Greek Works of Art Style Page # Name of Art Work Type of Art Work Geometric 108 5 2: Dipylon Vases (Ceramic) Vase/Sculpture Orientalizing 109 5 4: Bronze Mantiklos Apollo (figurine) Sculpture 110 5 5: Corinthian Amphora Vase/Sculpture 111 5 6: Lady of Auxere kore Sculpture Archaic 112/113 5 7: New York Kouros, 5 9: Kroisos, from Anavysos Sculpture 114 5 10: Peplos Kore Sculpture 118 5 16: West Pediment from the Temple of Artemis at Corfu Architecture 117 5 14: Temple of Hera I at Paestrum Architecture 121 5 20 & 5 21: Exekias, Achiles, and Ajax playing a dice game Vase/Sculpture Early Classical or Severe 129 5 34: Kritios Boy Sculpture Style 129 5 35: Riace Bronze warriors Sculpture Mature or High Classical 131 5 39: Diskobolos (Discus Thrower) Sculpture 132 5 40: Doryphoros (Spear Bearer) Sculpture 134 5 42 & 5 43: Acropolis, Athens Architecture 135 5 44: Iktinos and Kallikrates, Parthenon Architecture 137 5 48 & 5 49: Parthenon pediment sculpture Architecture 138 5 50: Parthenon Ionic frieze Architecture 139 5 52: Erechtheion, Acropolis, Athens Architecture 141 5 55: Temple of Athena Nike, 5 56: Nike adjusting her sandal Architecture 142 5 57: Grave stele of Hegeso Sculpture Late Classical 145 5 62: Aphrodite of Knidos Sculpture 146 5 63: Hermes and Infant Dionysos Sculpture 147 5 65: Apoxyomenos (Scraper) Sculpture 148 5 66: Farnese Herakles Sculpture 151 5 71: Theater of Epidauros Architecture 151 5 72: Tholos, Epidauros Architecture Hellenistic 155 5 78: Altar of Zeus Architecture 157 5 80 & 5 81: Dying Gaul/Dying Gaul and Wife Sculpture 158 5 82: Nike of Samothrace Sculpture 158 5 83: Venus of Milo Sculpture 160 5 86: Seated Boxer (bronze) Sculpture 161 5 87: Old Market Woman Sculpture 162 5 89: Laocoon (and his sons) Sculpture Preview: Ancient Greek culture forms the cornerstone of Western cultural tradition. Though the ancient Greeks inherited some practices and forms from Egypt and Mesopotamia, they developed a distinct artistic and architectural identity that had profound impact on every Western culture since their time. Ancient Greek culture spans from ca. 900 BCE to ca. 30 BCE, and is divided into periods the Geometric and Orientalizing, the Archaic, the Early and High Classical, the Late Classical, and the Hellenistic marked by the development and refinement of artistic styles and architectural form. The ancient Greeks excelled at vase painting and produced highly refined sculptures, but among the greatest Ancient Greek achievements is the perfection of the temple form, exemplified in the Parthenon, the High Classicalperiod temple dedicated to Athena on the Acropolis in Athens. The Hellenistic Period witnesses a transforming cultural sensibility in Greece, one marked by influence from Eastern cultures as well as an increased freedom of expression. The Roman Empire is in its ascendency by the end of the Hellenistic Period in 30 BCE, and its art and architecture reflect the profound influence of Greek culture. 1
Significant Historical Events Greeks win Second Persian War 480 BCE Peloponnesian Wars end 404 BCE Death of Alexander the Great 323 BCE Romans make Greece a colony c. 80 BCE Greek Sculpture Styles: Geometric Period (10 th 7 th Centuries) Artists: Orientalizing Phase (Early Archaic Period) Black Figure Style (Late Archaic Period) Exekias Andokides Red Figure Styles (6 th 3 rd Centuries) Euphronios Euthmides White Figure Style (5 th Century > Hellenistic Period) Phiale Painter Vase Shapes with Names: Greek Drinking Vessels A Hydria D Amphora B Lekythos E Kylix C Krater F. Oinochoe Techniques: Materials: Clay, slips, and glazes Types of Construction 1: Pottery wheel ( throwing a pot ) 2: hand building (e.g coil or slab) 3. using a mold (or press) (including slip molds) Method of Construction: 1: kneading clay to establish consistency and eliminate air pockets 2: throwing pot on wheel or forming pot by coil, slab or molds 3: applying a slip before clay of pot dries completely 4: drying (slowing) to bring to green ware sage 5: firing in kiln called the bisque firing (can be the final firing if slip is painted on in step #3) 6: glazing or applying slip to add color and shape (pattern) 7: glaze firing to change chemical components of glaze/slips to colors 2
Greek Architecture Archaic 550 BCE c. 600 500 BCE Early Classical/Severe 480 BCE c. 400 480 BCE Mature/High Classical 450 BCE c. 480 404 BCE Late Classical 350 BCE c. 404 323 BCE Hellenistic 250 BCE c. 323 80 BCE Orders of Architecture: Doric Order Abacus, echinus, necking, shaft (drum), fluting, metope, triglyph Ionic Order Abacus, volute, egg and dart, and base Corinthian Order Acanthus leaves Parts of temple façade Cornice, raking cornice, pediment, entablature, frieze, architrave, column (capital, shaft), stylobate, sterobate Temple Plan Cella/naos, peristyle Doric Proportions Ionic Proportions Corinthian Proportions Heights : diameter = 7:1 Column : entablature = 4:1 20 flutes/column Capital height = ½ column diameter Height : diameter = 9:1 Column : entablature = 5:1 24 flutes/column Capital height = ½ 1/3 column diameter Height : diameter = 10:1 Column : entablature = 5:1 24 flutes/column Capital height = column diameter 3
Context History Context Ideas Sculpture in the Round Architecture Architectural Sculpture Descriptive Terms Greek Art Comparison Classical Hellenistic Greeks und Athenian leadership conquer, Alexander the Great builds on father s (Phillip of invading Persian forces in 480 BCE Macedona) unification of the Greek peninsula Athenians, under the leadership of Pericles Sets out to conquer the known world Greek political assume a dominant role in Delian League and cultural leadership established but the empire and create animus with other city states also becomes more cosmopolitan Peloponnesian war begins in 431 BCE and Alexander dies 323 BCE Hellenistic Period begins last until 404 BCE for the defeat of Athenian empire breaks up into separate kingdoms with Attilus I, by the Spartans end of golden Age II, and II of Pergamon the strongest Late Classical period ends with death of Hellenistic period ends with Roman conquest in 31 BCE Alexander the Great in 323 BECE (or in 86 BCE with fall of Athens) Humanism Individualism Idealism Realism Rationalism Empiricism Socrates/Plato/Aristotle Stoicism/Hedonism/Epicureanism Pythagoras Antiquarianism Pursuit of defining truth, beauty and goodness Practical and hedonistic approach to life Universal principles important Practical living standards important Rationalism intellectual approach Emotions expressed Classical Polyclitus Canon Myron s Discobolos Late Classical Praxiteles Hermes and the Infant Dionysus Lysippos Apoxymenos (Scaper) Parthenon Altar outside the temple Columns of temple backdrop stage Closed spacing of columns Traditional post and lintel (orders) respected Colonnade is structure Frieze variety to monotony of colonnade Parthenon Friezes Hellenistic Epigonos Dying Gaul and Gaul and his wife Athanadoros, Hagesandros Laocoon, Nike of Samothrace, Seated Boxer Altar of Zeus Altar in enclosed space Temple surrounds altar depth Open spacing of columns invite you into the space Inversion of order of frieze and colonnade Colonnade is more decorative element Colonnade provides regularity needed for complex Altar of Zeus Frieze Both have Athena as central figure and metaphorical battles depict to represent history Frieze unity in regularity of metope/triglyphs Unity in continuous motion of figures in frieze Frieze of two figures in action on one place Many figures in action in several planes Restrained drama the heroic Melodrama (e.g. moments of death and pathos) Unity (e.g. isocephaly of continuous frieze Variety (figures in variety of poses many levels) Human beings/panathenaic Festival Super humans gigantomachy Relates to matters of fate mythological stories Man is engulfed in storms and stress of grim circumstances become metaphors for Athenian pride beyond their control Self contained Universal Calm Balance Symmetry Shallow space Ideal of beauty Unemotional Ideal/idealism Canon on proportion Vertical/horizontal Order Simple gestures Grace Emotions charged Exaggeration Melodrama Movement Asymmetry Deeper space individual Superhuman figures Realism Histrionic Diagonal Chaos Theatrical gestures Idiosyncratic/specie 4
Greek Philosophy Plato s and Aristotle s ideas regarding visual art s relationship to the concept of THE IDEAL Plato: Art is thrice removed from the ideal Since art imitates reality (nature) And reality (nature) is, in turn, an imitation of the idea Then art is three times removed from the idea.. Aristotle: art should be a presentation of one of three possibilities: 1. Better than real life (idealism) 2. The same as real life (realism) 3. Worse than real life (caricature) For Pythagoras The discovery of mathematical ratios of musical intervals is critical to the definition of Art and Beauty The belief that the universe was founded on rational (harmonic) principles ( all things are numbers ) The belief that beneath (beyond) the world of appearances there was an underlying permanent order of the universe based on logic and reason (and numbers/ratios) The belief that through knowledge (investigation) one could unlock the logic of the universe The belief that there was such a thing as perfection the ideal and universal truths The belief that the greatest error, then, was to lack knowledge ignorance Realism vs. Abstraction Visual art seen as the imitation of nature mimesis: the imitation or representation of nature both internal human nature and the external environment Representation of Nature in Greek Art Realism (concretion) Abstraction Rendering actual, tangible objects with all their particular Elimination of all extraneous accessories and and peculiar characteristics concentrating on the essential qualities of things Objects as they appear to the physical eye Objects as they appear to the mind s eye Emphasis on nature Emphasis on the imagination The world of appearance The world of essences What is real What is ideal 5