The Art of Sculpting

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The Art of Sculpting

Sculpting is the art of working with stone, bronze, and wood by chipping at it to form a beautiful piece of art. The art of sculpting was known thousands of years ago in the time of “THE OLD STONE AGE.” During this time the people thought that they would make the sculptures to praise their gods, kings, queens, and goddesses. The people also made sculptures of animals they believed that the animals would see this and protect them from other harmful animals.

In the 7th century Assyrians became powerful and they to started inventing rich designs to decorate the walls of the palaces and temples. Then the Greek began there sculpting in the 6th century BC the sculptures of this time and place had there own way of art. They gave their pieces life by making the face of the person with a smile; they gave it arms and eyes rigid legs. The Greek wanted statues and stories of their gods to decorate the temples and other buildings.

The Greeks were not interested in exact pictures. They made their figures godlike. When the Romans conquered the Greeks they themselves were conquered by Hellenistic art. With the downfall of Rome in AD 410 and the rise of Christianity sculpture declined. Early Christian carvings were only confined to decorations with hidden meaning.

Roman art grew and it was called “Romanesque”. Sculptured scrolls and elongated figures enriched the doorways of churches, and the doors themselves were used as frames for sculptured pictures of the Bible stories. Sculpting grew more rapid into what was later called the “ Gothic”, the Medieval. The sculptors became more skillful in carving human figures. Artists used animals and plant life for decorative details and ideas.

In Italy the Gothic style underwent a change, called the “Renaissance” the rebirth of the classic. Sculptures reached great heights during the 15th century. The Renaissance spread throughout Western Europe and the art went with it. In the 17th century the Renaissance came to an end. The beautiful and unique sculptural style that followed it was called “ baroque” meaning “false.

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