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Ancient Greek Art Essay

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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”. The Classical style followed the Archaic style and began as early as 480 BCE. The Classical style occurred during the “Golden Age” of Greece and that can be exemplified in its art and sculpture. The art and sculpture represented …show more content…

The statue is very typical of the style and portrays a naked man taking one step forward with his arms held stiffly beside his body and his fists clenched with his thumbs pointed forward. The face is more rounded and more proportional than in earlier Daedalic sculptures, but still remains an unnatural representation of the human body. Kroisos has the “Archaic Smile” that was typical of the period which portrayed that he was alive. This is very different from the later periods as it is a very unnatural and imperfect representation of the human …show more content…

It is a depiction of Vergil’s account of the death of Lacoon and his sons in the Aeneid. The Trojan priest (Lacoon) and his sons are being strangled by sea serpents sent to punish him from the Greek Gods that favored Greece’s victory in the Trojan war. This is done in typical Hellenistic fashion where the anguish and pain that Lacoon is experiencing is clearly depicted on his face. One of the serpents is seen biting into is wrangled left hip as Lacoon yelps in pain. Also, although the scene is horrific, the eroticism of the period is still displayed as Laccon is portrayed with his legs wide open. The work differs very much from the other periods in its emotional depiction as well as depicting a twisted human

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The Odyssey, the story of Odysseus, a valiant warrior who is trying to make his way back home from the Trojan Wars, offers great insight into the life of the ancient Greeks at the time, who were believed to be the first group of people to establish a full civilization in Greece and to actually speak the Greek language. Not only does this story tell the tale of a struggling man trying to find his way home, it also provides insight of the way that the Greek culture was ran compared to that of other species, specifically the Cyclops that Odysseus and his crew eventually runs into. The encounter between the Cyclops Polyphemus and Odysseus can be seen depicted on an ancient drinking cup, known as a Kylix, that is kept in the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, Massachusetts.

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The Archaic sculpture of the Kore dates from the 7th century BCE, when the Greeks were evolving from their Dark Age. An Early Archaic style was termed as "Daedalic." This style was named after Daedalus, who is said to be the one of the first creators of making statues in antiquity design. This frontality, which was often used in Egyptian art as well as in earlier Greek reliefs, is suggestive for the origin of Daedalic sculpture. Standing at 75 centimeters tall, The Kore is a taller sculptures than what the Greeks worked with traditionally compared to works of art like Man and Centaur(750 BCE) which stood at 11 centimeters.

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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.

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Athens, Greece was a center piece of Ancient Greek artwork, their painted vessels became popular throughout history. Exekias and the Aegisthus Painter used the space and techniques available to covey a story, creating a center piece for conversation. In 550BCE the workshop of Exekias in Athens produced a terracotta, black figured amphora with scenes on both sides. The main side feature a scene from the legend of Theseus and the Minotaur.

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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.

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In ancient times, there is a general sense that women were simply items and slaves to their husbands. Ancient Greece specifically has a renowned reputation of favoring men. Men possessed the dominant role in public affairs and events while most women were pressured to stay at home. Very few records extensively discuss women; the records focus mostly on men. Despite the lacking records, it is certain how ancient Greeks viewed their women and their relationships with their male counterparts.

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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

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During the ancient times many cultures and races viewed art as something important for their lifestyles and part of their culture. Portraiture was one of the often used forms of art that either represented someone who once lived or a god that they worshipped. These forms of art were really important for various reasons, whether it was for worship, remembrance of the person or god, remembrance of an important day, tomb markers, etc. Three examples of portraitures made during the ancient times are: ‘Victory Stele of Naram-sin’, ‘Hatshepsut with Offering Jars’, and ‘Khafre Enthroned’. Each of these three pieces of art played a big role on the lives of the owners because it depicted them in the way that they wanted to be depicted.

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This is also to show power and strength of them and compare them to the gods in their skills and intelligence. This shows how people respected David and Commodus and hot they treated them like god like humans. They both have small lips, moth. In both busts the lips/mouth are shut. This can show how silence is more powerful than words as it’s seen in their action.

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Sculpture specifically focused on both human potential and achievements, plus the human experience. Firstly, the Greeks often sculpted humans instead of animals or monsters, which is human-centered enough. When they did sculpt gods or goddesses, these deities were anthropomorphic, having human characteristics. Classical sculpture used nudity to depict the ideal human form; subjects were often young male athletes or soldiers, epitomizing human potential and achievement. Hellenistic sculpture was more realistic and emotional, where the subjects were everyday people; this style focused on the struggles included in the human experience.

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