Gods, Heroes & Athlete: Ancient Greek ArtART ID 111 | Study of Ancient Arts

Slide concept by William V. Ganis, PhD NYIT Center for Teaching and Learning with Technology

With modifications by Arch. Edeliza V. Macalandag, UAP

GREEK HUMANISM

The civilization of Ancient Greece emerged in the ninth century BCE and passed through five periods of intense artistic activity spanning more than 800 years. Through Greek colonization, it spread from the Greek mainland to Asia Minor (Western Turkey) and Magna Graecia (Southern Italy and Sicily).

During the Hellenistic period, Greek art and culture were dominant throughout the Mediterranean.

Gods and humans:

Even the gods of the Greeks, in marked contrast to the divinities of the Near East, assumed human forms whose grandeur and nobility were not free from human frailty.

Greek origins:

The Greeks, or Hellenes, as they called themselves, appear to have been the product of an intermingling of Aegean peoples and Indo-European invaders. They never formed a single nation but instead established independent city-states or poleis.

Olympia and Hellas:

In 776 BCE, the separate Greek-speaking states held their first ceremonial games in common at Olympia.

Athens and Greek culture:

The distinctiveness and originality of Greek contributions to art, science, and politics should not, however, obscure the enormous debt Greek civilization owed to the earlier great cultures of Egypt and the Near East.

Reassessing Greek civilization:Nor should a high estimation of Greek art and culture blind historians to the realities of Hellenic life and society. Many modern artists have rejected Greek standards.

Periods 

1.The Geometric & Orientalizing Periods2.The Archaic Period 3.The Early And High Classical Periods 4.The Late Classical Period 5.The Hellenistic Period 6. Hellenistic Art Under Roman Patronage

5 main forms: 

1.Architecture2.Sculpture3.Painting4.Pottery 5.Jewelry making

Geometric & Orientalizing Art

Out of the Dark Age:

Following the collapse of the Mycenaean (Late Helladic) civilization around 1200 BCE and the ensuing period of cultural decline and minor artistic activity known as the Dark Age, the first sign of a newly emerging Greek (Hellenic) culture was ceramic pottery decorated with geometric patterns in the ninth century.

The destruction of the Mycenaean palaces was accompanied by the disintegration of the Bronze Age social order.

Geometric Art:

In the eighth century, representations of animals begin to appear together with purely geometric patterns on painted ceramic pots.

A little later, schematic human figures are seen depicted on very large ceramic vessels designed to serve as grave markers and to function in funerary rites.

Small-scale sculptures of human figures, animals, and mythological creatures show the same geometric reduction of form.

Figure painting revived:

Also during the eighth century, the human figure returned to Greek art-not, of course, in monumental statuary, which was exceedingly rare even in Bronze Age Greece, but painted on the surfaces of ceramic pots, which continued to be manufactured after the fall of Mycenae and even throughout the Dark Age.

Geometric Krater

from the Dipylon cemetery, Athens

ca. 740 B.C.E.ceramic

40 1/2 in. high

Hero and centaur

ca. 750-730 B.C.E.bronze

approximately 4 1/2 in. high

Similar schematic figures also

appeared in the round at this date, but only on a very

small scale.

Votive Statuette of a Horse

late 8th Century B.C.E.bronze

approximately 3 in. high

Mantiklos Apollo

ca. 700-680 B.C.E.bronze

approximately 8 in. high

One of the masterworks of the early seventh century BCE is the Mantiklos

Apollo, a small, bronze statuette dedicated to Apollo at Thebes by an

otherwise unknown man named Mantiklos.

Corinthian black-figure amphora

ca. 625-600 B.C.E.ceramic

approximately 1 ft. 2 in. high

The appeal of such vases was not due solely to their Orientalizing animal friezes, but also to a new ceramic

technique the Corinthians invented, which art historians call black-figure

painting.

Black-figure painting is one of

the most modern styles for adorning

antique Greek vases. It was especially

common between the 7th and 5th BC, although there are

specimens dating as late as the 2nd BC.

Greece's first stone temples:

The foundation of the Greek trading colony of Naukratis in Egypt before 630 BCE brought the Greeks into direct contact with the monumental stone architecture of the Egyptians.

Plan of Temple APrinias, Greece | ca. 625 B.C.E.

Lintel of Temple A

Prinias, Greece

ca. 625 B.C.E. | limestone | approximately 2 ft. 9 in. high

Lady of Auxerre,

statue of a goddess or kore, ca. 650-625 B.C.

Limestone, approx. 2' 11/2" high.

Archaic Art

Kourous

ca. 600 B.C.E.marble

72 1/2 in. high

Calf Bearer (Moschophoros)

from the Acropolis, Athens, Greece

ca. 560 B.C.E. | Marble | 65 in. high

Kroisos

from Anavysos, Greececa. 530 B.C.E. | marble | 76 in.

high

Peplos Kore

from the Acropolis, Athens, Greece

ca. 530 B.C.E.marble

48 in. high

Temple of Hera I

Paestum, Italy

ca. 550 B.C.E.

Temple of Hera I

Paestum, Italy

ca. 550 B.C.E.

Doric order Corinthian orderIonic order

Exekias

Achilles and Ajax

playing dice

from Vulci, Italy

ca. 540-530 B.C.E.ceramic

approximately 2 ft. high

Andokides Painter

Achilles & Ajax playing a dice

game

from Orvietto, Italy

ca. 525-520 B.C.E.ceramic

21 in. high

Euphronios

Herakles wrestling Antaios

from Cerveteri, Italy | ca. 510 B.C.E. | ceramic 19 in. high

Euthymides

Three revelers

from Vulci, Italy

ca. 510 B.C.E.ceramic

approximately 2 ft. high

Temple of Aphaia

Aegina, Greece

ca. 500-490 B.C.E.

Temple of Aphaia

Aegina, Greece

ca. 500-490 B.C.E.

West pediment of the Temple of Aphaia

Aegina, Greece

ca. 500-490 B.C.E.marbleapproximately 5 ft. 8 in. high at center

Dying warrior

from the Temple of Aphaia, Aegina, Greece

ca. 500-490 B.C.E.marbleapproximately 5 ft. 2 1/2 in. long

Dying warrior

from the Temple of Aphaia, Aegina, Greece

ca. 490-480 B.C.E.marbleapproximately 6 ft. 1 in. long

Early Classical Art

Kritios Boy

from the Acropolis, Athens, Greece

ca. 480 B.C.E.marble34 in. high

Warrior

from the sea off Riace, Italy

ca. 460-450 B.C.E.bronze78 in. high

Zeus (or Poseidon?)

from the sea off Cape Artemision, Greece

ca. 460-450 B.C.E.bronze82 in. high

Myron

Diskobolus (Discus Thrower)

ca. 450 B.C.E.Roman marble copy after a bronze original61 in. high

Polykleitos

Doryphoros (Spear Bearer)

ca. 450-440 B.C.E.Roman marble copy after a bronze original83 in. high

Polykleitos

Doryphoros (Spear Bearer)

ca. 450-440 B.C.E.83 in. high

Glossary

abacus The uppermost portion of the capital of a column.acropolis Greek, “high city.” In ancient Greece, usually the site of the city’s most important temple(s).agora An open square or space used for public meetings or business in ancient Greek cities.

Glossary

aisle The portion of a basilica flanking the nave and separated from it by a row of columns or piers.Alexandros Of Antioch-On-The-Meander Sculptor of Aphrodite or Venus de Milo, ca. 150-125 BCE. The base, which was inscripted with the artist's name, is now lost.Amazonomachy In Greek mythology, the legendary battle between the Greeks and Amazons.

Glossaryamphiprostyle The style of Greek building in which the colonnade was placed across both the front and back, but not along the sides.andron Dining room in a Greek house.antae The molded projecting ends of the walls forming the pronaos or opisthodomos of an ancient Greek temple.apse A recess, usu. semicircular, in the wall of a Roman basilica or the east end of a church.

Glossary

apsidal Rounded; apse shaped.arch A curved structural member that spans an opening and is generally composed of wedge-shaped blocks (voussoirs) that transmit the downward pressure laterallyarchitrave The lintel or lowest division of the entablature; also called the epistyle.arrises In Doric columns, the raised edges of the fluting.

Glossaryattic The uppermost story of a building.balustrade A railing held up by small posts, as on a staircase.basilica In Roman architecture, a civic building for legal and other civic proceedings, rectangular in plan with an entrance usually on a long side. In Christian architecture, a church somewhat resembling the Roman basilica, usually entered from one end and with an apse at the other.

Glossarybilingual vases Experimental Greek vases produced for a short time in the late sixth century BCE; one side featured black-figure decoration, the other red-figure.black-figure painting In early Greek pottery, the silhouetting of dark figures against a light background of natural, reddish clay, with linear details incised through the silhouettes.caduceus In ancient Greek mythology, a magical rod entwined with serpents carried by Hermes (Mercury), the messenger of the gods.

Glossarycanon A rule, for example, of proportion. The ancient Greeks considered beauty to be a matter of “correct” proportion and sought a canon of proportion, for the human figure and for buildings.capital The uppermost member of a column, serving as a transition from the shaft to the lintel. caryatid A female figure that functions as a supporting column. (male: atlantid)

Glossary

cavea Latin, “hollow place or cavity.” The seating area in ancient Greek and Roman theaters and amphitheaters.cella The chamber at the center of an ancient temple; in a classical temple, the room (Greek, naos) in which the cult statue usu. stood.centaur In ancient Greek mythology, a fantastical creature, with the front or top half of a human and the back or bottom half of a horse.

Glossary

chiton A Greek tunic, the essential (and often only) garment of both men and women, the other being the himation, or mantle.Chryselephantine Fashioned of gold and ivory.column A vertical, weight-carrying architectural member, circular in cross-section and consisting of a base (sometimes omitted), a shaft, and a capital.

Glossary

contrapposto The disposition of the human figure in which one part is turned in opposition to another part (usually hips and legs one way, shoulders and chest another), creating a counterpositioning of the body about its central axis. Sometimes called “weight shift” because the weight of the body tends to be thrown to one foot, creating tension on one side and relaxation on the other.

Glossary

contrapposto The disposition of the human figure in which one part is turned in opposition to another part (usually hips and legs one way, shoulders and chest another), creating a counterpositioning of the body about its central axis. Sometimes called “weight shift” because the weight of the body tends to be thrown to one foot, creating tension on one side and relaxation on the other.

GlossaryCorinthian capital A more ornate form than Doric or Ionic; it consists of a double row of acanthus leaves from which tendrils and flowers grow, wrapped around a bell-shaped echinus. Although this capital form is often cited as the distinguishing feature of the Corinthian order, there is, strictly speaking, no Corinthian order, but only this style of capital used in the Ionic order.cornice The projecting, crowning member of the entablature framing the pediment; also, any crowning projection.

Glossarydemos The Greek word meaning “the people“, from which the word democracy is derived.Doric One of the two systems (or orders) evolved for articulating the three units of the elevation of an ancient Greek temple the platform, the colonnade, and the superstructure (entablature). The Doric order is characterized by, among other features, capitals with funnel-shaped echinuses, columns without bases, and a frieze of triglyphs & metopes.drum One of the stacked cylindrical stones that form the shaft of a column; the cylindrical wall that supports a dome.

Glossaryechinus In architecture, the convex element of a capital directly below the abacus.elevation In architecture, a head-on view of an external or internal wall, showing its features and often other elements that would be visible beyond or before the wall.encaustic A painting technique in which pigment is mixed with wax & applied to the surface while hot.entablature The part of a building above the columns and below the roof. The entablature of a classical temple has three parts: architrave or epistyle, frieze, and pediment.

Glossaryentasis The convex profile (an apparent swelling) in the shaft of a column.fasciae In the Ionic order, the three horizontal bands that make up the architrave.fillets In Ionic columns, the flat ridges of the fluting.flute or fluting Vertical channeling, roughly semicircular in cross-section and used principally on columns and pilasters.frieze The part of the entablature between the architrave and the cornice; also, any sculptured or painted band in a building.

Glossaryglaze A vitreous coating applied to pottery to seal and decorate the surface; it may be colored, transparent, or opaque, and glossy or matte. In oil painting, a thin, transparent, or semitransparent layer put over a color to alter it slightly.gorgon In ancient Greek mythology, a hideous female demon with snake hair. Medusa, the most famous gorgon, was capable of turning anyone who gazed at her into stone.Hellenes (adj. Hellenic) The name the ancient Greeks called themselves as the people of Hellas.

GlossaryHellenistic The term given to the culture that developed after the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BCE and lasted almost three centuries, until the Roman conquest of Egypt in 31 BCE.herm A bust on a quadrangular pillar.himation An ancient Greek mantle worn by men and women over the chiton and draped in various ways.Hippodamian plan A city plan devised by Hippodamos of Miletos ca. 466 BCE, in which a strict grid was imposed on a site, regardless of the terrain, so that all streets would meet at right angles.

Glossaryhydria An ancient Greek threehandled water pitcher.hypaethral A building having no pediment or roof, open to the sky.Ionic One of the two systems (or orders) evolved for articulating the three units of the elevation of a Greek temple: the platform, the colonnade, and the superstructure (entablature). The Ionic order is characterized by, among other features, volutes, capitals, columns with bases, and an uninterrupted frieze.

GlossaryKallikrates One of the two architects of the Parthenon, active mid-5th century BC; responsible for the Temple of Athena Nike, also on the Acropolis.kore (pl.korai) Greek, “young woman.” An Archaic Greek statuary type depicting a young woman.kouros (pl. kouroi) Greek, “young man.” An Archaic Greek statuary type depicting a young man.krater An ancient Greek wide-mouthed bowl for mixing wine and water.kylix An ancient Greek shallow drinking cup with two handles and a stem.

Glossarylekythos (pl. lekythoi) A flask containing perfumed oil; lekythoi were often placed in Greek graves as offerings to the deceased.lost-wax process (cire perdue) A bronze casting method in which a figure is modeled in wax and covered with clay; the whole is fired, melting away the wax and hardening the clay, which then becomes a mold for molten metal.mausoleum A monumental tomb; derives from the 4th cent BCE tomb of Mausolos at Halikarnassos, one of the 7 Wonders of the ancient world.

Glossarymetope The panel between the triglyphs in a Doric frieze, often sculpted in relief.Mnesikles Greek architect, 5th cent. b.c. He designed the Propylaea, and the Erechtheum is also sometimes ascribed to him. Both are on the Acropolis at Athens.modeling The shaping or fashioning of 3D forms in a soft material, such as clay; also, the gradations of light and shade reflected from the surfaces of matter in space, or the illusion of such gradations produced by alterations of value in a drawing, painting, or print.

Glossarymosaic Patterns or pictures made by embedding small pieces (tesserae) of stone or glass in cement on surfaces such as walls and floors.orchestra Greek, “dancing place.” In ancient Greek theaters, the circular piece of earth with a hard and level surface on which the performance took place.order In classical architecture, a style represented by a characteristic design of the Orientalizing The early phase of Archaic Greek art, so named because of the adoption of forms and motifs from the ancient Near East and Egypt.

Glossaryorthogonal A line imagined to be behind and perpendicular to the picture plane; the orthogonals in a painting appear to recede toward a vanishing point on the horizon.orthogonal plan The imposition of a strict grid plan on a site, regardless of the terrain, so that all streets meet at right angles. See also Hippodamian plan.palaestra An ancient Greek and Roman exercise area, usually framed by a colonnade.pebble mosaic Mosaic made of irregularly shaped stones of various colors.

Glossarypediment In classical architecture, the triangular space (gable) at the end of a building, formed by the ends of the sloping roof above the colonnade; also, an ornamental feature having this shape.peplos A simple long woolen belted garment worn by ancient Greek women.peristyle In ancient Greek architecture, a colonnade all around the cella and its porch(es). A peripteral colonnade consists of a single row of columns on all sides; a dipteral colonnade has a double row all around.

Glossaryplan The horizontal arrangement of the parts of a building or of the buildings and streets of a city or town, or a drawing or diagram showing such an arrangement. In an axial plan, the parts of a building are organized longitudinally, or along a given axis; in a central plan, the parts of the structure are of equal or almost equal dimensions around the center.polis (pl. poleis) An independent city-state in ancient Greece. pronaos The space, or porch, in front of the cella, or naos, of an ancient Greek temple.

Glossaryprostyle A style of ancient Greek temple in which the columns are only in front of the cella and not on the sides or back.red-figure painting In later Greek pottery, the silhouetting of red figures against a black background, with painted linear details; the reverse of black-figure painting.shaft The tall, cylindrical part of a column between the capital and the base.siren In ancient Greek mythology, a creature that was part bird, part woman.

Glossaryskenographia Greek, “scene painting”; the Greek term for perspective painting.skiagraphia “shadow painting”; Greek term for shading, said to have been invented by Apollodoros, an Athenian painter of the 5th century BCE.slip A mixture of fine clay and water used in ceramic decoration.stoa In ancient Greek architecture, an open building with a roof supported by a row of columns parallel to the back wall. A covered colonnade or portico.

Glossarystylobate The uppermost course of the platform of a Greek temple, which supports the columns.symmetria Greek, “commensurability of parts.” Polykleitos’s treatise on his canon of proportions incorporated the principle of symmetria.tesserae Greek, “cubes.” Tiny stones or pieces of glass cut to the desired shape and size to form a mosaic.theatron Greek, “place for seeing.” In ancient Greek theaters, the slope overlooking the orchestra on which the spectators sat.

GlossaryThrust The outward force exerted by an arch or a vault that must be counterbalanced by a buttress.treasury In ancient Greece, a small building set up for the safe storage of votive offerings.volute A spiral, scroll-like form characteristic of the ancient Greek Ionic & Roman Composite capital.white-ground painting An ancient Greek vase painting technique in which the pot was first covered with a slip of very fine white clay, over which black glaze was used to outline figures, and diluted brown, purple, red, and white were used to color them.

Sources

• http://www.wadsworth.com/art_d/templates/student_resources/0155050907_kleiner/studyguide/ch05/ch05_1.html

• http://websites.swlearning.com/cgi-wadsworth/course_products_wp.pl?fid=M20b&product_isbn_issn=0155050907&discipline_number=436

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greek_art• Art Through the Ages, 12th/11th ed., Gardner