SPECIAL TECHNIQUES IN ATHENIAN VASE DECORATION

Vases produced using the following special techniques can be seen in the new exhibition The Colors of Clay: Special Techniques in Athenian Vases, at the Getty Villa from June 8–September 4, 2006.

Bilingual Vases These vessels feature decoration that combined the newer red-figure technique and the traditional black-figure. They were made from around 525 B.C., when red-figure was invented, to about 500 B.C. Most bilingual objects are cups and amphorae (storage jars) and they usually depict a different subject on each side. One of the fascinating examples featured in this exhibition, however, depicts the same subject in nearly the same composition in both black- and red-figure.

Black- and Red-Figure Vase Painting The striking contrast of red-orange clay with shiny black gloss defines the look of Athenian vases. The black-figure technique was invented in Corinth around 700 B.C. and was adopted in Athens around 620 B.C., where it became the dominant technique of vase decoration for most of the sixth century. On a black-figure vase, black-gloss silhouettes are contrasted with the vessel’s red-orange clay body. Red- figure, essentially the reverse of black-figure, was invented in Athens around 525 B.C. and soon became the predominant technique of vase decoration. On a red-figure vessel, the forms are left in the red-orange color of the clay and the space around them is filled in with black gloss. These black- and red-figure techniques were accomplished in a complex three-stage firing process that transformed liquid clay slip (a solution of clay particles suspended in water) that was applied as decoration into a shiny metallic black surface.

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Outline Drawing This was an important early step in the creation of the silhouetted forms of both black- and red-figure vessels, and on occasion it was allowed to stand on its own. In black-figure, outline is especially associated with the Amasis Painter, an ancient vase painter who used it to define the contours of female figures. Later, in red-figure, outline was also utilized to suggest depth of form and spatial recession—extending the use of line to describe architectural and landscape elements.

Six’s Technique This is the rarest special technique, named after the modern Dutch scholar Jan Six (1857–1926), who first described it. It is believed to have been developed around 525 B.C., at about the same time that the red-figure technique was invented. In contrast to red-figure, Six’s technique achieves its effect by adding colors—such as white, red, and orange—over a continuous black-gloss ground. Painted silhouettes are often detailed with delicate incision, and sometimes individual forms are simply drawn with outlines incised into the black ground.

Coral Red Coral red is a rare lustrous gloss, made of iron-rich refined clay, designed to turn an orange-red color rather than black during firing. It achieves its distinctive color and shine from chemical reactions, which are still being investigated by scientists, during a three-stage firing process. Invented around 530 B.C., coral red was produced on fine ceramic ware for less than a century in only a few potters’ workshops, and is particularly associated with wine vessels, such as drinking cups. The eye-catching gloss was a spectacular alternative to black gloss for covering broad areas of a vase’s surface.

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Plastic Vases and Vases with Plastic Additions The word “plastic” is derived from the Greek verb plassein, meaning, “to mold.” Plastic vases are sculptural vessels that were made using molds in a variety of human, animal, and plant shapes, while vases with plastic additions are generally wheel-made vessels embellished with decorative sculptural additions, such as small mold-made heads. Production of plastic vases became common in the late 500s B.C. Small oil flasks for men often took the form of human body parts, and head-shaped wine vessels were often designed for the symposion (male drinking party). The potter Sotades’ elaborate wine vessels of the mid-400s B.C. represent the high point of Athenian plastic-vase production. His brightly polychromed (colored) statuette-vases were exotic creations that often depicted human figures along with animals. Sotades’ vases were exported widely, dedicated in sanctuaries, and deposited in tombs.

White-Ground Technique In this technique, a liquid slip made from white clay was applied to the vessel’s surface to provide a neutral base for painted decoration. Along with red-figure and coral red, white-ground became an important technique of vase decoration during the decades from about 530 B.C. to 500 B.C., and it remained popular until the end of the 400s B.C. It became closely associated with Athenian funerary lekythoi (oil jars), whose polychrome decoration of graceful human figures may have been influenced by the brilliant colors of large-scale painting of the fifth-century B.C.

Added Clay and Gilding In the late 500s B.C., raised clay covered with black gloss was added to vase-paintings in order to articulate details like hair or grapes. Added clay also served as a base for the application of gold leaf gilding, creating opulent glittering surfaces for details such as the jewelry of a goddess.

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Kerch-Style Vases The elaborate Athenian red-figure vessels of the fourth century B.C., called Kerch-style vases, are named after the modern Ukrainian city of Kerch (ancient Pantikapaion) on the coast of the Black Sea, where many of the finest examples have been found. Kerch-style vases often used bright colors, mold-made elements, added clay, and gilding, and often feature highly ornate figures. Clearly luxury items, the vessels were exported widely until the end of the Classical age. Examples have been found in Spain, Italy, North Africa, and Greece itself. Favored subjects are the world of women and their lovers, Dionysos, Demeter, Amazons, and griffins. Most of these subjects seem to have been painted by Athenian artisans to appeal to the tastes of their foreign clientele.

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