LVV4U: Introduction to Ancient Greek Art

Greek Art

Periods

Classical: Head of Blond Youth

Geometric: 1100-750 BCE

Archaic: 750- 480 BCE

Classical: 480 BC - 323 BCE

Hellenistic: 323 BC - 30 BCE

Geometric: Conditions in Greek world were unsettled after fall of Mycenae, arts took a backseat while city states battled each other. A cultural identity began to form.

Archaic: At the end of the “Dark Ages” - Increase in trade and exploration (notably Egypt and Mesopotamia) increase in art and literature with reintroduction of written language. Iron tools developed. City states increasingly stable.

Classical: Persian Wars (480-448 BCE) spurred Greeks toward cultural maturity. Especially Athens, whose art, literature, philosophy, theatre etc. boomed. Idealized art reflected cultural values.

Hellenistic: The reign of Alexander the Great (336 BCE to 323 BCE) introduces a new worldview and turn toward naturalism in art.

Why these divisions?

- Influenced by Mycenean art- Simple, precise linear decoration in ‘protogeometric’ art of 10th C. BCE- By 9th C. more complex patterns - zigzags, meanders, triangles, concentric circles - Finally, by 8th C. figurative art was introduced - first animals then stylized humans

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Statuette of a horse, 8th century B.C.; GeometricGreekBronze

Geometric Period (1100-750 BCE)

Geometric Period



-Tall, wide-mouthed amphora used as a funerary dedication-Geometric features - zigzags, lines, swastikas-Late Geometric - Increased attention to figures, both humans and animals- Popular iconography: chariots, armed warriors, horses

Neck amphora, fourth quarter of 8th century B.C.; Late GeometricGreek, Attic

VIDEO: http://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/art-history/art-history-400-c-e--ancient-cultures/v/krater--ca--750--700-b-c-e

Geometric Period



Middle Geometric belly-handled amphora

from the “Tomb of a Rich Athenian Lady” in Athens

Ca. 850 B.C. [h: 71.5 cm]

Geometric Pottery



Archaic Period (750-480 BCE)- Increased contact with Egypt and the Near East evident in Greek art:

- More naturalistic figurative representation- Freestanding large-scles sculputres- New techinques - gem cutting, ivory carving, glass, metalwork- ‘Oriental’ motifs - lotus leaves, sphinxes, griffins

-Wealthy city-states produced imposing temples, large-scale marble statues, fine gold jewellery - Depiction of mythological scenes, athletic events, everyday life- Doric and Ionic columns used in temples- Black figure pottery dominated- Stylized nude male youth sculptures - Kouros

Periods

Archaic Period Influence: Ancient Egypt c. 2600 BC

Periods

Archaic Period Influence: Mesopotamia c. 2700 BC

Archaic: Kouros c. 650 BCPeriods

Archaic Kouros (c. 650 BCE)

Archaic: KorePeriods

Archaic Kore

Archaic: Kore from Acropolis and Painted KorePeriods

Periods

Archaic Lekythos (c. 530 BCE)



- On this small lekythos (oil flask), women are engaged in various stages of wool working.

-Textile making was one of the most important occupations for women in ancient Greece. A good weaver was considered an attractive woman, as well as a good wife. (e.g. Penelope in the Odyssey)

-We can learn a lot about the activities of women and men, maidens and youths, in Athens during the sixth century B.C from these detailed representations of daily life

- Attributed to the Amasis Painter, one of the foremost black-figure artists active during that time.

Classical Period (480-323 BCE)-After defeat of the Persians in 479 BCE, Athens was the dominant polis, it was a thriving and wealthy imperial power

-Pericles was determined to show off Athens’ glory through the Acropolis, most notably in the doric temple to Athena, the Parthenon, with its massive statue of the goddess in ivory and gold

- Aesthetic values: permanence, harmony, perfection of the human form

-Introduction of more naturalistic contraposto pose showed figures at rest. Also figures in action (athletes) to show off idealized body and musculature. Males often nude, females covered up.

-Bronze lost wax casting for sculpture (most now lost)

Early Classical : Aristodikos Kouros, c. 500-490 B.C. Periods

Early Classical : Kouros from the Acropolis, c. 490 B.C.Periods

Periods

- Early contraposto style - less rigid and symmetrical

- Facial expression no longer archaic smile, mouth more severe, gaze relaxed

- More realism in anatomy and hair

Early Classical 3: Kritios Boy, c. 480 B.C.

Early Classical: Blond Boy, c. 480 B.C.Periods

Early Classical: Fallen Warrior from the Temple of Aphaia at Aegina Periods

The workshop of the sculptor Phidias (480-430 BCE)

Periods

Artemision Bronze (c. 460)

• Recovered from the sea• Severe style, excellent rendering of motion and anatomy• Who is it?

• Zeus throwing a thunderbolt?• Poseidon throwing a trident?

Polykleitos’ Canon•Most important sculptor of Classical Antiquity

•Lived in Athens, late 5th C. BCE

•None of his original bronzes survive but many Roman copies exist

•His contrapposto nudes are designed according to mathematical principles and aim for balance, clarity, completeness

•Uses Pythagorean ratios for proportionality

• “symmetria” means harmonious proportions



Doryphoros, "Spear-Bearer” 450-400 BCE

Myron Discobolus c. 485 Sculpture

Classical: PolyclitusPeriods

Myron AthenaSculpture



Classical Pottery

-Bell krater used for mixing water and wine a symposion

-Depicts Persephone returning from Hades to her mother Demeter

- Provides insight into Greek fashion

-Red figure-ware, more detail

Niobid Krater - attempt at three dimensional perspectivePainting

Achilles Painter - White Ground LekythosPottery

Niobid Painter Painting

Andokides PainterPottery

Architecture

Model of Parthenon

Architecture

How did Greek climate & Geography influence its architecture?

ArchitectureGreek climate permits an outdoor lifestyle:

• Temples on breezy hilltops• Open-air theatres built into sloping terrain•Agora and open courtyards surrounded by stoa - public space with a storied colonnade to protect from sun• Bright light casts shadows and accentuates details

Materials:-Marble-Clay for roof tiles and decorative elements

Features of Greek Architecture

-Column and lintel structures- Often incorporate or benefit from the natural

surroundings- Temples usually have a rectangular floor-pan with a large

central room containing the main statue and altar,

surrounded on all four sides by rows of columns and

capped with elaborate pediments- Proportions correspond to the golden mean- Stones fit together tightly but were sometimes reinforced

by invisibly embedded metal clamps- Sculptural pediments



Orders: Doric, Ionic, Corinthian:

Doric: Temple of Zeus at OlympiaIntroduction

Ionic: Temple of Athena Nike – Acropolis Athens c. 427 BC Architecture

Temple of Zeus Ruins

Reconstruction of AgoraPainting

Erechtheum on Acropolis in Athens c. 421 BCArchitecture

Doric: Parthenon - temple of Athena ParthenosArchitecture

DelphiArchitecture



A recreation in modern materials of the lost colossal statue by Pheidias, Athena Parthenos by Alan LeQuire is housed in a full-scale replica of the Parthenon in Nashville’s Centennial Park. She is the largest indoor sculpture in the western world.

EpidarusArchitecture

Hellenistic Period (323-30 BCE)-Alexander the Great had conquered an empire that stretched from Greece through Asia Minor, to Egypt and as far as India.

- New exotic influences on Greek culture, new materials (gems)

- After his death, Alexander the Great’s successors’ kingdoms had lavish palaces, gardens, public buildings and monuments

- Art looked to the past but had innovations to reflect the spirit of the age

- More naturalistic bodies, more emotion, dramatic movement

- Broader subject matter: Grotesques, commoners, elderly, different ethnic groups

-Rising Roman powers co-opted Hellenistic style, many Greek artists went there to work

Hellenistic: Poseidon of MelosPeriods

The Three GracesRoman copy of a Greek work of the second century B.C.Marble





Laocoön

-Created around 50 BCE, Rome

-Shows pain and struggle

-Hugely influential on Renaissance artists when it was unearthed in 1506

Hellenistic: Aphrodite and SatyrPeriods

Nike of Samothrace (2nd C. BCE)-Depicts the winged goddess of Victory standing on the prow of a ship

-Overlooked the Sanctuary of the Great Gods on the island of Samothrace

-Probably an offering from the people of Rhodes in commemoration of a naval victory in the early second century BC

-Dramatic billowing drapery, intensity of movement

- Nude female body revealed through suggestive draping



Hellenistic: Venus of Melos (Milo) c. 100 BCSculpture

Hellenistic: Aphrodite Kallipygos (Roman Copy) Sculpture

Corinthian: The temple of Zeus at Athens 2nd c. BCArchitecture

The temple of Zeus at Athens DetailArchitecture

Corinthian: Choragic monument of Lysicrates - Athens ( 335 B.C.). Architecture

Education

LVV4U: Introduction to Ancient Greek Art