[Online] HKU Professor Susanna McFadden Investigates the Artistic Legacy of Ancient Rome

Description

In a webcast hosted by Asia Society Hong Kong, HKU fine arts professor Susanna McFadden sheds light on the lasting impact that ancient Rome had on art and culture in a large part of the world.

According to legend, on April 21, 753 BC, a pair of semi-divine twin brothers, Romulus and Remus, founded the settlement that later became the city of Rome. This mythical event laid the basis for a powerful empire and nurtured a visual culture that left a lasting imprint on the subsequent civilisations and art histories of the Western hemisphere.

Today, remnants of Roman art and architecture are still being discovered beneath the modern cities of Europe, Africa and the Middle East, as well as in the deserts and forests of over 40 countries whose modern borders now fall within the territory once controlled from Rome.

With a particular focus on wall paintings, this talk details some of these recent discoveries so as to introduce revitalised assessments of classical art for the new millennium.

To watch the webcast, tune in from 6:30-7:30pm HKT here on Tuesday 21 April, 2020.