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Ancient Greek Art - Essay

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Ancient Greek Art
Ancient Greece was a remarkable place of learning and civilization. Many of the institutions developed at the time are still in use today, such as universities and democratic governments. Ancient Greece is also known for its incredible artworks, which have influenced many cultures through centuries. As with all things, the Ancient Greeks were innovators in the field of art and developed many new styles and techniques which have been used by countless artists ever since. Ancient Greek art is separated into three periods known as Archaic, Classical and Hellenistic. These three periods show the styles used in Ancient Greece and how they were developed and changed through the years, starting with more basic techniques in the …show more content…

It was a time of great change in the art of Ancient Greece. Artists stopped creating the still of forms of the Kouros figures and began to create sculptures that showed movement; usually an athlete performing some feat. The controposto pose was created this period. A controposto pose is a pose in which the weight of a sculpture is placed on one side of the body; it gave a sculpture a much more natural stance. One of the most famous sculptures from this period was Discobolus or the Discus Thrower. This sculpture was created by the famous sculptor Myron ca. 450 BC. Discobolus is a sculpture of a man in the middle of throwing a discus, as the name suggests. This figure is a great example of the new style of sculpture being made during the classical period. The figure is in an extremely dramatic pose, with all of his weight on his right leg as he prepares to throw the discus. It has been a matter of some debate whether or not this pose is actually humanly possible or if the artists merely exaggerated for the purpose creating a dramatic sculpture. Myron was responsible for many of the great sculptures of the Classical period, though none of them are known to have survived; all of our knowledge of his works come from accounts of Romans and other such people who had seen them while they still existed. Not much is known of him because of this. The Classical period was a time of great change in Ancient Greek art and was responsible for the

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