History Online - Greek Sculpture
[an error occurred while processing this directive]Classical Greek Sculpture
Thomas Bulfinch:
Statues of Gods and Goddesses
To adequately represent to the eye the ideas intended to be conveyed to the mind under the several names of deities was a task which called into exercise the highest powers of genius and art. Of the many attempts four have been most celebrated, the first two known to us only by the descriptions of the ancients, the others still extant and the acknowledged masterpieces of the sculptor’s art.
THE STATUE of the Olympian Jupiter by Phidias was considered the highest achievement of this department of Grecian art. It was of colossal dimensions, and was what the ancients called “chryselephantine;” that is, composed of ivory and gold; the parts representing flesh being of ivory laid on a core of wood or stone, while the drapery and other ornaments were of gold. The height of the figure was forty feet, on a pedestal twelve feet high. The god was represented seated on his throne. His brows were crowned with a wreath of olive, and he held in his right hand a sceptre, and in his left a statue of Victory. The throne was of cedar, adorned with gold and precious stones.
THIS was also the work of Phidias. It stood in the Parthenon, or temple of Minerva at Athens. The goddess was represented standing. In one hand she held a spear, in the other a statue of Victory. Her helmet, highly decorated, was surmounted by a Sphinx. The statue was forty feet in height, and, like the Jupiter, composed of ivory and gold. The eyes were of marble, and probably painted to represent the iris and pupil. The Parthenon, in which this statue stood, was also constructed under the direction and superintendence of Phidias. Its exterior was enriched with sculptures, many of them from the hand of Phidias. The Elgin marbles, now in the British Museum, are a part of them.
Both the Jupiter and Minerva of Phidias are lost, but there is good ground to believe that we have, in several extant statues and busts, the artist’s conceptions of the countenances of both. They are characterized by grave and dignified beauty, and freedom from any transient expression, which in the language of art is called repose.
THE MOST highly esteemed of all the remains of ancient sculpture is the statue of Apollo, called the Belvedere, from the name of the apartment of the Pope’s palace at Rome in which it was placed. The artist is unknown. It is supposed to be a work of Roman art, of about the first century of our era. It is a standing figure, in marble, more than seven feet high, naked except for the cloak which is fastened around the neck and hangs over the extended left arm. It is supposed to represent the god in the moment when he has shot the arrow to destroy the monster Python. The victorious divinity is in the act of stepping forward. The left arm, which seems to have held the bow, is outstretched, and the head is turned in the same direction. In attitude and proportion the graceful majesty of the figure is unsurpassed. The effect is completed by the countenance, where on the perfection of youthful godlike beauty there dwells the consciousness of triumphant power.
THE DIANA of the Hind, in the palace of the Louvre, may be considered the counterpart to the Apollo Belvedere. The attitude much resembles that of the Apollo, the sizes correspond and also the style of execution. It is a work of the highest order, though by no means equal to the Apollo. The attitude is that of hurried and eager motion, the face that of a huntress in the excitement of the chase. The left hand is extended over the forehead of the Hind, which runs by her side, the right arm reaches backward over the shoulder to draw an arrow from the quiver.
THE OLYMPIAN JUPITER
THE MINERVA OF THE PARTHENON
THE APOLLO BELVEDERE
THE DIANA A LA BICHE
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Greek sculpture from before 480 B.C. is crude in its representation of human anatomy, but still has the freshness and vigor of youth. These statues of nude youths (kouros) and draped maidens (kore) usually stand stiffly with clenched fists and with one foot thrust forward--an obvious imitation of Egyptian statues. The fixed smile and formalized treatment of hair and drapery also reveal the sculptors' struggle to master their art. What made the Greeks different at this point was their willingness to experiment with new techniques. By contrast, the Egyptians were so bound by tradition that when Plato visited there, he noted that "no painter or artist is allowed to innovate on the traditional forms or invent new ones."
The mastery of technique around 480 B.C. ushered in the classical period of Greek sculpture whose "classic" principles of harmony, proportion and realism have shaped the course of Western art. Sculpture from this period displays an idealization of the human form, always a favorite subject of Greek art afterwards. The most famous sculptor from this time was Phidias, who carved both the relief sculptures on the outside of the Parthenon and the colossal ivory and gold statue of Athena on the inside.
The more relaxed character of fourth-century B.C. Hellenic sculpture, while still considered classical, lacks some of the grandeur and dignity that mark fifth-century art. Charm, grace, and individuality characterizes the work of Praxiteles, the most famous sculptor of this century. We can see these qualities in his supple statues of the god Hermes holding the young Dionysus and of Aphrodite stepping into her bath.
Pottery, the oldest Greek art, used crude imitations of Mycenaean forms at the beginning of the Greek Dark Age. Soon abstract geometric designs replaced the Mycenaean motifs. With the arrival of the archaic period came paintings of scenes from mythology and daily life. From surviving Greek pottery and mosaics, we can get an idea of what Greek painting, now lost, was like.
