The sculpture Doryphoros or “Spear Bearer” was created by sculptor Polykleitos in the Early Classical Period around 450-440 B.C.E out of bronze but was later recreated out of marble material. The ancient Greeks thought the human body was perfect, not the body itself, but how the mathematical proportions of every part of the body were in perfect relationship to the others. Polykleitos set out to capture what would perfect ideal beauty be? The idea that you could create a perfect body based on math was part of a bigger set of beliefs for the Greeks. Greeks would perform athletics nude in celebration of the body and it’s physical abilities. Although many people might assume that this sculpture is about war because it is named “Spear-Bearer”, …show more content…
We see a clear transition from stiff figures containing no motion to the Greek’s beginning to understand the body’s physiognomy. This is a classic example of Contrapposto. Doryphoros stands on his right foot leaving the left leg relaxed and the right leg the weight-bearing. The left arm would have been the weight-bearing of the bronze spear, similarly, leaving the right arm relaxed. This sets a counterbalance in the composition of the body.
In contrast, the Kouros figure has both feet firmly planted and if you were to draw a line connecting the ankles it would be horizontal to the ground. The Kouros figure is also symmetrical. Doryphoros, however, has the left ankle raised so you have a tilt in the axis of the knees as well as the hips. The axis of the hips is parallel to that of the knees. In Kouros, we can draw a perfect line right down the center of the body but Doryphoros that line creates an asymmetrical s-shape.
The right side of Doryphoros is compressed compared to his left because the left hip is hanging down over the relaxed leg, it’s not being supported. Polykleitos also shifts the head towards our left, once again, breaking the symmetry of the
“Pathos Hephaestus Eros” is a steel sculpture which stands
Kouros is a standing nude male in a free upright statue. Kore is a standing draped female statue with her body covered from her shoulders to toes, in a free upright statue. They were used for religious meaning, and used in sanctuaries, and mainly for tomb indicators, and mostly for the remembrance of the
Power and Pathos Essay The Seated Boxer, 300-200 B.C.E. is a work that may look as if the statue emanates power, but in actuality, emanates pity and sadness when examined more closely. This work of art was created during the Hellenistic era where Greek art displayed dramatic, detailed expression art. The Seated Boxer expresses this same sort of art from the Hellenistic era as the sculptor etched intricate details to the Seated Boxer from the details on its face, to its entire posture that it has been sculpted in. Greek classical art, such as The Warrior, has been known to display perfection of the works of art and emanates the theme of power from its posture to its expression that it displays. The theme of pathos is more associated with a somber theme, such as Epigonos, where the works of art evokes a sense of empathy from the viewers as they examine its details, emotions, and the general feeling it expresses.
The Greek period, ca. 900-30 BCE, this time period is the best known of develop ideals of human beauty. Therefore, I will use Kouros, Kritios Boy, and Spear Bearer to explain all the ideal heroic male nudes and what do they depict. However, the most important thing I am going to tell you is why the Kouros is symbolic and how the other two is naturalistic.
The sculpture represented an olympic event that was obviously important to the ancient Greeks and it suggests that the ancient Greeks valued people that are fit and
The hips have more similarities between rodent and human skeletons than other parts of the skeleton do. They look very similar to each other, the only difference here would be the way they have to carry weight. The pelvis of a rodent and the pelvis of a human are titled differently because both move (walk) in different ways. A human’s pelvis is tilted upward because we walk on two legs and we stand up straight. We don’t lean over or walk on four legs.
Creating an amazingly life-like appearance to its sculptures, not only demonstrated, in my mind, a higher intelligence, but is defiantly a tribute to their focus on superior strength and fitness. Although the realistic style was soon changed to create an even more ideal human figure, the understanding of the human body and how to recreate it through art was only the beginning of Greece’s contribution to the “classical ideal.” After their rise to power, gained by their triumph over Persia, the Greeks again changed the way we see art. This time they turned to their knowledge of geometry, focusing on the creation of grand architecture as their medium.
He is a marble statue found in the ruins of the Athenian Acropolis, a bit smaller than life-sized, and is dated at 480 BC, a transitionary period from the Archaic to Early Classical era of Greek art. He is an emerging youth nearing the cusp of puberty, with a weight shift characteristic of this artistic period. Overall, the piece displays an incredible understanding of human physiology, and has moved away from the twisted perspectives and unnatural stiffness of earlier art. An anatomical chain of events occurs with the weight shift, and his overall musculature and skeletal structure are unforced and lifelike. He is the most famous Early Classical statue.
Uncontrolled emotionalism and shameful truth were now common characteristics to most of them. Still throughout the hellenistic, many sculptures were distinguished by their calmness, grace, and compassion for human suffering. The Ancient Greek sculptures were commonly made from stone or wood and very few of them are still existing to this day. Many were made to reflect the image of a freestanding human form even when the statue was of a god, and for this reason many of the sculptures were naked, the Greeks saw nudity as something beautiful. Other of the sculptures showed athletic figures, to essentially portray what the Greeks perceived as an ideal human and what it should look
The trials of Ancient Greece and its Panhellenic ideals are cast in marble, as they’ve survived through antiquity into modern times, from the their revolution for independence against the Ottoman empire, to their modern entertainment which still contains Homeric
in both Ancient Greece and modern society, the lives of men are perceived to be of higher importance due to their masculinity. Meeting societies views on masculinity helps men do as they please. Their masculinity is made to be a very important thing, so when men have a physique they think they will not be told anything because their looks give them an excuse. With an image, men begin to feel higher up because of their strength, they do incorrect actions and also cheat. In The Odyssey we can see this masculinity portrayed by none other than the archetypal hero, Odysseus.
The Greek sculptures reach the new height of beauty, not only because the mastery of the technique, but also the fascination of human body. Greek art uses the outer appearance to reflect the inner power, it is the representative pattern of western art. The myth inspires the creation of sculpture. The fantasy of nature and society and the admire of god’s shape and personality makes the sculpture more multiple and abundant.
There are different styles of sculptures (art) first style to appear is the archaic style, Sculptures of human figures started appearing in Ancient Greece they called this period the Archaic period, and they were inspired from Egypt’s techniques but the Greeks adapted their own style and taste into their sculptures. The Greeks used mainly two materials to sculpt which is marble and bronze by the lost wax process. One of the first sculptures to appear was the New York Kouros it was cut out of pure marble and showing the spaces between the legs of the sculpture. In the archaic period, sculptures of females were called Korai the sculptures mainly show who serve Athena (The Greek
In both sculptures the hair is deeply carved and is a vivid feature of the busts. The detail of realism in David’s left hand we can see his veins on his hands when he is holding the slingshot and his ribs near the chest. In the bust of Commodus we can see the similar detail of his hands especially the joints above the knuckle area and how realistic it looks when he’s holding the apples and Hercules club on his. In both busts chest, arms and face are sooth. In both busts these sculptures have the portrait of emperor Commodus and the small town hero David as musculant where as in real life they weren’t this is done because Romans believed that the god made us humans and by showing David and Commodus as being musculant hey are portraying them as gods and God were portrayed to be musculant and strong.
The three types of Ancient Greek art were a progression of styles than began in approximately 700 BCE under the Archaic style. The Archaic style was very primitive and can be likened to Ancient Egyptian art and sculpture. The Archaic style would display the human body in very rigid and unnatural forms. Archaic sculptures were also well known for the “Archaic Smile”. Historians believe that the Greeks displayed their human sculptures with a smile to signify that they were representing someone who was “alive”.