Late Roman Attic helmets

[Diocle]

May I remeber you dear friends, that the term 'Artistic convention' is abused?

I think the term we're looking for is 'artistic license'. Artists distorting reality to show what they want to show us.

In this case I have to disagree, the artists here are not distorting the reality, but they are using their own artistic language, as to say: The artist is not voluntary distorting the images but he does what he can with the artistic culture of the place in which he lives and of the time of which he is part.

The term 'Artistic convention' actually is right, but it's only abused; how many times have I read it when something was not perfectly coincident with the coomon views about the matter?...and frequently I saw many archeologists and historians telling us: 'Oppps! Sorry! We were wrong: it wasn't an artistic convention!"...."Ooops! Mycene did really exists! Sorry again!" :whistle:


@Demetrius: Your interpretation is possible, but too many are the cases of two artistic languages or linguistic conventions that coexists during the III century.
The Roman Art and Architecture of the III century is so technically complex and of so perfect quality that someone has compared this age to the Broque of the XVII century!

IMHO here we can see two different languages, one is the classic Hellenistic Greek-Roman language, the other is a more 'Barbarised' language, in which the naturalism and the realism left place to a more 'Expressionist' and 'Barbaric' artistic language.

The Late Romans probably slowly had started to love the strong expressionism of the Brabaric art, the poor Caracalla was in the mood of his time! :grin:

Now let me show here few pics: The Tetrarchs (new language)I don't think that Diocletianus might use the wrong artist to represent the Tetrachy, and then...Maxentius in two versions: the first is the classic Hellenistic language and the other....the new 'Expressionism' of the Late III century, look:







..Beware the Artistic languages are really languages: you can choose what you like to use, the language most suitable for your objectives and values.

The use of the expression 'Artistic convention' is dangerous and intriguing, and it needs a deep knowledge about the matter, but the strange thing is this one: Abitually when I read the expression 'artistic convention' I say: 'Oh well! finally we can speak of Art!!'...but insted nothing happens....actually the expression is used, as an old two handed Anglosaxon axe, to behead the discussion about unorthodox Roman artistic creations and nothing more.


Sorry for my English! Yes because, I'm not only a horrid English writer but I'm also a little dyslexic! So..... I'll try to contain my posts!