As with any culture, ancient to modern, there is art that has influenced or currently influences its society. In some cases... a cultures art is so influential, it lasts throughout time and influences many other cultures present and or future. A prime example of this would be the art of ancient Greece... and its influence on American culture as well as Roman culture.
After the revolutionary war, "The young nation, free from Britannic protection, was persuaded to be the new Athens, that is to say, a foyer for democracy"1. This lead to the creation of many banks, capital buildings, and amphitheaters after the design of Greek architecture.
This picture of the Washington D.C Capital building is a prime example of Ancient Greek influenced architecture. Notice the fluted columns and moldings (as labeled on the diagram) on this building being that of Greek origin. This design has been replicated in many state capital buildings as well as major banks. Another example of American architecture that has been influenced by ancient Greece would be the amphitheater.
Here, we can see an ancient Greek amphitheater has been the influence to many of our sports stadiums. The term "amphitheater" derives from the ancient Greek amphi-, meaning "around", or "on both sides" and théātron, meaning "place for viewing"2. They were used back then for similar purposes, including hosting sports or events.
Ancient Roman culture had been highly influenced by ancient Greece as well. The influence can go as far as deity, but for the moment we will focus on art and architecture.
Here we see an ancient Greek statue of Zeus(top), and an ancient statue of his Roman counterpart Jupiter(bottom). We can see how there are very distinct similarities between the two, including the curly beards, the robes worn, and the body physic represented. The similarities between the cultures arts does not stop there. "The high number of Roman copies of Greek art also speaks of the esteem Roman artists had for Greek art, and perhaps of its rarer and higher quality. Many of the art forms and methods used by the Romans—such as high and low relief, free-standing sculpture, bronze casting, vase art, mosaic, cameo, coin art, fine jewelry and metalwork, funerary sculpture, perspective drawing,caricature, genre and portrait painting, landscape painting, architectural sculpture, and trompe l’oeil painting—all were developed or refined by Ancient Greek artists."3
Here we see just how influential Ancient Greece was on Ancient Rome. These are two separate pieces of pottery, each depicting a story on their surfaces. Can you tell which is Roman and which is Greek? Without a profound knowledge in the stories on their surfaces or the slightly different styles of art, it is difficult to tell the difference between the Greek (top) and the Roman (bottom) pottery.
Ancient Greek's art and architecture has had a profound influence on cultures far beyond its time. Their sense of aesthetics has attracted the eye of many... causing a once powerful society to become immortal and last through the centuries, despite its fall and destruction.
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