ipl-logo

Analysis Of Floor Mosaic Between Tethys And Oceanus

871 Words4 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Titan's role in Greek mythology

The “Fragment of floor mosaic depicting Tethys and Oceanus”, originally from modern day Turkey, now displayed at the Baltimore Museum of Art with an area of 68 x 90 inches, emanates an essence of mythological mystique and power. This power is established through the repetition of geometrical patterns in the bordering frames, the use of harmonious shades of blue in the Titans’ wild, flowing hair, which contrasts the oranges in the background, and the composition. This artwork from the 3rd Century AD depicts Tethys and Oceanus, the married Titans, and children of Uranus and Gaea, according to Greek mythology (Morris, 2022). The medium for this mosaic is stone, glass, and lime mortar. The original artwork was missing an entire portion of the …show more content…

of As far as the iconography, this mosaic contains six subjects: Oceanus, Tethys, and three small birds bordering the bottom of the mosaic. On the right, Oceanus appears as a grey-haired man with lobster-claw horns and an oar. He looks seriously off into space, while tentatively peering towards Tethys. To the left of Oceanus, Tethys is shown with a winged brow, a sea serpent coiled around her neck and shoulders, while looking in the direction of Oceanus. In addition, she is depicted as slightly larger than Oceanus, making her seem more powerful. Along the bottom of the mosaic, under the geometric border, are three birds. There are two birds to the left and to the right of the peacock; all appearing in profile. The birds are depicted with long emerald tails. The peacock in the middle is emphasized because of its position in the center, while the other two birds appear to be waiting for …show more content…

In addition, there are lines in the center of the artwork that surround Oceanus and Tethys. Furthermore, the lines created by the tails of the birds appear to point towards the center of the art. The expressive effects of this serve to separate the different aspects of the artwork, forcing the viewer to focus on all parts of the mosaic separately. The lines also act as a frame to emphasize Oceanus and Tethys. As far as the shape and form of the artwork is concerned, Oceanus and Tethys remain as organic shapes in their facial features and upper bodies. Geometric shapes border the artwork in the form of repeating squares. The natural curvature of the sea serpent winds around Tethys, drawing the viewer’s attention to her. In addition, the rectangular shape of the frame and actual mosaic acts as a framework to make the artwork more cohesive and to center the viewer’s attention on the main figures. Also, there is negative space surrounding Oceanus and Tethys that further serves to emphasize the importance and mystique of these children of the

Show More
Related
712 Words | 3 Pages

The grandiose proportion of the power lines to the houses at the bottom work to helps to connect the two pieces, both of which are completely different in the their composition, into one solidified painting. Without the implied line from the houses to the sky that the power lines create, the top and bottom halves of the painting do not seem to coincide with each other, but could rather stand alone as two separate paintings; one painting done in a naturalist form, and the other in a much more abstract

Read More
448 Words | 2 Pages

The triangles are equilaterals and convey the mood of the overall image, “its shape conveys a serene mood because of symmetrical balance” (Lester, 2014, p. 27). This symmetrical balance that the triangles exerts within the

Read More
1143 Words | 5 Pages

They lead your eyes to the large boat, onward to the bottom, where there are animals boarding it. The lines are also very sharp. They outline the shapes in the painting, giving the shapes a clear border. The next element is shape. The shapes are at very sharp angles.

Read More
282 Words | 2 Pages

Typhon was giant so tall his head touched the heavens. He had the body of a man, but each leg was an enormous viper coil that twisted and hissed as he moved. He had a head that carried 100 snake heads that constantly spit fire and screeched . All that is described of his human like head are glowing red eyes that drove fear into the hearts of all that looked upon them, he had a mouth that breathed fire. He had hundreds of wings all over his body and feathers all the way around.

Read More
336 Words | 2 Pages

He continues on with figurative language up until line 19, giving the reader a vision of some mass of individual objects that one can only assume to be the birds. He ues diction again to describe how

Read More
1305 Words | 6 Pages

The lightness of the background, depicted with pale blues, greens, and whites, juxtaposes with the brown and reds of the nearby earth. We find in the figures a similar array of shade and color; the centaur Nessus is the darkest, with his horse-half almost blending in with the clay, while Hercules and Deianira are also painted with beige and tan tones found in the surrounding landscape. The centaur’s tail and Deianira’s hair seem to almost blend directly into the background, and while the woman’s light complexion creates a sharp chiaroscuro that detaches her from her immediate surroundings, highlighting the unnaturalness of the situation, she becomes tonally united with the pure freedom of the background and of Hercules. Del Pollaiuolo uses color and tone to accentuate her true place in the vast openness. Furthermore, the figures are all depicted as nude or near-nude.

Read More
742 Words | 3 Pages

In fact, in a picture of rain, there are ripples surrounding the raindrop’s hitting the water. The ripples in the water and the distance naturally created is portrayed in the pictures. Accordingly, the illustrator uses techniques to create distance between objects. For instance, when two girls and a dog are enjoying the rain the reader is able to see the scenery from a distance. These elements help to enhance the experience that a reader feels towards the book’s message; to enjoy the weather and

Read More
1273 Words | 6 Pages

A 60-bell carillon is housed in the Tower. It is surrounded by 250-acre of gardens to attract the many species of birds. There are eight marble heron statues at the top of the Tower. The artwork scheme for both the grille work and sculpture consist of different type of birds, a Bible scene about Adam and Eva, and the serpent, sea creatures, and a variety of flowers. The top third floor had tiles that were vibrant and colorful.

Read More
693 Words | 3 Pages

On our field trip to the Getty villa this semester, we had to choose an art piece that stood out to us among the many there. The task at hand seemed easier than it was, as there were many art pieces that held my attention. One thing I kept in mind was that many of the Greek art pieces were either recovered from the bottom of the sea or were Roman duplicates. This meant finding background and details about them would be challenging. Of the art pieces, the Statue of Hercules or the “Lansdowne Herakles” was the one that I chose to write about.

Read More
1370 Words | 6 Pages

This is accomplished by the royal birds and the divine beadwork on the

Read More
796 Words | 4 Pages

The lining in the skin makes the painting look more realistic and the lighting brings out the dimensions very well. The lining is overlapping which shows the movement in the painting. The triangle shape begins at the top of Mary’s head and down the back of Jesus contacting to the bottom of her hands and coming around her shoulder. Spacing is very important

Read More
1343 Words | 6 Pages

The Symbolism of Birds In the history of literature, birds have always been a positive omen. In the novel “All the Light We Cannot See” by Anthony Doerr, birds appear numerous times throughout the novel, for many different characters and storylines. Characters like Marie-Laure, Werner, and Fredrick are all tied together through the reappearance of birds; comparing them and their storylines, almost as a symbol of their connection (from so far apart). In the novel, the impactful imagery of birds symbolizes freedom and individualism to make your own choices.

Read More
791 Words | 4 Pages

Birds are gifted with the extraordinary ability to fly. Their wings propel them above the ground and over people below. They are able to view the world from an angle that no one else gets to see. This is what makes birds and wings such powerful symbols in literature. These symbols characterize characters, move the plot and develop one more of the book’s ideas.

Read More
758 Words | 4 Pages

The painting contains quite a small bird which can be translated to a powerless and weak figure that can be related to Marion since she is the weak and helpless character in this film being prey upon by Norman who is seen besides hawks in certain scenes. The painting is placed right outside of the bathroom in which Marion is killed showing that the bathroom was the trap for her while Norman, the hawk in this case, killed her in the shower. The painting reflects Marion’s personality as weak and powerless and foreshadows that something wrong was going to happen to Marion similar to the Susannah and The Elders painting. The painting symbolizes Marion since the bird in the painting is also small, powerless, and weak. The painting does an effective job in letting the viewer relate bird to Marion and foreshadows her death since Norman in placed in scenes with bigger birds like a hawk.

Read More
700 Words | 3 Pages

Lines one through seven define the free bird as one that “floats downstream till the current ends and dips his wing in the orange sun rays” (Angelou) this is a representation of freedom and joy. The second and third stanza lines, eight through fourteen defines the caged bird that “stalks down his narrow cage can seldom see through his bars of rage” (Angelou) where these words reference isolation and despair compared to the freedom in stanza one. These lines create a visual response of the bird’s environments. The third stanza is repeated at the end of the poem for prominence as it reflects the two birds are so different.

Read More

More about Analysis Of Floor Mosaic Between Tethys And Oceanus

Related Topics

Open Document