Exam 2 Essays

Question 1

What characterizes Greek art from the Archaic period in particular? Please discuss one example of Archaic architecture, one example of free-standing Archaic statuary (not sculptures from building pediments or friezes), and one example of Archaic vase painting. For each example, please give relevant information (name, material, location, time period), and discuss how your example illuminates characteristics of Archaic Greek art more broadly.

Answer 1

• Archaic smile: same expression no matter what
• frontality: meant to only look at them one way
• idealization: meant to have “perfect” features, because a good body reflects a good soul
• gendering messages: women did not show their bodies (didn’t have perfect soul), had to be modest, women were smaller, usually holding something like a religious offering.
• “calm before the storm” idea
• black figure pottery (registers, labeled figures)
• portrayed wars
• not a lot of movement; unnatural poses
• architecture: focus on ideal proportions, symmetry,

examples:
- temple of artemis (stone, corfu, Archaic), plan is traditional, it has the ideal porportions and symmetry with porches. pediments
- Kore in Ionian Dress (painted marble, Acropolis, Athens, Archaic)…typical female statue for this period, she’s not nude, she has light skin, she’s inside, not doing a lot, not strong, and she is wearing intricate garments, so her worth is in what she’s wearing. Archaic smile and frontally.
- Amphara by Exekias (black figure pottery, Athens/Etruria, Archaic) calm before the storm, Trojan War, labeled figures, black figure pottery, registers

Question 2

What characterizes Greek art from the Classical period in particular? Please discuss one example of Classical architecture, one example of free-standing Classical statuary (not sculptures from building pediments/metopes/friezes), and one example of Classical vase painting. For each example, please give relevant information (name, material, location, time period), and discuss how your example illuminates characteristics of Classical Greek art more broadly.

Answer 2

• portrayal of battles and myths on architecture
• calm before the storm
• calm, expressionless face (no more smile), lack of emotion
• different things happening with their poses; contrapposto
• lots of athletes being portrayed
• still male nude bodies, but older and less idealized, and not always frontal
• introduction of white-ground pottery, with more depth
• loss of frontality

examples:
- pediment with Pelops and Seer from Pediment with Pelops (painted stone, temple of Zeus, Olympia, Classical)…calm before the storms, battles and myths being depicted, athletes
- Kritios Boy (painted marble, Athens, Classical)…contrapposto, more naturalistic of a pose, head is slightly tiled so not fully frontal, no more archaic smile and instead has a expressionless face, still nude and pretty idealized
- ???????? Hiobid Krater (????????????????)…..Moving away from a common ground line, white ground pottery, more depth and movement, kind of chaos

Question 3

What characterizes Greek art from the Hellenistic period in particular? Please discuss one example of Hellenistic architecture, one example of Hellenistic architectural sculpture (part of a larger building or monument), and one example of free-standing Hellenistic statuary (not part of a larger building or monument). For each example, please give relevant information (name, material, location, time period), and discuss how your example illuminates characteristics of Hellenistic Greek art more broadly.

Answer 3

• Architecture is breaking from tradition (proportions, symmetry, etc), used more for prophecies
• more focus on poor and old, marginalized groups
• less idealization, more naturalistic poses, movement, action
• motion, emotion, and drama (no longer lack of emotion)
• still shows battles or myths
• loss of frontality

examples:

• Plan of Temple of Apollo (stone, Didyma, Hellenistic)…breaks from tradition, is dipteral, not symmetrical, has a temple inside, no roof over cella, used for prophecies
• Battle Against Giants (marble, Altar of Zeus, Pergamon, Hellenistic)… motion of figures, emotion of giant (scared, concerned), drama of snake biting him as Athena pulls his head (really dramatic moment, battle
• Suicidal Gaul (roman interpretation of bronze original, Pergamon, Hellenistic)…dramatic moment, he know’s he’s going to die, killed his wife…not frontal…movement, more natural poses

Question 4

In what ways was Greek art influenced by Near Eastern or Egyptian art? Please discuss three examples from at least two time periods of Greek history (Geometric, Orientalizing, Archaic, Classical, Hellenistic; reminder: you need a total of three examples). For each example, please provide relevant information (name, material, location, time period), and point to connections with specific Near Eastern or Egyptian art that may have influenced your Greek examples.

Answer 4

• Frontality: Egyptian art frequently portrayed their figures frontally, such as pharaohs being seated in a throne. This is found in archaic art and the period before.
• Idealization: Egyptian art portrayed their figures ideally, with perfect bodies and young faces. this is copied in the earlier periods of greek art.
• Theme of offerings or gods: this is found throughout greek culture as well, with most early female statues holding offerings or the frequent depictions of gods in their art.
• hybrid animals from near east: lions, boars, sirens (woman + bird), centaurs, sphinxes…in both cultures

examples:

• Black-figure amphora (painted pottery, Corinth, orientalizing) …shows powerful animals and even human +animal hybrids, which was a staple of the middle east with apotropaic guardian figures such as lamassu…multiple registers is from the mesopotamia, common ground line on registers
• Tenea Kouros (painted marble, Greece, Archaic)…frontality, elements of idealization, rigid pose, but nude. used to mark graves, as many egyptians used statues for their soul in the afterlife. both have mortuary purposes…darker color being used to decorate male statues as opposed to female
• Kritis boy (painted marble, Athens, classical)…mostly frontal, but not fully, idealized body in the nude, expressionless (not smiling or anything)

Question 5

In what ways did Greeks use art to express ideas about gender (the expectations or norms that went along with being male or female)? Please discuss three examples from at least two time periods of Greek history (Geometric, Orientalizing, Archaic, Classical, Hellenistic; reminder: you need a total of three examples), and make sure at least one of your examples illuminates male norms and one of your example illuminates female norms. For each example, please provide relevant information (name, material, location, time period), and discuss how your examples illuminate Greek gender norms.

Answer 5

• gender norms were very different for males and females
• women did not show their bodies (in the beginning), and males did (idea of a perfect body=perfect soul, and women didn’t have a perfect character)
• women needed to be more modest and they were not participating in nude activities, they were staying in the house, not doing a whole lot
• women were usually pictured holding something, like an offering…they were not complete if they were not serving some sort of function. (men were pictured either just standing there, or as athletes/warriors)
• women statues were usually smaller (4 feet compared to 6 feet)
• difference in color, dark vs. light

examples:
- Tenea Kouros (painted marble, Greece, Archaic)…nude, ideal body, which shows character. not doing anything, just standing there. darker colored, means he was outside.
- Kore in Ionian Dress (painted marble, acropolis, athens, Archaic)…not nude, doesn’t matter if she has a perfect body because she doesn’t have a perfect character, light colored skin (inside, not doing much), focus is on the intricate detailing of what she is wearing (her worth is superficial)
- suicidal gaul (roman interpretation of bronze original, Pergamon, hellenistic)…man is nude, woman is clothed. man is warrior, doing the killing, the heroic one, while the woman is the one being killed, being held, already dead.

Question 6

In 2-3 sentences, describe one way that cultural chauvinism has impacted the study of Ancient Greek art and architecture, including who benefits from that cultural chauvinism.

Answer 6

• Made people scrub them and remove paint in order to make them appear perfectly, marbled white…believed it was better that way
• copying of Greek architecture and taking of the Greek things to other countries, because it was so good that it needed to be a model
• comparing one’s culture to that of Greece, or claiming ancient greek ancestry, was a way of saying you were better than others. democracy coming from the greeks, architecture, coming from them, ideals…