Classicizing

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. Emulating or imitating ancient classical styles or works, especially from Greek and Roman art or literature, to give something a traditional or timeless appearance or character
2. Adopting elements characteristic of classical antiquity in various fields such as art, architecture, or writing to evoke the aesthetic ideals and values of that period
3. Incorporating or reflecting classical features and conventions in design, style, or expression to achieve a refined, elegant, and historically inspired outcome

Etymology: "Classicizing" is the present participle of "classicize," which is formed by adding the verb-forming suffix "-ize" to "classic." The suffix comes from Greek "-izein," used to build verbs meaning "to make or make into," so the verb literally means to make something classic or to give it classical character. "Classic" itself traces back through Latin "classicus," originally a term for a member of the highest tax class in ancient Rome, and only later came to mean a work of the first rank. The verb's sense has shifted from the general idea of making something excellent or authoritative to a more specific one: giving a work the look, forms, or spirit of ancient Greek and Roman culture. Architects who copy columns and pediments, or poets who borrow Virgilian meter, are classicizing in this sense. The word therefore describes a deliberate act of imitation rather than the original antiquity itself.

Synonyms: classicising, emulating classical style, imitating classical art

Antonyms: modernizing, innovating