Art final 2026

main source of classical Greek art

pottery

What is the shiny black color on Greek pottery made of?

melted clay mixed with water

What figure is indicated artistically by a thunderbolt or an eagle?

Zeus

What figure is indicated artistically by the presence of a club or a lion?

Heracles

What figure is indicated artistically as a woman wearing a breastplate or holding an aegis?

Athena

What figure is indicated artistically by a trident?

Poseidon

What kind of figure would be depicted nude in battle?

heroes (“Heroic nudity”)

What is signified by the presence of a strigil (stick used to scrape oil off body)?

citizenry (only citizens were allowed to use gymnasia)

four features of ancient Greek art

pictorial, narrative, anthropocentric, abstract

What does it mean for classical Greek art to be anthropocentric?

idealization of the human body

The abstractness of Greek art relies on depicting ___ that viewers can recall without requiring a photographic portrayal.

known stories

What concept does the abstractness of Greek art reinforce between the artist and the contemporary viewer?

exclusive circle (cultural ties)

the system of all technical and formative elements which differentiate a work of art from others

style

The change over time of the standing nude male from the κουρος onward is an evolution of ___

style

Is an artist’s style consciously chosen or an unconscious response to trends & tradition?

may be either or both

Why is artistic style archeologically important?

chronology and interpretation

the classification into predetermined categories according to technical, iconographical, and stylistic features

typology

Identifying a statue as a “κουρος” is identifying its ___

type

Typology is most important for what archeological technique?

relative dating

To what period does the Athenian “eye cup” belong?

Archaic period

White-ground vessels were primarily used for what purpose?

funerary

the interpretation of pictorial themes based on a specific methodology

iconography

the examination of the basis for the existence of a work of art (its cultural background)

iconology

If iconography deals with the “what” of a piece of art, iconology deals with the “__”

why

What aspect of artistic interpretation is primarily concerned with symbolic and allegorical meanings?

iconography

Whereas pictorial art comprises recognizable forms, __ art comprises abstract shapes and patterns.

aniconic

Honey and bees are ___ symbols.

funerary

What is the interpretive importance of “everyday”/genre scenes?

reflection of societal values and beliefs

Archetypes like the exercising youth and the painting artist belong to what kind of art?

Genre scenes

What type of narrative represents a unity of time and space, depicting one image, in one space, at one moment?

monoscenic

During what period were monoscenic narratives dominant?

Classical

What type of narrative represents a visual summary of a story, depicting multiple episodes together in one image?

synchronic/synoptic

During what period were synchronic narratives dominant?

Archaic

What type of narrative depicts a series of consecutive compositions, each representing a separate, self-contained scene?

continuous/cyclic

What is the difference between synchronic and cyclic narratives?

Synchronic narratives do not repeat figures; cyclic narratives repeat the same figure for each separate scene it features in

Which narrative type maintains unity of time and place while also depicting multiple episodes?

cyclic/continuous

any representation of non-contradictory events that occur at separate times (succession)

narrative

What is necessary to qualify something as an “action” in a narrative?

must change circumstance, condition, or direction

The most important quality of a narrative is that it comprises a ___ set of forms.

recognizable

four functions within the narrative microstructure

nucleus, catalysts, indices, informants

function that depicts a narrative’s essential action and its participants

nucleus

A narrative’s nucleus must be open-ended. What is meant by this?

the action may result in a variety of plausible outcomes

function that elaborates on the main action of a narrative, but are not absolutely necessary

catalyst

Reacting spectators act within what function of a narrative?

catalysts

Depicting a person covering their head to show defense, fear, or withdrawal is an example of what narrative function?

catalyst

Depicting a woman with loose hair is a catalyst that shows what two possible states?

high emotions or movement

function that identifies specific participants or locates the narrative within time and place

informant

Body tattoos are an informant used to identify what kind of figure?

Thracian

Depicting a male circumcised to identify him as Egyptian is an example of what narrative function?

informant

function that refers to an event/idea/person outside the immediate narrative

index

A mirror shown in the background of a narrative that makes the viewer recall women’s social roles in Greece is an example of what function?

index

Quantity and quality of pottery and decoration declined following what major event in the twelfth century BCE?

the destruction of Mycenaean palatial culture

What is the first sign of a new sociopolitical culture following the fall of Mycenae?

Protogeometric pottery

Pottery divided with horizontal bands which include motifs like concentric circles, zigzags, and chequer patterns belongs to what era of art?

protogeometric

Figures on protogeometric pottery were painted using what technique?

silhouette

Adding incision detailing to a painted figure turns it from silhouette to what other technique?

black-figure

In what era of Greek art did figural decoration become more common, and where did it come from?

Geometric; Near east

The Dipylon vases belonged to what era of Greek art?

Geometric

What type of pottery usually signified a male burial?

krater

What type of pottery usually signified a female burial?

amphora

Do Geometric scenes qualify as narratives? Why/why not?

No; they do stress action, but too generic to be narratives

distant memories mingled with more recent political and cultural realities within art

anachronism

Statues of the tyrannicides Harmodius and Aristogeiton place the viewer within the scene as which element?

the victim (Hipparchos)

three aspects of macrostructure

• physical nature (architecture): scale, field of view, viewing angle, shape & framing of picture field

• Place of image (public or private)

• Purpose of the narrative: votive, grave good, public commemoration, domestic use

What elements of the macrostructure are most closely related to the informants of the microstructure?

space and time

“level of discourse”

how the space and time of the viewer relates to that of the narrative/story

three layers to the level of discourse:

1. space/time of the __

2. space/time of the __

3. space/time of the __

story; viewer; narrative

What is the importance of the space/time of the narrative within the level of discourse?

• links the viewer and the story (first two layers)

• can reestablish the link with new viewers after the original narrator is gone

systematic perspective

makes the space of the picture an extension of the space of the viewer

two artistic techniques that create systematic perspective

optical refinements & illusionism

prime example of art that uses systematic perspective

Tyrannicide sculptures

multi-perspective mode

some elements seen frontally, others from below and above

In multi-perspective mode, a variety of lines and angles converge on multiple foci, creating the illusion of __

three-dimensional space

unifying theme of Parthenon metope subjects (Amazonomachy, Fall of Troy, Gigantomachy) and the paradigmatic symbolism

imposing order over dark forces; Persian War

How does the Parthenon utilize the viewer’s field of vision?

columns obscure the relief, creating a series of vignettes that unfold the narrative

Cyclic, continuous, serial, unified, and progressive are all different types of ___ combinations.

syntagmatic

The Parthenon frieze is a ___ narrative.

progressive

four parameters of syntagmatic extension

• Treatment of the agents (nuclei)

• Space

• Time

• Segregation or integration of individual scenes

What was the main draw of Greek ware for Etruscans?

“Greekness” (exoticism)

Perizoma pottery exported to Etruria featured what subject?

clothed athletes

two musical instruments that were essential to Greek education

lyre, aulos (pipes)

synaulia

small concert with more than one instrument (no vocals)

pan flute glued together from multiple reeds

syrinx

large/heavy, loud stringed instrument used by professional musicians

kithara

While most gods (like Hermes & Dionysus) are pictured with a lyre when playing music, Apollo plays the ___

kithara

variation of a lyre with longer, straight arms that bend toward each other at the top

barbitos

What instrument is especially associated with revelry and amorousness?

barbitos

What instrument is played almost exclusively by women in Greek art?

harp

The seistron is a metal horseshoe-shaped instrument used to worship what Egyptian god?

Isis

The modern Greek verb for dance (χορευω) used to refer to what activity?

participating in a chorus

Pyrrhic dance

replication of battle movements; an armed dance

How is emotion shown in Greek art?

posture (not on the face)

What is usually indicated by a directly front-facing figure (disobeys the profile rule)?

madness

What are the basic tenets of the Classical Ideal as reflected in Greek art?

• existence can be ordered

• human ability can triumph over chaos

• human motivations are understandable

• equilibrium and balance

How is old age personified when fighting Heracles?

deformed/ugly with large genitals (comical effect)

What is significant about the portrayal of Priam and Hecuba in this amphora painting?

Priam is shown bald and with white hair to signify his age, but Hecuba is left young-looking so as not to make her “deformed”

Ancient Greek approaches to mania

1. Hippocratic Corpus: ___

2. Tragedy: ___

3. Philosophy: ___

1. neurobiological model (disease)

2. societal model (dysfunctional relationships)

3. psychological model (intellectual cure)

most famous depiction of mania in Greek art

Dionysus’ punishment of Pentheus