Greek Painted Vases - Amphora

            This vase was completed around 490 bc by a famous artist of the time, referred to as the Berlin artist. This artist was known for forgoing the use of rigid frames to outline his figures so that the contour of the vase is still prominent and the focus of the piece is on the solitary figure in the middle.  This particular figure is a musician, who is playing a kithara, which is a wooden string instrument.  The figure on the other side is said to be either an instructor or a judge who is actively listening to the kitharode (as the musician was referred to).  The purpose of these amphora vases was to hold or transport grapes, olive oil, wine, oil, or grains.  I chose this vase because I find its shape very aesthetically pleasing.

Egypt Presentation

Link: http://prezi.com/30hvlce-yfdi/copy-of-art-history-egypt-today

Iamikan's lines walls of Core Consciousness

      by: Vikki Matsis, October 14, 2010, Charleston Scene
      http://www.charlestonscene.com/news/2010/oct/14/iamikans-artwork-lines-walls-of-core-consciousness/

      This artist's main concern is staying true to nature, by means of choosing mediums and materials only directly found in nature.  His name is Courts Iamikan and he developed these methods while living in Turkey.  How did he come to use such atypical painting methods?  First, let me describe to you the way that his paintings take form.  He mixes pigment with anything from seawater to salt crystals and lets any natural chemical changes take place.  Vikki Matsis interviewed him about his mysterious techniques and he had this to say: "We are all magicians. I let the results speak for themselves. No need to break down the synchronicity of what you are doing, that takes away all the magic of what art is anyhow. Nature continues to be the greatest magician to mankind."  
      This artist has never picked up a paintbrush either.  Surprising?  He is completely self-taught in these methods and uses mainly his fingers to apply paint to unusual surfaces such as glass, canvas, steel, wood, and acrylic glass.  This is actually part that he says is most difficult; getting the paint to adhere to these surfaces.  However, one way that he combats this problem is by allowing pieces to sit in total darkness once completed.  He lets his paintings sit in darkness for up to three months to all the materials to fuse without the influence of perception.  I think that this man's techniques are very unique and clever and display a substantial knowledge of what makes good art, with a primary focus on how art is made.  Although the pieces themselves are beautiful, it is the process by which they were made that sets them apart.  I liked this article because I enjoyed hearing an artist's perspective that is very different from mine.

The Temple of Aphaia

            With class discussions now revolving around Greek architecture and the role it played in Greek social society, I found that my favorite piece was not purely an architectural detail, but a sculpture intended to hide part of a structure that was not seen as aesthetically pleasing.  Lining the east pediment of the temple of Aphaia, a grouping of life-like three-dimensional figures illustrate the battle against Troy led by Herakles.  These figures are made three-dimensional so that they would be seen properly from all angles.  However, the placement of the figures according to their body position and their proximity to the ground was done so that the dark receding corners of the pediment area would be covered.  At the centermost part of this line of soldiers stands Athena, who is not only the main focus of the battle, but also the unifying point of the composition.  

            The realness of the skin and bone structure of these figures demonstrate the artist’s clear discipline in the area of anatomy.  My favorite of all the sculptures is the one titled the Fallen Warrior.  He is one of the figures in the overall layout whose horizontally sprawled body is functional in hiding one of the corners of the three-dimensional shape of the pediment.  He is depicted as being in his last moment alive and pulling an arrow out of his abdomen.  In the pictures below, he is the figure on the far left.  The treatment of his muscles and body positioning display a classic Greek treatment of the human body, which is that it is an idealistic portrayal of human size and proportions.