Sunday 28 April 2013

Roman Art - painting



Here's a quote for you...

'Painting - it was once a celebrated art - much in vogue with kings and nations - which brought fame to those it thought worthy of being handed down to posterity. Currently, however, it has been supplanted by marble and gold: slabs of marble not only cover entire walls but are also engraved with patterns and decorated with twisting lines that represent objects and animals.'

Sounds like someone shooting off at modern art again, doesn't it? Someone lamenting the appearance of Cubism and wishing the national gallery was filled with Rembrandts - the old 'everything old is going out of fashion' argument we've heard for the last century right? Trouble is, this is Pliny giving his opinion in 78AD. I guess he had a problem with modern art. For more on Roman art read 'Ad Lib' - available from Amazon, just follow the links


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