Midterm

• Prehistoric

  Stone Age is a term used to describe a period of history when stones were used to make tools for survival. The unearthing of archeological artifacts and remains provides modern society a glimpse of the beliefs, practices, and activities of early civilizations. Archeological explorations reveal that there has been a gradual shift from a nomadic lifestyle of early humans to that of permanent settlements, paving the way for the rise of early civilizations.
• Paleolithic Art - It is a product of climate change. Artworks can be considered ornamental but there is little evidence to fully back up this notion, that early humans created these cave paintings for that very purpose.
• Hall of Bulls found in cave in Lascaux, France, the figures depicted on the walls were done with a certain level of crispness and life that there were initial hesitations of the work’s authenticity.
• Prehistoric

  It is important to take note that the paintings evoke naturalism, which is evidently seen through the contours of the animal’s body and their dark colors. Some of the early humans already used their own version of spray-painting techniques by using ground pigments blown through reeds since these were the readily available materials for them.
• Prehistoric

  Some say that these caves with paintings all over the walls and ceilings served as a kind of sanctuary for the early humans. As a safe haven, religious rituals could have possibly transpired within the confines of the caves. Moreover, it is also reflected some of the early beliefs of human with life and fertility.
• Venus of Willendorf -This figure is abstracted woman from highlighted body parts of associated with fertility. It also shows that the woman has oversized breasts, eblarged hips and round abdomen.
• Neolithic art - It has developed especially when life for the early humans has become more stable. By 4000 BCE, there we several monumental and architectural structures erected. 
• Egyptian Art

  The Egyptian civilization can be divided into three periods: Old, Middle, and New Kingdoms. Looking at the three periods, it can be noticed that for the Egyptians, art should be something religious and spiritual.
• During the Old Kingdom, it was evident that religion was bound to the afterlife. A concrete manifestation of this would have to be the erection of tombs.
• Narmer Palette utilized that commemorates the unification of Upper and Lower Egypt and the unification was significant because it marked the beginning of their civilization.
• Permanence was important because these sculptures would serve as the house of ka or soul once the remains of the mummy disintegrate.
• One of the key features of the Middle Kingdom is a shift in the political hierarchy. There is an emergence of powerful groups of landlords that threatened the authority and rule of the pharaoh. Because of the internal struggle between these two influential sides, art has taken a back seat during the Middle Kingdom. In order for art to reemerge and flourish, Egypt needed to have a more stable situation.
• Portrait sculptures and fresco paintings that were freely drawn are some of the styles that emerged during this time.
• The art of the New Kingdom had references from both of the preceding kingdoms. Monuments and sculptures were still linked with death and reverence for the deceased. After the New Kingdom, Egypt witnessed the Amarna Revolution led by King Akhenaton and Queen Nefertiti.
• The bust of Queen Nefertiti has a long and sensuous neck and was enhanced by applying paint to the limestone. The use of naturalism in artwork was rather short-lived. When King Akhenaton died, his successors returned to more rigid and conventional styles they employed during the period of kingdoms.
• King Tutankhamen, he became a king at a very young age and died at the age of 18.
• Howard Carter, discovered his tomb in 1922 and they were astonished to find gold artworks and that the coffin was made out of solid gold. The body was covered in linen and a gold mask covered his face.
• Ancient Greece - It is known to excel in various fields and aspects of society such as political ideals, valued poetry, drama and philosophy, which remain interesting fields of study for the contemporary times.
• The development of Greek art can be divided into four periods: Geometric, Archaic, Classical, and Hellenistic.
• The Geometric Period was when geometric shapes and patterns have taken the spotlight in most of the artworks.
• The Archaic Period, on the other hand, placed importance on human figures. This was primarily a result of Greece’s trading activities with other civilizations. The peak of Greek sculpture and architecture was during the Classical Period.
• The time of Alexander the Great was called the Hellenistic Period. During this time, art was primarily focused on showcasing emotions and depicting reality.
• Lacoons and his Sons one of the famous Hellenistic sculptures. It depicts a Trojan priest and his sons being strangled by serpents. Their position was the result of Lacoon’s instruction. Poseidon, was enraged by such action which led him to sent serpents.
• The Roman Republic transformed itself into a mighty empire. The Romans were known to be master builders. The Romans were more enthusiastic with games rather that theater. The Romans were fond of the Greeks and their achievements in the arts. The fusion of Greek and Roman cultures can be seen in most Roman artworks.
• Poseidon and Medusa, Romans valued their gods and this was evident with their sculptures and artworks. Ancient Greece had a huge impact in the formation of Roman culture such as the plays and drama.
• Since the Church was the most important figure, the most important products of the early Middle Ages would have to be copies of the Christian scripture.

  • The Romanesque Period was inspired by the old Roman empire.
  • The Gothic Period was inspired by the Goths which are vulgar and barbaric
• Renaissance including mannerism

  The Renaissance Period artists valued the “individual” as a subject of arts. The influence of humanism shifted the focus of some artworks during the Renaissance Period to empower the “individual.” Most artworks emphasized naturalism, which was also an influence of humanism since there was a great emphasis on the proportionality of the human body. They also gave importance to non- religious themes or subjects.
• “David” by Michaelangelo, an example of how humanism was a dominant belief system and emphasis on the details of the body of the human being.
• Mannerism

  • It was a period in art history, which was a product of the Renaissance Period. During the Renaissance, artists would observe nature and try their best to emulate it based on their observations.
  • Most artworks displayed distorted figures, two dimensional spaces, discordant hues and colors and lack of defined focal point.
• The style of painting, sculpture and decorative arts identified with the Renaissance emerged in Italy in the late 14th century; it reached its zenith in the late 15th and early 16th centuries, in the work of Italian masters such as Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, and Raphael. In addition to its expression of classical Greco-Roman traditions, Renaissance art sought to capture the experience of the individual and the beauty and mystery of the natural world.
• The term “baroque” is derived from the Portuguese term barocco which is translated as “irregularly shaped pearl.” This is a suitable description that Rome was the birthplace of the Baroque Period, which according to some historians was a response to Protestantism.
• Baroque and the Rococo 

  • Apart from art, music also thrived because “people believed that music could serve as a powerful tool to communicate messages that can evoke certain feelings among its listeners. Baroque music was able to clearly distinguish loud from soft and solo from ensemble”.
• The "Assumption of the Virgin" by Titian, bursting with energy and life, thus giving the work enormous emotional power and drama was described by the brilliant Venetian neoclassical sculptor Antonio Canova (1757-1822)  as the most beautiful painting in the world.
• In this period, Music also arises because people believed that music could serve as powerful tool to communicate messages that can evoke certain feelings among its listeners. This was able to clearly distinguish loud from soft and solo from ensemble.
• Many composers came from Italy such as Vivaldi, Corelli, and Monteverdi, and eventually the influence of Baroque music spread outside Italy and reached other parts of Europe.
• Neoclassicism was a movement in Europe that transpired during the late 18th and early 19th centuries. It was the dominant art movement that time which basically aimed to revive and rekindle the influences of Greek and Roman into art and architecture.

  • This movement was noted for the use of shifting lights and open-air ambiance.
• Romanticism, as an art movement, used the central themes of Neoclassicist artworks as a springboard. Romanticists have highlighted heroic elements into their work.
• Théodore Géricault created one of the most iconic masterpieces of French Romanticism, the Raft of the Medusa (1818-19). Depicted on a monumental scale, Géricault portrayed in horrifying explicitness scenes of a shipwreck based on a contemporary event in which the captain had deserted his crew and passengers, leaving them to die. The painting’s allusions to governmental negligence and corruption ignited great controversy and brought Géricault widespread attention.
• Realism as a style of work focuses on the accuracy of details that depicts and somehow mirrors reality. As a modern movement in art veered away from traditional forms of art. This movement combined both art and life.
• The Impressionism movement started in France, which led to a break from the tradition in European painting. Impressionism is a style of painting that emerged in the mid- to late 1800s. Impressionist artists incorporated scientific principles to achieve a more distinct representation of color.