Art History - Caves of Lascaux
The Caves of Lascaux
40,000BC
In the painted caves of western Europe, namely in France and Spain, we witness the earliest evidence of the human capacity to interpret and give meaning to our surroundings.
Although there is one human image (painted representations of humans are very rare in Paleolithic art; sculpted human forms are more common), most of the paintings depict animals found in the surrounding landscape, such as horses, bison, mammoths, ibex, aurochs, deer, lions, bears, and wolves.
The pigments used to paint Lascaux and other caves were derived from readily available minerals and include red, yellow, black, brown, and violet. No brushes have been found, so in all probability the broad black outlines were applied using mats of moss or hair, or even with chunks of raw color.
Virtual Tour: http://vimeo.com/40849516
