AI Rate Professor

Fine Arts

Gary Tolomei

ART031A · PAINTING · ART49B · 7 lifetime ratings

AI rating
76/100
RMP rating
4.2/5
Take again
33.33%
Difficulty
1.9

The decision

if you want classic hands-on art instruction and will show up to do the studio work, but expect limited digital course structure.

Best fit · Effort For RewardOld School ArtFosters Individual StylePortfolio FocusedLaid BackLong Lectures
  • Many students praise him as knowledgeable, caring, and great for building personal art style.
  • Do the studio work and portfolio pieces and grades tend to be fine; there are no tests.
  • and sometimes unhelpful critiques.

Key questions

Four answers before you build your schedule.

Is this an easy A?

EasyA

76/100

Students say if and the portfolio you will be fine, with multiple A and A- grades reported.

All evidence is in-person; no online comparison.

Is the course easy?

Beginner

70/100

Beginning drawing and painting feel structured but laid back, with low reported difficulty overall.

In-person only; difficulty ratings cluster low to moderate.

Is attendance flexible?

Recommended

52/100

He , but skipping is disliked and critique participation matters.

In-person reviews mix optional attendance with participation expectations at critiques.

Is this professor recommended?

Depends

58/100

Older reviews are glowing, but and a recent review strongly dislikes the critique environment.

Mixed enthusiasm across in-person years; .

Course guide

See how this professor fits your week.

Grading

Lenient

72/100

Do the work and portfolio pieces and grades are generally fine; rubrics exist but updates may need asking.

Format shift

In-person only evidence.

Workload

Moderate

58/100

Studio assignments and portfolio work matter, with some vague-to-specific project ranges and long lectures.

Format shift

In-person studio load only; no online workload data.

Teaching experience

Good

74/100

Many call him knowledgeable and inspirational, but others find lectures rambling and critiques demotivating.

Format shift

.

Assessment method

FocusOnAssignments

18/100

Assessment is portfolio and assignment based; students report no tests.

Format shift

.

Luni fit check

Weigh these signals against your actual schedule.

Get help balancing workload, grading, and timing when no option is an obvious fit.

Course format

Compare the in-person and online experience.

Classroom format

In person

7 reviews

Medium confidence · Best fit for Effort For Reward

and style-flexible, with portfolio work and critiques; some love the growth while others find critiques and pacing demotivating.

Main concern

Critiques can feel harsh or non-constructive, and .

What students said

“Tolomei is the ! I learned more in one semester with him than all my prior art classes combined.”
ART031A
“critiques are very strange and torturous, not constructive at all.”
ART031A
“Very old school. .”
ART031A

Remote format

Online

0 reviews

Low confidence

No stored summary is available for this format.

Main concern

No main concern is stored for this format.

Exam style

Know what to expect from exams and major assignments.

Students report no tests and , and critiques.

No testsPortfolio assessmentCritique participation

Assessment risk

StudentFriendly

88/100

Low score means less forgiving assessment conditions.

In person

In-person evidence explicitly notes no tests and portfolio or as participation.

No testsPortfolio gradingPaper rubricsCritique participation
“No tests. I would definitely take his other painting classes.”
ART031A
“attend class and do the .”
39841
“Part of your participation is attending the critique.”
ART031A

Online

Student evidence

See what students actually said.

Top student voice

“Tolomei is the ! I learned more in one semester with him than all my prior art classes combined.”

Voice snapshots generated from 7 in-person reviews spanning many years, balancing praise for art growth with critique and logistics concerns. Credibility rating: Medium.

🎨 Teaching Growth

74/100

“I learned more in one semester with him than all my prior art classes combined.”

📁 Portfolio Reality

58/100

“attend class and do the .”

🖌️ Style Freedom

80/100

“Allows you to have your own style rather than impose his own style on students”

⚠️ Critique Friction

40/100

“critiques are very strange and torturous, not constructive at all.”

Theme 1

👨‍🏫 About Teaching Style

  • laid back, but be
  • fosters individuality
  • Lectures are long and he rambles

Theme 2

📈 About Difficulty & Grades

  • Do your work and listen to his advice, you'll see a big improvement
  • do the work and you'll be fine
  • No tests

Theme 3

🏫 About Course Logistics

  • Very old school. .
  • Part of your participation is attending the critique

Data context

See exactly what the AI read.

Analysis sample

7

Recent reviews read by the AI

7

Lifetime ratings

64/100

Evidence confidence

Seven in-person reviews span 2006-2023 with recurring themes, but opinions split and many older comments lack grade or .

Inside 7 stored ratings

Quality ratings

5 out of 54
4 out of 52
3 out of 50
2 out of 51
1 out of 50

Course coverage

ART031A4 reviews
398411 review
ART49B1 review
PAINTING1 review

Reported outcomes

A range results lead the reported letter grades.

4 reported outcomes

A range

3

A 2 · A- 1

B range

0

No reported values

C range

0

No reported values

D range

0

No reported values

F

0

No reported values

No letter grade reported

1

Not sure yet 1