Roman Visual Arts

Basic Structural Considerations

Vaulting replaces post and lintel
- Arch
- Vaults are based on the arch
Roman aesthetic principles vs the Hellenic tradition
- Polychrome Vs monochrome marble
- Expanded interior space
  - Greeks were "outdoor" people
  - Romans were "indoor" people
- Corinthian orders preferred to doric or ionic
- Pantheon (interior)
Beauty with utility
- Roads, civic structures, and public works
- Arcade - a series of arches <span class="text">It appears that you are running an older version of Netscape. Consider upgrading to the latest version (or Internet Explorer) to fully benifit from my web site.</span>
- Pont du Gard - Aqueducts provide water to the Roman cities

Public Amusements

Colosseum (interior view) - Arena for public entertainment
- Gladiatorial contests
- Covered with a Marble veneer
- Form and function
Baths of Caracalla
- Social clubs
- "People palaces"
- Tepidarium (Alma-Tadema's Romanticized depiction)
  - Roman preference for sequential bathing required multiple pools
  - Warm hall created by subterranean boilers

Public Memorials

Commemorative Columns
- Column of Trajan
- Continuous narration
- Campaign to subdue the Dacians
Triumphal arches
- Military victories
- Civil accomplishments (road building, city entries, etc.)
- Arch of Titus
- Arch of Constantine
Figure Sculpture
- Public figures of authority depicted in their public persona
- Position of oratory - a raised hand/arm seen as powerful and authoratative
- Augustus of Porta
- Marcus Aurelius

Wall Painting

Fresco - Painting on wet plaster
- Landscapes
- Architectural images
- Mythological allegories
Expanded interior space
- Painted architecture motives
- Third dimensional space gives appearance of more space
- Rustic scenes
House of Vetti

More extensive and full-sized art works may be seen in the art gallery