Ancient Greek Art

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Ancient Greek Art
Early Classical Period, Late Classical Period,
and the Hellenistic Period.

• By Kat Lawlis

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How did Greek Art earn its fame?

• During the time of 450 and 430 BC classical art
  in Athens produced some of the greatest
  masterpieces of architecture and sculpture.
• What made this art accomplished was the spirit it
  portrayed, where the gods became more human and
  men and women seemed to share the divine
  character of the gods.
• During this time, Athens unified the conflicting
  elements within the state, the rich and poor,
  aristocrats and middle classes, male and female,
  educated and uneducated, foreigners and citizens.

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The Classical Period

• The Early Classical Period (480-450 BC) was also
  known as the transitional period because it was a
  time where a perfect balance was found between
  organic and abstract forms.
• Within the Late Classical Period (400-300 BC)
  there was a strong emphasis on expressing emotion
  in art. Sculptures had elegant proportion and
  graceful beauty. Not a lot is known about the
  artists of this time period but that the style of
  these sculptors and other artists, were found
  from fragments and Roman copies. The painters
  were identified from vase and mural paintings.

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More about the Classical Period

• These periods were looked upon as one of the most
  successful and intelligent eras of artistic
  achievement in the West, although this era took
  place in a short amount of time.
• During this time, the Greeks and especially the
  Athenians, made the fine arts of sculpture, vase
  painting, and architecture almost to perfection.
• Athens became the center of this artistic
  revolution and still remains a compelling
  reminder of Greeks artists.

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Classical Architecture
The Erechtheion, detail of Caryatid Porch
Constructed421 - 405 BC Athens, Greece
This piece of architecture shares the fame with
the Parthenon on the Athenian Acropolis. What
makes this piece unique though, is its amazing
Caryatid Porch (sometimes called Porch of the
Maidens). Caryatids are statues that are
decorative and structural (in this picture the
caryatids are placed on the south side of the
Erechtheion). These elegant supports were crafted
to resemble beautiful maidens. And with their
graceful hanging folds of cloth, the
juxtaposition of six caryatids ironically
portray the fluting of an Ionic column. The
Erechtheion is also known for the spot in which
it sits. As a legend says, this is the spot on
the Acropolis where the mythological contest
between Athena and Poseidon took place.
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Classical Architecture
The Parthenon (Detail) By Iktinos and
Kallikrates 447-432 BC Athens, Greece

This piece of architecture was made for the
goddess Athena. Designed by the famous
artist Phidias, the Parthenon had Doric columns
and sculptures of frieze, metopes, and pediments
that directly illustrated the Classical Greek
ideals of order, harmony, and balance. The
subtle characteristics of that the architects
utilized such as the swelling of the Doric
Columns gave this piece of art its power and
ability to be defined as a grand sculpture.
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Classical Sculpture
Three Goddesses (detail) Constructed in the 5th
Century by Phidias From the East Pediment,
Parthenon
The temple contained a supreme frieze including
gods and humans. On one section, the shallow
relief of Olympic Gods were shown to be
watching the rest of the frieze that included
human interaction. There are more important
Athenian myths that are depicted on the
opposite ends of the Parthenon where it
illustrates the birth of Athena and her contest
over Athens with Poseidon. Each relief of the
Parthenon articulates a story about the Athenian
people and their ambitions as well as their
relationships that they had with their gods who
watched them from Mt. Olympus..
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Classical Sculpture
Zeus or Poseidon (Detail) By an unknown
artist 460 BC
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Classical Vase Painting
Muse on Mount Helicon (detail) By an Achilles
Painter 440 BC
This painting is a rendering of one of the Muses,
who in Greek Mythology, were nine goddesses who
inspired the arts and humanities. It was made
with the white ground technique and was used as
an oil flask by the ancient Greeks but others say
that it was used for funeral offerings. This
Muse is depicted here playing an instrument with
idealized beauty that Greek artists so
often rendered.
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Hellenistic Art

• This period was during the adventures of
  Alexander the Great and was also the last great
  phase of Greek Art.
• Athens success slowly declined as places like
  Pergamun, Rhodes, and Alexandria became strong
  cultural centers.
• Masterpieces from this era included many
  sculptures (terra-cotta figurines)
• Artists of Greece and Rome made copies of these
  sculpture masterpieces for either private patrons
  or the Roman state.
• Most of what we know now about classical Greek
  art has originated from these pieces.

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Hellenistic Sculpture

• Aphrodite of Melos
• 150 BC
• Musee du Louvre, Paris

This sculpture is also referred to as Venus de
Milo and depicts the goddess of love and
beauty. The form of this sculpture has
characteristics of Classical sculpture,
although it was made in the Hellenistic Period.
But, there are details that purely resemble this
era. One is the drapery around Aphrodite's hips
and legs. This cloth has carefully carved folds
to resemble the swirling garments worn by
another famous Hellenistic statue Nike of
Samothrace.
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Hellenistic Sculpture
Laocoon By Hagesandros, Polydoros,
Athanadoros2nd Century BC Vatican Museums, Rome
This sculpture is known for its outstanding
technical skills as well as artistic bravado.
It ultimately captures raw emotion a
characteristic of the era. Although this marble
sculpture is believed to be a cast of a bronze
original, it maintains its dramatical aspects.
The Laocoon has three main figures, this bearded
man in the center, and his two sons, connected by
a snake. Supposedly, the myth of Laocoon is
about a Trojan Priest who alarmed the people of
Troy to not accept the wooden horse outside their
gates. He gave a speech and at its conclusion,
threw his spear into the horse. But, he was
punished afterwards and this sculpture captures
his pain and agony during his punishment.
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Hellenistic Sculpture
Nike of Samothrace 200 BC Musee du Louvre, Paris
This sculpture is of the Greek Goddess Nike
(represented the personification of victory) and
has been described with words such as movement,
drama, and dynamism. The sculpture articulates
the extreme technical skills of the Hellenistic
Period. She used to be part of a scene that
included a ships prow. Today, she is
thought to represent the victory of beauty
because in ancient Greece she symbolized
perfection.
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The Artist Phidias
Phidias was one of the greatest sculptors of
Ancient Greece. There is a great mystery as to
his actual existence, but from ancient writers
and their descriptions, his impact on later
sculpture was phenomenal. Of his most famous
works were the Athena Parthenos and Zeus (in
Temple of Olympia) that were made of beaten gold
and ivory pieces. It has been said that Phidias
had seen the exact image of the gods and that he
had revealed it to man. At one point, Pericles
placed Phidias in charge of all artistic
undertakings. Although the composition of the
human body was perfectly understood, Phidias
rendered bodies with control and harmony. He has
been called the initiator of the idealistic
because it was he who marked the Classical style
that Greeks are known for in the 5th and 4th
centuries.
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Ancient Greek artists defined what art is
today by setting the stage for perfection. They
inspired countless eras with their sculptures,
vase paintings, and incredible architecture.
Classical and Hellenistic art still illustrates
the power of Greece (most especially Athens)
through books, websites, and most
importantly Museums. THE END