Greek and Roman Art

Cycladic, Minoan, and Mycenaean Art

The Aegean island cultures were very important as

precursors of the Greeks in terms of art production.

Three major cultures flourished on the islands in

the Aegean Sea, on Crete, and along the Aegean

coast. The earliest of these cultures, the Cycladic

culture, flourished from about 3200 to 2000 bce

in the Cyclades, a group of islands in the Aegean.

Archaeologists still have many unanswered questions

about Cycladic culture, but the simplified, geometric

nude female figures from this area are highly appealing

to modern sensibilities. In addition to these sculptures,

the Cycladic culture produced decorated pieces of

pottery as well as marble bowls and jars. Eventually,

the Cycladic culture was supplanted by the Minoan

culture, which developed on the island of Crete and

reached its pinnacle in the second millennium bce.

The Minoan culture centered around the city of

Knossos on Crete, where the legend of the Minotaur—

the creature believed to be half man and half bull who

devoured those who entered his maze—is supposed

to have taken place. The maze was actually the royal

palace, a sprawling complex that has since been

excavated. The art of these island people depicts sea

life and includes statues of a female snake goddess.

The Minoans created artworks that were characterized

by a naturalistic pictorial style. Their paintings took

two major forms: frescoes painted on palace walls and

pottery designs. The architectural achievements of the

Minoans were also impressive, as they built four major

palaces, all completely unfortified and designed in a

light, flexible, and organic style.

The collapse of the Minoan civilization coincided with

the pinnacle of Mycenaean culture, and as a result,

many historians believe the Minoans were destroyed

by the Mycenaeans. The Mycenaean culture was

centered around the city of Mycenae on the Greek

mainland. The Mycenaeans built elaborate tombs,

and their burial practices allowed for a large number

of objects to be preserved. The objects that are best

known are made of gold and show astonishing levels of

mastery in goldsmithing. Additionally, the Mycenaeans

demonstrated much skill in their use of relief sculpture.

Ancient Greek Art

From around 660 to 475 bce, during the Archaic Period,

the Greeks, influenced by the stone sculptures of Egypt

and Mesopotamia, created sculptures carved in marble

and limestone. These freestanding figures borrowed

the frontal pose used in Egyptian art, but were more

dynamic and placed greater emphasis on depicting

realistic human features. Temples were also built during

this time period using columns in the early Doric and

Ionic decorative styles. Vase painting was another

notable art form and was done in many different styles.

Some vases portrayed black silhouetted figures, while

those in the Corinthian style set figures against a floral,

ornamented background. Athenian-style vases used

black figures, but were more linear and larger in scale.

Red-figure vases, with red figures standing out against a

black background, were also common.

The best-known ancient Greek art is that from the

city-state of Athens from the Classical Period. During

the Early Classical Period, temples were typically

built with sturdy, Doric columns. Unfortunately, much

of the sculpture from this period has not survived,

but luckily Roman copies have provided us with a

good deal of information on these ancient works.

The sculpture of the Early Classical Period was

characterized by its solemnity, strength, and simplicity

of form and most often focused on a figure or scene

either in the moment before or the moment after an

important action. Significant advances were made in

sculptural techniques, as the stiff frontal postures of

the Archaic Period were largely abandoned in favor of

more complex and life-like figures and positions.

Greek statuary evolved from a stiff, frontal presentation

like that of the Egyptians to an increasingly natural-

looking figure. A pose called “contrapposto,” or

counter positioning, was invented to show the body to

its best advantage. In contrapposto, the standing figure

is posed with its weight shifted onto one leg, for a more

relaxed, naturalistic appearance. Greek sculpture set

the model for thousands of years in Western art, and the

Renaissance, Baroque, and Neoclassical artists of the

fifteenth through early nineteenth centuries aspired to

equal the perfection displayed by the surviving Greek

statues.

The Middle Classical Period witnessed important

advances in architecture as is evident in the temples

of this time period. The temple called the Parthenon,

restored in 447 bce after being destroyed by the

Persians in 480 bce, is one of the most admired works

of all ages, and the use of columns as exemplified in

the Parthenon has been a principal feature of Western

architecture for more than two thousand years.

Architecture declined during the Late Classical Period

as Athens was defeated in the Peloponnesian War.

Temples in this era were still built using simple Doric

columns, but the use of highly decorative Corinthian

columns became more and more popular. The

Hellenstic Period saw an increasing influence from

Eastern civilizations as Greek styles blended with

those of Asia Minor. Notable works of this time period

include freestanding sculptures such as the Venus de

Milo and the Laocoön Group, which are masterworks

designed to present ideals of beauty.

Etruscan Art

The art of the Etruscan civilization is seen as a

transition from the ideals of Greece to the pragmatic

concerns of the Romans. Etruscan civilization arose

in what is now Italy in the first millennium bce.

Like other cultures we have examined, this one is

known largely from the arts of tomb decoration.

Nothing remains of Etruscan buildings as these were

constructed of brick and wood. However, ceramic

models depict temples with tiled, gabled roofs

supported by columns in the fashion of the Greeks.

Extant Etruscan artifacts also include sarcophagus

lids and other art forms made of baked clay, as

well as objects that display the Etruscans’ talent in

bronze work. The only paintings that remain from

the Etruscan culture are those found on the walls

and ceilings of tombs. These were done in bright,

flat colors, and they show figures playing music and

dancing as part of funeral celebrations.

Roman Art

The story of Rome is one of conquest and empire

building. Early Roman art reflected the influence of

Etruscan art. However, by the second century bce

many Roman sculptures and other Roman artworks

were variations of Greek works, and the standards

for idealized presentations of Roman rulers were

based on those of the Greeks. The Romans, however,

made pioneering advancements in architecture and

engineering. The Roman discovery of the equivalent

of modern concrete was a major contribution to

architecture, as it enabled Roman builders to fill the

spaces between their stone walls with rocks and rubble

bound together by the concrete mixture. With this

strong material, the Romans were able to construct

huge domed buildings. They also pioneered the use

of the curved arch, using this form to build bridges

and aqueducts. These structures were part of a paved

road system, making communication and control very

effective in the Empire. Two buildings that can still

be seen in Rome, the Colosseum (72–80 ce) and the

Pantheon (c. 126 –128 ce), remain as monuments to the

engineering genius of the Romans.

The Romans created numerous sculptures. Often,

colossal triumphal arches would be topped with

relief sculptures portraying Roman emperors or

Roman military victories. The Romans also created

relief sculptures for funerary purposes. Tombs and

sarcophagi were decorated with reliefs. Some of these

reliefs were simply decorative, but many others had

narrative subject matter. The Romans also sculpted

portraits, which ranged in size from tiny busts to

huge statues. During the Roman Republic it became

common for members of a funeral procession to carry

small carved images of the deceased family member.

Later, statues in memory of great statesmen or other

noble figures were erected in public areas. Both the

funerary sculptures and the public statues did not

present naturalistic depictions of their subjects. Rather,

the Romans favored an idealistic style that highlighted

Roman ideals. The art of the Romans not only had

a tremendous influence on the art of the Middle

Ages, but also had a notable impact on the art of the

Renaissance and much of the art that followed.