art news letter
1What is Art
Ancient Art
Our knowledge of art, as well as of all other aspects of life, of prehistoric times is based on the discoveries of archaeologists. In Europe, most archaeological discoveries have been made along the Danube River in the east and in the caves of southern France and Spain. The sculpture of the Palaeolithic period is characterised by engraved bones and ivory, with the subject (usually animals like bison or reindeer) lightly incised with fluid, curving lines.
Other sculpture of this era includes small female statuettes, carved in ivory or stone. These are believed to have a religious significance relating to a cult of nature worship. They seem to indicate a great concern with fertility, all of the anatomical features are constructed from ovoid, bulbous forms rhythmically related to one another. The result is a unified work much admired by artists of today.
The origins of architecture are found relatively late in man’s history. An outstanding structure dating from either the late Neolithic or Bronze Age periods is located at Stonehenge, England. The plan of the structure, which was probably a sacred precinct for nature-worshipping rituals, is circular and symmetrical. Monolithic slabs of stone rise boldly from the ground and are spanned at the top by stone lintels, the length of the lintels determining the breadth of the resulting openings.
Man’s early artistic attempts were dictated by circumstances only vaguely comprehended by the primitive mind, which devised solutions to problems without recourse to tradition or access to a literature of theory.
Egyptian civilisation developed along the banks of the Nile River. This physical isolation, combined with theocratic religion, produced a dynamic political structure which imparted a hieratic quality to Egyptian art.
Various chambers were designed to receive the remains of the pharaoh, his retinue, and the necessary furnishings for the voyage to the after world.
Ancient Art
Our knowledge of art, as well as of all other aspects of life, of prehistoric times is based on the discoveries of archaeologists. In Europe, most archaeological discoveries have been made along the Danube River in the east and in the caves of southern France and Spain. The sculpture of the Palaeolithic period is characterised by engraved bones and ivory, with the subject (usually animals like bison or reindeer) lightly incised with fluid, curving lines.
Other sculpture of this era includes small female statuettes, carved in ivory or stone. These are believed to have a religious significance relating to a cult of nature worship. They seem to indicate a great concern with fertility, all of the anatomical features are constructed from ovoid, bulbous forms rhythmically related to one another. The result is a unified work much admired by artists of today.
The origins of architecture are found relatively late in man’s history. An outstanding structure dating from either the late Neolithic or Bronze Age periods is located at Stonehenge, England. The plan of the structure, which was probably a sacred precinct for nature-worshipping rituals, is circular and symmetrical. Monolithic slabs of stone rise boldly from the ground and are spanned at the top by stone lintels, the length of the lintels determining the breadth of the resulting openings.
Man’s early artistic attempts were dictated by circumstances only vaguely comprehended by the primitive mind, which devised solutions to problems without recourse to tradition or access to a literature of theory.
Egyptian civilisation developed along the banks of the Nile River. This physical isolation, combined with theocratic religion, produced a dynamic political structure which imparted a hieratic quality to Egyptian art.
Various chambers were designed to receive the remains of the pharaoh, his retinue, and the necessary furnishings for the voyage to the after world.