• Minoan Period

  • culture in are delevoped

• Geometric period

  • end of dark ages → patterns/lines/shapes

  • horror vacui → fear of empty spaces (fulled artworks)

  • 900 → 700 BC

  • expansion through trade and colonisation

  • religion established

• Archaic Period

  • 700 → 480 BC

  • Athens began establishing itself

• Classical Period

  • 450 → 323 BC

  • birth of literature, philosphy and creative art

• Hellenistic Period

  • 323 → 166 BC

  • Invasion by persian and spartans

  • Death of Alexander the great

  • greek culture incorporated in the Roman culture

Greek Life and Beliefs

• excellence is based on laws of nature and reason

  • humans were the center of the philosphy

• Greek gods were anthropomorphic (human like)

  • Believed gods lived on olympus

  • humans and gods centered on a relationship of exchange

Apollo

• god of light, sun, truth and prohecy

• heroic

Dionysus

• wine, exctasy and intoxication

• opposite of Apollo

Hades

• god of the underworld

Amphora → two handles jar with a narrow neck

• carries wine and oil

Krater

• greek vessel for mixing water with wine (watering it down)

Terracotta

• hard red unglazed earth clay

Archaic Period

Kouroi (sculpture of naked male youth) and Kore (statue of woman)

• male kouroi figures based on egpytian statues

• naturalistic

• atheletic body, ideal form for a young greek male at that time

• female kore clothed → artists spent time perfecting the folds in the clothing

• Archaic smile

  • was considered realism for the greek public

Kouros of Tenea

• broad shoulders, developed pecs, narrow waist

  • signs of youthfulness (idealised male form)

• archaic smile

• marked the shift to a more naturalistic style

Kore

• female youth

• clothed and idealised form

• archaic smile, arms out to the side or holding out an offering

• stiff, block-like characteristics

• stylized hair

Kore from Akapolis (510BC)

• defined body with defined hips and elaborate clothing

• archaic smile

Peplos Kore

• young woman wearing peplos → heavy wool garment draping over whole bodly

• torse, legs and protrusion of breasts hint at form underneath

• paint remenants indicate dress yellow with details in blue and red

• animals on dress mean possibly god → artemis

Classical Architecture

The Parthenon

• mainly shrines/temples to protect statues of gods

  • placed central for all to see

  • show of power

• expressed harmony, balance and simplicity

• post and lintel

  • two pillars with a crossbeam

• greek temple

  • designed with progression from outer to inner

  • open and inclusive space

• early greek

  • stone tied with timber

  • saw how effect repetition was in Egypy → copied

• overtime → become more floral

• Fine white marble → Mount Pentelikon

  • house statue of Athena → didnt survive

  • wider than other temples

Art in this Period - Classical Art

Discobolos (460 → 450BC)

• contrapposto → shifting of weight onto one leg for balance in a sculpture to create a sense of realism

  • high classical period

  • looked as if it was filled with potential energy

  • idealized form frozen in time

• Rythmos → refers to measure, proportion or symmetry

• One leg bears the weight → contrapposto

• one arm tenses, other relaxed → diagonal lines in the composition to guides eyes

• new element in classical sculptures → showing potential energy

• almost like its the ‘perfect’ moment

• composition effects leads to disruption in symmetry which aids sense of balance

Hellenistic Period

• naturilism of body form/ experession for hyper realism

  • illicts emotioinal response

• not idealised, exaggerated → emphasized details

  • exploration of old age, drunkness, agony

Pathos → the quality or property of anything that touches feelings, stimulates emotions or awaken tender emotions

Lacoon and his Sons (42 → 20BC)

• warned Trojans of Trojan horse

• lacoon was a trojan priest

• athena and posieden sent two serpents to kill him and his two sons

• scene filled drama, tension, pathos

• figures caught in coil of serpent. faces filled with agony → tensed/strained muscles

• diagonal line right to left arm

• sons face doom with confusion and despair

• sons balance composition

• lacoon in contrast to others as closer to death

• contrast in texture

• carving and detals + musculature of body and deep drilling in hair = hellenstic

Roman History

• republican period

  • two groups

  • Particans (aristocrats who owned land) → rich (small percentage)

  • plebians → poor (majority)

• civil wars in 276 BC

  • octavian (Augustus) took power

  →

• Imperial Age

  • dictatorship

• 117 AD empire reached peak (territory expansion)

  • plagues + incompetent rulers lead to a weakened empire

• Diocletian divided the empire to exert more control

• Constantine then united the roman empire under his authroity after a series of victories over his rivals

  • under his rule he legitimsed christianity and moved the cpaital to constantinople

• after rule empire divided east and west = decline in political power

Religion

• key in maintaining social order within roman empire

• roman and greek gods easily compatible so they combined

• romans stole other countries beliefs

• Augustus exploited the utilitarian aspect of religion

roma dea → said that the emperor was special heritage and link spiritual world (special). promoted Augustus and then Rome

312AD → christianity became dominant and is still to this day

roman art

• romans developed their own characteristisc

• art used to push agendas

  • stories of power or success

• many early roman artworks copy greek artworks

Augustus of Prima Porta (town found)

• shows power of imagery/communicate idealogies

• depicted the military victor augustus

• statue predicted the 200 year peace ‘Pax Romana’ that he brought on

• freestanding marble

• contrapposto pose → right leg

• addressing his troops (arm and clothing)

• similiar to a classial greak sculpture of fifth century

• like tailors dummy → idealised male form

  • clothing and head added

• shows himself as the ideal greek yet he was a middle aged man

Symbolism

• cupid riding dolphin by leg

  • showing naval victory that made him sole ruler

• Cupid thought to be son of Venus

• wearing a Cuirass (breast plate) that covered figures with propoganda messages

  • intends to show he has god on his side

  • middle two figures represent roman and parthian

  • left is enemy partian (dipolomatic gcitory over in 20 BC)

  • right side is female personification of countries he conquered

    • refers to pax romana → message is that sun will shine on rome bringing peace

  • two major deities below apollo and diana → his support for traditional roman religion

  • bottom is tellus (earth goddess)

    • two bodies and cornucopia → symbol of feritility → overfilled horn = pax romana

  • expresses his connection to past, military victor and link to gods as roman bringer of peace

Roman Architecture

• firstly religion then solving problems (practical)

  • aquaducts, sewerage, roads, bridges, public baths, basilicas (public building with multiple functions)

  • aquaducts brought water to city and removed sewearge from city

• developments

  • arches, vaults and domes

• post and lintel rexttricted weight and size of building (two pillars with beam across)

• vaults + arches into cross vault then dome developed

  • weight pushed into supportive walls → no longer relied on columns for support

• barrlet vault (B) series of arches

• cross vault (C) is formed by an intersection

• development of slow drying mortar meant they could expand the potential of arch and vault to cover large spaces without interior support

the colosseum and concrete

• colosseum made of arches

  • doric-ionic-corinthian (purely aesthetic)

  • visually heaviest to lightest

Panthenon

• front contains rectangular colonade porch with a tall middle block

• 16 columns (red and black egyptian granite) → bases and captials of white greek marble

• slow drying concrete allowed the granite columns

• contrast between rectangularity of portico and circulairty of the rotunda

• ceiling guides viewers eye to center by using panels (coffers) that get progressively smaller to the top

• circular opening allowed only beam of light in, moved with the time of day singifying the passing of time or intangible light associated with the gods

  • later converted into church

• stood test of time.

Alexis Preller

• 6th september 1911 pretoria

• worked as clerk then left to england 1934

  • attended west minister school of art until 1935 when he came back

• left again in 1937 for paris

• visited many african countries

• early on he was fascinated by post-impressionist (big V dog) and paul ganguin

  • use of bright colours and imagitive transformation of nature attracted preller

  • also inspired Maggie Laubser and Irma Stern

Gold Primavera

• goddess/spirit of spring

  • repeated the portrait with different colour and scale

• relate to african head → basic shape can be seen in other works

• emblem of eternal beauty, feminity or masculinity

• warm earthyl colours (brown and ochers) yellow and shade light na dark, gives painting jewel-like quality

• feeling of antiquity/treasure further enhanced by gold leaves peeling around edges

• shapes and figures used to making aging

• coming of new season

• stylised → linked to his interpretation of an african woman

• through repeating the artwork, he gave it some sort of importantance and sacredness → similiar jesus

• personal syle can be connected to westerninfluences such as surrealism

• inspiration from his travels through africa → tribal life, dress and rituals

his works make you feel as if you are in an undiscovered kingdom with mythical figures and creatures. Created his own universe with exoticness. Own unique artistic imagery → visual form to his world.

Judith Mason

born in pretoria 1938

• extensive career as a teacher

• started at witwaterstrand, them uni of Pretoria, then Michaelis then a school in Florence, Italy

• oil paintins, pencil works, printmaking and mixed media

  • current religion and ancient mythology

• motivated by a strong social conscience

• Informed by people, creatures, events and sometimes poetry that invoked strong emotion (pathos)

• She brings her undestadnig of things to bring order to choas of the world. She is agnostic person filled with religous curiosity. Convey energy and presence on a canvas.

  • origin of western symbolism → most basic characteristics of human beings

  • explored the reason that humans act and think way they do

Arachne

• oil on board

• female figure alone in dark with her head bent forward

• ears as holes

• pink-fleshy colour → opaque

• dark eyes swollen → highlight strain of weaving

  • hump on back from continous bending

• cannot tell gender apart from breasts

• web of nooses acting as clothing → still expose breasts

• masculine hands hold a single knot

• her clothing nooses hang outside painting → bound by something outside the space

• pitch black background → loneliness

• focussed on noose = attempted suicide → background shows how she is trapped in her state of mind

• shows how human beings have authority over one another and not necessarily gods

• contrast of beauty and ugliness (common in her artworks) + figurative style and colour use

  • question human behaviour/mythologies could shed light on why humans act the way they do