Art History

Prehistoric, Egyptian,

Greek and Roman

Prehistoric Art

• Prehistoric (before recorded events and stories)

Paleolithic period: 30,000–10,000 B.C. (also called the Old Stone Age)

-basic imagery

-small pieces, easy to transport, create by nomadic tribes (constantly moving/ following the herds)

-made to communicate to others vital information needed to survive

Nomadic– are communities of people who move from

one place to another, rather than settling permanently in one location.

– People of the Paleolithic period would have been hunters and gathers

– Nomadic hunting and gathering, following seasonally available wild plants and game, is by far the oldest human subsistence method.

Venus of Willendorf, 30,000 - 25,000 BCE, Austria

Venus statue, 11.1cm high, representing fertility. Made small so it travels easily as the people of this time period were nomadic.

China, Painted twin-jar Yangshao culture (c.5000 - 2000 BCE)

Pots could serve two purposes. They were both functional and decorative which worked well in a time where the world was always shifting.

Why make cave paintings?

There are many different theories but here are the top ones:

• Hunting ritual– It was thought that by painting the animal on the wall

it would create some sort of magical spell weakening the animal making it easier to hunt (it also built up the hunters confidence and courage)

• Communicating to others the movement of the herds

• Immortalization (leaving their mark for future generations to see that they were there)

Cave at Lascaux, France, “Hall of Bulls” 15,000-13,000 BCE,

Leaving there mark for those who followed them.

Cave at Lascaux, France, “Horse/Bull Image” 15,000-13,000 BCE,

Cave painting allowed people to communicate information vital to their survival, such as the movements and size of the herds.

Natural or Artificial Light

Alternate Freezing and thawing

The Circulation of Air Massies

Deterioration Since their discovery, cave paintings have been deteriorating due to the causes below.

Prehistoric Builders

Megaliths – Large monuments created out of huge stone

slabs

Post-and-lintel construction– Massive posts that support crossbeams

(lintels) to create a building structure

Stonehenge, 2000 B.C., England– Large stone rings with 3 progressively smaller

rings within

It is not known why purpose it serves or how such a primitive people were able to transport such large stones and erect them in to position.

Some experts think it is used to help people use the stars to accurate predict the changing seasons.

5000 BC to 300 AD

Ancient Egyptian art was expressed in paintings and sculptures & was both highly stylized and symbolic. Much of the surviving art comes from tombs and monuments and thus there is an emphasis on life after death and the preservation of knowledge of the past.

Example of Frontalism

Characteristics:

-Frontal eye and torso

-Sideways face and legs

Egyptian characteristics:

-Left leg forward

-Social status represented through size

Funerary Scene

Various Egyptian gods

Palette of Narmer, c. 3,000 BC Slate, 25" high

Egyptian, Mask of King Tutankhamen, front and back, gold and inlaid stones

2 piece wooden coffin painted

King Menkaure and Queen Kha-merer-nebty II, stone, Egypt, Gizeh. 2599-2571 BCE (4th Dynasty),

Sculptures are very rigid and stand in such a way that shows power... But a rather uncomfortable stance!

Bust of Queen Nefertiti

Akhenaton and Family with Aton, c.1350 B.CWall Carving

Pyramids of Zoser

Old Kingdom, Dynasty III, c. 2675-2625 BCE

Step pyramids were built in two stages to try to confuse grave robbers.

THE GREAT PYRAMIDS OF GIZA (2530-2470 BCE)

-Square base 276m x 276m, 176m high (55 stories)-tallest structure in the world until the Eiffel tower was built-2 million blocks of stone-burial chamber in the heart of the pyramid-Interior walls covered by relief sculptures

Pyramids of Giza

The outer covering of the pyramids have been eroded off,

Note the size of the stones (some over 40 tons)

Sphinx, at Giza

4th Dynasty (2558-2532 BCE).

The paws themselves are 50 feet long (15m) while the entire length is 150 feet (45m). The head is 30 (10m) feet long and 14 feet (4m) wide. Because certain layers of the stone are softer than others, there is a high degree of erosion that has claimed the original detail of the carved figure.

-80 m in length -Carved from a rocky ledge-Body of a lion -Head of Chefren ( one of the Pharaohs who built one of the pyramids)It has been vandalized and damaged further by the sandblasting winds of the Sahara

Four Greek Art PeriodsGeometric Art This early period from Greek art history shows how ancient artists adorned many of their works (vase paintings in particular) with precise geometric patterns.

Archaic Art During the Archaic period, Greek artists came into contact with ideas and styles from outside of Greece. It was also a time when vase painting and sculpture began to reflect Greek ideals.

Classical Art Often referred to as the "Golden Age" of Greece, the Classical era was a time when perfection was achieved in the arts - the Parthenon was constructed during this fruitful period.

Hellenistic Art In the Hellenistic period, new ideas permeated Greek art, and emotion, drama, and realism began to influence the appearance - and subject matter - of Hellenistic sculpture.

name | Dipylon Vase, detailartist | unknown period | Geometric (Ancient Greek Art)date | circa 750 BC

See how the geometric period layers images to create depth and symbols to represent people, all in a similar way to Egyptian and Prehistoric Art.

name | Horse, detail artist | unknown period | Geometric (Ancient Greek Art)date | 8th century BC

Images, like these horses, are reduced to very minimal shapes and forms, similar to the symbols used in Egyptian Hieroglyphs.

name | Kouros from Anavysos, artist | unknownperiod | Archaicdate | circa 525 BC

Notice the rigid stance of these sculptures… remind you of any others you may have seen?

Corinthian (Hellenistic)

Ionic (Classical)

Doric (Geometric/ Archaic)

Tips to remember the difference… Doric and Dull both start with “D”, Ionic have what look like swirly eyes and Corinthian sounds like a name of a flower and looks plant like.

name | The Parthenon, detaillocation | Athens, Greeceperiod | Classical (Ancient Greek architects | Iktinos and Kallikrates Art)constructed | circa 447 - 432 BC

Originally temple to worship Athena god of fertility but she became god of war.

Style copied in many buildings:

-seen as powerful, democratic/ law related, clean and classic

entablature - The upper section of a classical building which rests on the columns.

frieze - A decorative horizontal band usually placed along the upper end of a wall.

metope - Between each frieze and on the ends of each entablature.

pediment - A wide, low-pitched gable (roof) which makes up the top of the entablature.

name | Three Goddesses, detailfrom | East Pediment, Parthenonartist | Phidiasperiod | Classical (Ancient Greek Art)date | 5th century BC

Damaged during battles and used to be on the East Pediment of the Parthenon.

name | Aphrodite of Melos artist | unknownperiod | Hellenistic (Ancient Greek Art)date | circa 150 BC

One of the most famous sculptures from this period. AKA… Venus de Milo

name | Nike of Samothraceartist | unknownperiod | Hellenistic (Ancient Greek Art)date | circa 200 BC

name | Laocoönartists | Hagesandros, Polydoros, & Athanadorosperiod | Hellenistic (Ancient Greek Art)date | circa 2nd century BC

(This is a Roman copy of the Greek original)

The son of a Trojan priest of Poseidon defied the rules by marrying and having sons and then warned the Greeks about the Trojan Horse. For his betrayal two serpents were sent to kill him and his sons.

In the Greek ‘Classic Period’ era sculptures start becoming realistic.

Roman Art and Architecture

• 900BCE to 50 BCE

•Highly sophisticated society

•The Romans were the most powerful civilization and eventually dominated the Western world

•The Romans created an empire, and absorbed the cultures from those they conquered

•In painting and sculpture, the Romans often borrowed from and imitated the Greeks (whom they conquered)

ArchitectureRomans made some of their greatest contributions in architecture, especially the invention and use of arches.

•The development of the arch eliminated the need for columns

•Therefore buildings had vast interior spaces

•Buildings were impressive because of their size and practicality (rather than aesthetic feeling)

Colosseum- Rome (72-80 AD) •Created to hold spectacles (shows), such as battles between animals and gladiators

This building could hold 50,000 Romans in the marble seated interior

Vespasianus built the Colosseum for spectacular events in 72 AD. He did this, because he wanted to impress and because he wanted to make the citizens happy. With help of a large army of slaves and removable stagings, he built the Colosseum 10 years.

Why does it look like this (a ruin):

•Later citizens and architects damaged the colosseum by using the marble from this building to construct other buildings

•It has experienced many earthquakes

•Damaged by pollution especially acid rain

name | Colosseum location | Rome, Italyperiod | Early Empire (Ancient Roman Art)constructed | circa 80 ADarchitects | unknown

Just like in the movie ‘The Gladiator’ the Colosseum had elaborate bloodthirsty events:

•Gladiator matches-the gladiators were often slaves or criminals, who were trained to fight to each other on life and death. They also fought against lions and tigers.

•Elaborate staged performances of battles.

•Navel battles were staged and the lower vaults were flooded- they built smaller versions of the ships and had mock battles

•Celebrations of Roman victories where captured people and goods were displayed in pomp and ceremony

•Chariot races

•Boxing-matches, archery-matches

•The last bloodthirsty event was in 523 A.D.

A heavy wooden floor covered the cells below, which contained the gladiators and the animals. The floor was made of wood. There was sand on the that floor, so the blood could easily be taken away. The word arena is descended of the Latin word for sand or beach.

•The outer wall is as high as a 16 story building, and went around the whole structure

•The exterior wall is divided into four horizontal bands; large arched openings piercing the lower three.

•This building contains three types of columns: Doric (first band), Ionic (second band), Corinthian (third band)

•Statues filled the arched niches ( a recess or hollowed out area in the wall) and arches

•Concrete arches, walls and vaults (which were covered in marble) made up several kilometres of passageways

barrel vault or tunnel vault: The simplest form of a vault, consisting of a continuous surface of semicircular or pointed sections. It resembles a barrel or tunnel which has been cut in half lengthwise

groin vault: A vault produced by the intersection at right angles of two barrel (tunnel) vaults. Sometimes the arches of groin vaults may be pointed instead of round.

Pantheon, Rome (118-125) •Built to honour all the gods

•Floor space is 144 feet in diameter, and the top of the dome is 144 feet above the floor

•On the outside, a colonnade of Corinthian columns, cut from single blocks of stone, support a Greek style pediment Setting for Angels and Demons, Dan Browns

book before The DaVinci Code

A single "eye" or oculus, 8.23 m (30 feet) in diameter in the top of the dome provides the interior’s only source of light, rainfall is carried away by an elaborate underground drainage system.

•Concrete dome is thin at the top and thicken as it meets the walls (43.4 m inside diameter)

•The dome is decorated with a series of recessed (hollowed out) rectangular panels.

name | Pantheon, detaillocation | Rome, Italyperiod | Early Empire (Ancient Roman Art)constructed | 125-8 ADarchitects | unknown

• As the marble inlay floor patterns indicate, the Pantheon is built on an interplay of circles and squares. The interior of the drum area is decorated with marble columns and coloured marble panels.

•Walls are over 20 feet thick, faced with brick, are massive enough to support the tremendous weight of the dome

The Pantheon (from Greek Pantheion, meaning "Shrine of all the Gods") is a building in Rome which was originally built as a temple to the seven deities of the seven planets in the state religion of Ancient Rome, but which has been a Christian church since the 7th century. It is the best-preserved of all Roman buildings and the oldest important building in the world with its original roof intact. (en.wikipedia.org/)

The Baths of Caracalla, Rome (215 BCE)

•Spanned over 30 acres and had a bathhouse measuring 750 feet by 380 feet.

•Contained several pools of various temperatures

•Also consisted of libraries, offices, meeting rooms, conversation rooms and spaces for recreation

The interior of the concrete structure was roofed with vaults that spanned enormous spaces

MODEL OF THE BATHS

Theatre of Herodes Atticus, Athens (2nd century AD) •The performance was given from the stage, and important spectators were seated in the orchestra (stage area)

•The seating was a semi circle, built on the side of the Acropolis in Athens

•Could seat up to 5000 people

Still used today – the 2004 Olympic Games had concerts there and the marathon finished at the theatre.

The Arch of Constantine, Rome (312-312 AD)

•Triumphal arches are known from about 200 BC. They were intended as imposing free-standing portals through which paraded the victors and victims of Rome. This arch, one of the largest built, celebrates Constantine’s assumption of power

•It is a large structure with three arches through it

Covered in detailed bas relief sculptures, many of the statues on it came from other monuments in Rome

Pont du Gard (1rst century BC) LOCATION (FRANCE)

•Made up of arches and vaults

•The pont-du -guard is a triple-storied aqueduct built of stone (without mortar)

•Bridges the gorge of the Gard River, first level is a road, third level an water carrier

It ran for about 30 miles and supplied Nimes daily with 22,000 tons of water.

PETRA"... match me such a marvel, save in Eastern clime

A rose-red city, half as old as time.["Petra", Dean Burgen]

•Petra is located in modern day Jordan- its called the Hidden City

• first established sometime around the 6th century BC, by the Nabataean Arabs, a nomadic tribe who laid the foundations of a commercial empire that extended into Syria.

•largely in Nabataean hands until around 100AD, when the Romans took over.

Petra lies about 3-5 hours south of modern Amman, about 2 hours north of Aqaba, on the edges of the mountainous desert of the Wadi Araba. The city is surrounded by towering hills of rust-coloured sandstone which gave the city

some natural protection against invaders.

Entranceway

The Siq

Monastery

The Khazneh (~first century BCE)- (site of the Indiana Jones movie) The name means 'treasury‘- comes from the legend that it was used as a hiding place for treasure. In practice, it seems to have been something between a temple and a tomb, possibly both at once.

•carved their temples and tombs into the sandstone

Royal tombs

The first tomb in line is the Urn Tomb, a well-preserved monument that faces out over an open terrace fronted by a double row of vaults. A colonnaded cloister runs along the northern side of the terrace. The elaborate facade fronts a single, unadorned room, this one measuring nearly 20 metres on each side

Roman Amphitheatre-8,000-seat.

Some distance away from the Royal Tombs, to the north, there is one more tomb, which was built in AD 130 for the Roman governor of the city under Hadrian, Sextius Florentinus

Further sites on Petrahttp://www.raingod.com/angus/Gallery/Photos/MiddleEast/Jordan/Petra/index.html

http://www.panoramaproductions.net/tr_petra.htm

http://www.petraphotos.com/

http://www.amnh.org/exhibitions/petra/

Bust of Augustus, Meroe, Sudan (C. Julius Caesar Octavianus), emperor of Rome, 27 BC-14 AD. Upon defeating Anthony and Cleopatra in 31 BC. (Julius Caesar’s nephew))

•Made of bronze and has eyes of glass paste

•Realistic appearance and individualized expression

•Not an idealized figure; the Romans were interested in showing what their rulers looked like.

•This bust was discovered in Meroe (southern Sudan), apparently having been plundered from imperial estates in Egypt.

Portrait of a Roman, c. 80 BC, marble, life-size, Palazzo Torlonia,

Rome

•objective realism

•.the sculptor’s aim was to reveal character and strength in figures of authority.

•The characteristics of sternness ruggedness and nobility can be contrasted to the idealism and serenity of Greek Classical sculpture.

Equestrian statue of Marcus Aurelius Rome (161-180 AD)

•Equestrian statue (horse and rider)

•over life size, realistic detail

•Made of bronze

•It’s about 1800 years old and the only such bronze to survive in such good condition

•The size of the figure is large in comparison to the horse

Laocoön and his Sons•Roman copy of a Greek Hellenistic original from c. 200 BCE

•marble, height 1.84 m, Vatican.

•Trojan priest Laocoön and his two sons are attacked at by giant serpents.

•.The date of the Laocoön is controversial, some scholars arguing for the late second century BCE, others for c. 50 BCE.

Roman Painting -Fresco•The Romans used paintings to decorate and colour the interiors of houses

•Still life's, portraits, landscape, and mythological subjects are found on walls in Pompeii and other excavated sites

•Often landscapes and architectural scenes were painted to serve as an “open widows” to provide a feeling of greater space in small rooms.

•Entire plaster-covered walls were frescoed to look like marble and wood paneling, or were gaily decorated with flowers and vines, almost like wall paper

•Portraits were sometimes painted on walls to record how members of the family looked.

Portrait of a Young Girl, Pompeii (79AD) Fresco.

•She is holding a stylus to her lips as if thinking about what to write.

•This painting many be a girl who died young and whose family wished to remember her.

Fresco- A method of painting on plaster, either dry (dry fresco or fresco secco) or wet (wet or true fresco). In the wet method, pigments are applied to thin layers of wet plaster so that they will be absorbed and the painting becomes part of the wall.

Villa of the Mysteries

This mural in the Villa of the Mysteries, located in Pompeii, Italy, is thought to depict the initiation rituals of a mystery religion. The Villa of the Mysteries, which was built about 50 BC, featured a large hall with this mural encircling it. Roman religion was not static; the Romans adopted new gods to help them with specific needs.

Mosaics•Romans excelled in this art.

•Small bits of marble were cut, polished, and fitted together to make an image

•The sizes were approximately 1 to 2 cm across

•Extremely small stones were used to create wall mosaics many less than a millimetre in diameter

When done, the entire image was polished to feel like a smooth sheet of glass

Young Women Exercising, Roman villa at Piazza Armerina (early 4th century AD)

•They almost seem to be involved in an ancient aerobic class or gym work out.