Greek Vase Painting

Powerpoint presentation

1. Greek Vase Painting

2. Fowling in the Marshes, from the Tomb of Nebamun 18th Dynasty, British Museum Egyptian paintings have survived the ages in abundance because they were preserved in tombs — but not a single example of Greek painting has been found!  

3. Yet we know it existed because ancient writers have left tantalizing descriptions

4. For example, Pliny the Elder tells the story of a painting competition between two Greek painters, Zeuxis and Parrhasius

5. 19 th century illustration of Pliny’s story of the grapes of Zeuxis According to the story, Zeuxis painted grapes that were so realistic, birds came to peck at them

6. 19 th century illustration of Pliny’s story of the grapes of Zeuxis When Parrhasius presented his masterpiece, Zeuxis asked him to pull away the curtain that was hiding his painting — but it turned out that the curtain was the painting!. 

7. 19 th century illustration of Pliny’s story of the grapes of Zeuxis Parrhasius won the competition because Zeuxis had only fooled birds — but Parrhasius had fooled an expert! 

8. 19 th century illustration of Pliny’s story of the grapes of Zeuxis This story about the competition between two famous artists tells us that Greek painters achieved a high level of illusionistic realism in their art.  Unfortunately, none of it survives for us to see!

9. But painted Greek vases have survived in great abundance, and their decorations can help us imagine what Greek painting might have looked like

10. Pottery was a major Greek export industry, and vases came in a variety of shapes and sizes designed for different purposes.  Their decoration was often related to their function.

11. Geometric Krater from the Dipylon cemetary , Athens, c . 740 BCE The earliest vase paintings from the Geometric period were highly abstract, and were arranged on horizontal bands, using the register format

12. Geometric Krater from the Dipylon cemetary , Athens, c . 740 BCE This krater from the Dipylon cemetary outside Athens marked the grave of a fallen warrior

13. The top register shows the prothesis – the Greek funerary ritual in which the deceased is laid out on a funerary bier, surrounded by family and mourners

14. On the register below is a procession of warriors on chariots, and foot soldiers carrying hour glass shaped shields, probably referencing the military exploits of the deceased

15. The figures are rendered in a highly stylized stick-figure format, with triangular shapes for torsos, simple circles for their heads, and a dot to indicate the eye

16. Kleitas and Ergotimos , François Vase, c . 570 BCE During the Orientalizing and Archaic periods, figures became more complex, but remained highly stylized

17. Kleitas and Ergotimos , François Vase, c . 570 BCE The François Vase is decorated with episodes from Greek mythology, with characters labeled for legibility

18. This scene represents the story of the Lapiths and Centaurs, where members of a Greek tribe battled against the mythical creatures that were half man, and half horse

19. Amphora, c . 550-540 BCE Art Institute of Chicago During the Archaic and Classical periods, vase painters abandoned the register format and began to focus on a single scene of action

20. Amphora, c . 550-540 BCE Art Institute of Chicago The method used to decorate the vases is called black figure vase painting

21. To create the image, the artist would start with a sketch on the unglazed pot Source: Ancient Greek Vase Production and Black-Figure Technique (AIC) https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=10&v=FpLPx_Akl7Y  

22. The figures would then be painted with a slip, and details would be added with incised lines Source: Ancient Greek Vase Production and Black-Figure Technique (AIC) https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=10&v=FpLPx_Akl7Y  

23. A darker slip would be added for details such as the men’s hair, and a whiter slip for women’s skin Source: Ancient Greek Vase Production and Black-Figure Technique (AIC) https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=10&v=FpLPx_Akl7Y  

24. The vessel was then fired in a kiln at high temperature Source: Ancient Greek Vase Production and Black-Figure Technique (AIC) https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=10&v=FpLPx_Akl7Y  

25. The slip would turn glossy, while the background remained the reddish color of the unglazed clay Source: Ancient Greek Vase Production and Black-Figure Technique (AIC) https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=10&v=FpLPx_Akl7Y  

26. So, in black figure vase painting, the figures are black, and the background is red

27. Amphora, c . 550-540 BCE Art Institute of Chicago A variety of themes were depicted on Greek vases

28. Amphora, c . 550-540 BCE Art Institute of Chicago Amongst the most popular were scenes from mythology depicting the exploits of mythological characters like Herakles , legendary warriors, and athletic champions

29. Marvel Super Heroes, 1966 edition
Image source: http://www.mycomicshop.com/search?ItemID=21480461 So Greek vase paintings were kind of like our modern comic books, with thrilling stories about super heroes, which would have appealed to an aristocratic class that valued military valor and athletic prowess

30. Attic black-figure amphora, c . 550-540 BC Attributed to Exekias Louvre One of the most popular subjects was Herakles , who was given the task of performing twelve Labors

31. The first Labor was the Nemean lion, which he managed to defeat with his bare hands

32. Thereafter, the lion skin became his defining attribute

33. This kylix cup (used for drinking wine) illustrates an episode from Homer’s Iliad Attributed to the Amasis Painter, kylix cup, c.540 BCE Metropolitan Museum

34. It shows the god Poseidon (identifiable by his trident) readying his armies to aid the Greeks Attributed to the Amasis Painter, kylix cup, c.540 BCE Metropolitan Museum

35. Panathenaic amphora, ca. 530 B.C.; Archaic
Attributed to the Euphiletos Painter Many Greek vases were given as prizes to victors in the Olympic games

36. Panathenaic amphora, ca. 530 B.C.; Archaic
Attributed to the Euphiletos Painter This one shows a foot race on one side, and the goddess Athena on the other

37. In this detail we can see how the musculature has been incised with lines

38. The figures are rendered in a composite view – while the legs are seen from the side, the shoulders are twisted frontally

39. Exekias , Achilles and Ajax playing a dice game, detail of a black figure amphora, c . 540-530 BCE This vase was painted by Exekias , one of the leading vase painters of the 6 th century, and represents two of the heroes from Homer’s The Iliad

40. In this scene, Ajax and Achilles are playing a game of dice Achilles Ajax

41. We can tell who is winning because of the captions: Achilles says he has four (“ tesara ”), while Ajax has only three (“tri”)

42. Homer described Achilles as the “best of the Achaeans,” and Ajax as second best only to Achilles -- so the game would seem to underline the relationship between the two great heroes of the story

43. Exekias is famous because he began to explore more sophisticated techniques in the rendering of three dimensional forms

44. The shoulders, for example, are rendered in foreshortened perspective, rather than in the composite pose – so they appear to be projecting into space

45. And the shields on either side are seen in foreshortened perspective, rather than frontally, so they appear to recede into depth

46. Two handled amphora with Achilles and Ajax,525-520 BCE Museum of Fine Arts Boston This vase from the Museum of Fine Arts Boston shows the same story of Achilles and Ajax

47. The same scene is represented on the other side, but it uses a new style called red figure

48. Red figure is the opposite of black figure

49. Now, the background is painted with black slip, while the figures are left unpainted, so they take on the reddish color of the the unglazed clay

50. Details are painted with thin lines, rather than incised

51. BLACK FIGURE Figures are black Background is red RED FIGURE Figures are red Background is black

52. Euphronios , Herakles Wrestling Antaios , red figure calyx krater c . 510 BCE Louvre Red figure technique enabled increasing exploration of naturalistic effects in the rendering of human anatomy

53. Euphronios , Herakles Wrestling Antaios , red figure calyx krater c . 510 BCE Louvre In this scene we see Herakles wrestling with the Libyan giant Antaios

54. While Herakles is neatly coifed (his hair and beard are neatly trimmed), the giant has shaggy hair and an un-trimmed beard

55. Herakles ’ pose resembles an earlier black figure vase by Psiax depicting the hero wrestling the Nemean lion

56. The contrast makes it easy to see the greater naturalism made possible by the red figure technique

57. The figures’ poses are extraordinarily complex

58. And the rendering of the anatomy on Antaios’s torso is particularly impressive: he’s got six-pack abs, and we can even see his rib cage

59. So vase painters were keeping pace with sculptors in the accurate rendering of anatomy

60. Another popular theme in vase painting was the Greek symposium, an all-male drinking party

61. In this scene we see two men reclining on couches, drinking wine from kylix cups while being entertained by a flautist

62. While aristocratic women were not allowed to attend the symposium, professional prostitutes (called heterai ) were a common feature

63. Euthymides , Three revelers, red figure amphora, c . 510 BCE This amphora by Euthymides depicts three male revelers at a symposium

64. The artist depicts each figure from a different perspective

65. Compared to the stylized figures of earlier Black Figure vases, Euthymides ’ figures have become more three-dimensional and life-like Ezekias, Achilles slaying Penthesilea , 530-525 BCE British Museum

66. The ancient convention of the composite view has finally been abandoned, and the human figure now moves freely through three-dimensional space

67. Greek art introduced a new way of representing the figure based on how the eye actually sees it (optical approach), rather than relying on the artificial formulas that had been used through ancient art