Catarina Madeira, Universidade de Lisboa

“Nature in the Frame: Negotiating Space and Connections in Roman Frescoes” 

Roman frescoes, especially those found in the Bay of Naples, offer a vivid glimpse into the ancient
roman’s perceptions of nature and space while transforming walls into windows to imagined
landscapes. This proposal intends to explore the interplay between geography, society, and art in
the depiction of landscapes within domestic spaces, focusing on lesser-studied houses in Pompeii.
These frescoes reflect a nuanced understanding of natural boundaries—rivers, mountains, and
gardens—as both real and figurative markers of societal and cultural interaction.

The approach we intend to take using environmental studies, art history and history, we investigate
how frescoed landscapes articulate notions of liminality and boundaries. How did painted rivers,
pathways, and groves mediate concepts of private versus public, sacred versus the non-sacred?
How did these representations relate to broader Roman views on geographical space as a source
of identity?

Particular attention is given to the frescoes’ dual role as aesthetic objects and vehicles for cultural
expression, revealing the ways they transcend physical boundaries to evoke ideas of mobility, trade,
and mythological narratives. This communication hopes to show that these artistic landscapes are
not merely decorative but also function as sites were geographic and social boundaries are
negotiated and reimagined, providing insights into the Roman worldview and their lived
environments.