Pompeii

On a recent trip to Italy I visited Pompeii, a Roman town which was buried in ash from mount Vesuvius, leaving the contents of the town, including people and dogs perfectly preserved. There is no doubt that these remains are inspirational, though perhaps not in a positive way. The terror perfectly captured on the faces of the preserved people sum up the eerie spectacle. Walking down the streets at a quite moment enables you to step back in time, imaging both the lives and the terror that these people faced, and evokes strong emotions of sadness and an intangible feeling one get not quite put their finger on. Pompeii also offers excellent examples of the earliest design work from the frescos that border the baths, to the mosaics that covers the floors of the houses. A particularly good example of this is the mosaic of the dog found in “the house of the tragic poet” (featured below). Though images may not be of use in my further design work, the emotions that Pompeii elicits could certainly be transferred to design especially if using a neo classical theme.