asked questions ### Is there an AP 2-D Art and Design exam? No. The course is assessed entirely by a portfolio submitted through the AP Digital Portfolio. There is no multiple-choice section and no timed exam. ### How is the portfolio weighted? Sustained Investigation is 60% of the score and Selected Works is 40%. Together they produce a single AP score from 1 to 5. ### How many images do I submit? Fifteen images for Sustained Investigation, which may include process documentation, plus images of five works for Selected Works. ### What is the difference between AP 2-D Art and Design and AP Drawing? AP 2-D emphasizes two-dimensional design elements and principles across media such as photography, graphic design, and collage. AP Drawing emphasizes drawing skills such as mark-making, line quality, surface, and light. Students may submit portfolios in more than one AP Art and Design course. ### When is the portfolio due? College Board sets a spring deadline, in early May in recent years, after which components cannot be changed. Teachers usually set an earlier internal deadline, so confirm both dates. ## Related exam guides - [AP Drawing](https://www.arcadesacademy.com/exams/ap-drawing): A drawing-focused portfolio course scored on sustained investigation and five selected works, with no exam. - [AP 3-D Art and Design](https://www.arcadesacademy.com/exams/ap-3d-art-and-design): Build a three-dimensional portfolio — sustained investigation plus five works shown from multiple views. - [AP Art History](https://www.arcadesacademy.com/exams/ap-art-history): Learn the 250-work image set and the ten content areas that structure the AP Art History exam. ## Independence and trademark notice AP® is a registered trademark of College Board, which was not involved in the production of, and does not endorse, this site. Arcade Academy is an independent educational resource. Confirm current portfolio requirements, deadlines, and policies with College Board. AP® is a registered trademark of College Board, which was not involved in the production of, and does not endorse, this site. Arcade Academy is an independent educational resource.