Advanced Greek Art And Architecture

Advanced Greek Art and Architecture

Vocabulary · metope · triglyph · entablature · pediment · frieze

Architectural Sculpture Archaic: Pediment of the Temple of Artemis on Corfu 600-580 BC (Fig. 5-15) Decoration on the most important part: large triangular area under the peaked, tile-covered, wooden roof. Scene here of the Gorgon (sister of the monster Medusa) and the stylized lions is an early attempt to fill the triangular pedimental space. High relief; almost sculpture in the round, but still attached to the flat wall behind, meant to be seen only from the front. Head of the Gorgon overlaps the frame. Purpose of Gorgon is to serve as a guardian, ward off evil along with the lions (~ Assyrian lamassu) Archaic smile here a "hideous grin." Symmetrical, heraldic arrangement (like a coat of arms) of central figure with an animal on each side, like we saw in the soundbox of the Sumerian lyre. These 3 shapes and figures fit the space well, but the sculptor ADDS smaller narrative figures between/behind the main group. Causes a certain uneasiness. Soon, narrative will win out over heraldry.

Siphnian Treasury at Delphi 530 B.C. (Fig. 5-16) (miniature temple for storing gifts to the gods) Remnants are from the frieze. High and bas relief. "Shows part of the battle of the Greek gods against the giants. On the extreme left, two lions (who pull the chariot of Cybele) are tearing apart an anguished giant. In front of them, Apollo and Artemis advance together, shooting their arrows. A dead giant, despoiled of his armor, lies at their feet, while three others enter from the right." Projecting ledge used as a stage on which sculptor can place figures in depth. Arms/legs closest to us are carved completely in the round. Still have a second and third layer which are shallower and shallower.

Dying Warrior from the east pediment of the Temple of Aphaia at Aegina, ~490 BC. (Fig. 5-28) Marble, 6' long. Pediment sculpture not relief anymore, now completely "separate statues placed side by side in complex dramatic sequences designed to fit the triangular frame." This is the fallen warrior at the left end of the pediment, matches the one on the far right, creating an orderly and balanced design. Idealized nude male bodies which hint at the type of figures we will see in the Mature Classical period.

Classical Dionysus and Three Goddesses, East pediment of the Parthenon. ~440 BC. (Fig. 5-47) Chief sculptor of the decoration of the Parthenon is Phidias, who made the huge ivory and gold statue of Athena that was inside. Probably oversaw work of many sculptors. Phidian Style: 'wet' drapery, balanced, lifelike, graceful. Group of statues, "most in sitting or reclining poses, witnessing the birth of Athena from the head of Zeus." "We marvel at the spaciousness, the complete ease of movement of these statues even in repose." Their "'wet' drapery unites them in one continuous action, so that they seem in the process of rising."

Nike Taking off Her Sandal, (Fig. 5-54) from the balustrade of the Temple of Athena Nike, ~410 BC. Amazingly perceptual depiction. In the Phidian Style, esp the wet drapery, whose deep folds cling to her body (revealing the form beneath--early day wet t-shirt contest kinda thing) and shows the effects of Marsha K. Russell St. Andrew’s Episcopal School, Austin, TX gravity in the way it falls. Nike taking off her shoe cuz on holy ground, one wing open, one wing closed to help her keep her balance. Usually awkward movement becomes graceful and elegant.

Free-Standing Sculpture Classical Early Phase: SEVERE STYLE: 480-450 BC. How different from Archaic? · Contrapposto stance infuses the works with lifelikeness. "Life now suffuses the entire figure, so that the Archaic smile, the 'sign of life,' is no longer needed." · Serious, pensive expression · Still idealized, but more perceptual/realistic in its depiction of the human form, esp. in relation of parts to the whole and in depiction of the musculoskeletal structure. · Impression of solemnity · Later pieces are in motion, depicted as "stability in the midst of action." "Large, free-standing statues in motion are the most important achievement of the Severe style." Depends on the discovery of contrapposto and the concept of the body as a single unit. Archaic sculptures (esp on temples) shows figures in motion, "but it is somewhat mechanical and inflexible."

Charioteer from Delphi, ~470 BC 71" (Fig. 5-35) One of the earliest surviving bronzes, pulled out of the sea. Orig'ly attached to a chariot w/ 4 horses. Suggestion of contrapposto stance, serious expression, arms free from the body, folds of the cloth reacts to the form beneath it and to the pull of gravity as real cloth would. Pensive expression, color inlays of glass paste in his eyes. Bronze eyelashes.

Riace Warrior, ~450 BC. 80" (Fig. 5-34) Bronzes found in the sea off the coast of Italy. Eyes of glass and ivory, bronze eyelashes, copper lips, detailed anatomy, vivid expression, individualized features, give these tremendous sense of vitality. Don't really fit the mold of other sculpture at the time, esp. the unidealized realism of the heads. Still, show contrapposto stance, arms in motion, heads in motion.

Poseidon or Zeus 460-450 BC. Bronze, 6'10" (Fig. 5-36) Nearing end of Severe Style, shows the mastery of the figure at rest in the midst of motion. If P, holding a trident; if Z, a thunderbolt. Idealized. Calm face.

Discobolos by Myron, ~450 BC. (Fig. 5-37) Stability in the midst of motion. Became very famous in its own time for condensing "a sequence of movements into a single without freezing it...It involves a violent twist of the torso in order to bring the arms into the same plane as the action of the legs. The pose conveys the essence of the action by presenting the fully coiled figure in perfect balance." However, figure still appears to be made to be seen only from the front, as if for a pediment, not yet completely sculpture in the round.

Mature Classical Style: ~450-~338 BC Doryphorus (Spear Bearer) ~450-440 BC. by Polykleitos, who studied in the school of Phidias (Fig. 5-38). Marble copy of bronze original, 6'6" Used as a funerary marker, a Kouros statue. Defines the mature Classical style of sculpture: · Emphasized contrapposto stance, so that the left side of the body is clearly differentiated from the right side · Calm facial expression · Nude male · Realistic, yet idealized · Arms free from the body Also very famous for establishing the CANON (rules) of physical proportions in Greek and Greek- influenced figural sculpture Marsha K. Russell St. Andrew’s Episcopal School, Austin, TX Cnidian Aphrodite, Roman copy after original by PRAXITILES. 6'8" (Fig. 5-60) Made this sculptor famous, "the master of feminine grace and sensuous evocation of flesh." This the earliest known FREE- STANDING female nude, and 1st COMPLETELY NUDE female.

Hermes and Dionysus (prob a copy of orig) by PRAXITELES, ~320-300 BC. (Fig. 5-62)

GENERAL TRENDS TOWARD THE END OF THE FOURTH CENTURY · a new set of proportions replacing Polykleitos's which produced a more slender body and a smaller head · greater naturalism, with more spontaneity of movement and posture

HELLENISTIC FREE-STANDING SCULPTURE We know little of the development of sculpture during the first hundred years of the period, and by this point it is hard to pinpoint a single style due to the dispersion of Greek artists and the melding together of Greek and local styles, but some general characteristics can still be noted: · still more obvious naturalism (not shying away from showing flaws, age, etc.) · highly developed expressiveness (emotional appeal) · greater variety of drapery · greater variety of pose, often marked by the twisting of the body · willingness by the sculptor to experiment · wider variety of subject matter · less idealized, more human conception

Dying Gaul (aka Dying Trumpeter) Lifesize Roman marble copy of bronze orig, ~230 BC. (Fig. 5-81) Famous piece. "Heroic nudity of Greek warriors." Depicts physical agony, but borne with dignity. For the first time, we see in Grk art a realistic image of human death.

Nike of Samothrace Marble, 8', ~200 BC. (Fig. 5-82) Orig'ly shown having just descended to the prow of a ship, which was placed among rocks in the center of a fountain. Erected by the people on the tiny Aegean island of Samothrace to commemorate a naval victory. The moment of landing is shown by the action of the wind in the still-open wings and the wind-blown wet drapery of the goddess. "The invisible force of onrushing air here becomes a tangible reality....there is an active relationship--indeed, an interdependence-- between the statue and the space that envelops it, such as we have never seen before....The Nike of Samothrace deserves all of her fame as the greatest masterpiece of Hellenistic sculpture."

The Laocoon Group, marble Roman copy, 1st c AD 7' (Fig. 5-89) "Until the Nike was discovered 100 years ago, the most admired work of Hellenistic statuary." Found in Rome in 1506, huge impact on Michelangelo (twisted figures, emotional faces, detailed anatomy) and others