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WHITE GROUND WARE The Penthesileia and Achilles Painters.
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Transcript of WHITE GROUND WARE The Penthesileia and Achilles Painters.
WHITE GROUND WARE
The Penthesileia and Achilles Painters
White Ground The last of the three major styles of Greek vase painting Not a late development thought – it was being
experimented with from the 6th century BC This style was discarded by leading artist because of it’s
the fragile nature of the white slip meant it was not very practical for everyday use
It was however, too innovative and too visually striking to be abandoned altogether
Thus, it became the chief form of decoration for funerary lekythoi from the middle of the 5th century BC onwards
Being a funerary vessel meant that the vase was rarely handled (only in the death rituals and then placed beside the tomb) and therefore its decoration would last longer
Production Involved painting a chalky white slip over the
surface of the vessel This slip was a mixture of very fine white clay
with some iron particles added to ensure that it fired a pure white
The surface decoration was then applied with a paintbrush in the manner of red-figure, but since the characters were not surrounded by a black background they became outline designs
The painted decoration varied depending on what period what period the vessel was decorated in
Colours Before the mid 5th century BC, artists tended to rely heavily
on the red-figure relief line and honey-coloured dilute glaze But after 450BC the popularity of the black relief line died
and it basically disappeared From this time, the honey-coloured dilute glaze was popular
because it tended to make the decoration appear a lot more delicate
Around the second quarter of the 5th century BC, artists began experimenting with a much more varied colour palette and it was not uncommon to see purple, red and green
These brighter colours were applied after the pot had been fired as they could not withstand the heat of the kiln
The increased use of polychrome may have been influenced by the wall painters of the time – there does seem to be some link between the stark white background and brilliant colours of the vases and the contemporary frescoes painted by the major artists of the period
Penthesileia Painter
Basic Facts Vase shape: pyxis Function: jewellery or
cosmetics box Found in the tomb of
a young Greek woman in Cumae, Italy
Potter: unknown Painter: Penthesileia Painter Date:460-450BC Height: 17cm
Painter did not sign his name named after a large cup showing Achilles
killing the Amazon Queen, Penthesileia at Troy this pyxis is attributed to the same artist
based on stylistic similarities he is one of the few artists to work in both
white ground and red-figure techniques
The Myth Judgement of Paris
Paris Paris is still a shepherd so it is before the
Trojan war sits on a rock talking with Hermes naked except for a chlamys (cloak)
and petassos (travelling hat) holds a club curly hair sits calmly on a rock is in the centre of the composition the mood is conveyed through Paris'
relaxed pose depicted as a simple shepherd his left leg is foreshortened and turns
inwards
Hermes messenger of the gods wears the same as Paris has a caduceus (a
magic staff) entwined with snakes
wears winged boots (instead of his usual sandals)
Bearded man points a thin stick/staff
in the direction of the three goddesses
possibly a spectator to fill the space or king Priam (father of Paris) or Zeus
Aphrodite & ErosAphrodite eventual winner of the competition head slightly bent gazes down at her son, Eros her married status to Hephaistos is
shown by the veil she wears over her hair – also a gesture of modesty
wears an Ionic chiton holds a bowl in her handsEros accompanies Aphrodite, his mother
Athena warrior goddess holds a spear in her
hand wears an aegis over
an elaborately embroidered peplos
identified by her helmet, spear and aegis
Hera wears an Ionic chiton
and embroidered himation
the diadem on her head and sceptre of kingship shows she is queen of the gods, wife of Zeus
carries a staff a fold of her cloak is
over her head – a gesture of modesty and shows that she's married
CompositionThe vase shape the base of this vase is divided
into three sections and are flared out to give more stability
Overall single groundline no overlapping attempt at three-dimensional
through the shading of the rock treatment of drapery gives
figures a convincing three-dimensional look
Paris is in the centre
Figurative detailsOverall nose turned up head inclined calm static
poses
Non-figurative Details stylised leaves above the main frieze
Inscriptions two kalos inscriptions – one above the head of
Paris, the other next to Eros on the other side of the vase – 'the boy is fair'
Painting Technique mostly white-ground – at the leather hard stage, the vase is
covered in white clay slip; figures are then drawn in a dark red slip outline; earthy browns and oranges are added before firing to preserve the colours which is unusual for white-ground; the vase was then fired but unlike later white-ground ware, there were no extra colours added after firing
there is little regard for highlighting – basically just a coloured drawing
the black outline almost gives a cartoon appearance bright colours used (probably the same as wall paintings of the
time) although predominantly white-ground, there are parts that are
painted in red-figure the lid of the pyxis is in red-figure the areas framing the scene are also in red-figure (i.e. the stylised
leaves above and the base) the white provides a more realistic background (this would be
similar to the background used on wall paintings at the time) the rock (underneath Paris) – the only part of the vase where
shading & highlighting has been used – shows its rugged shape
Drapery does not really reveal the form of the body
underneath different weights of fabrics shown by the closeness
of vertical lines
Achilles Painter
Basic Facts Vase shape: lekythos Function: carrying oil in
Athenian funeral rituals
Potter: unknown Painter: Achilles Painter Date:450-440BC Height: 38.4cm
Painter didn't sign his name this vase is attributed to him through stylistic
similarities gets his name from the vase he painted with
Achilles on it student of the Berlin Painter one of the greatest white-ground artists one of the last painters to draw the outline in
slip over half the 200 vases attributed to him are
funerary lekythoi
Subject A woman and her
maidservant This is a non-funerary
scene but it is likely she is preparing to visit a tomb
Figurative Details - overall slender figures elegant faces with long
noses faces appear sculptured
rather than painted long necks figures are refined figures appear severe,
godlike and removed from the human world
these details would have been inspired by the sculpture of the period
Figurative Details - Woman her face is elegantly executed there is a straight line from her brow to
the tip of her nose her hair is curled on top, with a few curls
on her forehead wears a yellow chiton (one-piece
garment which is belted around the waist) and a red-brown himation (large cloak)
she directs the maid with her right hand her feet and body are frontal her head turns to look at the
maidservant
Figurative Details - maidservant also has curled hair on top carries a grey painted
casket – she is offering it to her mistress
the paint that decorated her clothing is gone leaving her dress transparent
Other figurative details a lekythos and mantle hang on the wall
behind the maidservant indicates the scene is indoors
Non-figurative details schematic palmette on the shoulder key pattern borders the scene at the top
Inscriptions kalos inscription between the two figures:
"Axiophathes, the son of Alkimachos, is handsome" this inscription has nothing to do with the decoration rectangular layout of the writing
Painting technique white-ground ware the paint that decorating
the maidservants's clothing has gone leaving her dress transparent (all that's left is the glazed outline)
Eyes
True profile