Greece - Korina Miller [40]
The sculptures of the classical period show an obsession with the human figure and with drapery. Unfortunately, little original work from this period survives. Most freestanding classical sculptures described by ancient writers were made of bronze and survive only as marble copies made by the Romans.
The quest to attain total naturalism continued in the Hellenistic period; works of this period were animated, almost theatrical, in contrast to their serene Archaic and classical predecessors. These were revered by later artists such as Michelangelo, who was at the forefront of the rediscovery and appreciation of Greek works in the Renaissance. The end of the Hellenistic age signalled the decline of Greek sculpture’s pre-eminent position. The torch was handed to the Romans, who proved worthy successors. Sculpture in Greece never again attained any degree of true innovation.
Two of the foremost modern Greek sculptors from Tinos, where marble sculpture endures, were Dimitrios Filippotis and Yannoulis Halepas. Yiannis Kounellis is a pioneer of the Arte Provera movement, while Giorgos Zongolopoulos is best known for his trademark umbrella sculptures.
Modern Greek and international sculpture can be seen at the National Sculpture Gallery in Athens.
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Greek Art and Archaeology by John Griffiths Pedley is a super introduction to the development of Greek art and civilisation.
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POTTERY
The painted terracotta pots of ancient Greece, excavated after being buried throughout Greece over millennia, have enabled us to appreciate in small measure the tradition of ancient pictorial art.
Practised from the Stone Age on, pottery is one of the most ancient arts. At first vases were built with coils and wads of clay, but the art of throwing on the wheel was introduced in about 2000 BC and was then practised with great skill by Minoan and Mycenaean artists.
Minoan pottery is often characterised by a high centre of gravity and beaklike spouts, with flowing designs of spiral or marine and plant motifs. Painted decoration was applied as a white clay slip (a thin paste of clay and water) or one that fired to a greyish black or dull red. The Archaeological Museum in Iraklio has a wealth of Minoan pots.
Mycenaean pottery-shapes include a long-stemmed goblet and a globular vase with handles resembling a pair of stirrups. Decorative motifs are similar to those on Minoan pottery but are less fluid.
The 10th century BC saw the introduction of the Protogeometric style, with its substantial pots decorated with blackish-brown horizontal lines around the circumference, hatched triangles and compass-drawn concentric circles. This was followed by the new vase shape and more crowded decoration of the Geometric period, painted in a lustrous brown glaze on the light surface of the clay, with the same dark glaze used as a wash to cover the undecorated areas. Occasionally a touch of white was added. By the early 8th century BC figures were introduced, marking the introduction of the most fundamental element in the later tradition of classical art – the representation of gods, men and animals.
By the 7th century BC Corinth was producing pottery with added white and purple-red slip. These pots often featured friezes of lions, goats and swans, and a background full of rosettes. In 6th-century-BC Athens, artists used red clay with a high iron content. A thick colloidal slip made from this clay produced a glossy black surface that contrasted with the red and was enlivened with added white and purple-red. Attic pots, famed for their high quality, were exported throughout the Greek empire during this time and today grace the collections of international museums.
Reproductions