Western Art: Prehistoric to Classical
Western Art: Prehistoric to Classical covers cave art, the Egyptian canon, Greek ideals, and Roman engineering. The exam tests period style, function, and formal analysis.
Core rules
- Prehistoric: Lascaux and Altamira cave paintings use earth pigments; Venus of Willendorf emphasises fertility; Stonehenge shows megalithic planning.
- Egyptian: frontalism, composite view, registers, hieroglyphs, canonical proportions, and afterlife function; the Amarna period breaks with convention.
- Greek: Geometric vases; Archaic kouros and kore with stiff pose and Archaic smile; Classical contrapposto, Polykleitos's canon, and the Parthenon; Hellenistic drama, Laocoon, and the Pergamon altar.
- Roman: veristic portraiture, arch, vault, concrete, the Pantheon dome, the Colosseum, Pompeian fresco, and mosaics.
Worked example
A marble nude male youth stands with one leg forward, arms at his sides, and hair in braided locks. Reasoning: the rigid frontal pose and stylised hair indicate an Archaic kouros, not Classical contrapposto. The nudity and youth suggest an athletic or votive function.
Traps
Do not call Egyptian figures bad perspective; the composite view is a convention. Do not date the Parthenon to the Hellenistic period. Do not confuse Roman copies with Greek originals. Do not apply linear perspective to Egyptian registers.
Exam focus
Identify style by pose, proportion, material, and function. Compare Egyptian convention with Greek naturalism and Roman engineering.