Antique genre scenes in painting and art

Jean-Leon Gerome (1824-1904) Phryne before the Areopagus

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Ancient historical plots in world painting

Just as the genealogy of surnames, the history of painting is impossible without the origins of its emergence in world culture. Turning to history in colors, artists draw inspiration from the works of Botticelli or Santi. The ancient eras forever remain a mystery to contemporaries and an inexhaustible vessel for the execution of biblical plots, mythological, historical scenes, and everyday genre. Rome, Greece, Egypt - constant reference books and guides to the revival and nuances unseen by cinema.

The history of devastating military campaigns and betrayal is forever tied to the trio of great powers - refined Rome, Egypt with its sands, and Greece. The basis of historical paintings of the XIX and XX centuries were the landscapes of empires, captured by ancestors - painters. Interest in this theme is due to the loss of reliable information about the way of life of ancestors, the purity and non-triviality of ancient architecture. For example, these steps and columns made of yellow shell rock, as in Waterhouse's work "Diogenes", will never be repeated in their masonry. The draperies and folds of the chitons and himatia of the heroes of the same work are simple in cut, but lost in antiquity. Commanders and soldiers of Greece and Rome are adorned with lattices and fibulae, which for a contemporary will remain museum exhibits forever.

Ancient Rome, Greece, Egypt in world painting

Thanks to world masterpieces, the layman can judge the postulates and morality of the relationships of the inhabitants of ancient cities. A calm conversation and the slow passage of time in discussions are alien to the contemporary. But the oil paintings of painters teach silence and respect for the interlocutor. Pay attention to the everyday life of the Egyptian nobility in Lawrence's work "Egyptian Juggler". It was written at the end of the XIX century, but so convincingly tells about the coolness of the halls and the interest of the spectators in the bright performance of the juggler boy. And "Between Fear and Hope" by the same author is a sample of the table setting of a Greek "magnate", his everyday life, not alien to the ancestors' pleasures, and, above all, the interior of the bedroom.

An integral feature of works based on the motifs of ancient empires was the technique borrowed from ancient masters. If the former had problems with perspective, the latter did not suffer from ignorance of the basics of geometry. However, the technique and idea of plots, including historical battles, resonate with those of da Vinci and Lotto. And the color and palette are warm, as in the works of Marco Basaiti.

The appeal to historical painting of the time of Alexander the Great receives undeservedly little attention in the modern circle of painters. It's a pity. The works of masters from centuries past will soon themselves turn into "prehistoric rarities". One would like to see more grotesque, the luxury of gardens, gladiatorial duels, and the watering of rice fields, the same Roman women with an irresistible gaze, the hustle of servants, work in pottery workshops. If not painting, then what is able to revive the lost architecture and the bitterness of defeats in numerous wars for territory and love for women?

Antique world scenes

Pictures:

Cincinnatus Receiving Deputies of the Senate :: Alexandre Cabanel	Cleopatra Testing Poisons on Condemned Prisoners :: Alexandre Cabanel	Vivant Denon Replacing El Cid's Remains in their Tombs :: Alexandre Evariste Fragonard
Romans Under the Yoke :: Charles Gleyre Charles Gleyre (1808-1874) Romans Under the Yoke Oil on canvas Public collection	Departure From The Villa At Tivoli :: Eduardo Forti Hadrian's	The Carpet Seller :: Eduardo Forti
At the Antiquarians :: Ettore Forti	Selling his Wares :: Ettore Forti	The Carpet Merchant :: Ettore Forti
The Vendor of Antiquities :: Ettore Forti	Cleopatra and the Peasant :: Eugиne Delacroix	Cleopatra :: Frank Dicksee
Solomon And The Queen Of Sheba :: Giovanni Demin	The Death Of Cleopatra :: Guido Cagnacci	Belisarius :: Jacques-Louis David
Leonidas at Thermopylae :: Jacques-Louis David	The Death of Seneca :: Jacques-Louis David	The Death of Socrates :: Jacques-Louis David
Septimius Severus and Caracalla :: Jean Baptiste Greuze	Purchase Of A Slave :: Jean-Leon Gerome	Beware the Dog :: Jean-Leon Gerome
Cleopatra before Caesar :: Jean-Leon Gerome	Diogenes :: Jean-Leon Gerome	Greek Interior [sketch] :: Jean-Leon Gerome
Julius Caesar and Staff :: Jean-Leon Gerome	King Candaules :: Jean-Leon Gerome	Phryne before the Areopagus :: Jean-Leon Gerome
Sculpture Vitam Insufflat Pittura :: Jean-Leon Gerome	Slave Auction :: Jean-Leon Gerome	Socrates seeking Alcibiades in the House of Aspasia :: Jean-Leon Gerome
Solomon's Wall Jerusalem :: Jean-Leon Gerome	The Age of Augustus, the Birth of Christ :: Jean-Leon Gerome	The Christian Martyrs' Last Prayer :: Jean-Leon Gerome
The Cock Fight :: Jean-Leon Gerome	The Death of Caesar :: Jean-Leon Gerome	The Pyrrhic Dance :: Jean-Leon Gerome
The lotus gatherers :: John Atkinson Grimshaw	A Pompeian Lady :: John William Godward	A Pompeian Lady :: John William Godward
Ancient Pastimes :: John William Godward	At the Garden Door :: John William Godward	At the Garden Shrine, Pompeii :: John William Godward
At the Gate of the Temple :: John William Godward	Autumn :: John William Godward	By the Blue Ionian Sea :: John William Godward
By the Wayside :: John William Godward	Classical Beauty :: John William Godward	Contemplation :: John William Godward
Sweet Nothings :: John William Godward	Drusilla :: John William Godward	Endymion :: John William Godward
Golden Hours :: John William Godward	Grecian Reverie :: John William Godward	His Birthday Gift :: John William Godward
Idle Thoughts :: John William Godward	Innocent Amusements :: John William Godward	The Love Letter :: John William Godward
Leaning on the Balcony :: John William Godward	Leisure Hours :: John William Godward	Lesbia with her Sparrow :: John William Godward
Lying :: John William Godward	Mischief and Repose :: John William Godward	Mischief :: John William Godward
Nerissa :: John William Godward	On the Balcony :: John William Godward	The Bouquet :: John William Godward
The Delphic Oracle :: John William Godward	The Jewel Casket :: John William Godward	The Sweet Siesta of a Summer Day :: John William Godward
Young Girl Picking Grapes :: John William Godward Oil on canvas, 1902 Private collection	The Bird Charmer :: Leon Glaize Oil on canvas, 1875 (61 x 80 cm)( 24 x 31,4 inch ) Private collection	The Sandal Makers :: The Sandal Makers 1880 Oil on canvas, (51.1 x 76.2 cm)( 20,1 x 29,9 inch ) Private collection
Dibulade :: Louis Ducis Oil on canvas, 1826 (38.8 x 46.7 cm)( 15,3 x 18,4 inch ) Private collection	Cleopatra :: Orazio Gentleschi Orazio Gentleschi (1563-1639) Cleopatra Oil on canvas, 1610 Public collection	Bacchanale :: Paul Jean Gervais Paul Jean Gervais (1859-1936) Bacchanale Oil on canvas (218 x 369 cm)( 85,8 x 145 inch ) Private collection
Coriolanus :: Pierre Joseph Francois Pierre Joseph Francois (1759-1851) Coriolanus Oil on panel (72.4 x 56.5 cm)( 28,5 x 22,2 inch ) Private collection	Themistocles, banished from Athens :: Pierre Joseph Francois	Dido and Aeneas :: Pierre-Narcisse Guerin Oil on canvas, 1815 (292 x 390 cm)( 115 x 153,3 inch ) Museu du Louvre, Paris
The Return of Marcus Sextus :: Pierre-Narcisse Guerin Oil on canvas, 1799 (217 x 243 cm)( 85,4 x 95,5 inch ) Museu du Louvre, Paris	The Last Senate of Julius Caesar :: Raffaele Giannetti Oil on canvas (172 x 315 cm)( 67,7 x 123,8 inch) Private collection	Elaine :: Robert Gibb Oil on canvas, 1875 (58.4 x 91.4 cm)( 23 x 35,9 inch) Private collection
Salome and the Tigers :: Rudolf Ernst Oil on panel Private collection	The Exiles Of Thebes :: Thiobald Chartran 1871 Oil on canvas, (147.3 x 114.3 cm)( 58 x 44,9 inch) Private collection	The Tepidarium [detail] :: Thiodore Chassiriau Oil on canvas, 1853 (171 x 258 cm)( 67,3 x 101,4 inch ) Museu d Orsay, Paris
The Tepidarium :: Thiodore Chassiriau Oil on canvas, 1853 (171 x 258 cm)( 67,3 x 101,4 inch ) Museu d Orsay, Paris	Dawn of Womanhood :: Thomas Cooper Gotch Oil on canvas Public collection	At the Antiquarian :: Vincenzo Capobianchi Oil on canvas Private collection
A Nazareth Fig Seller :: William Gale Oil on canvas (64 x 32 cm)( 25,2 x 12,6 inch ) Private collection	In Arcadia :: Friedrich August von Kaulbach Oil on canvas Private art collection	The death of Cleopatra :: Hans Makart Hans Makart (1840-1884) [ Der Tod der Kleopatra (gr) La mort de Cl?op?tre (fr) ] Oil on canvas 1875 255 x 191 cm ( 100,4 x 75,1 inch ) Staatliche Museen (Kassel, Germany)
Journey on the Nile Cleopatra :: Hans Makart Hans Makart (1840-1884) ( Die Niljagd der Kleopatra (gr) Voyage sur le Nil Cl?op?tre (fr) Oil on canvas 450 x 270 cm ( 177,2 x 106,1 inch ) Stereichische Galerie Belvedere (Wien, Austria)	Market Day Perugia :: Frank William Warwick Topham Oil On Canvas 123.2 x 179.7 cm ( 48,5 x 70,6 inch ) Private art collection	Semicircle at the School of Fine Arts :: Paul Delaroche Oil on canvas 1, 1814 Ecole des Beaux-Arts, Paris
Semicircle at the School of Fine Arts :: Paul Delaroche Oil on canvas, 1814 Duomo, Siena	Semicircle at the School of Fine Arts :: Paul Delaroche Oil on canvas, 1814 Ecole des Beaux-Arts, Paris	The Death of Messalina :: Georges Antoine Rochegrosse Oil on Canvas -1916 125.8 x 180 cm ( 49,5 x 70,7 inch ) Private art collection
Feeding The Goldfish :: William Stephen Coleman Oil on Canvas -1888 62.9 x 40 cm ( 24,8 x 15,7 inch ) Private art collection	The Death of Sardanapalus :: Eugene Delacroix Oil on canvas, 1827 (392 x 496 cm)( 154,3 x 194,9 inch ) Museum du Louvre, Paris	The Discus Thrower :: Edouard Dantan Oil On Canvas -1876 52.5 x 100 cm ( 20,7 x 39,3 inch ) Private art collection [ Antique Greek clothes, kind on an ancient Greek city, a genre scene ]
The Banquet :: Henry Thomas Schafer Oil On Canvas 96.5 x 152.5 cm Private art collection	The Prosperous Days of Job :: William Charles Thomas Dobson Oil on Canvas -1855 111.7 x 88.9 cm ( 44 x 34,9 inch ) Private art collection	A Classical Concert :: Pierre Oliver Joseph Coomans Oil On Panel -1874 59.7 x 84.5 cm ( 23,5 x 33,2 inch ) Private art collection [ Interior of the Greek palace ]
Transporting a block of marble :: Carl Max Gerlach Quaedvlieg Oil On Canvas 54 x 114 cm ( 21,3 x 44,8 inch ) Private art collection	Slave Auction :: Fabbio Fabbi Oil On Canvas 70.5 x 40.6 cm ( 27,8 x 16 inch ) Private art collection	Arrival of Caesar :: Ettore Forti Oil On Canvas 80 x 140.5 cm ( 31,5 x 55,2 inch ) Private art collection
The Wailing Wall Jerusalem :: Gustav Bauernfeind Oil On Canvas 51 x 39 cm ( 20,1 x 15,3 inch ) Private art collection	The Wonders of of the Deep :: Edward John Poynter Oil On Canvas 98 x 139 cm ( 38,6 x 54,6 inch ) Private art collection	Portrait of Richard Felix :: Jean-Leon Gerome Oil On Canvas 26 x 17 cm ( 10,2 x 6,7 inch ) Private art collection
The Egyptian Widow :: Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema oil on canvas -1872 99.1 x 74.9 cm ( 39 x 29,4 inch ) Rijksmuseum (Amsterdam, Netherlands)	Belisarius :: Francois-Andre Vincent Oil on canvas 1776 129 x 98 cm ( 50,8 x 38,5 inch ) Musee Fabre (Montpellier, Languedoc, France)	A Roman Dance :: Guglielmo Zoochi Oil on canvas 100.4 x 64.8 cm ( 39,5 x 25,5 inch ) Private art collection
the Mute :: Gaston Bussiere Oil on canvas Private art collection	A Romance Of The Sicilian Vespers :: John Riley Wilmer Oil on canvas 1920 213.5 x 122 cm ( 84,1 x 47,9 inch ) Private art collection	A Sick Child Brought into the Temple of Aesculapius :: John William Waterhouse Oil on canvas c1877 Private art collection
At Capri :: John William Waterhouse Oil on canvas 1890 47 x 84 cm ( 18,5 x 33 inch ) Private art collection	Cleopatra :: John William Waterhouse Oil on canvas 1888 Private art collection	Consulting the Oracle :: John William Waterhouse Oil on canvas c1882 198 x 119 cm ( 78 x 46,8 inch ) Tate Gallery (London, United Kingdom)
Diogenes :: John William Waterhouse Oil on canvas 1882 135 x 208 cm ( 53,1 x 81,7 inch ) Art Gallery of New South Wales (Sydney, Australia)	In the Peristyle :: John William Waterhouse Oil on canvas 1874 52 x 67 cm ( 20,5 x 26,3 inch ) Rochdale Art Gallery (United Kingdom)	Mariamne Leaving the Judgement Seat of Herod :: John William Waterhouse Oil on canvas 1887 180 x 259 cm ( 70,9 x 101,8 inch ) Forbes Magazine Collection (New York, New York, United States)
The Favourites of the Emperor Honorious :: John William Waterhouse Oil on canvas 1883 202 x 117 cm ( 79,5 x 46 inch ) Art Gallery of South Australia	The Household Gods :: John William Waterhouse Oil on canvas 1880 74 x 103 cm ( 29,1 x 40,5 inch ) Private art collection	Marcus Aurelius Distributing Bread to the People :: Joseph-Marie Vien Oil on canvas, 1765 301 x 300 cm ( 118,5 x 117,9 inch ) Public art collection
God Speed! :: Edmund Blair Leighton Oil on canvas Private art collection	The Accolade :: Edmund Blair Leighton	The King and the Beggar-maid :: Edmund Blair Leighton

Hide Comments (3)

User User Rating: 400 June 9, 2018

The antique genre is always a bit fabulous, because the artist depicts partially or completely the figmentof his imagination. Therefore, the creation can help us understand the attitude of the author to the era - often there is a romantic note, embellishment of life, a kind of worship before the ancient world, which is been the heyday of art.