Art Means Wealth
From early cave drawings to modern abstract paintings, we see how the different eras showcase their own unique values. The use and meaning of art changes and evolves as time moves steadily along. One of the most memorable times for statues and busts was during the rule of the Roman empire. The Romans deviated from their muse, the Greeks, by using more realism as opposed to idealism. Portrait of an Older Woman showcases the use of statues as a symbol of power and wealth. The Portrait of an Older Woman showcases the woman’s wealth and power through the style of the woman’s dress, the details of the marble, and the posture of the statue. First we will establish a firm description of the artwork in order to analyze later. The woman’s portrait is a full body statue that spans from her hair to a small pedestal she is positioned on. Her hair sits in a very elaborate updo with rows of curls brought back into a braided bun at the nape of her neck. The face is very simplistic with no signs of eyebrows or even a prominent brow bone. Simplicity continues to the rest of the woman’s features
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The carving of the statue’s body took place before the head and we can see that as the body conveys a much greater amount of detail. In Roman times bodies would be presculpted for people to choose from when a statue was needed. The commissioning of the older woman’s portrait was for a funeral relief to commemorate the passing of the matron. Because of the time of the use of the portrait and the Roman pre sculpting practice the family would have went to a sculptor, selected a body, and told him what head to put on the sculptor. The sculptor being completed in two separate times would explain the idealism in the body, as the sculptor would have more time to perfect the body and the completing the head would have been on a time