Greek Art Through the Ages

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Classification Essay Greek Art Through The Ages Around 1400 BCE, a flow of populations from the north, the east, and the west flooded into Greek territory. These great migrations gave birth to one of the most important culture of all time: the Greeks. Their history began with a profound economic and cultural crisis, which later led to a flourishing period of innovation and fast development. New city-state were born, based on new principles of democracy, and organized around a political centre called “agora” and a religious, cultural, and artistic centre called “acropolis”. Culture and art became of vital importance for social life: philosophy as well as literature began to spread, and sculpture, architecture, pottery and painting assumed completely distinctive and original features, growing to be the greatest collections of art history. However, it was a process that took place through several stages. Great transformations through the ages characterized Greek art, which may be thus subdivided into four main periods. The ages from 900 to 600 BCE, the beginning of Greek history, correspond to the “Geometric and Orientalizing art”, still strongly influenced by the Near East and the Egyptians. Geometric ornaments and abstract motifs, such as circles, quadratic spirals and M-shaped designs characterize ceramic styles of this period. Human figures are highly stylized and conventionally represented, recalling Mesopotamian and Egyptian portrayal of human anatomy. Triangular faces and torsos, quadratic hair, and a cylindrical body with symbolic patterns characterize sculptures. Although the features of this first stage are far from the peak of Greek art, the human figure was reintroduced into the painter’s repertoire, and the art of storytelling was revived. All these characteristics have been important news that followed through the Archaic Period, from 600 to 480

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