Mary Lorraine E.

Santillan
BSA2H
ZHU 111/2:00-3:00

Homework:

1. Art and Artists

a. What were the earliest paintings about?
Painting was one of the most favourite hobbies of our ancestors – to express
their feelings and thoughts and to remember significant persons, events and dates since
painting is one of the available ways to document important happenings back then.
Cave painting is very prominent during the earliest period which normally depicts
selection of animals. During the earliest period, some of the paintings were about the
hunted animals such as cattle, horses, deer, bison, rhinoceroses, lions and mammoths
which represent different roles in the lives of the people specifically the hunters. In
addition, various paintings also show vital theme in their daily lives as well as
predominant interest of mankind – the swelling curves of the female form, emphasizing
the fertility on which the survival of the tribe depends. Aside from numerous animals that
were featured in the oldest paintings that we have, human figures and religious icons
were also some of the subjects of paintings thousand years ago. Up until now, the love
for God and love for the humanity are still very evident.

b. Did different ancient civilizations have their own art? Explain.

Art in ancient civilizations varies in different ways simply because people have
diverse culture and tradition, interests and desires, beliefs and philosophy as well as
their own natural resources differs from one another. Just like the Ancient Egyptian art,
it was known to be conservative. Most of the Egyptian arts were in the form of tombs
and monuments and now there is an emphasis on life after death and the preservation
of knowledge of the past. Ancient Egyptian art included paintings, sculpture in wood,
stone and ceramics, drawings on papyrus, faience, jewellery, ivories, and other art
media. It exhibits an extraordinarily vibrant representation of the ancient Egyptian's
socioeconomic status and belief systems. On the other hand, the Mesopotamian art is
mostly in the form of