|
CLASSICAL PLASTIC
ARTS
For details of Greek art and
later styles of Roman art, see:
Daedalic
Archaic Sculpture
Early
Classical
High
Classical Sculpture
Late
Classical
Hellenistic
Greek Sculpture
Greek
Statues, Reliefs
Roman Sculpture
Roman Reliefs
FORMS OF SCULPTING
For different types of 3-D
carving/casting, see:
Stone Sculpture
Granite, limestone, sandstone
and other rock-types.
Marble Sculpture
Pentelic, Carrara, Parian marbles.
Wood Carving
Chip carving, relief carving of
softwoods and hardwoods.
Bronze Sculpture
Lost-wax (cire perdue) casting
method and others.
|
Other popular copies of Praxiteles work
includes Apollo Sauroktonos (lizard-slayer), a youth leaning against
a tree and idly striking with an arrow at a lizard and the Aphyodite
of Cnidus (Vatican Museum), a copy of the original which Praxiteles
made for the people of Cnidus. Apparently the citizens loved the marble
statue so much, they refused to sell it to King Nicomedes, who, according
to Pliny, was willing to discharge the city's entire debt in return.
Aphrodite of Cnidus
Aphrodite of Cnidus was regarded by the
Roman writer Pliny as not only the finest statue by Praxiteles but the
best in the whole world. Highly influenced by the women in his life, and
his relationship with a beautiful courtesan, Praxiteles was one of the
first sculptors to truly work with the female form. His Aphrodite is naked,
a bold innovation at the time. Although the original no longer exists,
from reproductions on Roman coins it was possible to identify copies today
which still exist, one of which is in the Vatican museum.
Legacy
Praxiteles' biggest ambition was to create
a graphic illusion of life. He strived to make his art as realistic as
possible. To this end, like many Greek sculptors, he often employed a
painter (Nicias) to colour his statues to give them a more lifelike
veneer. According to the Roman writer Pliny, when Praxiteles was asked
which of his statues he preferred, he replied 'those to which Nicias has
put his hand'. As such, it is well to remember when looking at copies
today, how much better they must have looked in their original with paint
applied.
Although Praxiteles cast bronze and marble
sculptures of Gods, under his hand, they became more human - vulnerable
to displays of emotion. The element of awe of reverence is missing - and
this break was as important in his time as Impressionism was in modern
times. His immediate predecessors produced works which were detached and
majestic in style, while Praxiteles introduced a more humanistic, gentle
grace into Greek sculpture. No other sculptor had come as close to achieving
this, before him.
|
