The human experience have always included the creation and appreciation of art, however, different types of art are often used in different ways because of the different feeling they evoke. On modern level the sculptures are used for learning. The essay expounds more on the Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome; it also outlines the comparisons of the two sculptures.
In Ancient Greece, sculptures have varying symbolism. The Sculpted Lekythos is an example of sculpture that represents the human form. The sculpture was made in Athens about 360 B.C. In the sculpture a young woman is depicted on the grave marker. The woman depicted has a hairstyle of a maiden which shows that the woman died before she got married (Beard, and John 16). Her left arm is held alongside her body under the folds of her thin cloak. In the sculpture she is shaking hands with her seated father, while her mother stands behind him, resting her elbows on the back of his chair. Also in the sculpture is a boy playing with the family dog. In the sculpture the family is displayed as united even with the demise of one of the member of the family. The artwork on the left and right of the sculpture is marble. The sculpture represents the Ancient Greece culture. The artwork is exhibited in a room with black background. Alongside this sculpture there are two more sculptures representing the Ancient Greek culture in the room. The artwork in the room use marble as the piece of artwork and were all made in Athens (Beard, and John 19). The Ancient Greek sculptures in the room exhibit a theme of family unity in the ancient Greek culture. The Sculpted Lekythos represents family unity in the Ancient Greek culture as all members of the family are represented and therefore I picked it over the other sculptures in the room.
In Ancient Rome, sculptures also represent the Roman culture. Hygieia-Aphrodite is one of the sculptures in the Ancient Rome. Hygieia is the daughter of Asklepios who was the god of medicine. She is portrayed feeding a coiled snake which is a personification of good health. The sculpture represents the Ancient Roman Culture and was found in Rome. The date of the artwork is between A.D 200-250. The artwork measures 200 cm by 70cm. The artwork’s medium is marble. The sculpture on the left of Hygieia-Aphrodite artwork is the muse. It represents the Ancient Rome Culture and it was found in Rome and is dated A.D, 200. The artwork measures 70cm by 30 cm and its media is marble and pigment. The artwork on the right of Hygieia-Aphrodite is also a Muse, although the objects that were once held by the muse are missing, the position her left arm suggests that she was cradling a stringed instrument similar to the lyre which is known as Kithara (Beard, and John 25). The artwork also represents the Ancient Roman culture and it was found in Rome. It is dated A.D. 200 and it measures 70cm by 30cm in size. The media of the artwork is marble and pigment.
Sculptures are the greatest fine work known to man and the sculptures have played an important role in the evolution of western culture. Sculptures signify the history and stylistic developments of the Western art. The ancient sculpture of the Roman culture and the Greek culture are similar in that they use family members to relay the intended message, another similarity is that the medium used in almost all the artworks is marble and the artworks represents the cultures of the places where they were found. The designs are also attached to a stone background and use a representational full length 3-D portrait of a person. However the two artworks are different in the time they were made; the Ancient Greek artworks are dates B.C while Roman Sculpture are dated A.D. The sculptures from ancient Greek and Rome depict male figure as well as female figures for example in the Sculpted Lekythos the maiden is shaking hands with her father while her mother stands behind the father and in Hygieia-Aphrodite the daughter is portrayed feeding a coiled snake which represents the serpent entwined rod wielded by her father. They use human being to symbolize and relay different information about the two ancient cultures of the two different parts of the world. The sculptures from Rome and Greek depict deities because historically sculptures have been used for ritual purposes (Beard, and John 36). In the two different sculptures there are symbols associated with the artworks.
Work Cited
Beard, Mary, and John Henderson. Classical Art: From Greece to Rome. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001. Print.
