Portraits of the Tetrarchs
The name of the piece is a portrait of the four tetrarchs, which refers to a porphyry sculpture of Roman rulers. The work of art is found in Italy at St Mark’s Basilica and is considered part of the Philadelphion decoration. The work is very important to the history of Italy because it represents the ways of life of the ancient leaders and their reasoning. The style employed in producing the piece is blocky and stout, which is similar to the ancient styles that were mainly idealistic. Repetition, rigidity, and stiffness are some of the stylistic devises employed effectively in designing the work of art.
Many artists preferred using the style employed in making the sculpture in their later works and the Arch of Constantine is given as an example (Gardner and Kleiner 29). At the period, artistes were requested to employ repetition and follow the works of previous designers as much as possible. The piece of art is not different from other works developed at the time suggesting that repetition was a valued style at the time.
Some of the features of the works of art that makes it similar to other pieces produced at the time include stumpy size, gaunt movements, ordering of parts through symmetry and replication, and finally describing features and drape folds through notches rather than sculpture. One of the art histories that are related to the piece is crisis of the third century, which refers to the interruptions that political and economic activities brought to the writings and artistry work. At the time, other artistic works from the east influenced the reasoning of the western artistes leading to the decline of the traditional models.
Arch of Titus
The piece of art was made in the 1st century and is found in Rome. The structure is associated with Domitian who was a Roman Emperor that took over after the death of his older brother Titus. The structure was meant to commemorate the life of Titus who brought glory to the kingdom having fought and won various wars. The two major cultural values associated with the building are civilization and war given the fact the locals remembered their people who died fighting for the territory (Russell and Cohn 45).
The words inscribed in the portrait suggest that those who died defending the kingdom were great people who should be remembered every year, which proves that the locals were civilized to some extent because they were able to celebrate the lives of the heroes. Regarding ideas, the portrait sent a clear message to the enemy that the people of the kingdom were prepared to die for their land and they were encourage to face anybody in the battlefield.
One of the historical events or aspects associated with the building is the development of architecture because it represents the state of the art that influenced the construction industry in the later years. The work is critical in the understanding of political, cultural, and social developments of the Italian people. Through the portrait, it is established that an empire is made strong through expansion implying that the country was able to gain political strength through war. The piece of art suggest further that the Italian people valued their leaders and tried as much as possible to honor them through commemoration of their lives.
Works Cited
Gardner, Helen, and Fred, Kleiner. Gardner’s Art through the Ages: The Western Perspective. Boston: Wadsworth Cengage Learning, 2010. Print.
Russell, Jesse, and Ronald Cohn. Arch of Titus. New York: Book on Demand Ltd, 2012. Print.