Ancient Rome
pilaster
Arch and Dome
• The early Roman buildings were often Greek, in both their design and workmanship. This architectural style, although soon permanently affected in its development by Roman civilization, yet at first showed but slightly the influence of the arts of other foreign nations or races. The one notable exception
Order
• • • • • Doric Order Ionic Order Corinthian Order Tuscan Order Compound Order Greek Roman
• The Choragic Monument of Lysicrates near the Acropolis of Athens was erected by the choregos Lysicrates, a wealthy patron or khoregos of musical performances in the Theater of Dionysus, to commemorate the award of first prize in 335/334 BCE, to one of the performances he had sponsored. The choregos was the sponsor who paid for and supervised the training of the dramatic dance-chorus.
• Western architecture in the following 1,000 years had two basic features: • One is the mainstream Christian church . • The other is the division between eastern and western Europe due to the split of the Roman Empire and Christianity. Eastern Roman Empire was dominated by Byzantine style, while in western Europe the prevalence of Romanesque style was followed by Gothic architecture which represents the highest achievement in the medieval period.
• Social elements such as wealth and high population densities in cities forced the ancient Romans to discover new solutions of their own. The use of vaults and arches together with a sound knowledge of building materials, for example, enabled them to achieve unprecedented successes in the construction of imposing structures for public use. • Examples include the aqueducts of Rome, the Baths of Diocletian and the Baths of Caracalla, the basilicas and Colosseum. They were reproduced at smaller scale in most important towns and cities in the Empire.
Material
• Concrete: 1) cheaper 2) lighter 3) lower request to workers
The Baths
• In the times of Ancient Rome very few people had baths in their homes. Adults enjoyed going to the public bathhouse. Children were not allowed in. The bathhouse cost very little to get in, so people used them often. The men and the women both used the bathhouse, but at different times during the day. Each group had a scheduled time, although the women's scheduled time was shorter. The bathhouse was not only a place for washing, but a good place to meet friends or do business. Some people enjoyed going to the bath for exercises, walks through the gardens, or reading. The baths also had towels, slaves to wait on you, steam rooms, saunas, exercise rooms, and hair cutting salons.
• Then in the 1st Century B.C., the Ancient Greek “glory” was replaced by the “greatness” of the ancient Romans, as seen in these spectacular palaces, triumphal arches, arenas and baths. • Greek and Roman architecture is generally believed to be classical, and is regarded as the origin of western architectural art.
艺术 意义 功能
Why should we learn that?
• A book of history
– Politics – Economics – Culture – Technological background…
An Overview
• It is widely acknowledged that western architecture derives from Ancient Greek civilization. In the 5th to the 4th Century B.C., Ancient Greek architecture reached a historic high, represented by Athens Acropolis.
24 grooves
Volute capital
(a volute is a spiral scroll-like ornament)
Woman: slim gentle and feminine
e.g. Erectheon
Order
• Corinthian Order
Still slimmer than Ionic Capital decorated with acanthus Young girl
• Throughout the Greek work we find that the lintel or supporting beam of wood or stone seems to be the only method of construction upon which they depended to any extent. • The Romans, on the contrary, adopted the arch to carry across all openings; and they further extended its use, in the form of a vault, to the covering of rooms or voids which they desired to roof in. The principle of this vaulted arch they had evidently borrowed directly from the Etruscans; a people of Asiatic origin living in northern Italy some ten or twelve centuries before Christ.
ARCHITECTURE
Center
• Europe • North America
since Ancient Greece after WWII
• “architecture” Ancient Greek. • “Architect”(architecton) = “creator”.
• 凝固的音乐 • 石头的史书 • 居住的机器
Order
Order
• Doric Order
Without a base