The Role of Public Art Mid-term Quiz questions

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Which encounter, commemorated by the town of Nicopolis ("Victoryville"), is portrayed as far more grand than it actually was and is considered the symbolic founding moment of the Augustan Regime?

The Battle of Actium

What is the specific tone of the literary works produced by Virgil and Horace through the patronage of Augustus?

An image of a "new golden age" with Augustus at center stage

What was the primary intention behind the excessive amount of images of Augustus found in territories ranging from Spain to Sudan?

To allow those who would never see him in person to see the "face" of their ruler

Augustus was portrayed as an idealized, youthful figure even in old age, which differed vastly from his actual physical description. What is this concept called?

The Mask of Power

Where is the most well-preserved version of the Res Gestae located, and what does its distance (2,000 miles from Rome) tell us about Augustus's reign?

Ankara, Turkey; it demonstrates the vast reach and scale of his imperial reign

What are the three main subjects covered in the Res Gestae?

Victories/conquests, benefactions to the people, and his buildings

What famous legacy did Augustus claim to have left behind regarding the physical transformation of Rome?

He found the city built of brick and left it of marble

In what year was the month Sextilis, which sat next to Caesar's July, renamed "August" in honor of the emperor?

6 BCE

The sculptural program on Augustus's new forum featuredstatues of "summi viri" (great men of Rome) and mythical ancestors.What was the primary goal of this specific display?

To present Augustus as the natural culmination of Roman history and lineage

How does Erika Doss describe the phenomenon of "Memorial Mania"?

Obsessing over memory/history and an urgent desire to claim those issues in visibly public contexts.

What was Joel Shapiro’s early recommendation for the memorial design at the 9/11 site in New York City?

Leave the site in ruins.

According to Doss, why does the American military destroy a country’s memorials during an invasion or occupation?

In an effort to "erase their symbolic authority from the social and political landscape.”

What specific historical event does Doss use as an example of "iconography of regicide"?

The documentation of the destruction of the Equestrian Statue of King George at Bowling Green in New York in 1776.

Why was it believed that art commissioned during the Great Depression might help the American public "weather" the economic crisis?

It gave people meaningful and hopeful communal (and governmental) symbols.

What was considered uniquely American about the New Deal art projects?

Elitist belief in high culture + democratic ideal that everyone in society should be the beneficiary.

What were the major differences between the WPA/FAP and the Section of Fine Arts production?

Section artists were treated as entrepreneurs competing for contracts based on merit; WPA artists were given work based on need and worked under a master artist.

Why were post offices chosen as the primary buildings to feature art created by New Deal programs?

They served as a consistent link between the federal government and all communities.

How many entries were received in response to the official call for the 9/11 memorial design?

+5,200