ART HISTORY 2 The Human Figure throughout The Ages
ROME
(753 509 BC) (509-27 BC) (27 BC 96 AD) (96-192) (192-337) Empire : Etruscan Republic Early High Late
Roman Periods Monarchy/Etruscan Kings (753 509 BC) Latin and Etruscan kings (Romulus to Tarquinius Superbus): Early Etruscan / Archaic Period Republic (509 27 BC) Marcellus Marius Sulla Pompey Julius Caesar Mark Antony Early Empire (27 BC 96 AD) Augustus Caesar Tiberius Caligula Claudius Nero Vespian Titus Domitian High Empire (96 192) Nerva Trajan Hadrian Antoninus Pius Marcus Aurelius Lucius Verus Commodus Late Empire (192 337) Septimius Severus Caracalla Severus Alexander Trajan Decius Trebonianus Gallus Diocletian Constatine - Split of the Empire (753 509 BC) (509-27 BC) (27 BC 96 AD) (96-192) (192 - Empire : Etruscan Republic 337) Early High Late
Monarchy/Etruscan Kings (753 509 BC) Latin and Etruscan kings (Romulus to Tarquinius Superbus): Early Etruscan / Archaic Period Etruscan 753 BC: Romulus founds Rome (753 509 BC) (509-27 BC) (27 BC 96 AD) (96-192) (192-337) Empire : Etruscan Republic Early High Late
Etruscan/Archaic: Apollo, From the Portonaccio Temple, Veii, Italy, (c. 500 BC) (~5 11 high) (painted terracotta)
Sarcophagus with reclining couple, From Cerveteri, Italy (c. 520 BC) (~3 9 ½ high) (painted terracotta)
Later Etruscan: Capitoline Wolf, From Rome, Italy (c. 500 BC) (~2 7 ½ high) (bronze) (alloy: copper & tin)
Process: Lost Wax Casting Lost Wax Original design, model made of clay or plastic Shimming and rubber coating original Spraying on rubber mold coating/remove Pouring wax in small crevices
Pouring wax in mold casing Resulting wax model Wax flow Dipping wax model in slurry, Investment, later coating with sand Investment: Lost Wax Burn out, in extremely hot kiln, (note sprues)
Melting bronze bars to liquid hot Pouring molten bronze into mold, (Mold buried in sand) Resulting bronze form Sections are welded together
Republic (509 27 BC) Marcellus Marius Sulla Pompey Julius Caesar Mark Antony Republic 146 BC: Rome conquers Greece 44 BC: Ides of March (753 509 BC) (509-27 BC) (27 BC 96 AD) (96-192) (192-337) Empire : Etruscan Republic Early High Late
Roman Republic: Head of a Roman Patrician, From Otricoli, Italy (c. 75 BC) (~1 2 high) (marble) [Republic] [Veristic Tradition]
Hard stone tools: (i.e. granite) Soft stone tools: (i.e. marble) http:// www.stoneshaper.com/
Roman Republic: Funerary Relief (Freed Slaves), From Rome, Italy (c. 50 BC) (~2 1 ½ high) (limestone)
The Social Context of Portraits: The Patrons of the Roman Republic s great temples and sanctuaries were in almost all cases men from old and distinguished families, often victorious generals who used the spoils of war to finance public works. These aristocratic patricians were fiercely proud of their lineage. They kept likenesses (imagines) of their ancestors in wooden cupboards in their homes and paraded them at funerals of prominent relatives. The surviving sculptural portraits of prominent Roman Republican figures, which are uniformly literal reproductions of individual faces, must be seen in this social context Slaves and former slaves could not possess such portraits, because, under Roman law, their parents and grandparents were not people, but property. Yet when freed slaves died, they often ordered portraits for their tombs in a style that contrasts sharply with that favored by freeborn patricians. The subjects of Republican patrician portraits are almost exclusively men of advanced age, for generally these elders held power in the state. These patricians did not ask sculptors to make them appear nobler than they were instead they requested accurate records of their distinctive features the sculptor painstakingly recorded each rise and fall, each bulge and fold, of the facial surface, like a mapmaker who did not want to miss the slightest detail of surface change. The result was a blunt record of the man s features and a statement about his personality: serious, experienced, determined virtues that were much admired during the Republic.
Pompeii An ancient city, preserved for later generations
Ixion Room, House of the Vettii, Pompeii, Italy (c. 70-79 BC) (fresco)
Dionysiac mystery frieze, From Rm 5: Villa of the Mysteries, Pompeii, Italy (c. 60-50 BC) (frieze ~5 4 high) (fresco)
Portrait of a Husband and Wife, wall painting, Pompeii, Italy (c. 60-50 BC) (~2 X 2 ) (fresco)
Roman Coins: Denarius The Age of Propaganda
The Age of Propaganda
Early Empire (27 BC 96 AD) Augustus Tiberius Caligula Claudius Nero Vespian Titus Domitian Early Empire 0 33 AD: Jesus Christ (Jesus of Nazareth) 27 BC: Augustus named Imperator 79 AD: Eruption of Vesuvius (753 509 BC) (509-27 BC) (27 BC 96 AD) (96-192) (192-337) Empire : Etruscan Republic Early High Late
The Age of Propaganda Julius Caesar Breaks the Rules: Beginning early in the first century BC, the Roman desire to advertise distinguished ancestry led to the placement of portraits of illustrious forebears on Republican coins. These ancestral portraits supplanted (replaced) the earlier Roman tradition (based on Greek convention) of using images of divinities on coins. No Roman, however, dared to place his own likeness on a coin until 44 BC, when Julius Caesar, shortly before his assassination on the Ides of March, issued coins featuring his portrait and his newly acquired title, dictator perpetuus (dictator for life). The denarius (the standard Roman silver coin) records Caesar s aging face and receding hairline in conformity with the Republican Veristic Tradition. But placing the likeness of a living person on a coin violated all the norms of Republican propriety. Henceforth, Roman coins, which circulated throughout the vast territories under Roman control, would be used to mold public opinion in favor of the ruler by announcing his achievements both real and fictional.
The Ides of March The murder of Julius Caesar on the Ides of March ( Et tu Brutus? ), 44 BC plunged the Roman world into a bloody civil war. The fighting lasted 13 years and ended only when Octavian (better known as Augustus), Caesar s grandnephew and adopted son, crushed the naval forces of Mark Antony and Queen Cleopatra of Egypt at Actium in northwestern Greece in 30 BC, Egypt, once the ancient world s wealthiest and most powerful kingdom, became another province in the everexpanding Roman Empire. Historians reckon the passage from the old Roman Republic to the new Roman Empire from the day in 27 BC when the Senate conferred the majestic title of Augustus (r. 27 BC 14 AD) on Octavian. The Empire was (for the most part) a continuation of the Republic, with the same constitutional offices, but Augustus: princeps (first citizen), occupied all the key positions: imperator - commander in chief (from which the word emperor comes), pontifex maximus chief priest of the state religion. These offices gave Augustus control of all aspects of Roman public life. Julius Caesar Augustus Caesar Pax Romana or Pax Augusta The powerful armies of Rome kept order over the Empire s frontiers and homeland for two centuries without war. During this time the emperors commissioned a huge number of public works throughout the Empire: roads, bridges, forums, temples, basilicas, theaters, amphitheatres, market halls, and bathing complexes, all on unprecedented scale.
Early Empire: Portrait of Augustus as General, From Prima Porta, Italy (c. 20 BC original) (~6 8 high) (marble copy of bronze original)
Augustus Caesar When Octavian inherited Caesar s fortune in 44 BC, he was not yet 19 years old. When he vanquished Egypt at Actium in 31 BC and became undisputed master of the Mediterranean world, he had not reached his 32 nd birthday. The rule by elders that had characterized the Roman Republic for nearly half a millennium came to an abrupt end. Suddenly Roman portraitists were called on to produce images of a youthful head of state. But Augustus was more than merely young. Julius Caesar had been made a god after his death, and Augustus, while never claiming to a be a god himself, widely advertised himself as the son of a god. His portraits produced in great numbers by anonymous artists the state paid were designed to present the image of a godlike leader, a superior being who, miraculously, never aged. Although Augustus lived until 14 AD, even official portraits made near the end of his life continued to show him as a handsome youth. Such a notion may seem ridiculous today, when television, the internet, magazines, and newspapers portray world leaders as they truly appear, but in antiquity few people had actually seen the emperor. His official image was all most people knew. It therefore could be manipulated at will. Classical Greek Art inspired the emperor s sculptors. The portrait of Augustus as General, is based closely on Polykleitos s Doryphoros. Here, however, the emperor addresses his troops with his right arm extended in the manner of The Orator (Later Etruscan) sculpture from the early First Century BC. Current events are referred to on Augustus s cuirass, which depicts the return of the captured Roman military standards by the Parthians. The Cupid at his feet serves a very different purpose. Caesar s family, the Julians, traced their ancestry back to Venus, and the inclusion of Venus s son was an unsubtle reminder of Augustus s divine descent. Every facet of the statue was designed to carry a political message.
Classical Greek: Polykleitos, Doryphoros Later Etruscan: The Orator
High Empire (96 192) Nerva Trajan Hadrian Antoninus Pius Marcus Aurelius Lucius Verus Commodus High Empire 118 125 AD: Construction of the Pantheon, Temple to all religions of the Roman Empire (753 509 BC) (509-27 BC) (27 BC 96 AD) (96-192) (192-337) Empire : Etruscan Republic Early High Late
High Empire: Equestrian Portrait of Marcus Aurelius, from Rome, Italy (c. 175 AD) (bronze) [~11 6 high] [Equestrian Portrait] (thought to be a portrait of Constantine)
Late Empire (192 337) Septimius Severus Caracalla Severus Alexander Trajan Decius Trebonianus Gallus Diocletian Constatine - Split of the Empire Late Empire 330 : Dedication of Constantinople 312: Battle of Milvian Bridge / 313: Edict of Milan 293: Diocletian s Tetrarchy 235 284: Soldier Emperors (753 509 BC) (509-27 BC) (27 BC 96 AD) (96-192) (192-337) Empire : Etruscan Republic Early High Late
Late Empire: The Four Tetrarchs, St. Mark s, Venice, Italy (c. 305 AD) [4 3 ] (purple marble)
Loss of Power / Order Restored The Tetrarchy: In 293, Diocletian (r. 284 305 AD) established the Tetrarchy (rule by four) and adopted the title of Augustus of the East. The other three tetrarchs were a corresponding Augustus of the West. Together, the four emperors ruled without strife until Diocletian retired in 305. Without his leadership, the new tetrarchs began fighting among themselves, and the tetrarchic form of government collapsed. The division of the Roman Empire into Eastern and Western spheres survived, however. It persisted throughout the Middle Ages, setting the Latin West apart from the Byzantine East. The four tetrarchs often were portrayed together, both on coins and in the round. Artists did not try to capture their individual appearances and personalities but sought instead to represent the nature of the tetrarchy itself that is, to portray four equal partners in power. It is impossible to name the rulers. Each of the four emperors has lost his identity as an individual and was subsumed into the larger entity of the tetrarchy. All are identically clothed each grabs a sheathed sword in the left hand with their right arms they embrace one another in an overt display of concord large cubical heads squat bodies drapery is schematic bodies are shapeless faces are emotionless masks. In this group portrait, carved eight centuries after Greek sculptors freed the human form from the formal rigidity of the Egyptian-inspired kouros stance, the human figure was once again conceived in iconic terms. Idealism, naturalism, individuality, and personality now belonged to the past.
Late Empire: Arch of Constantine, Rome, Italy (312 315 AD)
The arch of Constantine was dedicated by the senate in AD 315 in honor of Constantine's victory over Maxentius. However, it is is generally understood that the arch is actually much older and was originally dedicated to emperor Hadrian. Constantine simply replaced certain panels and parts of it in order to make it his own.
Perhaps the most controversial panel on the arch of Constantine: It appears to depict the Sun God, the very deity which Constantine's father (Constantius Chlorus) worshipped and which is ascribed to Constantine prior to his conversion to Christianity. However, this arch celebrates the triumph over Maxentius, a victory Constantine later credited to the 'God of the Christians.'.
Do you think that for many of the emperors propaganda and commemoration went hand-in-hand? The Arch of Constantine was erected between 312 and 315CE by the Senate in honor of Constantine s military triumph over Maxentius at the Battle of the Milvian Bridge. A substantial portion of the decoration on the Arch of Constantine was taken from other earlier monuments in an attempt to liken Constantine to his great predecessors, Trajan, Hadrian, and Marcus Aurelius. In the detail shown, the frieze-like panel (dated from Constantine's reign) depicts him giving his first speech to the people after triumphing over Maxentius. He visually places himself within the lineage of great emperors through the figures of Hadrian and Marcus Aurelius that flank his figure in the relief. The two roundels above are from a Hadrianic monument. The first shows the emperor sacrificing to Apollo before a hunt and the second shows him hunting boar. This may have been an attempt by Hadrian to show both his piety and his prowess and by replacing Hadrian's head on the relief with his own portrait, Constantine does the same. The stylistic differences between the reliefs of Constantine and those of the preceding emperors are quite pronounced. What do you think was the cause of such artistic changes? Constantine credited Christianity with helping him defeat Maxentius and the Edict of Milan was issued during this time (313 CE). Do you think, then, that this Arch could be considered a Christian monument?
a. b. c. d. e. f. g. Classify these known & h. unknown portraits
Late Empire: Colossal Portrait of Constantine, From the Basilica Nova, Rome, Italy (c. 315 330 AD) (marble)
Constantine and Christianity Constantine (306 337 AD) The short-lived concord among the tetrarchs that ended with Diocletian s abdication was followed by an all-too-familiar period of conflict that ended two decades later with the restoration of one-man rule. The eventual victor was Constantine I ( Constantine the Great ), son of Constantius Chlorus, Diocletian s Caesar of the West. After the death of his father, Constantine invaded Italy in 312. At a battle at the Milvian Bridge at the gateway to Rome, he defeated and killed his chief rival, Maxentius. Constantine attributed his victory to the aid of the Christian god. In 313, he and Licinius, Constantine s co-emperor in the East, issued the Edict of Milan, ending the persecution of the Christians. In time, Constantine and Licinius became foes, and in 324 Constantine defeated and executed Licinius near Byzantium (modern Istanbul, Turkey). Constantine was now unchallenged ruler of the whole Roman Empire. Shortly after the death of Licinius, he founded a New Rome on the site of Byzantium and named it Constantinople (City of Constantine). A year later in 325, at the Council of Nicea, Christianity became de facto the official religion of the Roman Empire. From this point on, paganism declined rapidly. For many scholars, the transfer of the seat of power from Rome to Constantinople and the recognition of Christianity mark the beginning of the Middle Ages
They Might Be Giants: Istanbul (Not Constantinople) Istanbul was Constantinople Now it s Istanbul, not Constantinople Been a long time gone, Constantinople Now it s Turkish delight on a moonlit night Every gal in Constantinople Lives in Istanbul, not Constantinople So if you ve a date in Constantinople She ll be waiting in Istanbul Even old New York was once New Amsterdam Why they changed it I can t say People just liked it better that way So take me back to Constantinople No, you can t go back to Constantinople Been a long time gone, Constantinople Why did Constantinople get the works? That s nobody s business but the Turks Istanbul (Istanbul) Istanbul (Istanbul) Even old New York was once new Amsterdam Why they changed it I can t say People just liked it better that way Istanbul was Constantinople Now it s Istanbul, not Constantinople Been a long time gone, Constantinople Why did Constantinople get the works? That s nobody s business but the Turks So take me back to Constantinople No, you can t go back to Constantinople Been a long time gone, Constantinople Why did Constantinople get the works? That s nobody s business but the Turks Istanbul
Mycenaean Minoan Cycladic Funerary statue Proto-Geometric Geometric Archaic Classical Hellenistic Roman (Greek) Humanism Krater Meander Red figure technique Black figure technique Kouros Naturalistic Encaustic Kore Athena Contrapposto Caryatid Etruscan Julius Caesar Augustus Caesar Constantine Terra cotta Bronze Sprues Republic Denarius Propaganda Ides of March Veristic Tradition Cuirass Tetrarchy Middle Ages Edict of Milan Constantinople General search: www.google.com http:// dictionary.reference.com
c. 400-1400 AD
MIDDLE AGES For several hundred years, from about the first to around the fifth century AD, Rome was the greatest power on Earth, ruling Britain and the countries around the Mediterranean Sea. However, in northern Europe, there were fierce tribes that were only held at bay by the Romans. Around 400 AD, the Roman Empire began to weaken and the northern tribes swept across the continent of Europe and plundered the city of Rome. The Roman Empire collapsed and was gradually replaced by many small kingdoms ruled by a strong warrior. For many years, Europe was without the luxuries and riches that had marked the height of Rome. Many centuries later, a new interest in learning would mark the beginning of the Renaissance. The thousand years between is called the Middle Ages or the Medieval period. This period began and ended for different countries at different times across Europe. It also affected different areas of the continent in different ways. The northern tribes did not stamp out learning completely, only momentarily set it back. The Catholic Church was already a powerful institution at the end of the Roman Empire and it continued to be the unifying force between the many small kingdoms that would become Europe. The Church salvaged much from the ruins of the ancient world and became one of the centers of learning during the Middle Ages. The people of the Middle Ages had a rich culture and produced many advances in art, literature, science, and medicine and paved the way for the ideas that would become the beginning of the Renaissance (c. 1400 AD). To begin your journey into the Middle Ages, try to picture a world with far fewer people, where no one moved away from their hometown, and life moved at a slower pace. There was no electricity, no water from faucets, no television, and no cars. How did they survive?!!!
MIDDLE AGES EAST: BYZANTINE & ISLAMIC Late Antiquity(c. 400-500) Post-Constantine (c.300 400) (527-843) (843 1204) (1204 - (192 1453) - 337) Early Byzantine Middle Byzantine Late Byzantine WEST: MEDIEVAL Early Medieval Late Medieval (476-768) (768-936) (936-1024) (1024 1200) Merovingian Carolingian Ottonian Romanesque West: GOTHIC (1140-1194) (1194-1300) (1300-1500) Early Gothic High Gothic Late Gothic
EAST: BYZANTINE & ISLAMIC Constantine, r.306-337 Christianity proclaimed state religion of the Roman Empire, 380 ( Pagan worship prohibited, 391) The Golden Age Justinian the Great, r.527-565 Mohammed, 570-633 Beginnings of Islam Iconoclasm (726-843) (Turks convert to Islam: 9 th -10 th Century) Late Antiquity(c. 400-500) Post-Constantine (c.300 400) (527-843) (843 1204) (1204 - (192 1453) - 337) Early Byzantine Middle Byzantine Late Byzantine Foundation of Constantinople, 324 End of the Western Roman Empire, 410 (Rome), 476 (Ravenna) (Last Western Roman Emperor: Romulus Augustus r.475-476) Arabs besiege Constantinople, 717-718 Revival of Byzantine power, 980 Split of Byzantine & Roman Catholic Churches, 1054 First Crusade, 1095-1099 Fourth Crusade, 1202-1204 Ottoman Turks capture Constantinople: End of the Byzantin Empire 1453
Rome Constantinople
Early Byzantine: Barberini Diptych, (Justinian as World Conqueror) (Mid-6th Century) [ivory] (1 of 5 parts) [diptych] (1 1 ½ X 10 ½ )
Detail: Barberini Diptych, (Thearle as World Conqueror) [Louvre, Paris]
Review: Roman Art: Imagery Styles Etruscan Republican Etruscan Julius Caesar Imperial Augustus Caesar Why the changes? Late Empire Constantinian / Early Christian Byzantine
Early Byzantine: Church of San Vitale, Ravenna, Italy (526 547) [Byzantine, dome]
Interior View: Church of San Vitale, Choir
Apse Mosaic: Christ in Paradise (apse, mosaic)
Apse Mosaic Details: Christ in Paradise (St. Vitalis, Bishop Ecclesius) Justinian w/ Church
Details: Justinian
Apse Wall Mosaic: Theodora and attendants
Details: Theodora
Middle Byzantine: Vladimir Virgin, Moscow, Russia (Vladimir) (late 11 th century) Tempera on wood panel, ~2 6 ½ X 1 9 [icon, iconoclasm] (return to icons)
Late Byzantine: icons St. John Chrysostom Constantinople (1350-1400) miniature mosaic 7 x 5 Archangel Gabriel Chilandari Monastery, Mt. Athos, Greece (late 1300's) tempera on wood
Islamic: Page of a Persian Qur'an, c.1550 [koran/qur an]
WEST: MEDIEVAL Anglo-Saxons take over Roman Britain (480) Charlemagne (r. 768 814) crowned Emperor in Rome, 800 Otto I (r. 936 973) crowned Emperor in Rome, 962 Pope Gregory VII (1073 1085) asserts spiritual supremacy over kings and emperors, 1077 Foundation of Knight s Templar, 1118 King Richard the Lionheart, of England, (r. 1189-1199) Early Medieval Late Medieval (476-768) (768-936) (936-1024) (1024 1200) Merovingian Carolingian Ottonian Romanesque End of the Western Roman Empire, 410 (Rome), 476 (Ravenna) Vocab: crusades Split of Byzantine (Greek Orthodox) & Latin (Roman) Catholic Churches, 1054 Norman Conquest of England/ Battle of Hastings, 1066 First Crusade, 1095-1099 (Pope Urban II) 2nd Crusade, 1147 3 rd Crusade,
Merovingian: Lindisfarne Gospels: Page Preceding St. John s Gospel, (c. 698-721) [gospel]
Merovingian: Lindisfarne Gospels: Chi Ro Christmas Page, (c. 698-721)
Carolingian: High Cross of Muiredach, Monasterboice monastery, Ireland (c. 923) (~16 high) [cross]
Carolingian: Equestrian Portrait of Charlemagne (?), From Metz, Germany (early 9 th century) [bronze] (9 ½ high)
Ottonian: Book of Genesis: Eden, Bronze Doors: St. Michael s Church, Hildesheim, Germany (c.1015) (~2 high)
Compare & Contrast: Bronze Relief Panels Hildesheim Doors Florence Baptistery Doors
Romanesque: Bayeux Tapestry, Cathedral: Bayeux, France (1070-1080) (1 8 high X 229 long) [tapestry]
Bayeux Tapestry Opening Credits: Robin Hood (Kevin Costner)
West: Gothic (Turks convert to Islam: 9 th -10 th Century) Magna Carta: Signed by King John of England, 1215 Philosopher: St. Thomas Aquinas (1225 1274) Geoffrey Chaucer (c. 1343-1400) (1140-1194) (1194-1300) (1300-1500) Early Gothic High Gothic Late Gothic 2 nd Crusade, 1147-1149 3 rd Crusade, 1190 4 th Crusade, 1202-1204 Hundred Years War: Between England and France (1337-1453) Black Death first sweeps over Europe (1347-1350) Ottoman Turks capture Constantinople: End of the Byzantin Empire 1453
Early Gothic: Chartres Cathedral, Chartres, France (begun 1134) [zoom]
Early Gothic: West Façade, From Chartres Cathedral (c. 1145-1155)
Early Gothic: Jamb Statues, From Chartres portal (c. 1145-1155) [jamb]
Early Gothic: Jamb Statues, From Chartres portal (c. 1145-1155) uses a rose window over each entry Chartres Cathedral (Notre Dame de Chartres), 1134-1220, 40 miles SW of Paris large church which took approximately 100 years to build built on a high spot for great visibility number of sculptural reliefs on surface, becoming more naturalistic extreme height of interior, 3 stories
Last Judgement, Main Portal Notre Dame, Paris
Looking Up: Entryway, Notre Dame
Communion of Saints, Notre Dame, Paris
Late Gothic: Virgin of Paris, Notre Dame, Paris (early 14 th century)
Facade: Archivolt Figures, Cologne Cathedral [archivolt]
Byzantine Diptych Apse Mosaic Icon Iconoclasm Koran / Qu ran Crusades Gospel Cross Tapestry Jamb Archivolt Vocab: