Greek Art: The Mature Classicism and Second Classicism
Historical and Cultural Context of Mature Classicism
During the 4th century BC, the Greek world underwent a profound transformation triggered by the Peloponnesian War. This conflict, which lasted thirty years from to , pitted Athens against Sparta and culminated in the definitive defeat of Athens. The subsequent century was characterized by relentless fratricidal wars between city-states until Philip of Macedon imposed the "League of Corinth," effectively bringing the Greeks under Macedonian submission. This period of inexorable political decadence shattered the long-held Greek faith in the primacy of reason and justice.
In the realm of art, this cultural crisis caused a significant shift in focus. The artistic gaze moved away from the detached, idealized gods of the 5th century and toward the specific experiences of humanity. The "Mature Classicism" or "Second Classicism" focuses on an intimist retreat, exploring human emotions, fragility, and internal life. While early Classicism favored the immobility and perfection of the divine, the Second Classicism embraces mobility, sinuosity, and the inherent instability of the human condition.
Skopas and the Language of Pathos
Skopas, active between and , stands as the primary interpreter of human drama and internal suffering. Working mainly in marble, he chose to depict deities that embodied human passions and sentiments, such as Aphrodite and Dionysus. His work introduced the concept of pathos—a visual expression of the internal drama of all humanity. His "Head of a Warrior" exemplifies this through a dramatic contrast between projecting, luminous surfaces and deep, shadowed recesses. The eyebrows are deeply arched, and the eyes are hollowed and imploring, creating an intense emotional charge.
One of his most significant works is the Dancing Maenad (or Bacchant), dated to the IV century BC. This work, surviving as a Roman marble copy in Dresden ( in height), completely abandons the principle of ponderazione (balanced weight distribution). The body is structured along two divergent axes: an oblique line rising from the leg to the waist, and a separate direction for the torso and head. The head is sharply rotated backward in a sudden, violent movement, expressing an unprecedented sense of impetuosity.
The Maenads were followers of Dionysus, the god of intoxication, who participated in orgiastic rites involving drinking and dancing into a state of total dizziness. In this sculpture, the movement does not originate from an athletic gesture but from a potent interior force. It is the nerves, rather than the muscles, that dictate the contractions and the twisting of the body. This psychological torsion represents the intensity of internal emotion rather than external beauty. Although the arms are lost, they followed the general torsion: the left arm was raised, clutching a goat (capretto) against the shoulder, while the right was extended backward, holding a knife.
Praxiteles and the Aesthetics of Grace and Sinuosity
Praxiteles () redefined the sculptural model by introducing greater softness, grace, and a sense of melancholy. Like Skopas, he humanized the divine. In the group "Hermes with the Infant Dionysus" (), Hermes is depicted as an affectionate older brother playing with a child, a scene entirely devoid of traditional divine solemnity. The Polykleitan canone is surpassed here; the pose is so unbalanced—due to the weight of the child on the right arm—that an external support (an a draped tree trunk) is required to maintain equilibrium.
Technically, Praxiteles achieved a high degree of virtuosity. The bodies are extremely smooth and polished, often treated with ganosis, a mixture of oil and wax that gave the marble an amber, flesh-like tone. To create chromatic and textural variety, he left the hair "scabra" (rough/unpolished) while finely chiseling the light, soft fabric of the mantle. The gaze of his figures is often distant and nostalgic, increasing the narrative intensity of the scene.
Other notable works by Praxiteles include:
- Aphrodite of Knidos: Depicts the goddess in a moment of intimacy as she prepares for a bath, her smooth, dynamic body contrasting with the deep chiaroscuro of her robes placed on a lateral support (a vase).
- Apollo Sauroctonos (The Lizard-Slayer): Shows the young god playfully leaning against a tree to strike a lizard. His center of gravity is shifted, his head is rotated and reclined, and the relaxed left leg touches the right heel, creating a fluid, sinuous silhouette.
Lysippos and the New Canon of Realism
Lysippos () served as the official sculptor for Alexander the Great, capturing the monarch's passionate personality and pioneering the psychological portrait. Preferring bronze, he is said to have produced statues, though none of his original bronzes survive today. Lysippos sought to represent reality as it appears to the eye rather than an idealized version of it.
His most famous work, the Apoxyòmenos (The Scraper), created in the second half of the IV century BC and surviving as a Roman marble copy in the Vatican Museums, depicts an athlete scraped with a strigil to remove the oil and dust after a competition. This choice of a mundane, ordinary moment—rather than a heroic victory—marks a significant departure from tradition. For the Greeks, the athlete was traditionally "kalos kai agathos" (beautiful and good), embodying both physical vigor and moral virtue. By showing him in a common act of hygiene, Lysippos humanizes the athletic ideal.
Lysippos explicitly rejected the previous mathematical and symmetrical canone of the 5th century. He introduced a new set of proportions:
- The head is made smaller (roughly of the total height) to make the body appear taller and more slender.
- The torso is elongated and sinuous, with narrow hips.
- Rhythm is substituted for rigid symmetry.
- One half of the body is in action while the other is at rest.
The Apoxyòmenos also conquered three-dimensional space. Unlike previous statues designed for a primary frontal view, this figure penetrates the space with its arms and is intended to be viewed from multiple angles. Lysippos understood that a three-dimensional form produces infinite images of itself, and he controlled the form to ensure it was perfectly balanced from every possible viewpoint. The right leg is flexed with a lateral shift, the pelvis is rotated, and the head is slightly tilted, creating an unstable but harmoniously realistic equilibrium.