Discobolos of Myron

1. Discobolos of Myron Alex Bowles

2. What? • Ancient Greek Statue • Bronze • Completed original at end of Severe period: 460-450 BC • Original bronze now lost • Known through various Roman marble & bronze copies • Designed within a single plain

3. Constructed by Myron • “ an example of the advancement of Classical sculpture from Archaic. ” • “ "to a modern eye, it may seem that Myron's desire for perfection has made him suppress too rigorously the sense of strain in the individual muscles,"

5. Myron of Eleutherae • 480-440BC • Born in Eleutherea next to Attica • Mentioned in Pliny’s natural history – Ageladas of Argos was his teacher • Worked in Bronze • Also constructed a Perseus, Cerberus, Marsyas, Athene, Hercules & Apollo

6. Severe Period • “Early Classic style” • Dominant ideal for Greek sculpture between 490-450BC • Shows greatest significant in the Metopes of the Temple of Zeus, Olympia • No firm chronology • Heaviness of facial features (eyelids &chin) and clothes • Increase in characterisation, through emotion • Interest in motion • Predominant bronze usage

7. Symmetry and repetition are avoided: for these are out of fashion • Difference in angles: mathmatical precision of Myron • Face shows no emotion

8. Etched hair No emotion/concentration/strain Thin, unrealistic eyebrows

9. Praise • “The early Greek Classical period saw many changes and innovation in art. Whereas previous artists had championed symmetry, repetition and pattern, Classical artists now sought to break from those restrictive values. Now, sculptors began to explore how movement could be portrayed in their work, and experimented with brave new poses and compositions. Symmetry was deliberately avoided in favour of more realistic, dynamic, and animated sculptures.” • “Discobolus successfully captures the ideas of athleticism and strength.”

11. Looks very impressive from front, but incorrect way to throw a discus

12. Woodford says.. • “From the front, both symmetry and repitition are avoided” • “The right side is a continuous unbroken curve, the left a jagged zig zag of straight lines” • “From the side, it lacks any characteristic angle and is just a muddled mass of shapes” • “Torso is realistic for static anatomy, but is incorrectly responding to violent response of limbs”

13. Critics/opinions • “succeeded admirable in giving life & motion to his figures, but did not succeed in rendering the emotions of the mind” • “The bodies of his men are of far greater excellence than the heads” • “The face of the discus thrower is calm and unruffled, but all the muscles of his body are concentrated in an effort”

15. Duplicates • From Hadrians Wall • Head shifted wrongly – should be facing discus • Roman, in British museum • Bronze, 2nd century a.d, roman • Facing the right way • Bronze reduction

16. Modern: • 1956 “discus thrower” in Washington D.C by Edward Park • Bronze • It was a gift from the Italian government to commemorate the return of looted art objects after world war 1

17. Questions for class • When was it built? • What period of what era? • Built by? • From where? • Who was his teacher? • Where is the original, how do we know about the statue? • Praised for work effort in the –muscles? –Face? • What didn’t the sculptor achieve?

18. Describe how the Discobolus is a statue that’s typical of it’s period in the Classical Era (25) • “Myron puts far too much effort into the details of the muscles and face” how far do you agree with this statement? (25) • “Original and innovative” how far do you think that this is true of the Discobolus of Myron? In your answer, you should include details of other statues aswell (50)