Brief introduction to the style characteristics of arts and crafts in ancient Greece and Rome

Western sculpture tradition originated from ancient Greek and Roman culture, but ancient Greek sculpture was deeply influenced by ancient Egyptian sculpture.

With the development of social productivity and the disintegration of primitive communes, the earliest slave countries appeared in the world, and ancient Egypt was one of them. The sculpture art in Egypt began around 4000 BC, and the birth of the construction industry gave birth to the bud of art decoration. It has preserved the remnants of primitive society for a long time, and Egyptian mythology and religious beliefs dominated the formation and development of sculpture. The conservatism of myth and religious belief is the main reason for the slow development of Egyptian sculpture.

Egyptian sculpture served the Pharaoh regime and a few slave owners and nobles. Dominated by religious ideology, it strictly follows the aesthetic views and needs of the upper class. Apart from some works in tombs, the most influential sculptures in ancient Egypt are decorative sculptures and memorial sculptures in front of tombs and temples. Pyramids are the most famous sculptures. The highest is pyramid of khufu. The huge sphinx in front of the pyramid is carved from a huge rock, which is the largest and most famous sculpture in ancient times.

The remarkable achievements of Egyptian sculpture are the result of long-term exploration by Egyptian sculptors. Its sculpture art left a brilliant page in the history of ancient world art.

The aesthetic ideal of ancient Egyptian sculpture is to pursue eternity, while that of ancient Greek sculpture is to pursue true beauty.

The themes of Greek sculptures are mostly taken from myths or sports competitions. At that time, some enlightened rulers not only devoted themselves to internal affairs and armed forces, but also advocated the development of art and literature. In the hundreds of years after the 6th century BC, famous scientists, writers and artists in ancient Greece made brilliant achievements, and sculpture was an important aspect of the brilliant cultural achievements in this period.

There are many small islands in the Aegean Sea, among which Barros Island is rich in marble, which provides the best material for carving. As far as the change and development of artistic style are concerned, Greek sculpture can be divided into antique period, classical period and Hellenistic period.

The archaic period is the training stage for sculptors. During this period, after long-term exploration by sculptors, it opened the way for later sculptors. One of the most famous sculptors is Miron. The discus thrower is his masterpiece. In the classical period, the social thoughts and religious concepts of the Greeks changed greatly, and the sculpture art gradually tended to emphasize the depiction of characters' personalities and emotions. During the Hellenistic period, sculptors inherited traditional techniques and endowed their works with new vitality and new characteristics.

Sculptors in ancient Greece have rich knowledge and highly realistic skills about the human body. The lines of clothing lines are vivid, smooth and changeable, which not only shows the texture of clothing, but also shows the beauty of human body through clothing. Greek sculptures have created lofty, elegant and perfect characters.

Roman sculpture developed on the basis of inheriting the Greek sculpture heritage to a great extent, and made a unique contribution to portrait sculpture, which is inseparable from the traditional custom of the Romans to worship the remains of their ancestors.

Due to the popularity of monks' customs and sacrificial ceremonies, ancient Roman sculptors often depicted the images of costume characters. Early Roman sculptures were monopolized by a few slave owners and nobles. At that time, sculptors carved many images of Roman emperors, showing them as heroic commanders. For example, a statue of Augustus in the Vatican Museum shows the instantaneous action of the Roman emperor holding a scepter and lecturing his subordinates.

Portrait sculpture in this period is famous for its realistic style. Sculptors are good at using exaggerated and generalized artistic techniques to describe characters in detail, give up cumbersome things and strengthen the sense of movement. In addition, Roman sculptors decorated many circular sculptures and reliefs on Roman buildings, squares and memorial columns. The famous buildings in the 3rd century include the Arc de Triomphe in septimus and Luce, and the public bathrooms in caracalla.

Ancient Roman sculpture is an important part of western ancient civilization and has made outstanding contributions to the development of western realistic sculpture.