CLASSICISM

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CLASSICISM

• Ancient Greece Rome
• 800 B.C 450 A.D.

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Philosophy of Art

• The arts present the universal idea of beauty
  through logic, order, reason and moderation.
• The purpose of the arts is to show perfection in
  human form and structure.

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Characteristics of the Arts

• Art forms focus on the humanistic element
• Super human images and structures prevail
• Stories and dance expand on emotion
• Music is intellectual and scientific

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THE GREEKS
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Greek Art

• Ancient Greece gave us the basis for most of our
  formal structures and images
• Their ideals have been the measuring stick by
  which other styles were evaluated

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The Devine Ratio Phi

• The concept was first promoted by the Greek
  geometer Euclid
• It is based on the Fibonacci Sequence
  1,1,2,3,5,8,13,21,etc.
• Like Pi, it is an irrational number
  1.618033988
• We just call it 1.618

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More on Phi

• It is said to exist in nature and dictates the
  best proportions that are pleasing to the eye

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The Golden Section

• This is the geometric equivalent of Phi
• It can be applied to most works of art to
  determine their use of the Elements of Art
  through the Principles of Design
• The Greeks were masters in its use

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The Parthenon

• The signature structure of Greek architecture
• Innovations include post lintel construction,
  sloping roof, colonnade
• A perfect example of the ideal of Phi
• Basis for design of Washington D.C.

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More Parthenon

• Built as a temple to the goddess Athena
• Designed to be the feature building of the
  Acropolis
• Uses all Elements of Art in its design

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How It Probably Looked
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The Discus Thrower

• Completed by Myron in 450 B.C.
• The best example of classic Greek sculpture
• Shows the ideal of the perfect human form
• Well developed body in motion

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The Column
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Pythagoras Music Theory

• Pythagoras was the first to experiment with and
  discuss the science of sound
• He discovered that two strings of equal tension
  produce the same sound.
• When divided in ½ the shorter string produces the
  same pitch 1 octave higher

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Ancient Greek Music

• Music was inseparable from poetry and dance
• It was made up of mostly a simple melody with
  instrumental accompaniment
• Used in story telling and celebration

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Major Instruments
Lyre
Kithara
Aulos
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Purposes of Music

• To tell stories Many of Homers tales were sung
  to the audience
• To dance either to tell stories or histories or
  convey emotion
• To celebrate The festivals of the God Dionysus
  required music for merry making

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Greek Drama

• Drama was a major source of entertainment in
  ancient Greece
• Performances would last for days usually
  organized around seasonal festivals
• Audiences could be as large as 30,000 people

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More Greek Drama

• Stories included tragedies and comedies
• Tragedies Stories in which the protagonist
  loses
• Comedies Stories in which the protagonist wins

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Oedipus Rex

• Tragedies were quite popular
• One of the most famous is Oedipus Rex by
  Sophocles
• It is the story of a man who kills his father and
  marries his mother to the ruin of all

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Medea

• Medea by Euripides is considered the greatest
  tragedy and is still performed today
• It tells the story of a woman scorned by her
  husband
• She kills him and later their children in order
  to protect them

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Drama Basics

• Presentation is similar to that of the Japanese
  Noh
• All actors are men
• Masks are worn to portray emotion and character
  elements
• Plots have many twists and turns

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Three Great Playwrights
AESCHYLUS
SOPHOCLES
EURIPIDES
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Literature - Homer

• Poet writer of great epic tales
• The Iliad The story of the siege of Troy
• The Odyssey The story of Ulysses wanderings
• These document many of the Greek myths and
  histories

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Plato

• Considered the father of modern thought
• Developed the concept of the modern Democracy
• His writing The Republic is written in dialogue
  form to make his ideas understandable

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Socrates

• A contemporary of Platos
• Believed in thought and teaching ideas and
  knowledge are living things
• One should do what is right even when universally
  opposed

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Aesop

• Thought to be a slave in the 6th Century B.C.
• Wrote fables that told stories giving a moral
  message
• Used animals as human characters
• The Tortoise the Hare is an example

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THE ROMANS
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Ancient Rome

• Rome was the largest geographic and strongest
  political empire of Europe for almost 1000 years
• While great innovators, they were not the
  creators that the Greeks were

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Roman Art

• Because of their Etruscan heritage, the Romans
  were influenced by the Greeks
• Very interested in portraits
• Focused on reality more than Greeks

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More Roman Art

• Later in the history of the Empire, they used art
  as propaganda for the greatness of Rome
• Throughout their history, they only gave religion
  a passing glace in their art

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Innovations

• The Romans shared a love of large decorated
  structures with the Greeks
• This lead to advancements in building like
• Concrete
• Arches
• Domes

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Aqueducts

• Built to supply the city of Rome with water
• When Romes population was 1 million, the
  aqueducts supplied 1 cubic meter per person per
  day
• Arch construction was used to bridge valleys

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The Coliseum

• Built as a source of entertainment for all
• Could seat 50,000 spectators
• Trap doors in the floor allowed for different
  entrances to the field
• A whole city existed below stage level
• Could be flooded for water battles

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Coliseum II

• A canopy could be extended to give the spectators
  shade
• Home of the famous gladiator battles
• Also battle recreations, animal fights and other
  gruesome games were seen

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The Pantheon

• Built as a temple to the seven deities of the
  seven planets
• The dome is concrete and meant to point to he
  heavens
• The opening is 27 feet wide and the source of
  light

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Pantheon II

• Its reflection of the Parthenon is evident from
  the front view
• The temple is a perfect circle capped by the dome
• It is another example of Phi
• Said to be the model of the US Capitol

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Interior Views