Architecture

Architecture is the art of designing and constructing buildings, this type of art can create some controversies, because is the only kind of art that can be for utilitarian purposes besides the aesthetic ones.

Humanity started constructing buildings for religious purposes, such as the Stonehenge, the Teotihuacan pyramids, or for funerary purposes, like the Egyptian pyramids.This kind of architecture started 30,000-20,000 years ago.

Fig.1

Fig.2

     











Much later, with the Greek, much innovative architecture types began, with revolutions, like columns, which are the distinctive characteristic of Greek and Roman architectures.This type dates to 10,000 years ago, and had six basic types of columns.

Fig.3

Fig.4

This type of architecture persisted during the Greek culture and was then adopted by the roman empire, but then they made a few innovations like the roman arch and the roman vault (dome).

Fig.5

 After those accomplishments architecture kept changing, passing through styles, like Gothic cathedrals, to what it is today.

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Fig.6

Pictures:
Fig.1 : Stonehenge, England, N/A, 8000 B.C
Fig.2 : Pirámide del Sol, México, N/A, 200 B.C.
Fig.3 : Greek column Types, Greece, Greek culture, 300 B.C.
Fig.4 : The Parthenon, Greece, Greek Culture, 447 B.C.
Fig.5 : The Colosseum, Italy, Roman Culture, 70 A.D.
Fig.6 : Notre Dame Cathedral, France, Maurice de Sully, 1345
Fig.7 : Sacred Family Church, Spain, Gaudi, 1882 (not completed yet)

Sculpture

This week's topic is:
Sculpture

In the field of sculpture, 4 basic techniques exist:

• Carving
• Modeling
• Casting
• Construction

In this week`s blog, we are going to see and define each one.

Carving

Augustus of Prima Porta

Native American Totem

Also known as "subtraction", carving is basically the action of removing material from an original shapeless block. This type of art was very important for ancient cultures, such as Greeks and Romans that made their sculptures in Marble, but it can be found all over the world, made from rock to wood.In this category we can also include reliefs, which are carvings in stone.

 Terracotta warrior

Àrbol de la vida

Modeling 
 Also known as "additive process" it consists on changing the shape by adding material and deforming the artwork, resulting in a totally different shape. We can see model sculptures since ancient times, often made of clay, sometimes wax or even plaster.

Casting

Richard the lionheart

Charles V, the holy emperor

Casting is the most complicated form of sculpture, because it requires a mold and a molten material (usually metals)and is mainly used in the making of coins and medals. But it is worth all that work because the results can be astonishing if done correctly. Casting has been popular since ancient times and it continues to be today.






Construction

Shadow sculpture

(Unknown)

From the other types of sculpting, construction is the most often used in modern days, in abstract art. Construction is the action of using various materials to make one single art piece, and this characteristic fits the modern-abstract art concept, resulting in masterpieces.




About The Sculptures: (Author, year, country)
Augustus of Prima Porta:  Unknown, I century A.D. Italy.
Native American Totem:  Unknown, Unknown, Canada.
Terracotta Warrior:  Unknown, 210 B.C. China.
Arbol de la Vida:  N/A, N/A, Mexico
Richard Lionheart:  Carlo Marochetti, 1860, England
Charles V: Unknown, Unknown, Italy
Shadow Sculpture: Tim Noble, 2001, England

Humanity through drawing

To draw or to illustrate is the most antique form of art. And is the base art of any other kind of plastic art, from painting, architecture, to even sculpting. Every plastic art is based on drawing, which we have improved along with time.



Since the times of the cavemen we have been representing our daily live`s events.
The oldest cave painting dates to 40,000 years ago, and is located in northern Spain.












Other form of cave picturing uses other rocks as main utensil, these are called petroglyphs, because they`re carved in the rock forming figures without the use of any pigments.This peculiar form of illustration can be found all over around the globe.








The next great step in human history is given to us by the Egyptians, who stopped drawing on their walls and started doing it in a kind of paper which they called papyrus, because it came from the papyrus plant. They also developed a kind of language based on drawings, called hieroglyphics.






From that moment drawing kept changing loads of times, passing through:






The greek and roman cultures (which art was very similar):
These cultures focused their art to their gods and beliefs, also they represented historical events, like battles, or wars.











 The middle ages:
The art in these years was dedicated all to God and the events that deserved to be remembered by the future generations.








The renaissance:
During the renaissance all arts flourished specially painting and sculpting, which works would have been impossible without drawing. These works were dedicated sometimes to God but other times to demonstrate human bigness and its nature.





Modernism:
As we come to present days, drawing is left a bit behind, painting is more common than illustrating, but let`s not forget that drawing is the base of painting. During these times, paintings leave religious themes behind and start being more surreal and abstract.