The Three Works
Admittedly, Greek and Roman art traditions have affected the development of the contemporary arts. At present, it is possible to find Greek and Roman traits in many works of modern artists. Our campus is also decorated with works which are influenced by Greek and Roman arts. It is possible to consider such works as Night Without Dawn, Mona, Irish Mother and Child by Glenna Goodacre. These bronze works bear characteristics which are associated with Roman and Greek arts.
Greek Roots in Irish Mother and Child
Irish Mother and Child can be regarded as a work inspired by the Bronze Age in Greek art. The figures are quite idealistic, which was a characteristic feature of Greek art at that period. The faces have perfect proportions, especially when it comes to the girl. The faces are quite distant and no meaningful emotions can be traced.
The absence of emotions is obvious and it is even stressed as the figures are depicted in motion. The child is holding her mother tightly. Therefore, it is possible to state that this work is more Greek in nature as it is characterized by major peculiarities of the Bronze Age in the Greek ancient art, i.e. people are idealized, people’s emotions are not depicted.
Roman roots in Mona
On the contrary, Mona is characterized by great tension and particular realism. In the first place, this is a bust depicting an ordinary person. It is not a deity or some famous personality. Depiction of ordinary people is a characteristic feature of Roman, not Greek arts. Apart from this, the face is depicted with a specific precision.
There is no trace of an idealistic depiction of youth and beauty, which was typical for Greek arts. Mona is an old person who had a really hard life. Every hard year is revealed in numerous wrinkles. The expression of the figure’s face shows present suffering of the person. Thus, it is possible to note that the present artwork is inspired by Roman arts as Roman bronze works are associated with realistic depiction of ordinary people. More so, emotions and aging were quite central to Roman works.
Roman Roots in Night Without Dawn
As far as the third work is concerned, it also bears Roman traits. In the first place, the sleeping figure is very realistic. Again, there is no idealistic depiction of perfect forms and perfect faces. The face of the figure bears traits of aging and suffering. One more characteristic feature of this work is that it does not depict a famous personality or deity. This is an ordinary person who is overwhelmed by hardships of his ordinary life.
Conclusion
On balance, it is possible to note that the three works are quite similar as they bear traits of Roman and Greek arts which shared common values, i.e. exquisite depiction of people. However, the work Irish Mother and Child differs from the two other works as it bears Greek traits.
The figures are depicted in quite an idealistic way and no emotions are revealed. In contrast to this work, the other two works follow Roman tradition. Ordinary people are depicted and the major focus is on facial expressions and realistic depiction of people’s emotions as well as appearance. Of course, it is also necessary to note that even though the works bear traits of Greek and Roman arts, these are artworks reflect trends that reign in the contemporary society.