Classical Civilization- Greece

Greece has always been a place that I have been interested in. For as long as I can remember, I have wanted to go to Greece and explore all that there is to offer. After this lecture, I learned that because of the harsh weather (extremely hot summers, bitter winters, etc.) that many of the different buildings or monuments did not hold up very well, therefore we have to base a lot of our learning off of art pieces. To me, this is intriguing because with art there comes opinion; this goes to show that nothing is concrete and that everything can be up for interpretation.

Favorite Architecture, Furniture, and Interior Design

The Parthenon, located in Greece, is what I would consider to be my absolute favorite architectural piece from this section. This temple was built as a place for worship and/or meetings and picturing that in my head is mind boggling. As you look at this picture, you almost feel as though you are immersed into the time period and that is what I think makes this piece of architecture so memorable.

 

Something else that I found to be interesting from this time period was impluviums. Impluviums collect rain water from the outside and serves as somewhat of a pool. This is something that I had never heard of before, which is why I found it so interested. Not only was it new to me, but I also think that this is a cool idea. We live in a world where are are constantly trying to find the most "green" or eco-friendly way of doing things and I would not be surprised if this was somehow implemented into designs in today's world. 

Current Applications

The Lincoln Monument, located in Washington, D.C. has many of the same aspects that The Parthenon in Greece does. Not only is the overall concept of the building similar, but the layout and design style are similar as well. 
Mosaic techniques were introduced in Grecian interior design and are seen in modern interior design in a variety of ways. One very popular way that mosaic techniques are seen in today's world of design is through tile. This design style is seen in bathrooms and kitchens, on the floor and the walls.

Extra Resources

The mosaic technique has always been a favorite design technique of mine. I am instantly drawn to this type of design. When I learned that it was introduced by the Greeks, I looked deeper into it and became fascinated by the different mosaics that were created in Greece. Click the link below to check out some different mosaic pieces!

Greek Mosaic Art

Student Responses

For the chapter on Greece, I looked at Megan's blog. I really like how Megan talked about the columns in all of the buildings. She mentioned how they used human perception to make the buildings pleasing to the eye; they were not spaced evenly, but they really look like they are. Having this kind of precision is amazing (no matter what time period), but it really is astonishing when you are thinking about people being their precise with little to no technology. 

I also took a look at Justine's blog. I enjoyed her incorporation of the climate in Greece because it explains why they participated in the kind of art that they did and why they designed things the way that they did.