Ornament is one of the oldest forms of decorative art. Its history goes back to thousands of years ago. Translated from the Latin ornamentum, it means “trappings, adornment, embellishment” (“Ornament”). However, in its infancy, the ornaments have a deeper meaning. Art critics are trying to decipher ancient images and understand the hidden meaning of signs and symbols. So far, it is believed that the key to understanding many of them have long been lost, and, nevertheless, the interest to the ancient art continues being unabated. Many ornamental motifs were passing from generation to generation, and they have remained almost unchanged for centuries.
In ancient times people believed that the iconic images help them communicate with the other world of gods and spirits, and fulfill the role of a mediator between the worlds. Often, ornamental images were “the impulse to adorn stems from a deep rooted sensibility to mark every occasion of life with auspicious symbols, designs and figures to obtain good fortune and protection from evil” (“The Ideal of Ornament”).
Each nation created its own unique decorative style. The originality and national color can accurately determine its membership of any group. In the East, the art of ornament was most extensively developed, and this is due primarily to the ancient traditions.
In the second half of 1000 BC, nomadic tribes in Kazakhstan had Scythian style of ornamentation. According to Wikipedia, it was “often the central ornaments for shields carried by fighters. In the most notable of these figures, stags are displayed with legs tucked beneath its body, head upright and muscles tight to give the impression of speed” (“Scythian art”). These figures of fighters signified the victory of the sun...
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...ament is important - they should rotate in a certain order. The indiscriminate distribution of colors even in the original ornament can make it gray and expressionless. “White background on goods or on the main figure of ornament is a symbol of the white path of truth and happiness. Red color is a fire, scorching power of the sun and love, black color for the power, majesty and well-being” (Turganbayeva). Blue has always been a symbol of heaven, yellow is the symbol of wisdom or sorrow, and green is a symbol of youth and spring.
During the centuries, the ideas of the ancient art carefully preserved and passed down from teacher to student. That way, it has become a tradition, and ornaments preserved to our days. A wide variety of decorative styles and motifs have been developed for architecture and the applied arts, including pottery, furniture, metalwork (Art).
...with similar characteristics to the bearded man in the other images. This distinct bearding is seen on two sculptures (61, 63) one of which was scaled up to be bigger than real men, this also indicates that the man held some special status, either king or priest.
Two main devices used in Egyptian art from the fourth dynasty, that also help classify it, are a strive for naturalism and the use of sculpture in the round. In addition to the large burial monuments being built, portraiture became quite popular at this time in history. Paintings featuring humans used their own form of "sculpture in the round" by painting in ...
Though most works of art have some underlying, deeper meaning attached to them, our first impression of their significance comes through our initial visual interpretation. When we first view a painting or a statue or other piece of art, we notice first the visual details – its size, its medium, its color, and its condition, for example – before we begin to ponder its greater significance. Indeed, these visual clues are just as important as any other interpretation or meaning of a work, for they allow us to understand just what that deeper meaning is. The expression on a statue’s face tells us the emotion and message that the artist is trying to convey. Its color, too, can provide clues: darker or lighter colors can play a role in how we judge a piece of art. The type of lines used in a piece can send different messages. A sculpture, for example, may have been carved with hard, rough lines or it may have been carved with smoother, more flowing lines that portray a kind of gentleness.
There has been evidence of over two hundred human sacrifices in just one general area of Mesoamerica. Not just in an area of a city – but a “building”. Many pyramids, temples, and art forms such as sculptures were made and used just for the purpose of sacrifices and blood-letting rituals. Such violent rituals are shown in art and architecture to show the effect of symbols on the humans of Ancient Mesoamerica. The question that will be uncovered is, how far did the Mesoamericans go? To what extend do symbols effect Mesoamerican art and architecture? These effects could of course lead to the stronger subjects, specifically human sacrifices. The extent of symbols on the architecture and art therefore is reflected as the extent it had on ancient Mesoamericans. It will first be evaluated how Architecture is made to reflect their beliefs on the lives of their gods. Second, how architecture and art can depict symbols will be revealed, and lastly it will be discussed how architecture and art shows the effect of symbols on ancient human lives and interactions. Finding these things will answer the research question by revealing how much effort believers would make to please their symbols, how Mesoamericans believe their gods to be, and how far they would go with tradition or rituals.
Imagine pondering into a reconstruction of reality through only the visual sense. Without tasting, smelling, touching, or hearing, it may be hard to find oneself in an alternate universe through a piece of art work, which was the artist’s intended purpose. The eyes serve a much higher purpose than to view an object, the absorptions of electromagnetic waves allows for one to endeavor on a journey and enter a world of no limitation. During the 15th century, specifically the Early Renaissance, Flemish altarpieces swept Europe with their strong attention to details. Works of altarpieces were able to encompass significant details that the audience may typically only pay a cursory glance. The size of altarpieces was its most obvious feat but also its most important. Artists, such as Jan van Eyck, Melchior Broederlam, and Robert Campin, contributed to the vast growth of the Early Renaissance by enhancing visual effects with the use of pious symbols. Jan van Eyck embodied the “rebirth” later labeled as the Renaissance by employing his method of oils at such a level that he was once credited for being the inventor of oil painting. Although van Eyck, Broederlam, and Campin each contributed to the rise of the Early Renaissance, van Eyck’s altarpiece Adoration of the Mystic Lamb epitomized the artworks produced during this time period by vividly incorporating symbols to reconstruct the teachings of Christianity.
The ancient Egyptians are known for many of the incredible aspects of their culture and everything they have produced. Some of the well known ancient Egyptian relics are the ones like the ancient pyramids, the Great Sphinx of Giza, mummies, and their many forms of art. Ancient Egyptian art is one of the most recognized styles of art. The most commonly known types of ancient Egyptian art are types like paintings, ceramics, and sculptures. Not only is Egyptian art beautiful, but it carries a huge deal of value and significance with it. A great portion of the time, the art has some kind of religious meaning to it. Consequently it is very difficult to discuss the art itself without delving into the various gods and goddesses presented in it. Something that particularly struck me about ancient Egyptian art was their proneness to use animals in their art. Not only do they use the animal’s full figure, but they also put individual parts on human bodies. This intrigued me because not many cultures have art that embrace animals to this extent. I will be exploring why the ancient Egyptians depict animals in their art repeatedly, and considering what they meant to them.
The sculpture of the nude man holding the lionesses shows how the revival of Greek trade brought influences of Near Eastern cultures to Greek civilization. The amphora that has the artwork of two separate artist’s shows how wine is an important trade good in Greek culture as well as the use of hoplite armies to obtain more land. The drinking cup also uses its imagery and color patterns to show how during the Archaic Age two Greek city-states battling over land was common, along with their use of well-equipped hoplite soldiers. From these Ancient Greek pieces, it is evident that the values of a culture are entwined with the type of art, which the artist of that culture
More in depth, the entire concept of art and what is art differs in the world of the nonliterate societies. This is the first rule that needs to be analyzed. In addition to, the objects westerners view as art is actually a small piece to a bigger puzzle. To the Natives, the overall puzzle or purpose is to created and stabilize the cosmic order in which they live in. It is through this process of rituals and sacred ceremonies to keep order that objects are created of beauty, but for bigger reason. Not to hang on a wall or leave behind a glass case; but rather, keeping order and doing away with chaos that could destroy their existence.
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
Honour, Hugh, and John Fleming. "Hellenistic and Roman Art." A World History of Art. London: Laurence King, 1999. 179-213. Print.
Perhaps one of the most defining and easily identifiable aspects of the ancient Greek culture was the immortalization of humans and gods in sculpture. Sculpture had existed in the world for thousands of years before the ancient Greeks made their stake in the art, but the Greeks added an entirely new set of aspects to their sculptures. Unlike the Egyptian and Mesopotamian sculpture centuries earlier, the Greeks set forth not just to capture the image of a man but to capture that which made him a man. The Greeks set in place three base tenants to display the tone of a sculpture. Through the use of Humanism, Realism, and Idealism the ancient Greeks were able to capture humans and gods forever in marble.
When walking around a city, you may notice that the architecture and art look similar to other works. Many of these designs have changed along the course of history and time whilst others have not. The designs that many people still see in society and day to day living is from two of the many cultures of the old civilizations, Roman and Islamic. The art and architecture forms from the Islamic and Roman cultures have many comparisons and contrasts between them. They, the Islamic and Roman nations, have both adopted from other cultures and have made their own discoveries in the art and architecture worlds. The Roman and Islamic architecture and art vary drastically from each other and yet have varying comparisons between the two.
Religious symbols are aspects of all different religions that strengthen faith, promote certain beliefs, and represent the fundamentals of that specific religion. According to Furst’s article on the use of physical religious symbols, “As beings that are both body and spirit, humans use symbols in order to perceive and to grasp realities that are not empirical. As social beings, humans use symbols to communicate with others,” (p 2). But, there are many issues that arise when these symbols are involved and existing in the media, the state, our government, and the public. Mainly this is because symbols are truly powerful and represent controversies that come along with different religions. Furst also states that, “symbols play a powerful role in the transmission of the culture of human society,” (p 2). If religious symbols transmit culture into society, then people in our society are going to pay very close attention to what symbols are present...
The “Sacred Tree,” (fig. 1) was originally positioned behind the king’s throne. The scene shows two genii, sometimes with birds’ heads and sometimes with men’s heads and the horned hats of gods. Each of the winged figures holds a bucket and reaches out with an oval object toward a stylized “tree.” The composition has been read as being based on bilateral symmetry, with the vertical stalk-like structure crowned by a palmette. A meticulous examination reveals that although balanced, it has many discrepancies on both sides that deviate from perfect mirror symmetry. Ashurnasirpal appears twice, shown from two sides, dressed in ceremonial robes and holding a mace connoting his authority. The figure of the king on the right makes an invocative gesture a god in a winged disk in the top center of the relief. Ashur, the national god or Shamash, the god of the sun and justice, may be identified as the god who confers the king divine right. On the left, the king holds a ring, an ancient Mesopotamian symbol of divine kingship, in one...
The first definable period of Greek pottery, Geometric (c. 900-700 BCE), accounts for the majority of ancient vase painting still in existence today; and as such, affords us the broadest view into this art form. The period attributes its name to the geometric forms that artists used to detail their vessels. The primary decorative motifs that distinguish the period include parallel lines, concentric