Hoorcollege 1: Griekse bouwkunst voorbereiding
Janson, Hoofdstuk 4: Aegean Art:
Aegean sea between GR and Tur. GR culture on the mainland: Helladic.
Arthur Evans named culture on Crete Minoan due to association with king Minos. Schliemann
excavated sites in GR and Asia Minor to look for Trojan War.
Aegean Bronze Age:
Early: 3000-2000 BCE. Corresponds to Sumerian and Akkadian culture in Meso.
Middle: 2000-1600 BCE: Middle kingdom in EG and rise of Babylon in Meso.
Late: 1600-1100 BCE: Hittite overthrow of Babylon. Rise of Assyrians.
Collapse of the Bronze Age: mass destruction of Aegean sites.
Early Cycladic Art:
Funerary practices indicate wealth in Cyclades. Carved figurines indicate wealth and appeal to
19th and 20th c audiences due to their clean lines.
Provenance: where and how an artefact is found and their subsequent history.
Minoan Art:
Due to geography, Minoan populations tended to be small, scattered and independent. Skilled
seafarers. Linear A: first Aegean script around 2000BCE.
The Palace at Knossos: Second Palace period. Structures dating around 1700-1400BCE. Very
little exterior forticifications. Mazelike arrangement of rooms in the palace, but with internal logic.
Knossos is modest compared to Assyrian or Babylonian palaces.
The name of ‘palace’ is maybe not entirely accurate. Some rooms suggest both political and
sacred activities.
Wall Paintings: Representing Rituals and Nature: buon fresco: wide bands of geometric patterns
which serve as elaborate frames with no shading. Scenes on frescoes depict landscapes and
maritime activity.
Minoan Pottery: ‘Eggshell’ ceramics as on of the first major intnat industry. Organic approach to
their wares.
Carved Minoan Stone Vessels: softer stone. Harvester Vase and bull rhyton. The latter indicates
a ceremonial role for the image of the bull. Religious life was centered on shrines and natural
places considered sacred.
Late Minoan Art: Invaders from GR mainland (Mycenaeans) took over complexes on Crete, but
there is continuity of Minoan practice in the frescoes of this period.
Mycenaean Art:
Myc conquered Crete around 1450BCE. Since the start of the Late Hellenic Period, myc had
been building cities on mainland. Height of culture between 1500-1200.
Architecture: Citadels: Citadels when fortified or palaces. Linear B, derived from earlier
Linear A. B was an early form of Greek. Myc citadels often had extensive
fortifications → culture focused primarily on warfare.
,Propylon: gateway. Casemates: rooms and passages between walls. Lioness gateway is one of
the first large-scale sculptures known on Gr mainland. Could be case of a concept of animal
guardians at the gate of a palace. Megaron: large rectangular audience hall.
Mycenaean Tombs and Their Contents: Elite were building more dramatic tombs from 1600BCE
(End Middle Hell period). Round form called tholos. Best known is at Myc, called the ‘treasury of
Atreus’.
We understand very little about the interplay between Min and Myc art and how to distinguish
between them.
Sculptures: Freestanding sculptures are rare. Motifs and materials indicate trade links between
Myc and Eg, Min or Syria. Myc civ collapsed around 12-1100BCE, probably due to arrival of
new peoples on GR mainland.
Hoofdstuk 5: Greek Art
Modern western civ has constructed itself in the image of GR and Rom world, seen as the
height of cultural achievement. Greek thinkers conceived many aspects of life in dualistic terms
(cosmos vs chaos). Civ was GR and everything outside of it was barbarian. In their art, GR
addressed these opposites.
In GR art there are 3 sources of inf: works themselves, Roman copies of GR originals and
literature.
The Emergence of Greek Art: The Geometric Style
Three mains groups which lived on the mainland of Gr:
Dorians: on the Peloponnese;
Ionians: Attica, Euboea, Cyclades and central coasts of Asia Minor;
Aeolians: Northeast Aegean.
Oldest surviving style of gr art: Geometric Style, because of predominance of linear designs.
Mostly on pottery and bronze statues.
The Orientalizing Style: Horizons Expand:
Between 725 and 650 bce a new style of art emerged in Gr with strong influences from the Near
East and Eg: orientalizing period.
Miniature vessels: Orientalizing style replaced the geometric in many gr poleis. Foremost
center of prod was Corinth.
Archaic art: art of the city-state:
Polis: city-state. Represented a community and identity.
The Rise of Monumental Temple Architecture: Built to accompany altars. Chief function was to
provide shelter for the cult image, rather than house rituals.
Nucleus of a temple is the cella (or naos), which houses the god’s image. A collonade (peristyle)
surrounds the cella, which adds grandeurs and protection from the elements. Building rests on a
stylobate with three steps (stereobate).
Ionic lacks the muscular quality of a doric column. Evokes a growing plant. Above the
architrave, there is a continuous frieze, which is not split up into metopes and triglyphs.
,Scholar believe that the rise of monumental stone architecture must be a result of careful study
of Eg works and techniques. Maybe Doric building is a petrification of wooden forms.
Enneastyle: 9 columns at front and back.
Hexastyle: 6 columns at front and back.
Swelling effect: bulging in the middle of the column: entasis adds vitality and compresses
energy.
Ionic style first appeared about 50y after the doric. Seems strongly inspired by Near Eastern
forms.
Temple of Artemis in Ephesos: Theodoros of Samos. Dipteral: two rows of columns surrounding
it. First monumental building constructed mostly of marble.
Stone Sculpture:
Kouros is rigidly frontal and has stylized and wiglike hair. Early Gr sculptures are more stylized
than their Eg forebears. Most early Gr female sculptures are clothed since public nudity was not
acceptable for women.
Dating and naturalism: Archaic period: 650-480 BCE. Dating of sculpture based on
the level of naturalism. The more stylized the figure → the earlier it must be.
Kouros: sculpture of naked young man, typical for archaic period.
Kore: young woman, clothed. More variation in this type of sculpture.
Architectural Sculpture: The Building Comes Alive: Architects were often also sculptors. Lioness
Gate relief could be a conceptual ancestor to later GR architectural sculpture. The Artemis
Temple in Corfu has very high relief, unlike the Lioness Gate or earlier Meso/Eg relief styles,
which were shallow.
Acroteria: free-standing figures on the corners and centers of the pediment.
Caryatids: female statues which might replace columns.
The Siphnian Treasury, Delphi: Treasuries resembled mini-temples. It was a place where
people made dedications to Apollo. Relief on the freeze is shallow, but still contains multiple
layers. The sculptural field is filled from top to bottom, which enhances the frieze’s power.
Pediments of the Temple of Aphaia at Aegina: The east pediment was replaced in 480.
Differences between the east and west pediment show the advances the sculptors made
towards naturalism. More modeled and organic bodies. Depictions of suffering and how humans
respond to it are among the most dramatic developments of late Archaic art.
Vase Painting : Art of the Symposium: Difference between Archaic and Orientalizing vase
painting is technical. Archaic painting began to work with black-figured technique = black
silhouettes against red background in which details are incised. This started strong export
industry. Symposium: exclusive drinking parties that were a central feature to Gr life. Poetry,
music and sometimes sex accompanied these parties, but also more serious debates.
Hydria: water jar.
The black-figure technique left little room for detail, so painters left the figures red and filled in
the background. Now the scene is less dependent on profiles.
, The Classical Age
Beginning 5th c bce→ Ionian cities rebelled against Persian overlords with help of
Athens → Darius I invaded the Gr mainland → Battle of Marathon in 490bce, where
Athenians won despite being the weaker force.
480bce: Xerxes I defeated Spartan force at Thermopylae and ravaged Athens. At Salamis and
Plataea, Athens defeated the Persians. End of Archaic Period, beginning of Classical Age until
death of Alex.
Athens emerged from war as leader of the Delian League. Most important figure was Perikles.
Classical sculpture: Kritios boy: dated shortly before Persian attack was standing,
rather than leaning of mid-walk. Axis of the body is not a straight vertical line, but
an S-curve, with tilted hips: chiastic pose (contrapposto). Notion that if a body part
is engaged, other parts of the body respond: unified approach to body → movement
with new naturalism. New treatment of the flesh strengthens the impression of a
living statue. Marble is worked to be polished. Archaic smile is also gone. Gaze is
moved away and the figure seems in thought.
The Doryphoros: Ideals of Proportion and Harmony: Sculptors were exploring the body’s
articulation. Doryphoros: spear bearer. Polykleitos studied symmetria (principles of
commensurability), where part related to part.The search for an ideal system of proportions was
rooted in a belief that harmony existed in the universe and could be expressed in mathematical
terms. Beauty had a moral dimension for Athenians, since pose and expression revealed the
inner person.
Sculptures of the Temple of Zeus, Olympia: Figures are entangled in a compact group, rather
than experiencing individual conflicts. Faces also express struggle. Conflict between rational
and irrational lay at the heart of Gr art. Order vs chaos.
Architecture and Sculpture on the Athenian Akropolis: Centre of ath public life was on agora and
akropolis.
The Parthenon: Perikles conceived it to play a focal role in the cult of Athena, but there is no
altar. Iktinos and Kallikrates oversaw construction between 447 and 432 bce. Partly paid for by
Delian League funds. Unusually wide (octastyle), so there was space for a U-shaped colonnade
in the cella.
Opistonaos: rear room behind cella.
Shallow porch and two large windows → light in the cella: interest in embellishing
inner space.
Proportional schemes were not just a matter of design convenience, but also an attempt to
produce harmony through numerical relations.
Irregularities in the temple, like the curved floor and architrave were definitely intentional, but the
motivation is unclear.
The Parthenon sculptures: Elgin Marbles were sold to British Museum in 1816. Parth is often
viewed as the perfect embodiment of Classical Doric style, but this is not accurate, considering
the continued frieze. The frieze is remarkable, since mortal greeks are depicted in a space that
is usually reserved for divine and mythological scenes.
Pheidias is noted as the overseer of all the sculptural works.
Janson, Hoofdstuk 4: Aegean Art:
Aegean sea between GR and Tur. GR culture on the mainland: Helladic.
Arthur Evans named culture on Crete Minoan due to association with king Minos. Schliemann
excavated sites in GR and Asia Minor to look for Trojan War.
Aegean Bronze Age:
Early: 3000-2000 BCE. Corresponds to Sumerian and Akkadian culture in Meso.
Middle: 2000-1600 BCE: Middle kingdom in EG and rise of Babylon in Meso.
Late: 1600-1100 BCE: Hittite overthrow of Babylon. Rise of Assyrians.
Collapse of the Bronze Age: mass destruction of Aegean sites.
Early Cycladic Art:
Funerary practices indicate wealth in Cyclades. Carved figurines indicate wealth and appeal to
19th and 20th c audiences due to their clean lines.
Provenance: where and how an artefact is found and their subsequent history.
Minoan Art:
Due to geography, Minoan populations tended to be small, scattered and independent. Skilled
seafarers. Linear A: first Aegean script around 2000BCE.
The Palace at Knossos: Second Palace period. Structures dating around 1700-1400BCE. Very
little exterior forticifications. Mazelike arrangement of rooms in the palace, but with internal logic.
Knossos is modest compared to Assyrian or Babylonian palaces.
The name of ‘palace’ is maybe not entirely accurate. Some rooms suggest both political and
sacred activities.
Wall Paintings: Representing Rituals and Nature: buon fresco: wide bands of geometric patterns
which serve as elaborate frames with no shading. Scenes on frescoes depict landscapes and
maritime activity.
Minoan Pottery: ‘Eggshell’ ceramics as on of the first major intnat industry. Organic approach to
their wares.
Carved Minoan Stone Vessels: softer stone. Harvester Vase and bull rhyton. The latter indicates
a ceremonial role for the image of the bull. Religious life was centered on shrines and natural
places considered sacred.
Late Minoan Art: Invaders from GR mainland (Mycenaeans) took over complexes on Crete, but
there is continuity of Minoan practice in the frescoes of this period.
Mycenaean Art:
Myc conquered Crete around 1450BCE. Since the start of the Late Hellenic Period, myc had
been building cities on mainland. Height of culture between 1500-1200.
Architecture: Citadels: Citadels when fortified or palaces. Linear B, derived from earlier
Linear A. B was an early form of Greek. Myc citadels often had extensive
fortifications → culture focused primarily on warfare.
,Propylon: gateway. Casemates: rooms and passages between walls. Lioness gateway is one of
the first large-scale sculptures known on Gr mainland. Could be case of a concept of animal
guardians at the gate of a palace. Megaron: large rectangular audience hall.
Mycenaean Tombs and Their Contents: Elite were building more dramatic tombs from 1600BCE
(End Middle Hell period). Round form called tholos. Best known is at Myc, called the ‘treasury of
Atreus’.
We understand very little about the interplay between Min and Myc art and how to distinguish
between them.
Sculptures: Freestanding sculptures are rare. Motifs and materials indicate trade links between
Myc and Eg, Min or Syria. Myc civ collapsed around 12-1100BCE, probably due to arrival of
new peoples on GR mainland.
Hoofdstuk 5: Greek Art
Modern western civ has constructed itself in the image of GR and Rom world, seen as the
height of cultural achievement. Greek thinkers conceived many aspects of life in dualistic terms
(cosmos vs chaos). Civ was GR and everything outside of it was barbarian. In their art, GR
addressed these opposites.
In GR art there are 3 sources of inf: works themselves, Roman copies of GR originals and
literature.
The Emergence of Greek Art: The Geometric Style
Three mains groups which lived on the mainland of Gr:
Dorians: on the Peloponnese;
Ionians: Attica, Euboea, Cyclades and central coasts of Asia Minor;
Aeolians: Northeast Aegean.
Oldest surviving style of gr art: Geometric Style, because of predominance of linear designs.
Mostly on pottery and bronze statues.
The Orientalizing Style: Horizons Expand:
Between 725 and 650 bce a new style of art emerged in Gr with strong influences from the Near
East and Eg: orientalizing period.
Miniature vessels: Orientalizing style replaced the geometric in many gr poleis. Foremost
center of prod was Corinth.
Archaic art: art of the city-state:
Polis: city-state. Represented a community and identity.
The Rise of Monumental Temple Architecture: Built to accompany altars. Chief function was to
provide shelter for the cult image, rather than house rituals.
Nucleus of a temple is the cella (or naos), which houses the god’s image. A collonade (peristyle)
surrounds the cella, which adds grandeurs and protection from the elements. Building rests on a
stylobate with three steps (stereobate).
Ionic lacks the muscular quality of a doric column. Evokes a growing plant. Above the
architrave, there is a continuous frieze, which is not split up into metopes and triglyphs.
,Scholar believe that the rise of monumental stone architecture must be a result of careful study
of Eg works and techniques. Maybe Doric building is a petrification of wooden forms.
Enneastyle: 9 columns at front and back.
Hexastyle: 6 columns at front and back.
Swelling effect: bulging in the middle of the column: entasis adds vitality and compresses
energy.
Ionic style first appeared about 50y after the doric. Seems strongly inspired by Near Eastern
forms.
Temple of Artemis in Ephesos: Theodoros of Samos. Dipteral: two rows of columns surrounding
it. First monumental building constructed mostly of marble.
Stone Sculpture:
Kouros is rigidly frontal and has stylized and wiglike hair. Early Gr sculptures are more stylized
than their Eg forebears. Most early Gr female sculptures are clothed since public nudity was not
acceptable for women.
Dating and naturalism: Archaic period: 650-480 BCE. Dating of sculpture based on
the level of naturalism. The more stylized the figure → the earlier it must be.
Kouros: sculpture of naked young man, typical for archaic period.
Kore: young woman, clothed. More variation in this type of sculpture.
Architectural Sculpture: The Building Comes Alive: Architects were often also sculptors. Lioness
Gate relief could be a conceptual ancestor to later GR architectural sculpture. The Artemis
Temple in Corfu has very high relief, unlike the Lioness Gate or earlier Meso/Eg relief styles,
which were shallow.
Acroteria: free-standing figures on the corners and centers of the pediment.
Caryatids: female statues which might replace columns.
The Siphnian Treasury, Delphi: Treasuries resembled mini-temples. It was a place where
people made dedications to Apollo. Relief on the freeze is shallow, but still contains multiple
layers. The sculptural field is filled from top to bottom, which enhances the frieze’s power.
Pediments of the Temple of Aphaia at Aegina: The east pediment was replaced in 480.
Differences between the east and west pediment show the advances the sculptors made
towards naturalism. More modeled and organic bodies. Depictions of suffering and how humans
respond to it are among the most dramatic developments of late Archaic art.
Vase Painting : Art of the Symposium: Difference between Archaic and Orientalizing vase
painting is technical. Archaic painting began to work with black-figured technique = black
silhouettes against red background in which details are incised. This started strong export
industry. Symposium: exclusive drinking parties that were a central feature to Gr life. Poetry,
music and sometimes sex accompanied these parties, but also more serious debates.
Hydria: water jar.
The black-figure technique left little room for detail, so painters left the figures red and filled in
the background. Now the scene is less dependent on profiles.
, The Classical Age
Beginning 5th c bce→ Ionian cities rebelled against Persian overlords with help of
Athens → Darius I invaded the Gr mainland → Battle of Marathon in 490bce, where
Athenians won despite being the weaker force.
480bce: Xerxes I defeated Spartan force at Thermopylae and ravaged Athens. At Salamis and
Plataea, Athens defeated the Persians. End of Archaic Period, beginning of Classical Age until
death of Alex.
Athens emerged from war as leader of the Delian League. Most important figure was Perikles.
Classical sculpture: Kritios boy: dated shortly before Persian attack was standing,
rather than leaning of mid-walk. Axis of the body is not a straight vertical line, but
an S-curve, with tilted hips: chiastic pose (contrapposto). Notion that if a body part
is engaged, other parts of the body respond: unified approach to body → movement
with new naturalism. New treatment of the flesh strengthens the impression of a
living statue. Marble is worked to be polished. Archaic smile is also gone. Gaze is
moved away and the figure seems in thought.
The Doryphoros: Ideals of Proportion and Harmony: Sculptors were exploring the body’s
articulation. Doryphoros: spear bearer. Polykleitos studied symmetria (principles of
commensurability), where part related to part.The search for an ideal system of proportions was
rooted in a belief that harmony existed in the universe and could be expressed in mathematical
terms. Beauty had a moral dimension for Athenians, since pose and expression revealed the
inner person.
Sculptures of the Temple of Zeus, Olympia: Figures are entangled in a compact group, rather
than experiencing individual conflicts. Faces also express struggle. Conflict between rational
and irrational lay at the heart of Gr art. Order vs chaos.
Architecture and Sculpture on the Athenian Akropolis: Centre of ath public life was on agora and
akropolis.
The Parthenon: Perikles conceived it to play a focal role in the cult of Athena, but there is no
altar. Iktinos and Kallikrates oversaw construction between 447 and 432 bce. Partly paid for by
Delian League funds. Unusually wide (octastyle), so there was space for a U-shaped colonnade
in the cella.
Opistonaos: rear room behind cella.
Shallow porch and two large windows → light in the cella: interest in embellishing
inner space.
Proportional schemes were not just a matter of design convenience, but also an attempt to
produce harmony through numerical relations.
Irregularities in the temple, like the curved floor and architrave were definitely intentional, but the
motivation is unclear.
The Parthenon sculptures: Elgin Marbles were sold to British Museum in 1816. Parth is often
viewed as the perfect embodiment of Classical Doric style, but this is not accurate, considering
the continued frieze. The frieze is remarkable, since mortal greeks are depicted in a space that
is usually reserved for divine and mythological scenes.
Pheidias is noted as the overseer of all the sculptural works.
