CHAPTER 14: FROM THE EARLIEST ART TO THE BRONZE AGE

CHAPTER 14: FROM THE EARLIEST ART TO THE BRONZE AGE

Historically, art has been created to serve specific goals or functions. The study of art from prehistoric times to early civilizations give us insight into the goals of early humans. The visual images created by Paleolithic and Neolithic peoples give us the only insight into this time because there was no written language.

AFTER THIS LECTURE YOU SHOULD BE ABLE TO: DISCUSS THE ROLE ART HISTORY PLAYS IN OUR UNDERSTANDING OF HISTORY DISCUSS PREHISTORIC ART DISCUSS THE POSSIBLE REASONS PALEOLITHIC PEOPLES PAINTED CAVE WALLS AND PRODUCED SMALL STONE CARVINGS. DISCUSS THE SHIFT FROM THE HUNTING SOCIETY OF THE PALEOLITHIC PEOPLES TO THE AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY OF THE NEOLITHIC PEOPLE. DISCUSS THE DEVELOPMENTS THAT WOULD LEAD TO CIVILIZATION.

WHAT IS ART HISTORY?

WHAT IS ART HISTORY? Makes history visible and accessible It is a record of how the people of the past - - - - our ancestors- - - - lived, felt, acted in widely separated parts of the world at different peroids of Dme. Art history DIFFERS from other kinds of history because works of art from the past are with us in the present.

THE PALEOLITHIC PEROID: 2 million years ago, in east- central Africa, early hominids made crude stonecupng tools. Allowed for our ancestors to gain control over their surroundings. Developed the ability to reason and to visualize: to remember the past, to relate it to the present, and to imagine a possible future. Our ability to conceive mental images set us apart from other animals. IMAGINATION is our special advantage. An awareness of the reladonship of form and funcdon, and of the form as enjoyable in itself, was the first step in the history of art. Woman of Willendorf. c. 25,000 20,000 B.C.E. Height 4 1/2".

The oldest surviving carved human figure was found in southwestern Germany in 2008: This piece is just over 2 in height and at least 35,000 years old. Her female characterisdcs are exaggerated. These figures may be the earliest known works of religious art, depicdng the Paleolithic image of the Creator the Great Mother Goddess. Hohle Fels Figure. c. 35,000 B.C.E. Paleolithic Period is also called the stone age because mostly stone ardfacts have survived.

Oldest know paindngs found in 1994 in the south central France. The Wall PainDngs of Animals is among dozens of 30,000- year- old images painted with charcoal and earthen pigments on the cave walls. Bear s skull found in the middle of flat stone slab might have been an alter. It is believed that the purpose of naturalisdc Paleolithic art was to bring the spirits of animals into rituals related to the hunt. Wall Painting of Animals. Chauvet Cave, France. c. 28,000 B.C.E.

PETROGLYPHS: are made by scratching or pecking the surface of expose stone. Most of the world s Paleolithic art is found in caves, but large parts of this heritage are above ground. Murujuga Petroglyphs. Up to 10,000 years old.

THE NEOLITHIC PEROID: Called the new stone age. The new stone age seems to have arisen first in what is now Iraq, between 9000 and 6000 B.C.E., when people made the gradual transidon from the precarious existence of nomadic hunters and gathers to the reladvely stable life of village farmers and herders. Changes from Nomadic life to a more stable life of small agricultural communides produced early architecture and technological developments. Artwork changed from depicdng hundng scenes to a more geometric, abstract design. From about 10,000 3000 B.C.E. much art emphasized abstract design for daily use. Earthenware Beaker. c. 4000 B.C.E. Height 11 1/4".

Compare the animal forms depicted in both pieces. Explain the differences related to the Neolithic and Paleolithic peroids

South Central England OrientaDon was important for funeral rituals. There are many interpretadons on the funcdon of Stonehenge and this is greatly debated. Stonehenge. c. 2000 B.C.E.

The Great Pyramids; Mycerinus, Chefren, and Cheops. c. 2650 2500 B.C.E GiganDc mountain- like structures built as burial vaults for pharaohs. The interiors are mostly solid, narrow passageways leading to small burial chambers. Used Post and Beam system: Columns represented abstract forms of plant life. These simplified stalks would later evolve into Greek Columns.

EgypDan Sculpture: Characterized by compact, solidly structured figures that embody qualides of strength and geometric clarity which is also in EgypDan architecture. EgypDan ardsts in all media generally depicted the human figure either in a completely frontal posidon or in profile. King Mycerinus and Queen Khamerernebty. Dynasty 4, 2532 2510 B.C.E. 56" x 22 1/2" x 21 3/4".