Human Body Depiction in Ancient Egypt & Ancient Greece
Throughout the years humans have had the tendency to record their daily lives and events. In other words, the art of each era reflects the society and mentality of the civilians. This is why each era has a different way of depicting the human body and how the story they tell is narrated. This research paper will compare between the depiction of the human body in Ancient Egypt and Ancient Greece. Ancient Egypt art was at the start of art history, which was between 3000 BC and 400 AD. The Egyptians wanted to focus more on realism and narrating the story rather than showing the exact details, they wanted everything to be clear and show what was happening in their daily lives rather than show the positions, they didn’t have deficiencies, they were more keen on portraying the whole image. Meanwhile The Ancient Greek art had something equivalent to the Ancient Egyptian art in the cultural part, where they both were obsessed with precision and order. They believed their Gods took human form, that’s why they always had this mentality of portraying the human figure perfectly. They related perfection to the athletic
…show more content…
Yet the art of the Egyptians had a majorly different purpose of these cultures. Egyptian art was designed to convey divine or deceased heir. To pass on the idea of the recipient receiving the benefit of ritual action. Furthermore, the royal and elite class served as intermediaries between the gods and the people. In stone statuary, limited positions, a strong back pillar for support, and spaces left between limbs gave out the impression of how the stone statuary was quite closed. while in two-dimensional art, the representation of the world was more of an informative way of all the aspects of each element in the
The "art for art" remained unknown in ancient Egypt; all creation was a practical purpose: the prosperity and triumph of Egypt, providing the survival of rulers and notables. The beautiful had no value in itself; we would say in modern terms, that the supreme intention was magical action. According to our book (art history by Marilyn Stokstad and Michael W. Cothren): “The architecture is religious or funeral destination; only temples and tombs were built of sustainable materials, although we also know some palaces and fortresses. The statuary, too, funeral (the statue is considered the repository of the soul of the deceased) or divine (the royal statues represent the pharaoh, god on earth or in the hereafter). The reliefs are dependent on strict religious patterns; one painting, especially that found in the tombs of the notables of the New Kingdom, manifest a spontaneity and a certain naturalism, but it was only a substitute art to replace cheaply the painted relief. This liveliness is reflected in the minor arts, and fard for spoons or pots ointments; but the jewels themselves usually hold conventions of religious symbolism”. Although, the step pyramid and sham buildings, funerary complex of djoser would perfectly help to illustrate the image of the art of the ancient Egypt. The Djoser funerary complex, built during the reign of Pharaoh Djoser in Saqqara is located in Egypt. It’s the first of this magnitude and the
Another characteristic that Ancient Egyptian and Ancient Near Eastern shared was the body being displayed in profile view. Both civilizations cherished the whole body being incorporated in the art hence why the quality of profile view is shown in both
Throughout history the human figure has been demonstrated in Middle Eastern, Egyptian and Greek sculptures and paintings. Most of these artifacts tend to focus more on humanism than realism due to Rulers and Gods, geographical areas, resources and events thus, giving them the idea for the theme of the art they create. These are the reasons that might explain their commonalities or differences in the representation of the human figure.
This essay aims to investigate two different time periods in the history of art. It will scrutinize the influence that the respective societal contexts had on the different artists, which in turn, caused them to arrange the formal elements in a specific way. I will be examining an Egyptian sculpture of the god Isis nursing Horus, her son, as well as the Vladimir Virgin icon, which dates from the Byzantine era. Experts vary on the precise ‘lifetime’ of the Ancient Egyptian civilization, but according to Mason (2007:10) it existed from 3100 BCE up to 30 BCE. The Byzantine era, which
The artworks of Ancient Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt are both strikingly different and similar at the same time. Consistent is the theme of serving the different gods the two cultures believed in. In Mesopotamia the various city-states each had their own protective deity, and in Egypt they sometimes differed from one dynasty to the next. Whatever the case, with the beginning of kingdoms and rulership came the need to justify a position of power and establish a hierarchy. And as more time passed came also the human need to leave an impression on their world. Looking at the example of the statues of Gudea from the Neo-Sumerian period and the Temple of Ramses II from the New Kingdom of Egypt in the 19th dynasty, will show how both rulers of
The “human form” has changed through art over long periods of time and how each civilization uses their own style to create these pieces is how art gets its depth. I'm going to be talking about one of each sculpture from every major period and explain how each one has its own flavor and own unique style. I will be talking about the Prehistoric period, Egyptian style, Greek style and Roman styles. I also have a list of vocabulary words i will be pointing out in bold to explain how these are used in sculptures.
The main purpose of this paper is to describe the visual analysis of the artwork. This paper examines an Egyptian half nude portrait art which is taken from Metropolitan Museum of Art (Fig.1). The statue characterized both male and female seated figure with a Braid hair. In this essay, I will present a complete visual description of this artwork (its preservation, costume and iconography), and then I will compare it to another artwork which is chosen from Textbook that is Akhenaten and his Family (Fig. 2).
Greek art took many ideas from Egypt and Mesopotamia however as the years passed they started to develop and create their own unique style. This style was more realistic and natural visually. One of their goals was for the viewer to believe they are seeing a moment standing still in time. You can see this when you compare Kroisos from, Anavysos Greece, and Doryphorus from Pompeii, Italy. These pieces are roughly dated 80 years apart however the difference between the two-forms are so remarkable. This paper will be discussing and addressing the evolution of a more naturalistic art form, from the statue of Kroisos compared to the statue of Doryphorus during the Greek art period. At a first glance of the statues you may not see the dramatic differences between the two however they were both approached in different ways to be created. They have different meanings yet both were created to be more naturalistic than what came before it.
Egypt is located on the northeast corner of Africa. Egyptians are the population who lived in Egypt. They created an advanced civilization, with cutting-edge systems such as medicine, writing, farming and irrigation.
Hellenistic art was engaged more on perfection of the human frame, accuracy and detail. Models from Greek times looked more God-like than human. Hellenic art depended on the new thought of authenticity. Hellenic figures were molded into sensible, blamed human structures. Art in the Hellenic world art epitomized richness, cheerful nature, and coarse with. Marble statues and reliefs described human greatness and sensuality. Art in Hellenistic world emphasize extraordinary naturalism and unashamed luxury. Art in Hellenistic and Hellenic showed feelings and other components filled with different
In the ancient Near East, human depictions in art varied over time and distance; as
Egypt is still a nation of wonder, history, enchantment, and lost human ingenuity. Many aspects of Egypt remain a mystery, but slowly some secrets are coming to light. Going through history to its foundations and remnants, there is much to be learned and understood. Though the boundary lines of Egypt are quite large, the vast majority of its citizens live compacted along the Nile River. Egypt is most renowned for its life flowing river, its Pyramids, Pharaohs, and its distinct religious worship. Looking underneath the majestic artwork, and the thriving life, is another aspect of Egypt where one discovers the struggles of its past. Yet this inner turmoil within Egypt’s history is part of the lure that attracts many to learn about its ancient
The Egyptians had chapels that depicted the life of a person through colorful illustrations on the walls. Those depictions gave a sense of what was important to that person or family. The images gave a sense of everyday life.
Just from looking at a few pieces of the art of the ancient Egyptians, you begin to notice many defining characteristics about it that make it unique and different from other styles of art. There are an ample amount of recurring features in the art, so this must mean that these traits and aspects are noteworthy. This next section of the essay will go into detail about a few of the many types of art and the stylistic elements that define ancient Egyptian art and make it special and distinguishable from other types of art, and why some particular aspects of the art are important.
During early dynasty Egypt period, Egypt’s kings were reverted as gods in human form. So, Egyptian sculptor created statues of their kings and queens. After creating the statue