Lansdowne Herakles Analysis

The image that has been chosen for this exercise is the Zeus Statue of Olympia. Since this image is not included in Art History by Stokstad, the incorporation of this image will contribute to a missing portion in the book regarding Zeus, the mightiest of the Greek gods in ancient Greece.

Heracles, a Greek demigod and son of Zeus, is known far and wide as one of the greatest heroes of Greek mythology due to his awesome accomplishments. However, Heracles is not only defined as a hero through these actions, but by his characteristics as well. In Euripides’ Heracles, his character is truly put to the test. His most prominent traits shown throughout the story are his loving devotion to his family, his kindness as both a friend and son, and his continued determination during horrendous times.

From the Athenian acropolis to the temples of Thebes, Panhellenism has been prevalent throughout Greece, from the age of heroes to the Ottoman conquest of Greece. Developed naturally, the enduring virtues and ideas acted as a vessel for the ideal western civilization that modern powers accordingly look up to as a template for enlightenment. The basis of Panhellenic development grew from Greek cities’ independence its values derived from it, which can be seen in Homer’s Iliad.

In the documentary, “Art of the Western World-The Classical Ideal”, the narrator provides a history and a perspective on the Greek and Roman creation of the “Classical Ideal” to art and architecture. The narrator infers that the foundation of the two societies, namely their democratic falsifies and religious foundations, along with their focus on fitness, personal strength, calculations and intelligence, drove Greece and later Rome, to perfect their visions of balance, symmetry and beauty in their architecture and art.

The Roman replica of the Dancing Maenad marble relief showed a dancing woman holding a stick as she looks down in a carefree ecstasy in the famous Greek tragedy The Bacchae. The dancing woman, a maenad, accompanied the Greek god Dionysus up toward the mountains. Although the relief is dated from approximately 27 BCE to 14 CE, the stone sculpture is a replica of a past work from the late 5th century BCE sculpted by Greek sculptor Kallimachos (Metmuseum.org). He also sculpted many other similar works (Richter, 10). Much of Roman culture bore resemblance to past Greek legend, as is exemplified by Dionysus’ transformation into Bacchus. The thorough replication of Greek sculpture and architecture, as is the case with the Dancing Maenad, suggested not only the beginning of new cultural and religious expansion in the Roman Republic, but also the great impact it had throughout the remainder of Rome’s history.

The ultimate purpose of the art object until the Hellenistic period is to be a figure of human perfection and the Ideal, most commonly in the form of a ruler or a deity via body politics. Anatomy and physiology of the statue or relief is often used to further the pancultural concepts of the Ideal as opposed to the physical representation of a specific, imperfect person. The conept itself speaks volumes about the culture from which it originates, and what that culture valued most of its people and of their lives. However, as the centuries thundered by and civilizations rose and fell, there is a clear shift in the artist’s attitude towards his or her art, and the artist begins to wean away from an aesthetic realm of perfection to the portrayal of a specific

I will explain two pieces that I would place in the Greek room at the gallery. The first piece is a painting called "Amphora". The artist of the piece is Exekias. He created precise styles in this work. This piece was created around 550-525 B.C. The second piece is a sculpture called the "Siren Vase". "It used to be in a famous collection of antiquities, paintings and drawings assembled by the brother of Napoleon Bonaparte" (source 1). This piece was created around 480-470 B.C. These two pieces were the best to use because these paintings were done on sculptures. Both of these artists masterfully created the paintings on a round and circular object and that attribute is

The relationships between the Greek gods and mortals have always been complicated. The gods can be generous and supportive, but also harsh and destructive towards the humans. They claim to be all powerful beings with unlimited power and influence, but in truth, they are far more human than they are perceived. They meddle with human lives, not because they are wise, but because of their own selfish reasons. In Homer’s The Odyssey, gods like Athena and Poseidon interfere with humans to satisfy their own desires, showing that they are just as imperfect and flawed as the mortals that they rule over.

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. It is initiate the innovate art style and help the next generation that how to continued to shaped western art culture, such as Rome period and Renaissance period. Every sculpture is a story about gods, heroes, religions and culture in general, Rome even actually copies some of the art works just for showing his respect and love. Some of the sculptures we can see right now for the ancient greek, it is actually the copies during the Roman period. The timeless idealized art work

Two very important historic buildings from the Greek and Roman civilizations, namely the Parthenon and the Pantheon respectively, are worthy of academic exploration. An analysis of their function and style will help to put their design and features into perspective, and create a better appreciation for their emulation in Western civilization. These buildings possess very unique individual characteristic designs, which bears testimony to the societies from which they originate. However, they are also a resourceful database of knowledge in terms of their symbolism, rich heritage of their era and application to the present civilization. Their permanent contribution to historical reference and modern society, are a token of their expression

Throughout the history of this planet there have been countless civilizations that have left their mark. The ancient Greek empire is one of those civilizations. What is so intriguing about ancient Greece is the stories and history of Greek mythology. Greek mythology represents much of the Greek way of life that occurred thousands of years ago. It shows us what people thought of the gods and goddesses and also what they thought of one another. One thing Greek mythology does show us is the role and perception of women in ancient Greece. It represents how women were treated and respected. Mythology shows us that women, unfortunately, were subject to sexism and inferiority from men. Many of the Greek gods showed their superiority over some of the

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.

The Romans emerged from Italy and formed their culture that can find its roots among an array of native tribes and Greek colonies that populated Italy. There are two parts of the foundation of a Roman’s identity that stemmed from the cultural influences that produced the Romans, their culture and their ideals. The first component of the foundation of the Roman identity is the usage and the incorporation of others’ myths into their own etiological myth. The second part stems from these myths that made the Romans believe that their existence and success was the result of fate. By looking into Virgil’s Aeneid and Sallust’s Conspiracy of Catiline one can see that this two-part foundation produced a society and people that embodied this idea that they were the best parts of all the cultures

Even though the ivory relief has a religious overtone, both are clearly done in the Old and New Rome classical esthetic. “Cast in glittering bronze, like the Equestrian Statue of Marcus Aurelius set up nearly 500 years earlier, it attests to the continuity between the art Old and New Rome, where pompous imperial images were commonly displayed at the apex of free standing columns” (Kleiner 258). Both art pieces are a classic example of power, prestige and clemency during their time of

Greek theatre was formed back in 500 BC by the Greek civilisation that used performing, miming and dancing as ways and means to tell stories, imitate others and for their rituals. They were two forms of plays that were showcased in the City of Dionysia; tragedy and satyr. The City of Dionysia was the festival celebrating the God Dionysus. Throughout this essay I will be describing the characteristics of Greek tragedy while using Sophocles’ ‘Oedipus the King’ as a reference.