Etruscan to early christian

Etruscan to Early Christian

Etruscan Art
Capitoline Wolf
Tense, watchful animal
Spare flanks, gaunt ribs
Alert eyes and ears, fierce and protective
May not have had children; current children made in the Renaissance
Expresses defiance, snarls
Not wolf-like: wolves have no manes nor locks shaped like hooks
Wolf-like in its long pointed nose, small head, short ears, and strong forelegs
Apollo from Veii
Terracotta
Stood on the roof of a temple
Greek Archaic in inspiration, but having a warmer sense of personality
Meant to be seen from below
Strides forward
Tightly fitted drapery
http://www.mysteriousetruscans.com/aplu.html

Sarcophagus from Cerveteri
Banquet scene
Made of separate terracotta pieces then joined together
Ashes buried inside
Symbiotic relationship emphasized: man protects woman with a gentle hand on shoulder; woman feeds man with her gesture
Familial union
Broad shoulders, large chests of men, legs seem neglected
Strange turn of the body
Greek Archaic smile
C. 520 BCE

Apollo from Veii
Terracotta
Stood on the roof of a temple
Greek Archaic in inspiration, but having a warmer sense of personality
Meant to be seen from below
Strides forward
Tightly fitted drapery

The inside of the lid of the tomb, a man diving into the water from a tall structure. What does it represent? The diving into the world of the dead (into the Okeanos)? Another interpretation is that the columns represent the Pillars of Hercules as a symbol of the end of the world maybe a symbol of the end of life

Tomb of the Leopards and Tomb of the Reliefs
Underground tomb chambers reflect homes of the living
Buried in necropolises
Brightly painted walls, or high relief carving of walls
Everyday items on walls
Carved stone seats to sit on
Paintings of banquets and entertainment

Circa 30 CE – Jesus Crucified
65 CE – Peter and Paul executed
312 – Constantine Converts after the Battle of the Mulvian Bridge
313 –Edict of Milan (a legal religion)
325 – Council of Nicea
381 – The co-emperors Gratian and Theodosius publish their edict that the doctrine of the Trinity is to be the official state religion.
410 – Rome is Sacked
430 - St. Augustine Dies
476 – Last Western Emperor – Romulus Augustus

Rome, c. 80 B.C.
Head of a Roman Patrician
Bust
Severe, unwavering, resolute
Knowledgeable, respected
Romans felt the head was a good enough representation of a person
Traditional family values
Influenced by Hellenistic Greek art
Shows the virtues of old age
Was old age enhanced on the figure?

Temple Virilis, Rome
Temple to the Roman god of harbors, Portunus
Etruscan influence in the elevation of the temple on a pedestal
One main entrance in the front
Wide flight of stairs
Ionic columns
Roman desire for big interiors pushes the walls out to meet the columns
Influence of the Greeks in overall design

Forum at Pompeii c. 79 AD

Pompeii
Explosion by Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD buried Pompeii
Forum
Large rectangular public square in center of town
Surrounded by a colonnade
Temple of Jupiter focus of forum
Surrounding the forum are the buildings that housed the business, government and religious activities of Pompeii

Pompeii
Roman Houses
Faced inward
Interiors lit from atrium, few windows on exterior
Atrium formed the opening for rainwater to fall in the impluvium
Columns surround impluvium
Interiors of rooms are painted; open up interior space
Shops are outside the house facing the street
Windows are small and limited in number

Ixion Room
Fresco, linear perspective, atmospheric perspective
Foreshortening
Ixion murdered his father-in-law and planned to seduce Hera
Zeus struck him with a thunderbolt and ordered him to be tied to a wheel in hell
Scheme of red and white fields
On bottom painted to resemble marble slabs
On top, architectural vistas that do not align to a single viewpoint
Thin delicate motifs alternate with framed mythological scenes

Villa of the Mysteries
Dionysiac Mystery Frieze
Fresco, Foreshortening
2 nd Pompeian Style painting
Large figures in a frieze-like format
Initiation rites into the female cult of Dionysos
Figures act out mystery rites
Painted marble panels at bottom, from the First Pompeian style of painting
Bright Pompeian red background pushes figures forward
No linear perspective, but three dimensional illusionism
Figures interact with each other on adjacent wall spaces
4 th Pompeian Style

Head of Emperor Augustus First half of the 1st century A.D.; Roman; Marble; 48.3 cm (19 in.); Gift of Mr. and Mrs. James S. Holden; 24.101 This portrait of Rome's first emperor is an idealized, youthful image, which harks back to the representation of athletes and heroes of 5th-century B.C. Greece. It follows the portrait well known from a marble statue of Augustus, discovered in the villa of Augustus's wife Livia outside of Rome. That handsome likeness was the source of inspiration for hundreds of portraits of the emperor all over the expanding Roman Empire. The statue may have served as the cult figure in a temple to the deified emperor, or stood in a public or private place of honor.

Roman Early Imperial Art
Augustus of Primaporta
Idealization, generalized face
No personal idiosyncrasies
Contrapposto
Suggests a god and a man
Bare feet gives him heroic stature
Sharp eyebrow edges
Oratorical pose
On military breastplate, the return of a Roman standard from Parthia
Back not carved, placed in a niche
Cupid riding on a dolphin is a reference to Venus, Augustus ’ great ancestor
Sword in hand is modern
He was 76 when it was carved

Rome, c.15 CE
Augustus of Primaporta
Idealization, generalized face
No personal idiosyncrasies
Contrapposto
Suggests a god and a man
Bare feet gives him heroic stature
Sharp eyebrow edges
Oratorical pose
On military breastplate, the return of a Roman standard from Parthia
Back not carved, placed in a niche
Cupid riding on a dolphin is a reference to Venus, Augustus ’ great ancestor
Sword in hand is modern
He was 76 when it was carved

Ara Pacis and Procession of the Imperial Family
Altar of Peace
Delicately carved acanthus leaf patterns on the exterior
Altar connected with Augustus ’ homecoming after a long absence
Romans appear as a ruling class, not as gods
Actual identifiable Romans depicted
Children are depicted as children, not shown as small adults
Crowding of figures in processional, not classically dispersed
Augustus passed laws to promote family values
Tellus Relief
Mother Earth suckles her children
Personifications of earth, wind, fire and water rest at peace around her
Roman peace brings bounty to all

Roman Emperors
Ceasar Augustus
Tiberius
Nero
Vespasian
Titus
Trajan
Hadrian
Marcus Aurelius
Diocletian
Constantine
27 BC – 14AD
14 – 37
54-68
69 – 79
79 – 81
98 – 117
117 -138
161 – 180
284 – 305
306 - 337

Roman Architecture: Colosseum
Colosseum, Rome
Real name, Flavian Ampitheatre
Accommodates 50,000 spectators
Miles of vaulted spaces
Barrel vaults, groin vaults
Concrete
Elliptical form
80 entrances
Top floor flat columns in Corinthian style, most decorative
Imperial box opposite gladiator entrance
Small rectangular windows on fourth floor let in light into upper corridors
Façade of travertine blocks
Flagstaffs balanced on marble buttresses visible on fourth floor held up a sunshield for the spectators
Used for gladiator combat, naval battles

Roman High Imperial Art
Column of Trajan
Ashes of Trajan placed at base
Stood in Trajan ’ s Forum, surrounded by buildings so that the reliefs could be read
Low relief, no shadows to enhance visibility
Originally painted
Continuous narrative around column
2,500 figures in all, 150 separate episodes
Depicts the war against the Dacians

Roman Architecture
Pantheon, Rome
Dedicated to all the gods
Porch has 16 columns
Influenced by the Parthenon
Corinthian capitals
Two pediments
Dome made of concrete, at base 20 feet thick
Interior height equals width
A hemisphere shape
Coffers relieve concrete stress on dome: each contains four recesses except the top contains three
Ancient metal roof almost gone
Repetition of square and circle

Roman Architecture
Pantheon, Rome (continued)
Original dome decorated with stucco and painting
Original marble walls survive
Floor has drainage system
Oculus allows light and air in
Light from oculus symbolizes sun ’ s movement through the sky
Base of building made of concrete

Equestrian statue of Marcus Aurelius ca. 175 AD
Marcus Aurelius
Mistaken for Constantine, which is why it survives
Appears as head priest: Pontifex Maximus
Wears a toga
Passing before people
Gesture is oratorical
Horse is spirited, difficult to control, but Marcus controls him effortlessly
Rider is larger than horse

Roman Late Imperial Art
The Tetrarchs
Depicts four emperors who ruled at once
Figures are cylinders, lack body articulation
Same gestures, a Roman salute
Done in porphyry, a purple stone symbolizing royalty
Stubby proportions
Squat bodies
No emotion on faces
Deeply furrowed lines on foreheads

Head of Constantine
8 ½ foot head
Part of a seated statue that must have been 30 feet
Enthroned in the Basilica of Constantine
Metal crown was attached to brow
Enlarged and detailed carving of eyes
Lack of individuality

Arch of Constantine, Rome
Commemorates Constantine ’ s victory at the Milvian Bridge
Friezes and sculptures taken from the monuments of Trajan, Hadrian and Marcus Aurelius
New friezes done in situ
Renunciation of classical images
Heads are larger than bodies
Lack of space, very crowded composition
Figures face center
Mechanical and repeated stances
Shallow relief
Not fully modeled
Details not incised
Rigid and formal composition

Catacombs, Rome
Four million buried under Rome alone
Galleries are 1 meter wide and 2-3 meters high
Loculi, cubiculum
Burial underground cheaper than surface burials
Christian belief in burial because Christ was buried
http://www.catacombe.roma.it/
Early Christian Art

Sarcophagus of Junius Bassus in the Vatican, Rome, 359 A.D.
Sarcophagus of Junius Bassus
Christ in the center seated as an emperor
Sits on a personification of the sky: Jupiter/Poseidon? with a veil over his head
Christ seated in a heavenly Jerusalem
Scenes not in narrative order
Classical elements in pediments, arches and columns
Figures much larger than animals they are next to

Early Christian Art in the Age of Constantine
Old Saint Peter ’ s, Rome
Placed over the site where Saint Peter may have been buried in a pagan cemetery
Roman basilica
Axial plan
Atrium, narthex, nave, transept, apse: each has a function
Longitudinal orientation with entrance at one end leading directly to the apse, unlike Basilica of Constantine
Roman arch over the altar
Wall space has arches, transept, clerestory
Timber Roof
Lavish mosaics decorated interior
Replaced in the 16th Century

Early Christian Art in the Age of Constantine
Santa Costanza, Rome
Centrally planned building with Tholos structure
Altar in center
Aisles surround the altar and are barrel vaulted
12 column pairs and 12 clerestory windows symbolize the apostles
Austere interior not original
Mosaic subjects stress salvation
Interlace patterns
Classical subjects incorporated into Christian context
Mosaics adorn ceiling, in Roman period they were used on floors

Contains shading to indicate depth & light source
Hint of landscape and rocks
Young adult with a halo
Imperial gold and purple
Long golden staff that ends wit a cross
The Good Shepherd Galla Placidia, Ravena c. 425-26

In the late Fifth and early Sixth Centuries, the Western half of The Roman Empire fell into a shambles. Even Italy was under the control of feuding barbarians.The Emporer Justinian rallied his forces and Recoverred Ravenna. For a short time Ravena became the byzantine capital in the West and a number of important early Byzantine monuments are preserved there today. The church of San Vitale in Ravenna is one of these monuments. SanVitale's humble exterior protects a glistening interior full of glass mosaics and sumptuous deccorative marble. Emperor Justinian and Attendants, Saint Vitale, Ravenna, c.547

Early Byzantine Art in the Age of Justinian
Hagia Sophia, Istanbul
Combination of central plan and axial plan
Exterior: plain and massive, little decoration
Altar at far end, but emphasis placed over the area covered by the dome
Dome supported by pendentives
Powerful central dome, with forty windows at base
Cornice unifies space
Arcade decoration: wall and capitals are flat and thin but richly ornamented
Great fields for mosaic decoration
At one time had four acres of gold mosaics on walls
Many windows punctuate wall space
Minarets added in Islamic period

Built during the city’s rebuilding after riots of 532 “ Purple makes a fine shroud” – attributed to Theodora

Hagia Sophia
Designed by 2 scholar-theoreticians:
Anthemius of Tralles (geometry and optics) & Isisorus of Miletus (physics)
Rumored to have been constructed by angels in 5 years (532 – 537)
Massiveness of piers and walls disguised by mosaics
Dome has a band of 40 windows around the top making it appear to float (first one fell in 558)

Early Byzantine Art in the Age of Justinian
San Vitale, Ravenna (c. 547)
Byzantine forces capture Ravenna in 540
8 sided structure
Plain exterior except porch added later in Renaissance
Large windows for illuminating interior designs
Interior has thin columns and open arched spaces, complex spatial system
Sense of mystery in the space

Justinian and Attendants
To his left the clergy, to his right the military
Dressed in royal purple and gold
Symmetry, frontality
Holds a plate for the host, or perhaps a golden bowl
Slight impression of procession forward
No volume of figures, seem to float, and yet step on each other ’ s feet
No background to set the figures in space
No landscape, gold background indicates timelessness
Maximianus identified, patron of San Vitale
Halo indicates saintliness
Pictorial space not depicted as a window to the natural world (i.e. Romans)

Theodora and Attendants
Hieratic composition
Slight displacement of absolute symmetry with Theodora
Sumptuously executed
She holds a chalice for the ceremony and is about to go behind the curtain
Altar boys and ladies at court accompany her

Transfiguration of Christ with Sant’Apollinare, 1 st Bishop of Ravenna (549)
Revelation of Christ’s divinity
12 sheep surround Christ
Expressing essential spiritual meaning rather than the material world

Byzantine Icons
How Icons Are Made
Made of rectangular wooden panels
Painters were monks and worked with humility, rarely signing anything
Wood prepared by covering the surface with fish glue and then a layer of putty
Cloth placed on top and successive layers of stucco are laid over the cloth
Paper sketch is placed over and lines are traced on the surface
Gilded, then painted
Varnish applied last to make it shine and protect the surface
Icons were often handled and kissed

Byzantine Icons
Iconoclastic Controversy: icons prohibited as sacrilegious and pagan between 726-843
Pronounced by Leo III and caused widespread destruction, destroying most icons
Thought to have miraculous powers
Jesus sent a portait to King Abgar of Edessa, known as the Mandylion. In Constantinople and taken by Crusaders in 10 th century
Church ar firt was uneasy about the power of images, but accepted as aids to meditation and prayer
Created aneed for more immediate and personal religion

Virgin and Child Enthroned between Saints Theodore and George (c. 600)
Theodore and George, two military saints, have rigid frontal poses, as befits the military
Archangels painted with free open brushwork
Devoid of depth
Virgin relatively solid and three-dimensional, her knees to the right
Virgin ’ s head frontal, but eyes averted
Christ convincingly rendered as a child
Perhaps executed by three different artists in different styles
Byzantine Icons

Annunciation (c. 1300)
Classical looking angel with heavy modeling
Strong line surfaces
Mary sits enthroned
Realistic setting contrasts with golden background
Small squashed figures hold up canopy

R ü blev, Old Testament Trinity
(Three Angels Visiting Abraham)
c. 1410 - 25
Byzantine affinity for repeating forms from older art
Forms of angels are traditional
Heads of angels nearly identical
Poses are mirror images
Luminous appeal of colors
Deep color harmonies of draperies
Extensive use of gold
Nearly spaceless background

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Etruscan to early christian

by bassmanb on Sep 29, 2010

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Etruscan to early christian — Presentation Transcript