Roman Art Vs Greek Art

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Art from Greece to Rome What is it that makes Greek and Roman art so similar? How might they be connected to one another? These are the types of questions that are asked when studying these art forms and their differences. Greeks were very inventive when it comes to art. Many art forms that exist today are because of the Greeks who created or helped create mosaics, painting, and sculpting as well as many other arts. Romans would later be taught these trades until a later time, and would then change their own culture. Romans not only used these crafts in the ways they were taught by the Greeks, but they would use them in other ways too. It is important to understand that Romans absorbed a great amount of the Greek culture and …show more content…
Looking at mosaics for instance, Greeks created this art form. This art consists of breaking up small pieces of ceramics and placing them together to create a picture or design. This art form takes both time and skill. Many times these arts were very pleasing to the eye and sometimes even told a story. By viewing these designs you can see many details of a person’s life, including things such as a person’s education level, their social ranking, or even their personal beliefs. The more intricate designs were owned by people with more money and/or power while simple designs could be found in homes of the middle class. Many mosaics were inspired by Roman paintings. Romans used mosaic art in many of the same ways as the Greeks although they would expand upon it. Romans used this art form for what we know as carpeting or flooring. They would also create water fountains and other forms of decoration which the Greeks had not previously …show more content…
Romans actually learned this art form from the Greeks. Much of the Greek architecture was covered with colorful pictures because they saw the plain white marble as uninteresting. Greeks would paint images that they felt would honor their gods. Due to weathering and age the majority of paintings withered away so now all that is seen is the white. Romans on the other hand had a different approach to painting. They painted for decoration and not a religious or emotional meaning like the Greeks. The Romans, while said to have lacked imagination, created more realistic pieces of art which was different from what was previously done. The Romans wanted to capture what humans truly looked like, which was slightly different from the Greeks who changed the proportions of their sculptures to present a more idealized version of a man and/or woman. Greeks and Romans are most well known for their sculptures as well as their architecture. It is a clear pattern that Romans gained a great amount of inspiration from the Greeks, but they were not the only group of people to be inspired by them. Marble columns are famous throughout Greece and Rome, and are now seen throughout important parts of the United States years after these great empires were in power. The United States would create buildings comparable to that of the Greeks and Romans. The creators of these buildings were influenced by