powerpoint 6a

the prehistoric & the ancient world

SAYRE CHAPTERS 17

the visual record

chapter 17

prehistoric art (30,000 BCE – 2500 BCE)

characteristics chief artists major works historical context

fertility goddesses; handicrafts; utilitarian

objects, utensils and tools; fetishes; cave murals; megalithic structures

artists remain unnamed during this time period

• Venus of Willendorf • Lascaux cave paintings • Stonehenge • Neolithic pottery • Stone figurines and

fetishes • glyphs: petroglyphs,

geoglyphs, pictograms, and pictographs

As the Ice Age comes to an end, new permanent settlements develop across Europe. The Neolithic Era ushers in early farming practices as religious rituals become mainstay in prehistoric peoples’ everyday lives. The purposes of the artwork created in this time period, still remains obscured though many, but not all, pieces serve utilitarian ends.

the visual record

chapter 17

mesopotamian art (3500 BCE – 538 BCE)

characteristics chief artists major works historical context

stone relief friezes; art glorifying war, kings and warrior-kings; narrative

works; ziggurats and large complexes

artists remain unnamed during this time period

• Stele of Hammurabi • Assurnasirpal II Killing

Lions • Standard of Ur • Gate of Ishtar• marble statues at the

Abu Temple, Tell Asmar• Victory of Naram-Sin

Four major cultures arose during this time period: the Sumerians (3500 BCE – 2300 BCE), the Akkadians (2300 BCE – 2150 BCE), the Assyrians (1400 BCE – 600 BCE) and the Babylonians ( 625 BCE – 538 BCE). Writing systems develop as societies become completely agrarian, gathering in stable civilizations. Important technological feats include: domestication of animals, written laws and libraries, and the use of metal.

the critical process• thinking about prehistoric and ancient art

– it is impossible to group all of prehistoric and ancient art into a single category which accurately describes the purposes and meanings of the art of the time

– Prehistory describes the preliterate cultures spanning from the development of mankind until the ancient periods

– Ancient history encompasses the cultures that existed before the Common Era (BCE)

• Wall Painting with Three Horses Facing One Another, Chauvet France 30,000 BCE (pg. 408 in A World of Art)– Do you think its fair to judge, interpret and analyze artwork from the prehistoric

period? Are we, as modern humans, too far removed from that culture to draw accurate conclusions and assumptions?

– If we compare these early murals found in caves throughout France to modern day murals, what similarities can we find? What differences?

– Do you feel that modern humans have a bias which prevents us from understanding, sympathizing and/or connecting to our most distant ancestors?

supplement

the visual record

chapter 17

egyptian art (3100 BCE – 30 BCE)

characteristics chief artists major works historical context

art focuses on the afterlife; represents kings, queens

and gods; development of pyramids; sculpture of

monumental size

• most artists still remain unnamed

• Imhotep• Bek• Amenhotep

• Stele of Hammurabi • Assurnasirpal II Killing

Lions • Standard of Ur • Gate of Ishtar• marble statues at the

Abu Temple, Tell Asmar• Victory of Naram-Sin

At the same time Mesopotamian cultures were developing in the Tigris-Euphrates River Valley, Ancient Egypt developed along the Nile. Because of the unique geography, Egypt remains one of the most stable civilizations of the ancient world. Much of the culture develops around the concept of death and the soul. Notable leaders include: Narmer, Ramses II, Tutankhamen, and Cleopatra.

the visual record

chapter 17

art from ancient india, china and the americas (2500 BCE –1500 BCE)

characteristics chief artists major works historical context

India: rock-cut caves; temple architectures; focusing on

epics/myths

China: ink drawings; metalwork; lost wax casting

Americas: colossal sculptures; pyramids; jadeite masks and

fetishes; basalt thrones

artists remain unnamed during this time period

• Five-eared ding with dragon pattern

• Ritual disc with Dragon Motif (pi)

• Priest-king from Mohenjo-daro

• Colossal head from La Venta, Mexico

Simultaneously, other river valley societies were developing in India and China, as well as the great civilizations in Mesoamerica. The earliest cities founded in India were Harappa and Mohenjo-daro, headed by priest-kings. The Shang dynasty was flourishing in China, while the Olmecs ruled the southern tip of Mexico to Honduras and El Salvador. Like Mesopotamia and Egypt, these cultures had developed impressive cities, pyramids and structures, and ceremonial centers.

the visual record

chapter 17

agean and hellenistic art (850 BCE –31 BCE)

characteristics chief artists major works historical context

toreador frescoes; kouros figures; Greek canon of

proportion and idealism in art; architectural styles of

Doric, Ionic and Corinthian; imagery of gods, heroes

and athletes

• Lysippus • Polycleitus • Praxiteles• Phidias• Skopas

• Kleibos and Briton • Nike of Samothrace• Apoxyomenos (Scraper)• The Laocoön Group• Doryphoros (Spear

Bearer) • Diskobolos (Discus

Thrower)

Throughout the Greek period, many city-states and subcultures contributed to the overall Greek culture: Mycenaeans, Minoans, Aegeans, Athenians, Spartans, etc. Through this period of history: Athens defeats Persia at Marathon, the Peloponnesian Wars between the Athenian Empire and the League headed by Sparta, and Alexander the Great conquers the “world.” Homer contributes the Iliad and Odyssey as many of the ancient philosophers begin teaching.

the visual record

chapter 17

etruscans to roman art (500 BCE– 476 CE)

characteristics chief artists major works historical context

Roman pragmatism and utilitarian art; many copies

of Greek works; Roman engineering and

architecture; the arch; the vault ; frescoes/murals;

marble statues

Roman writers did not praise their

contemporaries, but rather focused on the greatness

and achievement of famous Greeks

• Sarcophagus dei Sposi• the tomb of the

Lionesses, Tarquinia• Augustus of Primaporta• The Arch of Titus • The Colosseum• Trajan's Column• The Pantheon

The Etruscan culture and Trojan descendants fostered the development of Rome. By the fifth century BCE Rome conquered the “world” and ushered in the eras of the Roman Empire. Julius Caesar conquers modern day France and Britain, and after his assassination Augustus becomes the new Emperor. The Empire begins to falter after the death of Marcus Aurelius in 180 CE. Constantine solidifies the fall of the Empire by moving the capital to Byzantium in 323 CE.

the critical process• thinking about symbolism

– early art, created in the prehistoric and ancient periods, relied heavily on the use of symbols

– in many ways the cave paintings of Lascaux, the hieroglyphics and murals painted in Egypt, the friezes created in Mesopotamia and the frescoes done in Greece and Rome all utilize symbolic representation

– Western art progresses from these more “naive” forms of art to more naturalistic and representational (culminating in the Greek sculptures and Polycleitus’ canon)

• similarities and connections – although it is impossible to make large generalizations about the various

cultures and peoples during these eras, some similarities do exist– compare and contrast the art from prehistoric Europe, Mesopotamia,

Egypt, Greece and Rome– Do you see the use of symbolism in these works? How are these symbols

reminiscent of one another? How are they different?supplement