The Roman art is primarily determined by the fusion of Italian and Greek Hellenistic elements.
The pragmatic and political aspects serving to expand the empire were influential in architecture.
In religious sphere the early temples of Rome followed the Etrurian-Italic type. The Roman secular buildings, such as bridges, ports, aqueducts, walls, gates, etc. played far more important role.
With the transformation of the Roman Forum by Augustus and the redesign of the Forum of Augustus the significance of the old city centers changed. They became large closed outdoor spaces. Axial symmetry, oriented to a podium temple is characteristic of the time. The temples and theaters that were built in the "eternal city" under the reign of Emperor Augustus with their round dynamic designs diverged considerably from the straight-lined Greek models.
The copies and transformation of Greek models primarily predominate among the round, three-dimensional works of the Roman period. Independent achievements of Roman sculptors arose in the field of portraits, whereby in Rome, the form of the bust was preferred. A preference for ornamentation without neglecting the substantive content is shown in the relief art.
Triumphal paintings that were carried in processions to honor glorious commanders were typical for the painting. Such excavated cities of Vesuvius as Pompeii, Herculaneum, Stabiae and Oplontis provide the richest overview of mural painting.
A parallel to the painting is the art of mosaic which was mainly used for the decorative design of floors and walls.
Some areas of minor arts flourished exceedingly in Roman times. Toreutics, the art of working metal, brought forth precious silver vessels. The glassblowing art is documented by numerous excellent finds. In glyptik, (the art of carving on precious stones) there are magnificent reliefs carved from semi-precious stones, engraved gems and cameos depicting official themes.
The extensive coinage in Roman times contributed to spreading the portraits of the rulers over the entire territory of the Roman Empire.
An art work that is cut in from a stone or wooden surface, not modeled in the round.
According to the degree of projection one can distinguish between low-relief or bas-relief and high relief. The sunk relief is a common form of reliefs in Ancient Egypt, where the depicted scenes were cut into the stone or wood surface.
Among the most famous reliefs are the works of the Florentine master Lorenzo Ghiberti. He created, among others, the bronze doors of the Florence Baptistery, called by Michelangelo the "Gates of Paradise".
Collective term for all casting processes that ars mundi carries out with the help of specialized art foundries.
Cast stone
Equivalent of artificial marble, with the difference that the substitute stone in powder form is used instead of marble powder.
Cold cast bronze
Bronze powder bound by a polymer. By special polishing and patination techniques the surface of the casting gets a look that corresponds to the bronze.
ARA wooden copy
In order to guarantee absolute fidelity to the original, an artificially manufactured imitation wood is used as a base material which has typical wood characteristics: density, workability, color and surface structure.
Ceramic casting
As a rule castable clay is used in ceramic casting, which then is fired and possibly glazed. Plaster molds are often used instead of the usual rubber molds in ceramic casting and in porcelain production.
Bronze casting
In this case, the thousand-year-old lost-wax technique is used. It's the best, but also the most complex method of producing sculptures.
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Bronze casting
Lost-wax casting technique
The mold is usually taken directly from the original, so that the replica reproduces even the finest details. After casting the replica, using the most appropriate method, the surface is polished, patinated, gilded or painted according to the original.
A replica of ars mundi is a recognizable image of the original.
A plastic work of sculptural art made of wood, stone, ivory, bronze or other metals.
While sculptures from wood, ivory or stone are made directly from the block of material, for bronze casting a working model is prepared at first. Usually it is made of clay or other easily shaped materials.
The prime time of sculpture after the Roman antiquity was the Renaissance. Impressionism gave a new impulse to the sculptural arts. Also the contemporary artists, such as Jorg Immendorf, Andora, and Markus Lupertz enriched the sculpture with outstanding works.
