Pompeii and the Roman Villa
Art and Culture Around the Bay of Naples: An Exhibition Preview
Pompeii and the Roman Villa: Art and Culture Around the Bay of Naples at the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C. (October 19, 2008-March 22, 2009) examines ancient paintings, sculptures, mosaics and luxury objects excavated from the houses of Pompeii's urban elite and sumptuous imperial villas along the Bay of Naples. The NGA's first exhibition devoted to Roman art concludes its brief American tour at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (May 3-October 4, 2009).
Roman Society on the Eve of Vesuvius' Eruption
The rulers, senators and other important citizens of ancient Rome favored locations along the exotic Bay of Naples as Summer retreats in the 1st Century B.C. The prosperous urban elite established its vacation homes in nearby Pompeii and Herculaneum. Each group constructed opulent seaside villas in the vicinity of volcanic Mt. Vesuvius. Artists were commissioned to paint colorful frescoes on the walls of their patrons' homes. They also produced intricately patterned mosaic floors, fine sculpture and decorative works made of precious materials.
Pompeii and the Roman Villa...
The exhibition's approximately 150 artifacts and works of art, fortuitously preserved by the pyroclastic flow of ash and pumice from Vesuvius' eruption in 79 A.D., reveal much about classical Roman civilization and the influence of Greek and Hellenistic culture on its artistic expression.
- Patrons at Home displays marble and bronze portraits of Naples' maritime elite, many never lent by the Republic of Italy for exhibition overseas. Precious frescoes of seaside villas, silver wine cups depicting scenes from the mythical Herakles' legendary Twelve Labors, glass vessels and assorted works of jewelry describe the lifestyle of vacationing upper-class Romans.
- Courtyards and Gardens recreates the colonnaded center of a Roman villa through frescoes and statuary. The symbolism of Dionysus, god of wine, theatre and revelry, is explained with that of peacocks, magpies, roses, oleander and other species of fauna and flora, each reflected in a precious mosaic depicting the Academy of the Greek philosopher Plato.
- Moregine exhibits three remarkably preserved dining room walls from an archaeologial site south of Pompeii. Their images of Apollo, god of the arts, and the deity's inspirational Muses were expertly excavated in 1999-2001.
- The Legacy of Greece explains wealthy Romans' appreciation of the classical Greek and Hellenistic artistic traditions as seen in the themes of their commissions. A small-scale Equestrian Statuette of Alexander the Great (1st Century B.C.-1st Century A.D.) is one such lively example.
- Rediscovery and Reinvention explores the discovery of Pompeii and Herculaneum during the 18th-century Age of Enlightenment and the finds' influence on later European art. On view is Michele Amodio's Plaster Cast of a Man with Vessel (ca. 1870), an early photograph of one of Vesuvius' human casualties.
Pompeii and the Roman Villa: Art and Culture Around the Bay of Naples presents exceptional works of mostly 1st-century B.C. art. Together they provide a unique view of the lifestyle of classical Rome's vacationing elite.
Sources:
- Guzzo, Pier Giovanni (ed.), et al. Pompeii: Stories from an Eruption (exh. cat.). Rome: Electa, 2005.
- In Stabiano: Exploring the Ancient Seaside Villas of the Roman Elite (exh. cat.). Washington, D.C.: Restoring Ancient Stabiae Foundation, 2004.
- Mattusch, Carol, et al. Pompeii and the Roman Villa: Art and Culture Around the Bay of Naples (exh. cat.). Washington, D.C.: National Gallery of Art, 2008.
- Ward-Perkins, J.B., et al. Pompeii A.D. 79: Treasures from the National Archaeological Museum, Naples and the Pompeii Antiquarium (exh. cat.). Boston: Museum of Fine Arts, 1978.
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