The Chaste Aphrodite on display at the Rijksmuseum van Oudheden is a largely destroyed sculpture of the Greek Goddess of Love and Beauty, Aphrodite. What remains of this marble Roman copy of the Hellenistic original that was originally produced in 3rd-2nd century BCE, is a sculpture of the torso with exposed breasts and pubic area. Even though the head and lower arms and legs are missing, it is evident that from the way Aphrodite’s waist bends, the sculpture originally utilized a contrapposto position, in which a standing human figure is poised in such a way that most of its weight rests upon one leg, freeing the other leg and causing a bend at the knee. Because of this weight shift, this causes the upper body and head to tilt at an angle, …show more content…
Hellenistic sculptures differed from those of the Classical period in the respect that they were more expressive and incited emotion. Furthermore, a greater emphasis on naturalism meant that the young men exemplified with perfect bodies in Archaic and Classical sculptures were no longer ideal. These concepts are illustrated in both the Chaste Aphrodite and the head of Aphrodite, another featured object in the Hellenistic section. The head of Aphrodite, which was also modeled in the style of Praxiteles, has a “smoothly modeled face. The marble was polished to a high sheen and resembles beautiful, silky skin...the near-omission of the lower eyelids gives the face a dreamy expression, and contrast between the smooth skin and the rougher hair is remarkable” (Rijksmuseum van Oudheden). There is a clear deviation from the practice of sculpting the idealistic structured body common to the Classical period. Hellenistic sculptures embraced both the idiosyncrasies and imperfections of the subject matter in order to achieve a higher degree of realism. Ignoring the hard, chiseled form typical to the Classical period, Praxiteles’ modeling of soft flesh creates a sensuous and sentimental effect, emotions that play well with a subject matter like Aphrodite. His attention to detail has made Aphrodite the perfect embodiment of female beauty and sexuality, as it has been said that the sculpture was so lifelike, it aroused men and caused them to physically embrace the sculpture. This manipulation of texture to create a highly realistic resemblance to human flesh to create elegance and sophistication is a Hellenistic innovation, and is exemplified well in this section of the
Political figures in art has always been an important part of our history, culture and artistic representation, Roman and Byzantine art is a classic case of these representations. The Equestrian Statue of Marcus Aurelius and Justinian as World Conqueror are two examples that demonstrate the power and prestige of these political authorities. First, Equestrian Statue of Marcus Aurelius from the Roman, Italy (173-176 CE) measures 11’6” high, cast in bronze. Secondly, Justinian as World conqueror from Byzantium period measures 13” x 11” entire panel, center panel 7” x 5” and 1” deep. The creator of the equestrian statue is unknown, however, the creator of Justinian’s ivory relief was probably made by the imperial work of Constantinople.
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 two pieces of art I will discuss is Edouard Manet’s ‘Olympia’ and Mary Cassatt 's ‘Woman in Black at the Opera’. Manet’s Olympia was not critically accepted, the reaction to his painting was negative, only four critics out of sixty were favorably disposed to Olympia. Olympia was a derivative of Titian 's Venus. In 1863 the critics and the viewers didn’t know how to take Olympia, “they were unable to cope with so many novel factors and so they were unable to categorize the picture and so were unable to analyze it or understand it in any context” (Laurence, 2012). Nowadays we are more open minded and are able to see the painting in a different light.
Introduction This paper will analyze and compare the Egyptian Standing Figure of Osiris with Egyptian Mummy Coffin of Pedusiri, visual elements of Ancient and Medieval Art and Architecture works from the collection of the Milwaukee Art Museum. By comparing and contrasting these two works, we will be able to see the salient parts of each of them more clearly and can better understand the relationship between their periods, cultures, or artists. This comparison will also reveal how these two cultures view the human anatomy and human spirit in different ways.
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
This period shows a very large shift from the stiff Archaic to a more realistic and sometimes idealistic portrayal of the human figure. The Hellenistic period 323-31/30 BCE. It is more difficult to see the distinctions between the classical and the Hellenistic period. Bothe periods did the majority of their sculpture as nudes. The Greeks portrayed a young, vigorous and athletic person in
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.
How did the beauty ideal evolve throughout the years? The ideal of the perfect human body can been seen as a result of culture. Every culture is different or differs in at least a few aspects. A lot of factors in a culture contribute to the formation of a beauty ideal.
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.
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.
Manet debuted, arguably one of his most famous paintings, Olympia at the 1865 Paris Salon. Since its debut, Olympia has been the source of much debate and controversy. The public saw this piece as obscene—a flagrant disrespect to established moral traditions. However, current discussions focus less on the “lewd” nature of this painting and more on the theoretical perspectives explaining why the public viewed Olympia as scandalous. In “Manet’s Olympia: The Figuration of Scandal,” author Charles Bernheimer argues for a Freudian perspective in which sex is the most important factor influencing public opinion.
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”.