Existing comment:
The Romans:
"Remember, Roman, that by your lawful power you rule the world: these are your skills: to crown peace with justice, to spare the vanquished and to crush the proud."
-- Virgil, Aeneid
The Romans did, indeed, rule much of the world. Their empire stretched from Mesopotamia to Morocco and from Scotland to Ethiopia; their trade routes extended as far as Indonesia. Roman art, especially outside of Italy, is complex and exhibits a range of different styles and influences. In the early periods (from the city's mythical foundation as a monarchy in 753 BC until the end of the Roman Republic in 27 BC), both native Italic traditions (such as the art of the Etruscans) and Greek artistic traditions came together in Roman art. These two influences gave Roman art much of its dynamism i both the Republican and imperial periods (27 BC- AD 476), often in combination with elements from the local artistic practices of the provinces.
At the height of Rome's power in the 2nd century, the arts were supported by wealthy individuals throughout the empire as well as by the emperor and his court. Both official and private buildings were filled with statues, mosaics, and frescoes. Luxury goods of stone, glass, precious metals, and other materials were also widely available. Artistic patronage, though, was not limited to the extremely wealthy -- works such as VMFA's relief of a potter and his wife show that even craftsmen commissioned works of art that would commemorate their lives and times. |