Studied by 1 person
Eirene and Ploutos, Aphrodite of Knidos, Hermes and Dionysus, Antikytheran Youth, Apoxyomenos
Mitropolous & Snook on Eirene and Ploutos
The infant Ploutos, in three-quarter view, reaches his right hand to her face. According to an illustration on the Panathenaic amphora, he held a keras.
Eirene is massive, and a slightly old fashioned peplosphoros. Her maternal concern is indicated only in her poise, not her expression, and the child’s head is too small.
Woodford on Aphrodite of Knidos’ pose
It demonstrates that, using contrapposto, sensuousness and equilibrium can be applied to the female form. The formal arrangement originally devised for a male athlete has been modified to reveal the charm of the feminine form. The inert drapery and hydria contrast with the living form of the goddess, as well as providing structural support.
Woodford on Aphrodite of Knidos’ narrative
Bathing is an everyday ritual, and whilst the goddess appears very human, Aphrodite bathing was an important religious moment. Blending anthropomorphism with allusions to superhumanity is characteristic of Praxiteles.
Neer on Aphrodite of Knidos
Scholars argue over whether the garment is being dropped or grabbed, and this ambiguity is intentional. This voyeuristic teasing can be seen in the hand almost covering the groin. The Praxitelean formula is evident in the s-curve, blurred features, and soft flesh. Praxiteles realised that sex and scandal sell.
Pedley on Aphrodite of Knidos
Aphrodite stands naked, in an intuitive defensive gesture, but it is a fleeting pose. She has long legs and a small head, with the right hip pushed out and a slowly rising s-curve.
Mitropolous & Snook on Aphrodite of Knidos
The marble accentuates her softness and vulnerability. Gilding was probably used for hair, jewellery, and the hydria, but the drapery was likely painted.
Woodford on Antikytheran Youth
He is “athletic and robust”, and “muscular and sturdy”. The figure suggests suppressed vigour, and muscles ripple beneath the tight skin. Polykleitian contrapposto is enlivened by the outstretched arm. This breaks the frontal plane and creates a more intimate dynamic with the viewer. The musculature shows significant progression from the 5th century.
Harris & Zucker on Antikytheran Youth
You can imagine the bronze gleaming. The eyes are very lifelike and the figure stride into the viewer’s space; it is incredibly dramatic.
Neer on Antikytheran Youth
The identity is a mystery, but he held a spherical object. Physique and pose are once again burly, like Doryphoros, but the extended arm shows new spatial dynamism. Anatomy is distorted for effect; the limbs are longer on the right side, and the head is shrunken. This is almost Lysippian, but the profile is more Praxitelean to some scholars.
Woodford on Hermes and Dionysus
Hermes is tall and slender, with a smaller head than in the 5th century. He stands lazily and off-balance, with the weight on the right leg meaning the figure is dominated by curve and counter-curve. The tree trunk is important both structurally and visually.
Pedley on Hermes and Dionysus
The new s-curve, with awkward positioning of hips and torso, the slender proportions, and small head, are all new. The swinging curve is characteristic of Praxiteles. Soft modelling blurs transitions. The confidence in carving and finishing, and the slimmer proportions give the figure delicacy.
Mitropolous & Snook on Hermes and Dionysus
Hermes’ weight-bearing arm requires support due to marble’s low tensile strength, but Praxiteles hides this with drapery. This drapery also highlights Hermes’ nudity and divine form. Praxiteles exploits the limitations of marble to reinforce his narrative.
Boardman on Apoxyomenos
Lysippos has revised Polykleitos’ Canon, and he specialises in athletes. Apoxyomenos demonstrates the newer canon, with slimmer figures and smaller heads, and breaking away from frontal compositions. The figure invites in-the-round viewing.
Barringer on Apoxyomenos
The outstretched arm breaks the frontal plane and intrudes into the viewer’s space. His legs are extended laterally, unlike Doryphoros, for example, and places the weight on the right leg, with the left off to the side. The Apoxyomenos twists at the waist, producing a spiral effect which encourages in-the-round viewing.
Harris & Zucker on Apoxyomenos
Lysippos has added a full head’s worth of height to the Polykleitian ideal. Because of this, it gives us a sense of looking up at the figure, and that he is even taller than he is. The figure’s arm, reaching into space, breaks the frontal plane, which makes a viewer want to look at it in-the-round.
Woodford on Apoxyomenos
There is no single, satisfying point of view; it is instead exciting from a variety of viewpoints, and invites the viewer to walk around it. The freedom of the figure within the space, the easy positioning of the limbs, and the realistic anatomy are all Lysippian innovations.
