the art of ancient greece and rome architecture sculpture

The Art of Ancient Greece and Rome

Architecture

Sculpture

Ancient Greece650 B.C. – 150 B.C.

• Art• Architecture• Poetry• Drama• Philosophy• Government, law,

logic• History and

mathematics

• Humanism• Human figure

principle motif• Ideal proportions • Stressed harmony,

order, clarity of thought

Origin of Western Civilization

Ancient

Greece

Asia Minor

•

Modern

Turkey

ITALY

Greek Architecture

During the Classical Period

480 – 323 BC

Artist’s drawing of the Acropolis, Athens c. 438 BC

Acropolis

• Nearly every Greek city had an acropolis (“high city”) – a walled fort for protection

• As city moved outwards, Athens's acropolis became religious center

• Athens's acropolis was premier temple complex of all Greece

• Hill is dominated by two temples to Athena- Parthenon and Erechtheum

The Acropolis Today

Parthenon

Erechtheum

Parthenon

• Parthenon built on Acropolis in Athens

• Temple is the model for thousands of buildings in western world

• Colors have worn away• Sculptures removed to other lands• Explosion in 1687

The Parthenon 447 – 438 BC

Elements: What you see

What lines do you see?

Where would you have seen diagonal lines?What shapes do you see?

Technical Properties: How it was made

What materials were used in construction?

Marble

How long do you think it took to build?

15 years

DORIC ORDER

Entablature

Capital

The Parthenon

detail of interior frieze

Depicts idealized Athenian soldiers on horseback

North front of the Erechtheum

IONIC ORDER

Caryatids on the Erechtheum Porch

• Sculptural columns

• Classical ideal of youth, beauty,perfect proportions

• Warning!!! Betrayal will be punished

CORINTHIAN ORDER

• Used mostly in colonies

• Taller with leaf capital

• Favorite of Romans

Temple of Zeus 6th Century B.C.E.

Greek Vase Painting

• Virtually all paintings and frescoes of ancient Greece have been destroyed

• Visual record is saved on pottery• Most displayed geometric pattern

and figure drawing• Scenes often related to function of

pot often with heroes or gods

Amphora

Analatos Painter

c. 700 BC

Geometric Style

• Geometric patterns

• Do figures look real?

Archaic Period

Amphora by Exekias c. 530 BC

What are they doing?

GREEK SCULPTUREClassical Period

5th-4th Century BC

• Anatomically correct• Capable of movement• Facial expressions are serene• Idealized youth and beauty• Influenced Renaissance Artists in

15th C

Classical Period

The Discus Throwerby Myron c. 480 – 450 BC

• Original was bronze - only copies remain

• Elements of Classical Style• Anatomical detail• Sense of motion• S-curves• Idealized youth and beauty

Aphrodite de Melos

Original c. 480 - copy c. 150 BC

Classical Period

• Who is she?

• 6’ 8” tall

• Rescued from scrap pile

• Now in Louvre Museum in Paris

• Better know as?

The Art of Ancient Rome

Architecture

Sculpture

509 BCE – 476 CE

Roman Empire included:• Entire Mediterranean and Black Sea

worlds• All of western Europe• Ancient civilizations of Egypt and

Mesopotamia

Ancient Rome

• Recognized greatness of Greek art• Borrowed from it• Added emotion and realism to

sculpture to honor and celebrate Roman leaders and citizens

• Changed architecture with development of concrete and supporting arch

Portrait Bust of Julius Caesar

• Created as Julius Caesar was attempting to become emperor

• Portrait busts were the specialty of Roman artists—there are thousands!

• Usually marble or bronze• Commemorated, glorified or

promoted a prominent citizen• Many busts were originally painted

What makes this bust look realistic?

Sunken cheeks, lines around mouth, wrinkled brow

50 BCE, marble

Portrait Bust of Aristotle

*2nd Century BCE Roman copy of Greek original (c. 325 BCE)

Aristotle, who lived from 384 to 322 BCE,is one of the important founding figures in Western Philosophy

Remarkable for realism and expressiveness

• Faces were carved to be realistic….

…..warts and all!

Portrait Bust of an Elderly

Woman

40-20 BCE, marble, 10 ¼” high

• There is still red pigment on the hair, lips, eyebrows and eyelashes

• There is still black pigment in the right eye

• Hair style reflects the fashion of the time

• Created in the late Republic/Early Empire Period

What is her expression?

Somber, Serious

Augustus of Prima Porta

• Portrayed as orator (outstretched arm) and General (dressed in a breastplate)

• Larger than life• Deified after death• Relief sculpture on larger sculpture

How does this sculpture show movement?

Position of feet, legs, arm

Where does this sculpture show texture?

Hair, breastplate, draped clothing

19 BCE, marble, 7’ high

The Colosseum

How is this different from Greek building?

The Colosseum

• Romans were excellent planners and engineers

• Two main contributions to architecture:– Cement – Arch

• Colosseum covers 6 acres• Seating capacity 50,000• Still one of the largest single

buildings in the world

Colosseum Exterior• Large masses of stone from

Colosseum used to construct new buildings

• Stopped around 1032• Four levels• Lower three – different Greek

column• Decorative only – do not support

walls

Different column type on each level

Name that column

DORIC IONIC CORINTHIAN

The Arch of Constantine• Arches constructed in battlefield to celebrate victory

• Permanent arches built in Rome

• Relief sculptures show heroes of the battle

• Find the keystone

Trajan’s Column

• Trajan conquered what today is Romania

• Column is to celebrate the victory

• 650 ft spiral band includes 150 separate episodes

• Includes thousands of figures

• 100’ high (125’ with statue)

• Spiral staircase inside leads to top

Trajan’s Column - Detail

• Sculpture showing historical event is uniquely Roman

• Spiral band of sculpture or frieze is about 4’2” wide

• First visual documentary

Astoria Column• Patterned on Trajan’s

Column• Pictorial frieze using

sgraffito technique• Built to honor:

– Captain Robert Grey– Lewis and Clark– Arrival of the Great

Northern Railway• Story reads from bottom

up• Interior staircase that

leads to cupola

The Pantheon

• Temple dedicated to all the gods• Dome resting on a cylindrical base• Both made of poured concrete• Walls are 20 feet thick• Portico (porch) in front (Greek)• Every country in western world has

“borrowed” the Pantheon design• Including the United States Capitol

The Pantheon

What kind of columns are these?

Who commissioned the Pantheon?

Corinthian!

Marcus Agrippa

The dome represents the dome of heaven and used to be gilded

Yes, that is a hole in the roof! It is called an oculus (eye) rain?

The repeating recessed squares within the dome reduce its weight and mass

Niches in the walls contain statues of famous Romans

The dome is supported by the cylindrical base

Interior of Pantheon c 1740 Giovanni Pannini

Lakewood Center

• Built in 1893

• Rebuilt in 1928 with the current façade

Greek or Roman?• Columns?

GREEK! ROMAN!

• Base with step?• Pediment?

• Bust?• Niche?• Arch with keystone?

GREEK!GREEK! ROMAN!ROMAN!

Roman 2-D Art

• Art in Ancient Rome took on a wider, and sometimes more utilitarian, purpose than Greek art.

• Roman culture assimilated many cultures and was for the most part tolerant of the art forms of conquered peoples.

• Roman art was commissioned, displayed, and owned in far greater quantities, and adapted to more uses than in Ancient Greece.

• Wealthy Romans decorated their walls with art, their home with decorative objects, and themselves with fine jewelry.

View of a Garden from Villa of Livia Fresco20 BCE

Rome, Italy

What did Ancient Romans do if they did not have a view from a real window?

Paint the view on the wall

Can you spot the birds in the air and the fruit on the trees?

What makes this fresco symmetrically balanced?

Entry and Atrium with Dog Mosaic

Pompeii, Italy

Mausoleum of Galla Placidia

425 ce Ravenna, ItalyWhat is a mausoleum?

Portrait of a Woman in Mosaic(1st Century Naples, Italy)

Different colors of mosaic pieces create light and shadow

Pieces in face are arranged organically

Pieces in background are arranged geometrically

Notice the Roman style of making portraits realistic

Hands-On ProjectRoman Mosaic

Step 1: Choose template or create own with graph paper and transfer to cardboard circle.

Step 2: Assemble colored paper squares on board in design chosen. You may need to cut squares into triangles or smaller pieces to fit your pattern.

Step 3: Glue mosaic pieces into place, leaving slight gaps.

Step 4: Display your beautiful mosaic

Step 5: