The Archaic, The Classical, And The Hellenistic Period

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The Greeks were very well known for their outstanding forms of art. One of their most recognized art form is sculpture. They took the inspiration for their art from Egyptian and Near eastern art from 800 to 300 BCE, and had a unique take on it. Proportion, grace, and the glorified excellence that belonged to the human body. The Greeks produced sculptors made out of stone and bronze, and were one of the most significant pieces of art composed by any civilization. (Cartwright,2013). Ancient Greek sculpture is divided into three main stages: The Archaic, The Classical, and The Hellenistic periods. There is also an earlier stage which is known as the Geometric period in which elements of Greek sculpture began to emerge. (Green,2015).

First and foremost, we have the Archaic period. The Archaic period took place during the sixth-century BCE. During this time …show more content…

One characteristic of male sculptures was the position of their limbs. One leg was most commonly extended outwards, and their arms were adjacent to their sides. (Scholastic.com,2015). The second major period of Greek art is the Classical period. It lasted from 480-323 BCE. The period ended with the death of Alexander the Great, and began with the Persians invading the Greeks. Athens, the dominant city state was the center of ancient Greek art. (Biers,2015). Green (2015) explained that his period was defined by “dynamic explorations of motion through space”, a mixture of “ideal form and naturalistic portrayal”, and lastly “the distillation of principles of proportion”. These principles can be demonstrated in works such as Polykleitos' Doryphoros, the Riace Bronzes, and the Parthenon frieze. (Green,2015). Sadly, only a couple of sculptures from the classical period survived. Fortunately, The Romans made copies of the works, and recorded the names of the original Greek artists. Classical sculpting peaked after the mid 400’s. Polyclitus and Phidias are two influential sculptors of the Classical

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