Continuing to dig through Early Civilizations- Sept 8

Early Asian Art

Symptoms of Civilizatiuon:

• Surplus
• Cities
• Specialization
• Trade
• Social Stratification
• Centralized Government
• Shared Values (ie... religion)
• Writing
• Rivers

"Kind" Rivers: Nile, Indus, Yellow (until it wasn't), Coatzacoalcos (I think- I need to check)

"Unkind" Rivers: Tigris and Euphrates- Fertile crescent

The Plan of Mohenjo-Daro, in the Indus River Valley Civilization, gives little evidence of Social or political hierarchy. Because the language of the Indus Valley Civilizations has not yet been translated, many questions remain open. There is some indication that the caste system familiar from recent centuries in India had already begun, with a Warrior, Priest, and Peasant class. At this time, though the plan indicates that people lived in relative equality and in close proximity to each other. 

How can you tell, just from the map, that the civilization had a relatively high degree of equality? 

Images from Harappa and Mojenjo Daro, the two major cities under excavation, may suggest society concerned more with everyday life than spiritual or political life.  Some examples: 

What is your seal? 

seals from Indus Valley (3-2), 2500-1500 bce, steatite, about 1.25" each

Mohenjo-Daro, Indus Valley

Civilizations in the Indus River Valley give little evidence of Social or political hierarchy. Because the language of the Indus Valley Civilizations has not yet been translated, many questions remain open. There is some indication that the caste system familiar from recent centuries in India had already begun, with a Warrior, Priest, and Peasant class. At this time, though the plan indicates that people lived in relative equality and in close proximity to each other. Images from Harappa and Mojenjo Daro, the two major cities under excavation, appear to deal much more with everyday life than spiritual or political life.  Some examples:

Votive Figures, Models, or Toys, from about 2500 bce

Dynastic rule began in China about 2000 bce, with the Xia (Hsia) as the first dynasty. The first stable dynasty, however, was the Shang, which existed from 1600 bce to 1050 bce, until conquered by the Chou.     

Seated Guanyin Boddhisattva, 11th-12th c, Liao Dynasty, China, painting and gilding date from 16th c.

Minoa, Mycenae, Archaic Greece and the Mediterranean that Unites them With Asia and Africa

source

Lyre Player, 2700-2500 bce, marble, 9", Cycladic

Key Terms: style: period style, regional style, representational style, saturation, naturalism, Minoan, Mycenaean

style:distinct combination of form and content (Stoksdad)
period style: traits in common detectable in works of art and architecture from an era (Stoksdad)
regional style: traits that persist in a geographic region over time, distinguishable from neighboring regions (Stoksdad, roughly)
representational styles are those that include recognizable subject matter including naturalism, realism, and illusionism
saturation, the quality of brightness or dullness in a color.... a highly saturated color will shout it's hue/color name-- pure yellow, pure red. Colors of low saturation will appear dark or murky. (Stoksdad, roughly)

The cities of the Indus River Valley were not the only ones that suggest this more equitable government structure. My favorite is the earlier 'giant village' of Çatal Höyük in Anatolia (modern day Turkey.), which I mentioned a couple weeks ago and wrote about in the article on mud bricks.  If you'd like to know more about this city, where people lived on roofs, and slept on their dead, here's a resource with links to others.

In Ancient Minoa, on the Island of Crete, life offered a higher degree of luxury than we've seen elsewhere, 

Fisherman, Akrotiri, Thera, ~1500 bce

Key Work: Bull Leaping, wall painting, Knossos, Crete, ~1500

including  time for what appears to be recreation, including fishing, and boxing, but focused on the so-called sport of Bull Leaping.

Minoan artwork has a highly decorative quality, with curving lines, all-over patterns, and bright colors. In many areas of Minoan palaces, every possible surface receives decorations. (We'll encounter this horror vacuui  as a trait of several cultures).

Key Work:  Young Girl Gathering Saffron (4-4), ~1500 bce

Key Work:  Young Girl Gathering Saffron (4-4), ~1500 bce

Snake Figurine,  ~1500, Faiance

Key Work: Bull Jumping Mural, (4-5) , Knossos ~1500 ce

What three words would you use to describe the style of Minoan Art? Do you see any similarities between Minoan art and art of other civilizations we've seen or that you know?

Rhyton in the form of a bull's head, ca. 1450 BCE.;
Minoan Crete, Terracotta

Not too long after the Minoan civilization fell into decline-- probably due to a combination of natural disaster (earthquakes) and hostile takeover-- the Myceneans occupied Crete and other islands of Greece after the Minoans. Though their art shares some traits, you can see a distinct difference between Mycenean art and architecture  and that of Minoan Crete. Some examples of Mycenean work:


Key Work: The famous Lion Gate, 1250 bce, image source.



Key Work: Lion Gate, Detail. About 1250bce. Monolithic Stones, Mycenae

Simply by studying this reconstruction drawing and the ruins above, what can you tell about the Mycenean Civilization? How does it seem to differ from Indus Valley civilization and Minoan?

      









Palette of Narmer, siltstone, 3200 bce.

Egyptian art, perhaps more recognizable  than any other period or style. What do you think? 

However, Egyptian art didn't spring fully formed in Egypt. Much evidence points to borrowing from one of the civilizations we've looked at already, the Mesopotamians... or to the Mesopotamians borrowing from the Egyptians.  Here's a good example of close correspondence.
 
cylinder seal, ~3000 bce, Uruk, Mesopotamia; narmer palette


Visual art plays an important role in establishing the power of leaders during their lifetimes, and the flavor of that power. History also plays a role in establishing or breaking down the power of leaders after the fact. The history of Egypt offers some great examples of how history writers shape knowledge and understanding.

Key Work:  Funerary Vase from Dipylon (4-13), ~800-700 bce, footed krater, Geometric Period of Greek Art

This image of a wheel decorates the Standard of UR, a Sumerian object from about 2500bce, or 4500 years ago, Mesopotamia. 

it's big! This is a different vase by same master

Key Work: Kouros from Attica (4-19), source- metmuseum, Archaic Greek, 580 bce

As I said, I imagine that of any period in the history of Visual Culture (including Art History), more people would recognize Egyptian Art than any other period or style. But plenty of individual pieces will confuse you. Looking at the above piece, What do you think? What elements of style do you notice?  What clues distinguish this piece?

Egyptian Art provides a great example of how learning to recognize details of style allows you to identify art from a particular culture simply by 'reading' the clues.... but tricky pieces and periods will appear!


Menkaure and His Queen, c. 2500 B.C., Egyptian, Old Kingdom. 

What features or artistic choices tell you unmistakably that it comes from Egypt?



What happens, though, when I place these two sculptures side by side?



Describe similarities and differences. What conclusions can you come to about where the sculpture on the left came from? We'll answer this question fully in class, but I thought you might like to see his hair, as well.

Menkaure and his Queen,2500bce, Egyptian,  Kouros from Attica, ~600 bce, Greece, Kritios Boy, ~480 bce, Classical

The Great Greeks

Our ideas of Ancient Greece have influence the history and aesthetics of the United States far more than any other culture of ancient times. Our understanding of ancient Greece continues to influenced our ideas of government, art, history, science, exploration, writing and literature, theater, law, human relationships, social structure, and much more.

Timeline of ancient Greece, with representative examples
Cycladic Greece (~6000 bce-2500 bce)

 Cycladic Lyre Player,  about 2700bce

Minoan Greece ~3000 bce-1500 bce

Key Work:  Young Girl Gathering Saffron (4-4), ~1500 bce

Mycenean Greece  1600-1100 bce (Helladic Greece)













 Mycenean Dagger blade, Mycenae, ~1600bce

Greek Dark Ages .... very little work remains from 1100-900 bce:

Early Greek Geometric Style 900 bce-700 bce

 Key Work:  Funerary Vase from Dipylon (4-13), ~800-700 bce, footed krater, geometric style

Orientalizing Period: ~750-600 bce
Following the Period of the Geometric style, a period of political instability and military intervention involving Egypt, Greece, Mesopotamia, Anatolia (Turkey) and Phoenicia (Eastern Mediterranean) arose;  this brought Greece many technological and literary innovations—including the alphabet!—and these interactions left their mark on the artwork: Greek pottery from this time show demonstrable Egyptian and Mesopotamian influence.

Corinthian Olpe, black figured ware, so-called Orientalizing Style, 600 bce

Archaic Period 600-480 bce ,

Exekias, Vase  (Amphora) with Achilles and Ajax, ~540 bce, archaic greek

Exekias, Vase  (Amphora) with Achilles and Ajax, ~540 bce, archaic greek

Key Work Kouros, from Attica, Greece, ca. 600 BCE.  Marble, 6′ 1/2″ high.  
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.Key Work: Peplos Kore (4-20),  ~530 bce
archaic period  Great source on the Peplos Kore here: 

Beginnings of Greek literature (in which many see Mesopotamian influence), and the early investigations in representing anatomy which resulted in the Archaic style of sculpture: freestanding nude male figures and clothed females, the static, somewhat lifeless ‘archaic smile’,

your beautiful archaic smile

Classical Greek Period 480-323 bce 

Kritios Boy, standing in contrapposto, Sir Kenneth Clarke called him, "The first beautiful nude in history," 480 bce 

extreme naturalism in sculpture, relaxed, freestanding males in contrapposto the ideal,  and the development of the Classical orders in architecture, with the Parthenon providing the most recognizable examples.