Art midterm 2026

main sourced 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

In what period did funerary vases exceed 1.5m while maintaining proportionality?

Late Geometric period

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 alternatives

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 and 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