What Is The Greek Myth Behind Bernini's Marble Sculpture?

William Henry Rinehart, Clytie,1872, was inspired by classical mythology. Clytie was a water nymph who Apollo completely had no interest in. Clytie fell in love with Apollo at first sight but he pays her no mind. Apparently, Apollo was in love with another girl name Daphne. Clytie spent nine days without food or water laying on a rock because she wanted to see Apollo ride across the sky. Apollo got annoyed and then fell out of patience one day. He threw a burning sun arrow right at Clytie head, which turned her into a sunflower. Clytie was the daughter of two powerful gods, she was beautiful, but not enough to get Apollo’s attention. Rinehart captures Clytie beauty from head to toe. Carefully sculpting the details in her long hair to her womanly curves. People who know the story of Clytie knows the importance of including the sunflower with the sculpture. Rinehart included the sunflower as Clytie holds it in her left hand. By including this significant object, it helps communicate the story of Clytie.

Throughout the history of art, the human body and figure has captivated both artisans and their audiences. This can be said especially of the Greeks and their sculptures. Even from the earliest periods, Greeks motivation for the search of the ideal human body can be seen through the sculpture Metropolitan Kouros (c 120-50 BCE), created in the Archaic period and said to be found in Attica, Ancient Greece (Richter 1931, p. 220). However, it is not until High Classical period that they truly achieve their goal with Polykleitos’ The Spear Bearer (c. 120-50 BCE) or the Doryphoros (its Greek name). The sculpture, found in a Palestra in Pompeii, Italy is said to be the epitome of perfection during its period. Although there is exquisite rendering and beauty in both sculptures, there are also a vast number of differences that make each work unique.

The structure, approved and paid for by the city council, was a feat of amazing architecture on the part of Fillippo Brunelleschi. This was the largest dome created in that time and it was Brunelleschi’s ingenious design that won the commission against Ghiberti and other artists. The Church’s possession of grand cathedrals like this one served to demonstrate to the people the greatness of the faith and the power of God. There was a religious aspect to the construction of the immense cathedrals and basilicas; the people were paying homage to their god and constructing churches they felt were worthy for him. However, it was also somewhat political, as the grandeur of the churches was displayed to all the people in the city. No one could question the Catholic church’s might and colossal influence after viewing a cathedral such as the

I find it very useful if I summarize some of the contents of his book, because the position of art is the main theme of this book, he clams that the art gets its growth from both the Apollonian and Dionysian, he also clams that we owe to the Art goddess the Apollo and Dionysus with our knowledge, that there is a dramatic conflict in the Greek world when it comes to the roots and objectives among Apollonian art and the art of Dionysian, Both the Apollonian and the Dionysian are important in the creation of art. Without the Apollonian, the Dionysian lacks the form and structure to make a coherent piece of art, and without the Dionysian, the Apollonian lacks the necessary vitality and passion. Even though they are very opposed, but they are also intimately intertwined, They are taking a complete different directions at the same time they both go hand and hand together, they are somehow Retraction towards rectify more powerful roots which gives to their conflict a nature eternal paradox do not meet only when the term of art is

The Torso of Aphrodite was constructed in the 1st century A.D. and is made entirely of marble. The torso previously belonged to a life-sized version statue of The Greek goddess of love Aphrodite. From the moment I saw this piece, I knew I was attracted to it in a deeper way. It took more than my initial impression to make an observation, and that is what I enjoyed. The way the robe is draped only part of her body is visible, but this is done in a clever way. The robe is seen draped halfway down her arm, covering the left side of her body, leaving only the upper right part of her chest exposed. As I walked to the back, I noticed the robe was clutched at elbow level. The robe covers most of her back, in a well done manner; little details are exposed on her back, or buttocks. The knot on the top of her left shoulder shows where the robe was tied to maintain her modesty.

            The moon is often seen in literature as an allegory for love, virtue, and chastity. In Shakespeare's comedies, especially, the moon is personified as Diana, the Roman goddess of chastity. In these comedies, the foolish antics of lovers (literally, "lunatics") usually occur under the auspices of the chaste goddess, the lovers behaving like hounds about her feet that snap at each other in competition for her bounty. The moon as allegory for the lunacy of romance helps us understand Shakespeare's view of romance. In the

The Greek period, ca. 900-30 BCE, was famous for its developed ideals of human beauty, the concept of ideal heroic male nudes and what they depict, and progression from symbolic works to naturalism. Using the discussion of the following artworks, the (Anavysos)Kouros, the Kritios Boy and the Spear Bearer (Doryphoros), I will discuss their symbolic and naturalistic characteristics.

In the ultimately unfortunate tale of Daphne and Apollo, Apollo’s arrogance costs the nymph Daphne her life (as a human). Apollo’s conceit is evident to Cupid from the start, and so he commences his revenge by drawing “forth two weapons of differing purposes”. One arrow is meant to create feelings of intense love and infatuation, while the other is meant to create a feeling of fear and repugnance for the lover. Cupid shoots these arrows at Apollo and Daphne (respectively), and so the drama begins. Apollo chases Daphne relentlessly, and as she grows weary from running, she calls on her father Peneus for help.

When Apollo nears Daphne she becomes afraid and attempts to flee him to preserve her chaste values. Apollo follows her beginning a chase. As Daphne flees the narrator compares the event to a hunt “Thus lamb flees wolf, thus dove from eagle flies / on trembling wings, thus deer from lioness” (Ovid lines 798-799). Apollo is compared to predatory animals because he has become a sexual predator. Daphne runs because of her desire to preserve her virginity. Even though Apollo is aware of this his fervent desire overpowers his self-control. He is also compared to that of a lowly animal because he has taken on animal like tendencies. By especially comparing Apollo to a lioness instead of a lion Ovid mocks the god by feminizing him. Apollo does not deserve

The Pythiae (III, 1–58 = Edelstein and Edelstein 1998, v. I, T. 1), a poem written by Pindar, constitutes the oldest and best preserved written source of the god’s myth. According to this testimony, Asclepius was the son of Apollo and a mortal woman, Coronis. After her intercourse with the god, Coronis, while she was with child, fell in love with a mortal man, Ischys, son of Elatus, and entered into a relationship with him. When Apollo was informed about her infidelity by a corax, he got angry, turned the colour of the bird from white to black and sent his sister, Artemis, to kill her. However, when Coronis was about to be burnt on fire, Apollo did not stand to kill his son.

The sculpture Apollo and Daphne, created by Gian Lorenzo Bernini, is based off a story from Book 1 of Ovid's Metamorphoses. It is a portrayal of when Daphne is turned into a tree when trying to escape Apollo after they were both shot with an arrow by Eros. The sculpture is a powerful visual of Daphne and Apollo’s emotions as Daphne was captured by him. To evaluate the photo further I will discuss the feeling of empathy the sculpture made me feel and two connections the sculpture has to Ovid’s story.

This work was created between the years of 1574-1580 which were many years after the completion of David and Hercules and Cacus. Giambologna completely created a new and innovative way of sculpting works. Instead of creating static figures like Michelangelo and Bandinelli, Giambologna created intense and dramatic characters. The faces on the figures show great emotion. The Sabine woman is reaching out with a face of distress and uneasiness. The Sabine man on the bottom of the sculpture has a face filled in terror and worry for the woman being pursued above him. The Roman carrying the Sabine woman looks like he is in awe of the woman above him. This sculpture expresses great movement and has a serpentine shape, which was very similar to works from Michelangelo's later career (like Victory from 1527-28). (In the later part of Michelangelo's career he created works with a bit more action, than his earlier works). The shape of the figures makes a helix shape, and the sculpture can be seen differently from all diverse angles. There is an energetic dialogue between the three figures in this work. There are fleshy characteristics in the figures as well. The bodies of the figures are muscular and idealized but they are also naturalistic. Especially the hair on the figures look lifelike and so do the muscles which are accentuated through the contorted positions of the statues. This shows Giambologna's talent and skill in perfecting the human body with such detail and essence. Giambologna wanted to create a sense of balance within this work because without one of these figures in its place, the other figures would fall over. The sculpture also has a sense of weight because the woman appears to be heavy and the man is balancing to keep his stance, but also to lift her up. The Rape of the

Upon reviewing several pieces, I have come across two orphaned sculptures of interest: the Venus of Willendorf and the Apollo Belvedere. The Venus of Willendorf is a small Paleolithic female figurine that was discovered in 1908 in the village of Willendorf in Austria. The Apollo Belvedere, on the other hand, is a Roman marble copy of a Greek original that embodies the image of Apollo: the god of healing, archery, music, and youth. If we were to categorize these two sculptures as “Anthropomorphic Gods and Goddesses”, the Venus of Willendorf would not fit the category. Unlike the Roman sculpture, the Venus of Willendorf does not have enough contextual history to link its image to a god.

Being at the back end of a punishment, Daphne received the short end of the stick in a world filled with male dominance. To retain her purity she asks to be turned into a tree before the lovestruck Apollo had the time to take her virginity away forever. Daphne’s view on purity is illustrated in the following exclamatory statement: “O help me/ If there is any power in the rivers/Change and destroy the body which has given/Too much delight!” (1.445-448).

First, we visit St. Peter’s Basilica and Adjoining Piazza in Rome. The beautiful structure still used today, initially was brought to fruition by Donato Bramante as a temple shaped like a Greek cross. Quickly Pope Paul V rejected the design, deeming the Greek cross to be pagan-like. He commissioned Carlo Maderno to make some changes to the floor plan, adjusting the look into a Latin cross. The florid baroque styles are seen entering the Apse and Alter, which “symbolized the power and richness of the church” (392). The sculptures throughout, specifically in the Apse, are dramatic and real, shunning classical styles.