insideKENT Magazine Issue 38 - May 2015 | Page 45

ARTS+ENTERTAINMENT a look at art through the ages BY LISAMARIE LAMB Humankind has been creative since the dawn of time, using whatever was on hand to make art. From cavemen scratching drawings of animals into rocks to today’s exciting and innovative modern artists, art has always been there. Sometimes it’s beautiful, sometimes it’s captivating, sometimes it tells a story, and sometimes it provokes change. Whatever its meaning, and whatever the intention behind the artist’s thoughts, art is something tangible that has an intangible sense of feeling about it. And that is something very special indeed. Palaeolithic Medieval Art Palaeolithic art (also known as prehistoric art or Ice Age art) is the oldest art to be found in the world. It dates from around 40,000 years ago, but continued until about 12,000 years ago, with wonderful examples having been found in Africa and Europe. But it’s not just cave paintings – jewellery, carvings, sculptures (made from clay, bone, stone, and ivory), and even engravings have been found and dated back to the same time. Subject matter included the animals that were hunted, predators to be wary of, and the human form itself – especially the female form. The period of medieval art covers around 1,000 years of history, and it is difficult even for the experts to pin down exactly what makes medieval art. Because of this, it is often broken down into sub-periods including Byzantine, insular, gothic, and Romanesque, as well as many others. Medieval art was not all about paintings and drawings, as its predecessors had been. Now different media was being used, and new, exciting works were being produced. This is the first time that frescos were painted, the first time that tapestries were created, the first time that books were illustrated, and the first time (other than the prehistoric tools that were so necessary) that ivory, metal, and glass were being used in art. Ancient Art Renaissance Art The Renaissance period began in Italy in approximately 1400. This was a time of huge leaps in science, literature, and art, and it all came together to create a bubbling cauldron of mixed genres, media, and ideologies. The ‘barbaric’ times of the medieval period were slowly being forgotten, and the Renaissance was a time of enlightenment in which, some historians suggest, humankind took its biggest leaps forward. It follows, then, that art was also much more advanced by this stage. This was a new era, and was an exciting time to live. The art of this period reflects this excitement, as well as the concerns that the artists had regarding politics, science, and religion. Ancient art, dating from around 3500 BC, hails from Egypt, China, Persia, Mesopotamia, and Greece. Ancient art shows the beginnings of more imaginative works, which focus less on what could be seen in everyday life, and more on what might be seen in the afterlife. Gods and goddesses were a particularly popular subject matter, as was what these deities would do once a person had ‘crossed over’ to their kingdom. Symbolism was rife in ancient art, and the art itself was used as a way of instructing the common people in the laws, practices, and religion of the country. The world was growing richer, and Italy especially had money to burn thanks to new trade routes opening up, and new products to sell. Literacy was at its highest level to date, and studies of older art were beginning in universities of the time. This created a revival in the arts, and is why much Renaissance art is reminiscent of earlier pieces, with an up-to-date perspective. Thanks to scientific endeavours, more was known about nature and the universe, and this was often depicted in Renaissance art, with less emphasis on religious figures (although this was still a popular subject matter). In Egypt, for example, the pharaohs were also captured in art, and would always be shown as the largest figure in a painting. This was to show the pharaoh’s importance, and was not drawn to scale. Animals were often depicted, but were drawn in unusual colours, each one having a different meaning. 45