A famous example is the marble portraiture of Alexander the Great (fig.
#Roman portraiture free
This is primarily because youthful if not god-like images of kings free of any imperfections were the sources of admiration and adoration to the populace. In contrast to Roman tradition of depicting men in their later life, Hellenistic tradition leaned toward representing rulers as being youthful. Although Romans borrowed the concept of portraiture from Greek Hellenistic art, Roman portraitures per se are visibly different from Greek portaits. Idealism is the opposite of verism, and it tends to idealize the subject by exaggerating the characteristics as it seeks to relate the subject to a divine figure. Perhaps, the best way to define verism is by contrasting it with idealism, a style that is primarily associated with Hellenistic Greek period. These were desirable characteristics of a civic ruler because they were associated with wisdom, responsibility, and loyalty to the state. It is also because signs of aging skin, such as furrows and creases, were loyal souvenirs of having tolerated the psychological strains of a society at times of chaos and civil war. The emphasis on seniority was highly placed because old men who have dedicated their lives to the civic good attained noble positions in public office. They portray mature men, and marks of age were acutely depicted, such as wrinkles, moles, scars and other imperfections. Veristic portraits emphasize individualistic and often unattractive features of the subject. Veristic portraitures were popular during the Republican period, and they served to commemorate civil virtue. It is a term that describes hyperrealism that departs from idealizing tendencies. This paper analyzes verism in Roman portraitures and discusses how a set of formal elements are dictated to serve a communicative purpose.īefore embarking on our discussion of veristic Roman portraitures, we should first question what the definition of ‘verism’ is. They demanded intellectual engagement of the viewers because Roman portraitures were a complex system of conventions that sought to convey a message. Veristic portaitures had striking individualistic features that showed human interiority. This distinctive and syncretic Roman attitude led to the emergence of verism in Roman Republican portraitures in the beginning of first century B.C.E. While such analyses are valid, it should be noted that Roman artists did not merely emulate the styles of earlier cultures, but they synthesized the diverse elements and manipulated them to create a uniquely Roman style. Other interpretations have shown that Roman art also draws on Etruscan and even Egyptian visual cultures. Many art historians have interpreted that much of visual arts produced in ancient Rome are derivative of Classical and Hellenistic Greek styles. Roman works of art, from both Republic and Empire, are deeply influenced by traditions and aesthetic elements of other cultures.
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