Italy is the home for fine art and one of the oldest forms of art found in Italy is the Roman art. The Roman art includes painting, architecture, mosaic work and sculpture. Other forms of art such as pottery, gem engraving, figurine glass, metal work, miniature book illustrations, and coin-die are also considered as Roman art. Most of the Roman paintings were the adaptations or copies of the Greeks work.
The paintings and other works are always based on themes and the theme includes still life, portraits, animals, everyday scenes, and also mythological subjects. Other than this, the art also included erotic scenes, scenes of herds, rural mountains, shepherds, country houses, and rustic temples. The art form also depicts some of the Christian themes. Roman art is also famous for its mural paintings and again it is differentiated into four periods according to the themes and designs.
The true innovation of the Roman art is the paintings of landscapes that are combined with the mathematical perspective and other techniques. The paintings have well applied coloration, surface textures, and shading to enhance the look. The landscape paintings include pure natural scenes, urban buildings, and mythological episodes. The Roman still life paintings depict the perspective of everyday objects such as animals, fruits, shells, and seafood.
Another form called portrait painting is the most celebrated style and only few of the olden paintings have survived. The portraits are very realistic and most of the painting works were done on wood. Paintings of genre scenes are made on the general lifestyle of the Roman Empire such as music and gambling. Some of the genre scenes also include the images of goddess and gods at leisure.
These paintings are the key to understand the early Roman lifestyle, habitat, and their war victory. Only some of the paintings have survived ages and are now treasured.
