Roman portraiture is more realistic than previous idealistic Hellanistic styles. They better depict each subject’s individuality to a degree never seen before. The purpose of Roman portraiture is to address the audience and convey specific messages to them.
Each Roman portrait is an imperial commemorative relief and are representations of each subject’s ideology in ruling. The Roman portraits allegorically communicate these ideologies through the veristic image of the ruler. The portrayals of their emotions are also pragmatic. The way the leader’s image is portrayed, (i.e. by the way they choose to wear their hair and beard), depicts how their leadership will be perceived.
Augustus’s statue portrayed him as an individualistic faction leader and tended to be more idealistic. For example, although he did start ruling as a youth, at the age of 18, his face was, continually, throughout his life, shown with youthfulness and vibrancy. He also had an archetypal body type of a hero and is shown with the omission of his boots, a reference to the ideal heroic statue. Lastly, there is a dolphin riding Cupid at his ankle which reminded the viewer that he was of divine descent. However, there was a limit to which he could exalt himself. He could not promote his individual character and will above the Roman public which would call for distrust and resentment.
On the contrary, other portraits tend to be more veristic in style, humbling the subject. Their portraits tend to call to attention their service to the state and faithfulness to the constitution of the republic as opposed to their individual greatness or divinity. This was shown through their crude images of wear and tear in their expressions. For example, in the portraiture of the unknown republican shows him balding and toothless, aged and wrinkled. His character reflects that of a grim and haggard state from the agonies and stress of a Roman civil war.
Although each imperial relief may differ, there are organized central motifs which surround them. These themes include: “pietas in the scenes of sacrifice, clementia in the scenes of pardon, extended to supplicating barbarians, virtus in the scenes of military conquest, concordia in the scenes of address and counsel” –Nodelman, p19, which are the common criteria upon which a emperor is fit to rule.
In this paper I am exploring “Portrait of Augustus as general” and “Khafre enthroned”. From exploring and getting to know the Statues in my Art History Book I have compared these statues (Kleiner, 2013). The first and most obvious similarity between the two is in the artists’ idealization and immortalization of their subjects. Both Khafre and Augustus are portrayed in an idealized manner, designed to give the impression of nobility, timelessness, and divinity. The two statues were the political advertisements of their times that showed the public images of reliable leaders who one
Kleiner, Fred S. A History of Roman Art. Boston, MA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning, 2010. Print.
In conclusion, although Mycerinus and Kha-merer-nebty II and Augustus of Primaporta, do appear very different, come from entirely different geographic regions and were separated by thousands of years, they do have many things in common. When we consider subject, style, and function; perhaps other works of art have more in common than they appear to have.
The Augustus of Primaporta depicts the emperor standing with his arm raised and with all his weight shifted into one foot. This is slightly different than the Votive Statue of Gudea, both positions are symbolic of the way a rule from each time period would have addressed troops. Augustus, along with his youthful features, is exactly how Augustus would have wanted to be remembered. This is also true of the Votive Statue of Gudea. There are many other symbolic details that relate to mythology and history incorporated into the statue of Augustus.
Painted in Rome in the style of Neo-Classicism, Jacques Louis David’s Oath of the Horatii is one of the better-known examples of art produced by this artist of eclectic styles. This painting was hailed as the manifesto of a new school based on the fervent study of the antique and a return to classical techniques in the late 18th century. In this painting, completed in 1785 as an oil on canvas, David (DA-VEED) successfully coalesces the nascent and confused ideology of the Neo-Classical movement in a dramatic portrayal of the Horatii brothers swearing their allegiance to the state as their father stands with swords held high for them to grasp. An analysis of the painting’s historical background, and an evaluation of the lines, colors, and subject matter, will illustrate why Oath of the Horatii represents the defining characteristics of the Neo-Classical period.
The Greek’s images also possessed two important ideas that brought the soul of the artist and subject to the surface while still capturing the passion and action of the movement and story: noble simplicity and quiet grandeur. Greek images contained faces that were full of expression but were also balanced because they were not overcome by pain or passion because they still had nobility of soul which creates a sense of tranquility even in the midst of rage, fervor, or desire.
Zanker, Paul. The power of images in the Age of Augustus. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 1988. (P. 158 ~ 159)
The primary function of monumental portraits in Ancient Rome was to honor political figures of power through repeating social and political themes. The Romans expressed these themes through a form of “realism”. Relics of this era were found depicting the elderly conservative nobility that lived through civil disruptions and war, elaborately individualized through detail of the face expression. Through the features of grimacing heaviness, wrinkles, and effects of old age, the Romans were able to express the reality of their political situation felt by the people whose faces were sculptured into stone. Furthermore, Nodelman discusses the use of sculpture portraits to depict the ideology behind Roman conservative aristocracy. Artists would portray the virtues of gravitas, dignities, and fides, through the use to physical expression and symbolic meaning, rather than through words. A statue of Augustus, for instance, displays the militaristic, powerful, godly perception of the conservative ideology through the use of symbolic detail. The decorative, rich, military outfit on Augustus, represents the power of the military and Augustus’s role as imperator in it. The freely held masculine arm and pointing gesture towards the horizon are Rome’s expanding dreams, clashing with the overall powerful and sturdy stance of the body. The bare feet bring about the impression
In the third century BC, Greek art was taken as treasure from wars became popular, and many Roman homes were decorated with paintings by Greek artists. Verism is a hyper-realistic portrayal of the subject’s facial features, and this style originated from Hellenistic Greece. However, the use of this style in the Roman Republic and its survival throughout lots of the Republic is due to Roman values, customs, and political life. The Romans borrowed some details from the Greek art, but adapted it to their own needs. The use of veritistic portraiture started to lessen during the Late Republic, in the first century BC.
...ed in times of good fortunes, and expansion. While during times of instability the artistic ingenuity would stagnate. Finally at the end of the empire, the art quality would decrease as the empire was deteriorating. This deterioration in art quality would continue for decades until the Renaissance would bring back an art quality on the level of that of ancient Rome under the Antonines. The type of art being created could be used as a very good indicator of what the political scene in Rome looked like at the time.
...ce. Her head is covered by a veil, adorned with flowers, with knotted strands hang down either side of her neck. As for her body, it differs from those of the mythological women in its fullness; it better resembles that of a mother. A large tunic fully covers her skin. The maturity and fruitfulness of the depicted Livia conveys a greater sense of importance and respect for the empress. However, as Glenys Davies critiques in “Portrait Statues as Models for Gender Roles in Roman Society,” the messages conveyed by these art mediums are subtle and seductive: “they suggest that a woman who conforms will be rewarded—not only by fine clothes and access to hairstylists but also by commemoration in a marble portrait. But by various means they also make clear that conforming means not behaving like a man, not aspiring to male roles, and knowing what a woman’s place is.”
The Romans have adopted many features from the Greek style of art and architecture during the third and second centuries B.C. During that time period the Romans discovered that they have taking a liking to Greek statues, which they placed in many different places. The Roman sculptors then decided to also start making statues alongside the Greeks. The statues that the Romans created were realistic looking with, sometime, unpleasant details of the body. The Greeks made statues with, what they thought of, ideal appearances in the statues figure. Sculpture was possibly considered the highest form of art by the Romans, but figure painting was very high considered as well. Very little of Roman painting has survived the tests of time.
... middle of paper ... ... The Roman’s continued with a more realistic style with such statues as Aristocrat with Ancestors and Marcus Aurelius. In wall paintings at Pompeii, the artists used great color and realism on the people’s faces.
Here, we will be looking at a rendition of the high marble statue of Augustus Caesar known as “Augustus of Prima Porta.” Originating from 1st Century A.D., it is said that there is a possibility that the original sculpture could have been of greek descent. Upon a general overview of the sculpture, one can see that Augustus fulfils a millitarial role of some kind. From his very stance to the garments portrayed on him, Augustus is draped in a decorative cuirass and a tunic, accompanied by a figure of Cupid clutching on to his right calf. After taking the general themes of the work into account, one can then began to start unraveling the many symbolic elements embedded into the sculpture that allude to godly themes. Starting from the crown of his head, the very chiselment and structure of his face gives the work a youthful element to it, even though some say that Augustus was around 40 years old. A recurring theme within Greek and Roman culture is the matter of godliness and immortality amongst idolized figures themselves. This idea is usually depicted by displaying powerful human being in a younger light. This
Roman art was also deeply influenced by the art of the Hellenistic world, which had spread to southern Italy and Sicily through the Greek colonies there. The Etruscans and Babylonians can also be seen as inspirations. “With the founding of the Republic, the term Roman art was virtually synonymous with the art of the city of Rome, which still bore the stamp of its Etruscan art” (Honour and Fleming,1999). During the last two centuries, notably that of Greece, Roman art shook off its dependence on Etruscan art. In the last two centuries before Christ, a distinctive Roman manner of building, sculpting, and painting emerged. Indeed, because of the extraordinary geographical extent of the Roman Empire and the number of diverse populations encompassed within its boundaries, “the art and architecture of the Romans was always eclectic and is characterized by varying styles attributable to differing regional tastes and the...