Art at the Turn of the Century

It all began after the crater of civilization: the further development of an organized government, city construction, and temple construction. Over this relative short time span of 1200 years, the Greeks and Romans developed and corrected a system for creating buildings that continued to be expanded upon in the cultures after that fall of the Roman Empire. As chaos raged, the arts flourished and told the tale of the constant warfare, insane leaders, and the entertainment the gods provided.

Ancient Greece begins around 900 BCE and spans almost nine centuries to 32 BCE. Given such a short time span for a civilization, the Greeks had accomplished great feats of artistic achievement. They've experienced seven periods of artistic transformation. The Last four periods are known as Classic Greece and Hellenistic Greece, which are known as the high points of Greek Art.

The Geometric Period begins the art of Greece around 900 BCE to 700 BCE, where stylistic ceramic decoration had begun to emerge. Pottery and Figures are decorated with linear motifs, such as crosshatching, spirals, and diamonds. This is known as the Proto-geometric Style, which was used more commonly later on as the Geometric Style. The earliest known Greek temples are dated as far back as this period as well.

Continuing through the beginning, the next period is The Orientalizing Period dating from 700 BCE to 600 BCE. By the end of the Geometric Period, most of the famous vase painters had moved away from Greece in search of a greater means of painting rather than the rigid style of Geometry and in their midst an entirely new approach to vase painting had begun. This new style of vase painting began in the port city of Corinth. Instead of using just one color for the background and one color for the foreground, color selection extended to different shades of the tone for a more rich sense of color. Rival pottery producers soon began their adoption of this style to keep themselves in business. These times of Greece were simple toward their art, but at the end of The Orientalizing Period, Greece's greater art forms began to materialize.

The Archaic Period began the development of Greece's Architectural and Sculptural styles. This period dates from 600 BCE to 480 BCE. Temple builders over the past few centuries continued their evolution of standardized temple creation beginning with small one or two roomed temples to larger multi-roomed temples surrounded by columns. Two standard temple designs emerged: The Doric Order and The Ionic Order. The Doric Order begins from the ground with three steps, the first two are the stereobate, and the top step is the stylobate. The column order has a height and width ratio of five to one and consists of several drums positioned on top of each other topped by the capital consisted of the necking, then the echinus, and the abacus. The entablature consists of the architrave connected to the abacus. On top of the entablature is highlighted by fluted triglyphs similar to the columns and accented by metopes, which usually house a figure or sculpture. Finishing the temple is the curved roof named the pediment. The Ionic Order is quite similar to the Doric; it consists of the three steps, stereobate and stylobate. The column ratio is nine to one instead of five to one and is added upon, starting off with a base, instead of just the column drums at the bottom. The shafts of the Ionic order are more slender and taller providing a more elegant and sophistication not present in the Doric order. The capital consists of a volute, more expressive than the geometric necking and echinus, and topped by an abacus. The architrave has three sections instead of just one on top of the columns. A decorative band separates the pediment from the architrave. Besides these two orders, The Corinthian Order was also a very popular design. The capitals were much more detailed and complex. As temple construction flourished, the need for more detailed and stronger sculpture took a much greater importance. Collaboration between the builder and sculptor is the key to creating a masterpiece. Long pediments provided sculptors with the perfect stage for storytelling. Free Standing sculpture from the period was very rigid and carried many aspects found in Egyptian sculpture. A statue of a freestanding woman is referred to as kore, and the male statue is referred to as kourus. These statues presented the human body as very athletic and retained an ideal image that people sought to become. It was not an accurate presentation of the average person.

During the Archaic Period constant war was being waged against Greece. The Greeks suffered invasion after invasion, yet in the end the mighty soldiers of Greece fended off all attacks, but many of their cities were destroyed. The Transitional or Early Classical Period (480 BCE - 450 BCE) was the rebuilding of their fallen cities. Artists sought for a more realistic interpretation of life to portray in sculpture. Pediment scenes of temples now began to reflect a more religious message. Scenes such as the pediment of the newly erected Olympian temple depicted a wide range of suffering and death, much like they've seen over the past few centuries. Free Standing sculpture took large strides toward artist's new goals. Sculpture became far from rigid through the course of these mere thirty years. By the end of the Transitional Period, the kourus type figure was as natural as life itself. The constant flow of muscle, balance, and pose was a large step in realism. The famous Discus Thrower was sculpted around 450 BCE at the end of the Early Classical Period and accompanies all the learned aspects of this era. It was created from bronze by sculptor Myron. The strain of muscle is shown as the Discus Thrower twists his body to wind up his toss. It is a magnificent piece of sculpture. Like most Greek works, we've come to know about because of its Roman produced copies. In the Early Classical Period, vase painting continued their aspect of light and dark. Painters experimented with reversing the background shades with the foreground shades for a little variety.

The Transitional Period leads right into The High Classical Period, which spans over the next fifty years (450 BCE to 400 BCE). During these fifty years raged the conflict between Greece cities, Athens and Sparta, but the rebuilding of fallen cities continued throughout the outskirts of Greece.

Just as the architects of this period sought to define new standards in temple excellence, sculptors redefined their ideals for the human shape, form and beauty. They strived to capture that human essence in their work, and incorporate the ideal human image. Decorative Panels, known as stelae, were used quite often in temple decoration. These panels paint a picture of those who have died, and are mostly used like gravestones. Color creation for painting vases continued to mature as well, by the usage of tempera paints.

The Late Classical Period (400 BCE - 320 BCE) marked the fall of Athens to Sparta in the year 404 BCE. The Spartans began their new govern over the city, but was unsuccessful when the Athenians rebelled against the Spartans. After a few years, Athens had recovered its economy and independence, but never regained its capital status of Greece. Despite the hard times, temple designs began new variation of the old classic design, but Athens no longer led all the achievement. The Orthogonal City Plan was developed for a much greater ease of transportation throughout a city. The Plan called for completely straightened square roads fashioned into a grid, instead of the un-organized construction of roads and paths in the past. Many cities began some reconstruction to fit this new and more organized plan. The Ideal human image of sculpture continued to be enhanced and modified. In the middle of this period was the first made statue of a fully Nude woman made by a famous sculptor, which set a new standard. Up until now, the female has been clothed, but as time progressed, the clothing became more and more transparent. The Art of Painting no longer confined itself to just pottery and vases. Murals began to decorate tombs and temples as a new means of describing battles that have passed, and acts of their gods. Towards the end of the Late Classic Period, in 323 BCE, Alexander the Great died, and in his wake he left an heirless thrown. Chaos within the government began to rise again, as generals fought each other to become the heir. It ended the period with a divided and less powerful Greece.

The Hellenistic Period of Greece (320 BCE - 30 BCE) began the separation of Greece. Three of Alexander's generals and their followers split the control of Greece three ways. The Art of Greece took a dramatic change. In the past, painters and sculptors strived for the perfection of the human body. Now, the focus shifted away from the ideal to the individual. Some sculptors kept to their roots with the classic interpretation, while others began experimentation with new forms and subjects. The Kingdom of Pergamon led the Greece culture with these new ideas, which quickly influenced all of Greece. The famous statues from this period depicted scenes of intense violence and death. The artists sought to provoke emotions within the viewer. This kind of purposely-induced emotional response is known as expressionism, and became a characteristic of The Hellenistic Period, as well as a showcase of entertainment. On the other hand, the continuance of the classic traditions was exactly what the rulers of Greece wanted. Greek rulers of this time thought of themselves as divine creations, and combined with the sculptors searching for the divine image was a perfect match. Rulers were depicted as arrogant gods. Sculpture took some unique strides and later, the Romans would take on much of this development.

Greece was a great and mighty empire that's greatest faults were mostly because of separation and un-unification. During Greece's inner conflict, across the Adriatic Sea, around 509 BCE, the beginnings of the Roman civilization were developing. Ancient Rome originates around 800 BCE and spans to 395 CE. The Roman Empire itself doesn't fully solidify until the fall of Greece between 32 BCE and 27 BCE.

Roman civilization originates with the Etruscan civilization, which all began around 800 BCE to 509 BCE. Some early traces of the Roman architecture are similar to those of Greece. The Architectural order expands and simplifies the Doric and Ionic Orders. Both Roman orders do away with the stereobate, and the stylobate. From the ground, the columns are perched on top of a pedestal consisting of first the plinth, then the elongated sectioned called the dado, topped off by the cornice. The column begins with the base and shaft, and tops off with the capital. The Composite Order's capital is similar to the Corinthian Order of Greece, with some decorative leafs and volutes. The Tuscan order simplifies the presentation with a smooth texture to the entire column. Besides Column Orders, Roman architecture is known for their wide use of Arches, Domes, and Vaults. The Romans, nor the Etruscan, invented these, but widely used their ingenious geometry. The Round arch displaces the weight it holds to the sides for support. The walling that leads up to the curved archway is known as piers and is topped off by an impost. The curved bricks are laid in a matter of weight distribution temporary head up by a wooden centering. The archway is then topped off with a larger curved brick known as a keystone. The rest of the wall is then bricked around this archway to seal the wall together. The Vaults are constructed in similar ways, except the archway is meant as a freestanding wall. Vaults are meant to enclose space for interior purposes. A barrel vault is a cylindrical hallway with such a curved ceiling. When two of these vaults join each other, a groin vault is constructed, which leaves emptiness in the middle making alternate paths. The Dome uses the concepts of the groin vault, to make a circular room. Materials used in to these massive buildings began with the basic mud brick, and then evolved from wood to quarried volcanic rock. The Roman civilization began to solidify through the years. More and more talent began to rise, and the country now sought for unification.

The Beginning of The Roman Empire began in 509 BCE to 27 BCE. Roman architects heavily relied on the round arch and barrel vaulting for their building construction. The increased usage of building materials developed a greater means for solid walls. Concrete was developed and then used more often than stone because of its transportability and low cost. Because of their incorporations of the arch, vault, and dome, the circular motif was used as a recurring theme in many temple layouts. Contrast to Greece, the region of what we know today as Italy was surrounded by water and mountains which gave Romans a sense of peace that Greece often never felt. Houses were developed with an emphasis on the inside, a welcome to their neighbors. Paintings decorated the walls, and gardens flourished near the outer edges in back of the house. With such as focus on the interior wall painting styles began to develop. The first incantation of a standard painting style began around 200 BCE. Artists created architectural illusions by molding plaster on to bare walls, and created added columns. This style led into the next style around 80 BCE, where wall space was decorated with detailed scenes of figures, a landscape, or a cityscape. In 15 BCE, a new style formed which emphasized more on designed geometry. Rooms were painted with solid colors, and straight lines. These styles lead to the combining of all three into one style in the year, 45 CE, which brought together a more realistic sense of interior architecture and design.

The Early Empire of Rome spanned from 27 BCE to 180 CE. Besides architecture, Roman sculptors also created distinctive statues commemorating individuals and events. A few years before the turn of the century, in 13 - 9 BCE, the Ara Pacis was built to commemorate the success and tragedy of Augustus' military conquests. Scenes of battles are depicted across the Ara Pacis with an emphasis on individuals who had fallen in battle.

Augustus ruled Rome until his death in 14 CE when his stepson Tiberius took over. Suspicion plagued his rule, which erupted in civil war. The powerful general, Vespasian took control over the government and restored the imperial army to what it was. During his reign, the mighty Colosseum was built and completely shortly after Verspasian's death. Like most sports stadiums today, the Colosseum was oval in shape. The foundation of the building, housed a service of tunnels and rooms that provided a back stage area for the athletes, performers, animals, and equipment used to entertaining the crowd. The Colosseum took wide use of the groin vault and round arch and was able to seat some 50,000 attendants with every seat having a clear view of the center of entertainment. In 96 CE, an era of prosperity and growth began with the succession of the first of five very competent rulers, Nerva. Trajan, the second ruler, expanded the boundaries of the Roman Empire as far as the Middle East. The third ruler, Hadrian, was well educated, widely traveled, and had a great admiration toward Greek Art. One of his greatest artistic achievements was the construction of the Pantheon, completed between 125 CE to 128 CE. Hadrian built the Pantheon as a grand gesture towards previous ruler, Marcus Agrippa, whose temple lay in ruins underneath the foundation of the Pantheon. Hadrian very unselfishly inscribed the frieze with Agrippa's name making it seem as if Agrippa was the designer behind this masterpiece. The portico of the Pantheon sported columns that are a variation of the Corinthian Order. Like most buildings of the Roman Empire, the true spectacle of the Pantheon is the over decorated interior devoted to the gods. Along the walls where individual tributes and shrines to the Roman Gods. Following up the domed ceiling, squared indentations marked a stylized design. These are known as coffers. The Dome itself was crafted in concrete and covered with marble and on top the Dome is completed with an emptiness referred to as an oculus. The oculus lets the sunlight into the building in one solid beam.

Hadrian was a great builder whose talent didn't necessarily lie within the public view. In his home outside of Rome, he constructed a villa with many replicas of Greek sculpture looking over a reflective pool surrounded by trees, plants, and scrubs. Outlining the Greek sculptures was a hemi-circle suspended by more Greek style columns. This was an exceptional place of seclusion and contentment for the famed ruler. The Death of Marcus Aurelious marked the end of the Early Empire, and Rome began their descent into the ages.

The Late Empire of Rome (180 CE - 395 CE) began with the foolish ruling of Marcus Aurelious' son, Commodus. The leaders of this period up to Diocletian, were insane, naive, or greedy. Commodus often thought of himself as the Roman Hercules, and proudly walked throughout Roman wearing the garments crafted from a Lion. Septimius Severus succeeded Commodus, and was quite in tune with the arts of the time. He widely supported and built magnificent new public baths on the south side of Rome. Septimius' two sons succeeded him to the thrown as co-emperors: Caracalla and Geta. Caracalla later murdered Geta for his power, and then was murdered himself by the remaining relative of the Severan family line, Severus Alexander. He was later murdered himself, and plunged Rome into Anarchy for fifty years. Diocletian rose to power near the end of the third century. He broke normal architectural tradition and crafted a military fortress that warded away commoners rather than embraced them. The continuing fall of Rome began with the attempt at separating the civilization into two parts. After Diocletian's Death, the leader of the west half of Rome, Constantine, would conquer and unite Rome again, but severely weaken its own military forces. After Constantine's victory the senate erected The Arch of Constantine:

Constantine continued to try and impress the people of Roman with various labels of his authority. He had a crude looking bust of his head placed in the newly conquered east capital of Rome and a sign of his presence. After his death, Roman was hit by civil war again, and then was ruled for a brief time, after which, the Christian religion became more and more practiced. The fall of Rome seems very similar to the fall of Greece, after being divided the power of their forces were cut in half, making it much easier for invasion and war.

The Greece and Roman civilizations parallel each other pretty closely. Greek culture began many of the foundation that the Roman culture adopted and expanded upon. I think sculpture was more greatly used, experimented, and developed more in Greece, whereas the better- known Artistic feats of Ancient Rome are more architectural. Both civilization made amazing Art and was the beginning of a more civilized and organized creation process.

-- Dyre
Dec 15th, 16th, 17th, 2002

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