One of the Mount Vesuvius’ most memorably destructive explosions occurred on August 24, 79 A.D., burying the Roman cities of Pompeii, Herculaneum, and Stabiae in four billion tons of lava, rock and ash, killing an estimated 3,360 people. So no matter what kind of day you’ve had, it could have been worse.
Pompeii and the Roman Villa: Art and Culture Around the Bay of Naples will continue at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art through October 4. The exhibition features approximately 120 works of sculpture, painting, mosaic and other arts.
To get more of a definitive flavor what it may have been like to live in Pompeii before the destruction, it may be time to revisit the Getty Villa, which was modeled after a first-century Roman house, the Villa dei Papiri, which was located in Herculaneum. Many of the garden’s details are based on elements from ancient towns, from the shape of lanterns, to the types of herbs and shrubs that occupy the landscape.
For a social and scientific look at the eruption, there’s the 2003 Discovery Channel program, Pompeii: The Last Day.
And for a lighter-hearted look into a volcanic inferno, there’s the 1990 Tom Hanks-Meg Ryan comedy or klunker, depending on your point of view, Joe Versus the Volcano.
LACMA | 5905 Wilshire Boulevard | Los Angeles, CA 90036 | 323 857 6000
The Getty Villa | 17985 Pacific Coast Highway | Los Angeles, CA 90265 | 310 440 7300
Above: a poster from the 1935 movie, The Last Days of Pompeii, which featured Basil Rathbone as Pontius Pilate; aside from his performance, it sounds hammy enough to be fun.
No comments:
Post a Comment