Assignment One
Omon Imolorhe
997541067
FAH105F – LEC 0101
Prof. Bernice Iarocci
Tutorial Section: Section 2
Date Submitted: October 09, 2009
The Ara Pacis is a masterpiece that portrays the reign of the Roman Empire along with its splendor. It also symbolizes the establishment of peace through the strategic placement of different people of different classes, sexes and age groups. The depiction of children standing in the midst of adults, as well foreigners (children in the south side of the Ara Pacis wear clothes that show that they might not be Roman citizens) suggests that togetherness and unity. It also suggests a return to order among the people, striking the same message that Augustus tried to portray during his rule. Furthermore, the artist sets out to rewrite the story of Augustus’ quest for peace and order in the Roman Empire, even if that might not have been his original intent. It also serves in the art work to show that he did his best to bring people together to a common understanding, promoting the culture and art of Rome, which is very much like Greek art. The art work depicted on the south side of the Ara Pacis shows a group of people, most likely the ruling class. In this art work, the artist tries to create the impression of a discussion going on between various people of different classes, most likely the ruling family along with their subordinates. The composition of the work begins by placing all these people (procession of ruling family) who have come together to discuss or worship. In the process, they are joined on the other side (North side) by the procession of subordinates. Bringing these two art works on both sides of the building together, there are some themes common to both of them. In portraying the characters discussing, he uses a variety of geometric shapes, most of them focusing on the folding of clothes. Some of these shapes are triangles while others are oval. The artist, most likely, thought that the effect of doing using geometric shapes will give the impression of motion. Furthermore, the artist also uses emotions a lot to give the art life. The idea of a boy tugging on his father’s clothes, seemingly confused and asking to be carried makes the scene
come to life, and tends to draw the viewer’s attention to the importance of the occasion, the combination of a series of events that lead to Augusta becoming a religious head of some sort. The facial expression of the characters, at some points, seems to be absent. Some of the characters look like they do not understand why they are there. Others look like they know why they are there. This is likely due to the lighting that the artist uses. It also looks like the artist tries too hard to focus on the facial features and clothing, than he did to the expressions on the faces of the characters. The colors on each character do not do justice to pass across the emotion felt by most of them. However in the picture of the boy tugging on the adult’s toga, the confusion on the little boy’s face is shown through a darker shade of color on the inner side of his face. Furthermore, there is an emphasis placed on the idea of calm and peace of the characters in the front than on those at the back. The characters seem to be the focus of the story that the artist is trying to tell. In the centre, Augusta’s wife, Livia is strategically placed standing close to Agrippa. This could be a reference to the fact that she was his closest political adviser. The artist could have place her there as a reference that he is the centre of his political advisory team. It could also be that the artist, by placing Augusta at the head performing religious rites and his wife at the centre, was trying to pass a message across to the viewers, most likely that Augusta was the political and religious head of the Roman Empire and his wife was the political gateway to Augusta. The art work, according to the viewer, is characteristic of Greek works. The use of marbles displays the richness of the culture that the Greeks were known for and that the Romans tried to eventually adopt. Furthermore, it shows the imagination of the artist through the
depiction of characters in certain positions that are characteristic of who they said they were. The work also brings certain legends and people to life due to its striking similarities, one of them King James of England who portrayed himself as a representative of God. Augusta does the same thing, only difference being that he did not explicitly say that he is a representative of God. However, the sculpture gives the impression that he did see himself as a representative of the gods.