Art of Ancient Greece

1. Art of Ancient Greece

2. Vocabulary • Polis • Basic Greek city-state, consisted of a group of self-governing people • Acropolis • Elevated place in the center of the city occupied by the temples of the gods • Geometric Style • A style of vase painting that made use of bold, simple, linear designs • Archaic Style • A style of two-dimensional and three-dimensional art • 2D art utilizes a sense of three-dimensional space • 3d art consists of figures in stiff frontal poses

3. Minoans • Emerged around 3000 BCE • Named after King Minos • Settled the island of Crete • Rich and adventurous people • Homes consisted of elaborate complexes • Had running water, drainage systems, heating/cooling systems, and underground storage facilities • Civilization was centered on trade, not military power

4. Minoans cont. • Religion was polytheistic • Cult of the Sacred Bull • Celebrated by “bull dancing” or “bull leaping” • May have been the foundation for the myth/legend of the Minotaur • Minoan civilization disappears around 1500 BCE

5. Mycenaeans • Early conquerors of the area • Controlled the island of Crete after the Minoans disappeared • Called “tamers of horses” • Fought from chariots • Left all conquered lands in ruins • Provided Greece with myths, legends, and heroes • Also provided a source of ethics and moral order

6. Mycenaeans cont. • Primarily conquerors • Did involve themselves in some trade • Maintained their rule through military strength • Mycenaeans used their soldiers and armada of ships to conquer the legendary city of Troy • The Trojan War serves as the basis for the Greek epic poem The Iliad • Religious practices included burying the dead with honor • Also mummified corpses and buried them with their valuables

7. Mycenaeans cont. • Used paintings as decoration • Boar Hunt indicates that the Mycenaeans domesticated dogs as well as horses

8. Mycenaeans cont. • Mycenaean palaces were fortresses • Were constructed from large stone blocks • Placed at the top of the highest hill • Mycenaean civilization collapsed in 1200 BCE

9. The Dark Centuries • Also called the “Greek Middle Ages” • Occurs between the time of the Mycenaeans and the time of the Greek city-states • Roughly 400 years or so • Very little cultural or artistic activity during this time period • Conquerors and other peoples filtered in and out of the region with little or no lasting impact on art or culture

10. The Dark Centuries • Life switched from fortified cities to isolated farming communities • Trade and commerce slowed almost to the point of nonexistence • Iron replaced bronze for tools and weapons • Significant changes in burial practices occurred • Political power shifted from kings to powerful families

11. The Hellenes • After the “Greek Middle Ages” the people began to develop a sense of unification • These people called themselves “Hellenes” • People from several different areas began to speak the same language • Also used a common calendar which provides us with the date for the first Olympic Games

12. The First Olympic Games • The Games were meant to represent life’s struggles • The word “athletics” is derived from a Greek word that meant struggle • The time of the Games was one where Greeks could meet in a non-lethal context • Recognized their larger cultural, linguistic, and religious identities • The main event was a foot race to honor Zeus (king of the gods) • Later events included boxing, wrestling, and chariot racing

13. The Archaic Period • 800-480 BCE • Saw the emergence of the Greek polis • A polis consists of a collection of self-governing people • Each polis was surrounded by villages • Functioned as independent states • Each polis had its own sense of self

14. Polis • The polis is made up of two cities • A lower city where the people lived • An acropolis (high city) • An elevated place in the center of the city • Power in the polis belonged to the landowners and tribal leaders • The concept of a king gradually faded away • Was replaced with a group of elected officials • Often viewed as the precursor to modern democracy

15. Olympian Gods • The focus of Greek religion was this life • A large collection of gods formed the foundation of Greek religion • The history of the gods was recorded in myths • Traced by Homer in The Iliad • Also in Hesiod’s Theogony • Known as Olympian gods because they lived on Mount Olympus • The gods were descendants of the gods of the heavens and the earth

16. Olympian Gods cont. • The gods were represented in human terms • They were sometimes better than us, and at times they were worse that us as well • Implies that humans can be godlike • Zeus (god of the sky) was the king of the gods • Zeus’ brothers Poseidon and Hades ruled the rest of the universe • Poseidon was god of the seas and earthquakes • Hades was god of the underworld and land of the dead

17. Olympian Gods cont. • Dionysus • God of wine and reveling (fun, celebration) • Annual festivals honoring Dionysus gave birth to early Greek drama

18. “Love of Wisdom” • The archaic period laid the foundation for rationalism and logical thinking that would grow into philosophy • Philosophy means “love of wisdom” • Philosophy explores mankind’s place and purpose in the universe through reason instead of religion • Pythagoras concluded that mathematical relationships were universal • Universal constants could be applied throughout life • Known for the Pythagorean Theorum • A2 + b2 = c2

19. Pythagoras cont. • Utilized this mathematical truth to reveal a larger, universal truth about life • Harmony of Spheres • Deduced the numeric relationships among musical notes • Formed the basis of dividing musical scales into octaves (groups of eight tones)

20. Vase Painting • Geometric Style • Utilizes linearity (strong use of lines) • Uses zigzags, diamonds, and maze patterns • Human form shown in silhouette • Head, legs, and feet in profile • Designs fill virtually every space on the vase • Decorated in horizontal bands called registers • Figures would serve narrative purposes

21. Geometric Style Vase

22. Vase Painting • Archaic Style • Three dimensional space developed • The human body is depicted in a three-quarter position • Fabrics were depicted with more details • Pottery in the Archaic Style is divided into two types • Black-Figure pottery • Red-Figure pottery

23. Black-Figure Pottery • Black figures are placed onto the red clay of the pot • Details would be incised (carved out) • White would sometimes be added • Color women’s hair • Old men’s beards • Red used for horses’ manes and clothes

24. Red-Figure Pottery • Reverses the style of black-figure pottery • Black color creates the background for the images made on the red clay surface • Contours, fabric lines, etc. appear in black • Figures appear more lifelike when they appear in the color of the clay rather than the black figures earlier in the period

25. Red-Figure vs. Black-Figure

26. Sculpture • Kouros • Freestanding statues from the Archaic Period • Featured young males • Kouros means male youth • Exhibit a stiff, frontal pose • Emphasize physicality • Broad shoulders, well defined muscles, etc. • Not very lifelike however • The nature of a freestanding statue allows the sculptor to present the human form independently from non-living matter

27. Kouros cont. • Two defining characteristics • Represents an idealization of the human form • Attempts to indicate movement • The left foot is slightly ahead of the right foot

28. Sculpture • Kritios Boy • Marks the transition out of stiff poses into more subtle movements • First example of contrapposto stance • Head gently turns to one side • The body stands at rest • Displays a natural shifting and distribution of weight

29. Music • Music played a fundamental role in Greek life and education • In mythology, music had the power to influence behavior • Doctrine of ethos • Music had the power to influence character • Music embodied cultural values • Music, poetry, and dance were inseparable

30. Music • Greeks favored vocal music • Songs celebrated the acts of gods • Instruments typically were used to accompany vocals • Popular instruments included • The aulos (a woodwind that used two reeds) • The lyre (a stringed instrument)

31. Dance • Greeks believed the gods invented dancing • Oldest sources on Greek dance come from the Minoan civilization • Dance was at the center of Greek religious rituals • Greeks held dance competitions with large choruses • This practice is what gave birth to Greek theatre

32. Literature • Began as oral tradition before progressing to written works • Epic Poetry • Long narrative poems that used an elevated style of language • Homer • Greatest of the Greek poets • Composed the Iliad and the Odyssey • Created the mythological history that the Greeks accepted as their true history

33. Literature • Sappho • One of the first lyric poets • Lyric poetry focuses on the individual • Also accompanied by music played on a lyre • One of the first poets to write in the first person point of view • One of few well known female poets of the time

34. Literature • Hesiod • Poetry focused on hard work and the struggle of everyday life • Most famous work focuses on the mythological history of the gods • Theogony describes Zeus’ defeat of the Titans and the emergence of every Greek god

35. Literature • Aesop • Attributed to writing over 200 fables • Fables are stories, typically involving animals as characters, that teach some kind of moral lesson • “The Tortoise and the Hare” teaches that arrogance leads to defeat

36. Greek Classicism and Hellenism Vocabulary • Aesthetics – A branch of philosophy dealing with the nature of beauty & art and their relation to human beings • Classicism – Style of art relying on the fundamentals of simplicity, clarity of structure, and appeal to the intellect • Hellenistic Style – An approach to art characterized by individuality, virtuosity, and emotion • Frieze – A portion of a structure decorated with relief sculptures • Relief Sculpture – Images project depth from the background

37. Classicism and Hellenism Concepts & Contexts • The Persian Wars • Persian invaders were held off by the Greeks in 490 BCE at the Battle of Marathon • Persians returned in 480 BCE and defeated the Greeks at Thermopylae but were defeated again in 480 by the Greek navy near the island of Salamis • The Greeks defeated the Persians again at the Battle of Plataea in 479 BCE • The Persians would never set foot in Greece again

38. Concepts & Contexts • What to take away from the Persian War • The Greeks found that they were capable of defending their homelands by unifying • In the aftermath, the Athenians began to spread influence and power throughout the Aegean Sea • Formed the Delian League • Pericles became a great ruler and ruled during the Classical Period of Greek arts

39. Concepts & Contexts • Peloponnesian Wars • Series of wars between the city-states of Athens and Sparta • Clashes of ideologies • Sparta stood for the old ways of warriors and militarism • Athens stood for a new, more cultured and artistic democratic society • Effectively ended the reign of Athenians around the Aegean Sea

40. Concepts & Contexts • The Hellenistic Age • Begins with the conquest of Greece by King Philip II of Macedonia • Continued under the rule of Alexander the Great • Alexander was a student of the Greek philosopher Aristotle • Alexander developed a vast empire that had Greek culture at its center • Greek influence was spread throughout the known world

41. Concepts & Contexts • Historia • Means “inquiry” • Describes the development of history as a written form • Marked by careful research • Herodotus • “Father of History” • First to relate history in a descriptive form, rather than poetic • Often invented speeches for kings and generals that inspired troops • Presented his sources in such a way that readers could decide how reliable the sources were

42. Herodotus cont. • Believed that the present had its causes in the past • Who we are now, is based on what’s already been done • Thought the Persians were defeated by the Greeks because the Greeks were morally right

43. Historia cont. • Thucydides • Wrote a history of the Peloponnesian wars • Sought to instruct his readers through a clear and unbiased style of writing • Wanted his readers to be armed with knowledge when events of the past happened again in similar ways

44. Philosophy • In the middle of the 5th century BCE people began to question their existence • At this time, several different philosophies developed throughout Greece • All of these philosophies offered a different view of life and truth

45. Philosophy • Stoicism • Believed humans were the incarnation of logos (reason) • Approached life with apathy • Everything that happens is simply fate or the will of the gods • Epicureanism • Believed existence was temporary • A good life is one without troubles • Avoid getting involved with people, stay healthy, tolerate pain • Cynicism • Believed humans were animals by nature • A good life is one that satisfies our animal needs • Wisdom dictates that a man who desires nothing will lack nothing and be satisfied

46. Philosophy • Skepticism • Believed that nothing was certain • Human senses are unreliable • Skeptics question everything and refuse to see the truth of anything • Mystery Cults • Groups dedicated to religious extremism • Relied on emotions more than rationalism • Members had to go through secret initiations • Gave people a sense of belonging

47. Ethics & Aesthetics • Ethics – The general nature of morals and of the specific moral choices made by individuals • Socrates • Father of ethics • Called on people to examine their lives to find the real meaning of life • Questioned everyone about everything • Defended the right of people to speak freely

48. Ethics & Aesthetics • Socrates cont. • The center of Socrates’ thinking was the psyche (mind/soul) • Believed everyone had the responsibility to elevate their psyche to its highest potential • This was accomplished through education • Knowledge creates virtuous behavior, evil comes from a lack of knowledge • Was eventually arrested and charged with corrupting the youth of Athens

49. Ethics & Aesthetics • Plato • Taught by Socrates • The Republic • A series of dialogues involving Socrates that lays out the concept of an idealized political system • Invented aesthetics • Believed that art derived from skills of knowing • The quality of art comes from the artists skills • The beauty of art comes from the resemblance of an Ideal that exists beyond reality

50. Ethics & Aesthetics • Aristotle • Student of Plato • Became a tutor to Alexander the Great and taught him to revere all things Greek and despise everything else • Considered the first real scientist • Founder of formal logic