Archaic cult statue of ancient Greece 5 letters. Ancient Greek sculpture. How much does it cost to write your paper?

When confronted with Greek art, many outstanding minds expressed genuine admiration. One of the most famous researchers of the art of ancient Greece, Johann Winckelmann (1717-1768) speaks about Greek sculpture: “Connoisseurs and imitators of Greek works find in their masterful creations not only the most beautiful nature, but also more than nature, namely a certain ideal beauty, which... is created from images sketched by the mind." Everyone who writes about Greek art notes in it an amazing combination of naive spontaneity and depth, reality and fiction. It, especially in sculpture, embodies the ideal of man. What is the peculiarity of the ideal? Why did he charm people so much that the aged Goethe cried in the Louvre in front of the sculpture of Aphrodite?

Fortunately, the artistic output of the ancient Greeks was extensive because most of its now lost. But enough remains in the originals, fragments and copies that we can appreciate not only the volume of what was produced, but also its quality. While egyptian pharaoh Psammetichos allowed two groups of Greeks to settle along the banks of the Nile River. The Greeks learned the art of large stone carving from the Egyptians, although they used limestone and marble available in Greece rather than the harder porphyry and granodiorite favored by the Egyptians.

The Greeks always believed that only in a beautiful body can a beautiful soul live. Therefore, harmony of the body and external perfection are an indispensable condition and the basis of an ideal person. The Greek ideal is defined by the term kalokagathia(Greek kalos- wonderful + agathos Kind). Since kalokagathia includes the perfection of both physical constitution and spiritual and moral makeup, then at the same time, along with beauty and strength, the ideal carries justice, chastity, courage and rationality. This is what makes the Greek gods, sculpted by ancient sculptors, uniquely beautiful.

The Egyptian "look" was initially adopted by the Greeks, but they were not long content to produce sculptures in a style that served the East for many generations. Over the course of several centuries they developed their distinctive Greek approach and abandoned the Egyptian formula. The Greeks used a variety of materials for their large sculptures: limestone, marble, wood, bronze, terracotta, chryselephantine and even iron. The only material that survives in any quantity is stone; others were too precious or too fragile to survive the 25 centuries between production and the present.

The best ancient monuments greek sculpture were created in the 5th century. BC. But earlier works have also reached us. Statues of the 7th - 6th centuries. BC are symmetrical: one half of the body is a mirror image of the other. Shackled posture, outstretched arms pressed to the muscular body. Not the slightest tilt or turn of the head, but the lips are open in a smile. A smile seems to illuminate the sculpture from within with an expression of the joy of life.

The stone sculptures of the ancient Greeks would not appear to us today. Soon after the pieces were cut, they were fully or partially painted. This was in keeping with Egyptian practice, and it may have made sense in the bright sunshine of Greece. The statues were also equipped with a range of accessories that would make them look like figures in a modern wax museum. The hair and eyelashes were sculpted from metal. The eyes were inset and were made of glass, ivory or colored stones.

Female figures were often equipped with earrings and necklaces. Athletes would be shown wearing the crown of victory, while warriors would be equipped with spears, shields and swords. The horses wore bridles and reins. If you look closely, you can often see holes for attaching these accessories.

Later, during the period of classicism, statues acquired a greater variety of forms.

There have been attempts to conceptualize harmony algebraically. The first scientific study of what harmony is was undertaken by Pythagoras. The school that he founded examined issues of a philosophical and mathematical nature, applying mathematical calculations to all aspects of reality. Neither musical harmony nor harmony human body or architectural structure. The Pythagorean school considered number the basis and beginning of the world.

The head and limbs of Greek stone statues were often made separately and attached to the end of the statue using dowels and tenons of metal and stone. Sometimes cement was used to secure smaller pieces. Of particular note are the huge statues of deities such as Athena and Zeus, which were made of gold and chryselephantine ivory. They were enormous works of art by any standard and remind us that the main purpose of Greek sculpture, at least initially, was religious.

They were central temples, and their cost of production rivaled or exceeded that of the temple in which they were housed. A large wooden core made up the body of the statue, to which sheets of beaten gold and ivory were added. The statue was then always a target in times of war or economic uncertainty.

What does number theory have to do with Greek art? It turns out that it is the most direct, since the harmony of the spheres of the Universe and the harmony of the entire world is expressed by the same ratios of numbers, the main ones of which are the ratios 2/1, 3/2 and 4/3 (in music these are the octave, fifth and fourth, respectively). In addition, harmony presupposes the possibility of calculating any correlation of parts of each object, including sculpture, according to the following proportion: a / b = b / c, where a is any smaller part of the object, b is any larger part, c is the whole. On this basis the great Greek sculptor Polykleitos (V century BC) created a sculpture of a young spear-bearer (V century BC), which is called "Doriphoros" ("Spear-bearer") or "Canon" - after the title of the sculptor's work, where he, when discussing the theory of art, he considers the laws of depicting a perfect person.It is believed that the artist’s reasoning can also be applied to his sculpture.

The winner at various sports festivals or his supporters often paid for a statue of the athlete, installed either on the festival site or in his hometown. In addition, statues were often introduced to commemorate a historical event. The need for private grave markers and memorials also contributed to the constant demand for statues. The evolution of Greek sculpture is a journey from the realm of the rigid and stylized to the ideal of naturalism. The early numbers resemble a mathematical formula performed in a solid and unyielding medium.

The statues of Polykleitos are full of intense life. Polykleitos liked to depict athletes in a state of rest. Take the same "Spearman". This powerfully built man is full of self-esteem. He stands motionless in front of the viewer. But this is not the static peace of ancient Egyptian statues. Like a man who skillfully and easily controls his body, the spearman slightly bent one leg and shifted the weight of his body to the other. It seems that a moment will pass and he will take a step forward, turn his head, proud of his beauty and strength. Before us is a man strong, handsome, free from fear, proud, reserved - the embodiment of Greek ideals.

It's as if the sculptures came out of a frozen block of material. The later figures are much more relaxed and natural, so much so that one can easily imagine the statue sighing. In the world of the ancient Greeks there was a very close connection between sculpture and architecture. Both temples and sculptures were created to honor the gods, and the sculptures were not just decoration for the temple; together they came together to form an integrated and harmonious whole. The Parthenon is a good example, and modern Greeks have long stated that the so-called Elgin Marbles, now the centerpiece of the British Museum, were an integral part of the Parthenon and cry out for reunification with the building.

Unlike his contemporary Polykleitos, Myron loved to depict his statues in motion. Here, for example, is the statue “Discobolus” (5th century BC; Thermal Museum, Rome). Its author, the great sculptor Miron, depicted a beautiful young man at the moment when he swung a heavy disc. His body, caught in motion, is curved and tense, like a spring ready to unfold. Under the elastic skin of the arm pulled back, trained muscles bulged. The toes, forming a reliable support, pressed deep into the sand. The statues of Myron and Polykleitos were cast in bronze, but only marble copies of ancient Greek originals made by the Romans have reached us.

In his History of the Art of Antiquity, J. Winckelmann proposed a chronology of Greek art based on style. Following his example, scholars have used ancient literary sources to assign artists to surviving sculptures, as well as to name specific works mentioned by Pliny the Elder in his Natural History and other ancient authors. Pliny's separation of artists working in bronze from those working in marble showed that the Greeks preferred bronze for their public sculpture, whereas it now seems that the Romans more often used marble for sculpture in public and in their homes.

The Greeks considered Phidias the greatest sculptor of his time, who decorated the Parthenon with marble sculpture. His sculptures especially reflect that the gods in Greece are nothing more than images of an ideal person. The best preserved marble strip of the relief of the frieze is 160 m long. It depicts a procession heading to the temple of the goddess Athena - the Parthenon.

Pliny's division of the media and his prejudices in the art of his own time have led scholars to distinguish between Greek bronze originals, which rarely survive, and Roman marble copies, of which many survive. Although the concept is now understood to be oversimplified, textbooks covering classical sculpture, still tend to bring bronzes over marbles. At the same time, Roman marble versions of classical types of statues are still used as replacements for lost Greek statues.

The excellent photographs are a valuable tool for research in this area, and the work they have is acknowledged, even if the accompanying texts are less helpful. Because many of the works concern not only independent sculpture and relief, but also architectural sculpture, which they included here, although the subject is better suited to be considered with buildings decorated with sculptures. General textbooks on Greek art are not part of this bibliography.

The Parthenon sculpture was badly damaged. And “Athena Parthenos” perished in ancient times. She stood inside the temple and was incredibly beautiful. The goddess's head with a low, smooth forehead and rounded chin, neck and arms were made of ivory, and her hair, clothes, shield and helmet were minted from sheets of gold. The goddess in the form of a beautiful woman is the personification of Athens.

It is a useful exercise in methodology to read some of his work: his stylistic chronology continues to influence the field. As mentioned above, the Parthenon was a typical example of how the Greeks used sculpture to decorate and strengthen their religious buildings. The Parthenon sculptures were originally divided into three groups: the tripartite pediments on both sides contained large-scale free-standing groups containing numerous figures of gods and mythological scenes. On both sides there were almost 100 reliefs of fighting figures, including gods, humans, centaurs, and others.

Many stories are associated with this sculpture. The created masterpiece was so great and famous that its author immediately had many envious people. They tried in every possible way to insult the sculptor and looked for various reasons why they could accuse him of something. They say that Phidias was accused of allegedly concealing part of the gold given as material for the decoration of the goddess. To prove his innocence, Phidias removed all the gold objects from the sculpture and weighed them. The weight exactly coincided with the weight of the gold given for the sculpture. Then Phidias was accused of atheism. The reason for this was Athena's shield. It depicted the plot of the battle between the Greeks and the Amazons. Among the Greeks, Phidias depicted himself and his beloved Pericles. The image of Phidias on the shield became the cause of the conflict. Despite all the achievements of Phidias, the Greek public was able to turn against him. The life of the great sculptor ended in a cruel execution.

Around the entire building there was another relief structure about 150 meters long, which depicted the Great Panathenia - a religious 4-year festival praising Athena. Although they are badly damaged, the Parthenon sculptures reveal the supreme artistic ability of their creators. Above all, they, like many other classical Greek sculptures, reveal an amazing sense of movement, as well as a marked realism of the human body.

Painting in stone, terracotta and wood sculpture was another special technique mastered by Greek artists. Stone sculptures were usually painted in a bold color; although usually only those parts of the statue that represented the clothing or hair were painted while the skin remained in natural stone, sometimes the entire sculpture was painted. Sculpture painting was seen as a distinctive art—an early type of mixed media—rather than simply sculptural perfection. In addition to paint, the statue can also be decorated with precious materials.

The achievements of Phidias in the Parthenon were not exhaustive for his work. The sculptor created many other works, the best of which were the colossal bronze figure of Athena Promachos, erected on the Acropolis around 460 BC, and the equally huge ivory and gold figure of Zeus for the temple at Olympia. Unfortunately, the original works no longer exist and we cannot see with our own eyes magnificent works art of ancient Greece. Only their descriptions and copies remain. This was largely due to the fanatical destruction of statues by Christian believers.

Other notable 4th-century artists included Apelles' rivals Antiphilus and Protogenes, Euphranor of Corinth, Eupomus, and the historical artist Androcydes of Cyzicus. Then images of monsters appear: sirens and, in particular, sphinxes, the latter found mainly in the archaic period. A fragment of a marble phallus of enormous size still stands on a high pedestal at Delos, and according to its votive inscription, Dionysus was offered around the year 300 by the winner of the choir. Similar phalluses, carved for similar occasions, have been found in Athens.

This is how one can describe the statue of Zeus for the temple at Olympia: A huge fourteen-meter god sat on a golden throne, and it seemed that if he stood up, straightened his broad shoulders, he would feel cramped in the vast hall and the ceiling would be low. The head of Zeus was decorated with a wreath of olive branches - a sign of the peacefulness of the formidable god. The face, shoulders, arms, chest were made of ivory, and the cloak was thrown over his left shoulder. The crown and beard of Zeus were made of sparkling gold.

Greek statues: what are they for? What advantage did the patron expect? Why did he agree to this? Here we are faced with a basic misunderstanding that still prevents the layman from assessing Greek statue. In fact, these restrictions were relaxed only very late and to a very partial extent, so that the reasons why the ancient Greeks were going to go by introducing the statue into the round were in no way what we consider to be the chairmen of the Creativity sculptor.

Greek statues were hardly crowned works created solely for aesthetic reasons, which we now call art. It is not that the works discussed here did not have an aesthetic purpose, and even Greece did not ignore aspects of form or value in the works of the past that we see as components of art, but the most famous works were made for purposes that were pragmatic and specific - of course , not initially for the admiration of enlightened art lovers. Religious purpose of Greek sculpture.

Phidias endowed Zeus with human nobility. His handsome face, framed by a curly beard and curly hair, was not only stern, but also kind, his posture was solemn, stately and calm. The combination of physical beauty and kindness of soul emphasized his divine ideality. The statue made such an impression that, according to the ancient author, people, depressed by grief, sought consolation in contemplating the creation of Phidias. Rumor declared the statue of Zeus one of the “seven wonders of the world.”

First of all, and thus far from our modern concept of art, these goals were religious. Known as the Chryselephantian Zeus of Phidias, he was throughout antiquity, so famous that he was considered one of the Seven Wonders of the World, he was an idol inhabiting the main temple at Olympia; the same sculpted Athena Parthenos was made for the Parthenon. The Greek temple was not like a church where believers gathered, it was a house of god, that is, a statue in which God was believed to live, and whose main role was to ensure the presence of God.

The works of all three sculptors were similar in that they all depicted the harmony of a beautiful body and the kind soul contained in it. This was the main trend at the time.

Of course, norms and guidelines in Greek art changed throughout history. Archaic art was more straightforward, it lacked the deep meaning-filled understatement that delights humanity in the period of the Greek classics. In the Hellenistic era, when man lost his sense of the stability of the world, art lost its old ideals. It began to reflect the feelings of uncertainty about the future that reigned in the social trends of that time.

There are many indications that this belief was very real, at least in early times. The word "hedos" clearly denotes the statue as the seat of theology, authors such as Pausanias in his "Description of Greece" tell us that some very old statues of gods had no legs, or their legs were chained to prevent divinity from escaping and thus thereby removing protection from the city, and vice versa, there was a transfer or even theft of cult statues, an item constituting the plot of Euripides Iphigenia in Tauris, where Orestes and his sister would steal the statue of Tauride Artemis to take it home to Attica.

One thing united all periods of the development of Greek society and art: this, as M. Alpatov writes, was a special passion for plastic arts, for spatial arts. Such a predilection is understandable: huge reserves of a variety of colors, noble and ideal material - marble - provided ample opportunities for its implementation. Although most Greek sculptures were made in bronze, since marble was fragile, it was the texture of marble with its color and decorativeness that made it possible to reproduce the beauty of the human body with the greatest expressiveness. Therefore, most often “the human body, its structure and pliability, its harmony and flexibility attracted the attention of the Greeks; they willingly depicted the human body both naked and in light transparent clothing.”

Literature:
1. Children's Encyclopedia, volume 12, second edition, M., "Enlightenment", 1968.
2. Bystrova A. N. “The world of culture, the foundations of cultural studies”
3. Polikarpov V.S. Lectures on cultural studies - M.: "Gardarika", "Expert Bureau", 1997
4. http://www.uic.ssu.samara.ru/~ancient/rus/g42s.htm - High classics. Sculpture.

Ancient Greece was one of the greatest states in the world. During its existence and on its territory, the foundations of European art were laid. The surviving cultural monuments of that period testify to the highest achievements of the Greeks in the field of architecture, philosophical thought, poetry and, of course, sculpture. Few originals have survived: time does not spare even the most unique creations. We know largely about the skill for which the ancient sculptors of Ancient Greece were famous thanks to written sources and later Roman copies. However, this information is enough to understand the significance of the contribution of the Peloponnese inhabitants to

Periods

The sculptors of Ancient Greece were not always great creators. The era of the heyday of their skill was preceded by the archaic period (VII-VI centuries BC). The sculptures that have come down to us from that time are distinguished by their symmetry and static nature. They do not have that vitality and hidden internal movement that makes the statues look like frozen people. All the beauty of these early works is expressed through the face. It is no longer as static as the body: a smile radiates a feeling of joy and serenity, giving a special sound to the entire sculpture.

After the completion of the archaic period, the most fruitful time follows, in which the ancient sculptors of Ancient Greece created their most famous works. It is divided into several periods:

early classic - beginning of the 5th century. BC e.;
high classic - 5th century BC e.;
late classic - 4th century. BC e.;
Hellenism - end of the 4th century. BC e. - I century n. e.

Transition time

Early Classics is the period when the sculptors of Ancient Greece began to move away from static body position and look for new ways to express their ideas. Proportions are filled with natural beauty, poses become more dynamic, and faces become expressive.

The sculptor of Ancient Greece Myron created precisely during this period. In written sources, he is characterized as a master of conveying the anatomically correct structure of the body, capable of capturing reality with high accuracy. Myron's contemporaries also pointed out his shortcomings: in their opinion, the sculptor did not know how to impart beauty and liveliness to the faces of his creations.

The master's statues embody heroes, gods and animals. However, the sculptor of Ancient Greece Myron gave greatest preference to the depiction of athletes during their achievements in competitions. The famous “Discobolus” is his creation. The sculpture has not survived to this day in the original, but there are several copies of it. “Disco thrower” depicts an athlete preparing to launch his projectile. The athlete's body is superbly executed: tense muscles indicate the heaviness of the disc, the twisted body resembles a spring ready to unfold. It seems like just a second and the athlete will throw the projectile.

The statues “Athena” and “Marsyas” are also considered to be superbly executed by Myron, which have also come down to us only in the form of later copies.

Heyday

Outstanding sculptors of Ancient Greece worked throughout the entire period of high classics. At this time, the masters of creating reliefs and statues comprehend both the methods of conveying movement and the basics of harmony and proportions. High classics is the period of formation of those foundations of Greek sculpture, which later became the standard for many generations of masters, including the creators of the Renaissance.

At this time, the sculptor of Ancient Greece Polykleitos and the brilliant Phidias worked. Both of them made people admire themselves during their lifetime and were not forgotten for centuries.

Peace and Harmony

Polykleitos worked in the second half of the 5th century. BC e. He is known as a master of creating sculptures depicting athletes at rest. Unlike Miron’s “Disco Thrower,” his athletes are not tense, but relaxed, but at the same time the viewer has no doubt about their power and capabilities.

Polykleitos was the first to use a special body position: his heroes often rested on a pedestal with only one leg. This pose created a feeling of natural relaxation characteristic of a resting person.

Canon

Most famous sculpture Polykleitos is considered "Doriphoros", or "Spear-bearer". The work is also called the master's canon, since it embodies some of the principles of Pythagoreanism and is an example of a special way of posing a figure, contrapposto. The composition is based on the principle of cross-uneven movement of the body: the left side (the hand holding the spear and the leg set back) is relaxed, but at the same time in motion, in contrast to the tense and static right (the supporting leg and the arm straightened along the body).

Polykleitos later used a similar technique in many of his works. Its basic principles are set out in a treatise on aesthetics that has not reached us, written by the sculptor and called “Canon”. Enough great place in it, Polykleitos devoted a principle that he also successfully applied in his works, when this principle did not contradict the natural parameters of the body.

Recognized genius

All the ancient sculptors of Ancient Greece during the high classical period left behind admirable creations. However, the most outstanding among them was Phidias, rightfully considered the founder of European art. Unfortunately, the majority of the master’s works have survived to this day only as copies or descriptions on the pages of treatises by ancient authors.

Phidias worked on decorating the Athenian Parthenon. Today, an idea of the sculptor’s skill can be gathered from the preserved marble relief, 1.6 m long. It depicts numerous pilgrims heading to the rest of the decorations of the Parthenon were lost. The same fate befell the statue of Athena, installed here and created by Phidias. The goddess, made of ivory and gold, symbolized the city itself, its power and greatness.

Wonder of the world

Others outstanding sculptors Ancient Greece may have been little inferior to Phidias, but none of them could boast of creating a wonder of the world. Olympic was made by a master for the city where the famous Games took place. The height of the Thunderer, seated on a golden throne, was amazing (14 meters). Despite such power, the god did not look formidable: Phidias created a calm, majestic and solemn Zeus, somewhat strict, but at the same time kind. Before its death, the statue attracted many pilgrims seeking solace for nine centuries.

Late classic

With the end of the 5th century. BC e. The sculptors of Ancient Greece did not dry out. The names Scopas, Praxiteles and Lysippos are known to everyone who is interested in ancient art. They created in the next period, called late classic. The works of these masters develop and complement the achievements of the previous era. Each in their own way, they transform the sculpture, enriching it with new subjects, ways of working with material and options for conveying emotions.

Boiling passions

Skopas can be called an innovator for several reasons. The great sculptors of Ancient Greece who preceded him preferred to use bronze as a material. Skopas created his creations mainly from marble. Instead of the traditional calm and harmony that filled his works in Ancient Greece, the master chose expression. His creations are full of passions and emotions, they are more like real people than imperturbable gods.

The frieze of the mausoleum at Halicarnassus is considered the most famous work of Skopas. It depicts Amazonomachy - the struggle of the heroes of Greek myths with the warlike Amazons. The main features of the style inherent in the master are clearly visible in the surviving fragments of this creation.

Smoothness

Another sculptor of this period, Praxiteles, is considered the best Greek master in terms of conveying the grace of the body and inner spirituality. One of his outstanding works - Aphrodite of Knidos - was recognized by the master's contemporaries as the best creation ever created. The marble statue of the goddess became the first monumental depiction of the naked female body. The original has not reached us.

The features of the style characteristic of Praxiteles are fully visible in the statue of Hermes. With the special posing of the naked body, the smoothness of the lines and the softness of the halftones of the marble, the master was able to create a somewhat dreamy mood that literally envelops the sculpture.

Attention to detail

At the end of the late classical era, another famous Greek sculptor, Lysippos, worked. His creations were distinguished by special naturalism, careful elaboration of details, and some elongation of proportions. Lysippos strove to create statues full of grace and elegance. He honed his skills by studying the canon of Polykleitos. Contemporaries noted that the works of Lysippos, unlike Doryphoros, gave the impression of being more compact and balanced. According to legend, the master was the favorite creator of Alexander the Great.

Eastern influence

A new stage in the development of sculpture begins at the end of the 4th century. BC e. The border between the two periods is considered to be the time of the conquests of Alexander the Great. With them, the era of Hellenism actually begins, which was a combination of the art of Ancient Greece and eastern countries.

The sculptures of this period are based on the achievements of masters of previous centuries. Hellenistic art gave the world such works as the Venus de Milo. At the same time, the famous reliefs of the Pergamon Altar appeared. In some works of late Hellenism, there is a noticeable appeal to everyday subjects and details. This time had a strong influence on the development of the art of the Roman Empire.

Finally

The importance of antiquity as a source of spiritual and aesthetic ideals cannot be overestimated. Ancient sculptors in Ancient Greece laid not only the foundations of their own craft, but also the standards for understanding the beauty of the human body. They were able to solve the problem of depicting movement by changing the pose and shifting the center of gravity. The ancient sculptors of Ancient Greece learned to convey emotions and experiences with the help of processed stone, to create not just statues, but practically living figures, ready to move at any moment, sigh, smile. All these achievements will form the basis for the flourishing of culture during the Renaissance.