Etruscan Art

(9th-2nd Century B.C.)

 Etruscan Civilization is the modern name of Ancient Italy
corresponding roughly to Tuscany
 Borrowed some of their artistic traditions to the Villanovans,
Phoenician and Greeks
 They have borrowed Greek myths to use in their art
 Etruscan painting shows activities taking place, not just static
figures.
 Bright colors are used to reinforce the authenticity of the
painting and give it more movement.
Tomb of Hunting and Fishing in Tarquina 6th Century B.C
 Typical Etruscan frescoes depicted figures with vibrant life,
often dancing or playing musical instruments.
 They painted birds and animals that intermingled with
human figures
 A large portion of Etruscan art did not survive until the
present day
 2000 Etruscan bronzes were melted down to produce bronze
coins
 Most of the art that survived is funerary art
 Most of the statues shared the characteristic smile
 Etruscan Sexuality
 Many Greek and Roman authors including Theopompus of
Chios and Plato referred to the Etruscans as immoral.
 The word Etruscan was almost synonymous to the word
prostitute
 Some of their art forms depict their Etruscan sexuality
Tomb of the Bulls, Tarquina
Tomb of Bigas-Tarquina
Tomb of Floggings-Tarquina
Byzantine Art
(5th Century-1453)
 Byzantine art is the term commonly used to describe the
artistic products of the Eastern Roman Empire from about
the 5th century until the fall of Constantinople in 1453.
 Byzantine art grew from the art of Ancient Greece, and at
least before 1453 never lost sight of its classical heritage
 The purpose of Byzantine art was the glorification of God,
and particularly of his son, Jesus
 One of the most important forms of Byzantine art was, and still
is, the icon: an image of Christ, the Virgin (particularly the
Virgin and Child), or a saint, used as an object of veneration in
Orthodox churches and private homes.
 There does not seem to be any basis on natural forms as the
human figures are unnaturally long, the emotions are formal
and still, and the facial expressions are conventional, rigid and
almost lifeless.
 
 
 The best efforts of Byzantine art were devoted to church
decoration and especially to decoration in glass mosaics
 The backgrounds of the glass mosaics are invariably gold,
the other colors are brilliant or warm in tone and beautifully
harmonized and contrasted.

 
Romanesque Art
 Refers to the art of Western Europe from approximately
1000 AD to the rise of the Gothic style in the 13th century
 Colors, now remaining bright only in stained glass and well-
preserved manuscripts, tended to be very striking, and
mostly primary.
 Figures still often varied in size in relation to their
importance, and landscape backgrounds, if attempted at all,
were closer to abstract decorations 
 
 Romanesque Painting
 It has marked didactic character
 The most common location is inside the churches, decorating
walls
 The themes are almost exclusively, religious
 

 
 Techniques and Support
 On wall, mainly in apses:fresco
 On wood: altar frontals
 In codex: miniature
 In clothes: tapestry
 Characteristic
 There is a hierarchy of the characters
Christ or the Virgin appear in the middle with bigger size
Around them are angels or Evangelists
Other saints in a lower position
Natural elements: animals, plants near the floor
 Images are not friendly: the main iconography is that of a Pantocrator
or Christ depicted as a judge in a threatening way.
 Images look at the front
 They are not naturalistic
 Deformations and too stylized features
 
 A feature of the figures
manuscript illumination is that
they often occupy confined
spaces and are contorted to fit.
 The robes of painted figures were
commonly treated in a flat and
decorative style that bore little
resemblance to the weight and
fall of actual cloth. This feature
was also adapted for sculpture.
 
 One of the most significant
motifs of Romanesque design,
occurring in both figurative and
non-figurative sculpture is the
spiral.