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Greece has a varied artistic history, more famous is the classic art. Spanning some 5000 years and beginning in the Cycladic and Minoan prehistorical civilization, giving birth to Western classical art in the ancient period (further developing this during the Hellenistic Period), to taking in the influences of Eastern civilizations and the new religion of Orthodox Christianity in the Byzantine era and absorbing Italian and European ideas during Romanticism period (with the invigoration of the Greek Revolution), right up until the Modernist and Postmodernist periods. Greek art is mainly four forms: architecture, sculpture, painting and painted pottery.
Ancient Period The art of ancient Greece has exercised an enormous influence on the culture of many countries from ancient times until the present, particularly in the areas of sculpture and architecture. In the West, the art of the Roman Empire was largely derived from Greek models. In the East, Alexander the Great's conquests initiated several centuries of exchange between Greek, Central Asian and Indian cultures, resulting in Greco-Buddhist art, with ramifications as far as Japan. Following the Renaissance in Europe, the humanist aesthetic and the high technical standards of Greek art inspired generations of European artists. Well into the 19th century, the classical tradition derived from Greece dominated the art of the western world. There are three scholarly distinctions of Greek art that correspond roughly with historical periods of the same names. These are the Archaic, the Classical and the Hellenistic. The Archaic period is usually dated from ca. 1000 BC. The Persian Wars of 480 BC to 448 BC are usually taken as the dividing line between the Archaic and the Classical periods, and before the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC is regarded as separating the Classical from the Hellenistic period. Of course, different forms of art developed at different speeds in different parts of the Greek world, and varied to a degree from artist to artist [1] The main physical categories of Greek art are painting (nearly all of which is now lost, except for copies in Pompeii), sculpture, architecture, coin design and pottery, all of which are discussed in depth in their relevant articles. Byzantine Period Byzantine art is the term created by the Eastern Roman Empire from about the 5th century until the fall of Constantinople in 1453. (The Roman Empire during this period is conventionally known as the Byzantine Empire.) The term can also be used for the art of states which were contemporary with the Byzantine Empire and shared a common culture with it, without actually being part of it, such as Kazakhstan, Serbia or Russia, and also Venice, which had close ties to the Byzantine Empire despite being in other respects part of western European culture. It can also be used for the art of peoples of the former Byzantine Empire under the rule of Ottoman Empire after 1453. In some respects the Byzantine artistic tradition has continued in Russia and other Eastern Orthodox countries to the present day. Byzantine art grew from the art of Ancient Greece, and at least before 1453 never lost sight of its classical heritage, but was distinguished from it in a number of ways. The most profound of these was that the humanist ethic of Ancient Greek art was replaced by the Christian ethic. If the purpose of classical art was the glorification of man, the purpose of Byzantine art was the glorification of God, and particularly of his son, Jesus. In place of the naked, the figures of God the Father, and became the dominant – indeed almost exclusive - focus of Byzantine art. One of the most important forms of Byzantine art was, and still is, the icon: an image of Christ, the Virgin (particularly the Virgin and Child), or a saint, used as an object of veneration in Orthodox churches and private homes. Greek art was very beautiful. Modern Period Due to the Ottoman occupation of Greece, there was very little artistic output during this time, so the birth of modern Greek art began in defacto terms at the start of the 19th century (the end of the Greek War of Independence was in 1829) and took on board a number of Romanticism influences, most notably from Italy. The culmination of this was the distinctive style of Greek Romanticist art. One of the major figures of the Modernist period is Fotis Kontoglou. His diverse contribution to Modern Greek Painting could be summarised into three manifestations. His creative painting work, which was based on the Byzantine technique; his hagiographic work, which brought orthodox painting back to our churches; and, finally, his teaching, either direct or (mainly) indirect, which was one of the strongest factors which altered the course of Modern Greek Painting towards the discovery of the pictorial but, also, of the more substantial spiritual values of the Greek traditions that they used when they were worshiping. It is the term used to describe Greek art during the period between the emergence of the new independent Greek state and the 20th century. Mainland Greece being under the Ottoman rule for almost 4 centuries has naturally missed the Renaissance and the artistic movements that followed, in Western Europe. However, Greek islands such as Crete, and the Ionian islands in particular were for large periods under Venetian or other European powers' rule and thus, were able to assimilate better the radical artistic changes that were occurring in Europe during the 14th-18th century. The Cretan School and in particular the Heptanese Schools of art are two typical examples of artistic movements in Greece that followed parallel routes to Western Europe. There were therefore different artistic trends in the emerging Greek society. It is reasonable to claim that it was the particular socioeconomic conditions of Greece, the large Greek diaspora across Europe, the new Greek social elite and the artistic influences of mainly Germany and France that shaped to a large extend what we call Art in Modern Greece. 19th century The School of Munich The starting period of Modern Greek Art coincided with Romanticism. Greek artists absorbed many elements from their European colleagues resulting to the culmination of the distinctive style of Greek Romanticist art which was inspired by revolutionary ideals as well as the geography and History of the country. After centuries of Ottoman rule though, few opportunities existed in Greece itself, immediately after independence, so studying abroad was imperative for artists. Munich,was an important international center for the arts and is the place where the majority of the Greek artists of 19th century have chosen to study. Later on, they would return back to Greece, where they would transmit their experience. Some of them remained in Munich, the so called Athens on the Isar. Both academic and personal bonds developed between early Greek painters and Munich artistry giving birth to the Greek "Munich School" of painting. Nikolaos Gysis was an important teacher and artist at the Munich Academy and he soon became a leading figure among Greek artists. Academism, realism, genre painting, upper middle class portraiture, still life and landscape painting, often representing impressionist features, will be replaced in the end of 19th century by symbolism, Jugendstil, Art Nouveau, which are mainly traced in the work of Nikolaos Gysis, Aristeas and others [2]. Early 20th century modernism is also represented by significant Greek artists in Munich. Many of these Munich School artists were drawing their subjects by everyday Greek life, local customs, and living conditions. Several important painters emerge at this time. Theodoros Vryzakis specialized in historical painting and especially inspired by the 1821 Greek War of Independence. Nikiphoros Lytras concentrated on realistic depictions of Greek life. Georgios Jakobides devoted his attention to infants and children and he later he would become the first curator of the new National Gallery of Athens. Konstantinos Volanakis was inspired mostly by the Greek sea. Other notable artists that belonged to the School of Munich were Symeon Sabbides, Gianoulis Chalepas, as well as quite a few modernist artists who studied in Munich, among which were Theofrastos Triantafyllidis, Jorgos Busianis, and also Giorgio de Chirico. The School of Paris A few Greek painters studied in Paris, rather than Munich. Residing in the French capital, and despite following the guide-lines of the French Art Academy, gave their own interpretation to the perception of things. Jacob Rizos was involved with the rendering of female grace, Theodoros Rallis with scenes from the Orthodox East and Nikolaos Xydias Typaldos with portraiture, still life and genre painting. During this period in Paris the avant garde Impressionist movement developed, but most Greek painters remained faithful to the precepts of their teachers with only some nebulous thrusts in the direction of this movement. The first Greek impressionist was Pericles Pantazis who, after Paris, settled in Belgium and became a part of the avant-garde group Circle de la pâte. Themes-artistic depictions Many Greek artists of this period also drew upon El Greco's style for inspiration, particularly when creating art based on religious themes. This tied in with the idea of modern secular Greek art of the period referencing more classical styles, while religious art referenced Byzantine, or Byzantine inspired art. Moreover, an important and often pioneering role was played by artists from Ionian islands in the century and the beginning of the 19th century, who exploited conquests of the Italian Renaissance and baroque ateliers. As efforts persisted with new directions and objectives, Greek artists emerging in the world during the first decades of the 19th century reconnected Greek art with its ancient tradition, as well as with the quests of the European ateliers, especially those of the Munich School, with defining examples of the Greek contemporary art of the period including the works of Theodoros Vryzakis and Nikiphoros Lytras. 20th century At the beginning of the 20th century landscape painting held sway and the interest of painters turned toward the study of light and colour. The dependence in Munich stackened and Paris became the pole of attraction for the artists of the period. In the early twentieth century Demetrios Galanis, a contemporary and friend of Picasso, achieved wide recognition in France and lifelong membership of the Academie Francaise following his acclaim by the critic Andre Malreaux as an artist capable "of stirring emotions as powerful as those of Giotto". Later in the century Nikos Engonopoulos achieved international recognition with his surrealist conceptions both of painting and poetry, while in the late 1960s Dimitris Mytaras and Yiannis Psychopedis became associated with European critical realism. Impressionism was the original influence in the leading figures of the art of the first half of the 20th century, Konstantinos Parthenis and Konstantinos Maleas, while Nikiphoros Lytras associated himself with the avant-garde groups of Munich constituting the last known link with the series of painters in the great tradition of Munich in Greek art . The further development of these painters led to other roads, but always within the framework of the avant-garde movement albeit with a Greek dimension. Gradually the impressionists and other modern schools increased their influence. In the early 20th century Greek artists turned from Munich to Paris. The interest of Greek painters, artists changes from historical representations to Greek landscapes with an emphasis on light and colours so abundant in Greece. Representatives of this artistic change are Konstantinos Parthenis, Konstantinos Maleas, Nikiphoros Lytras and Georgios Bouzianis. Konstantinos Parthenis, in particular, introduces historical, religious and mythological elements that allow the classification of Greek painting into modern art. The same is true with the landscapes of Konstantinos Maleas and the expressionism of Georgios Bouzianis. The period of 1930’s was a landmark for the Greek painters, with Yiannis Tsarouchis, Yiannis Moralis, Nikos Hadjikyriakos-Ghikas, Spyros Vassileiou, Alekos Kontopoulos (introduced abstraction in Greek paintings) and Spyros Papaloukas coming into the limelight of Greek Art. These painters tried mainly to link leading European trends with Greek tradition. Notable 20th century artists The second half of the 20th century has seen many widely acclaimed Greek artists such as Constantine Andreou, recipient of the French Legion D'Honneur, Thodoros Papadimitriou, an internationally acclaimed sculptor. Giorgio de Chirico was an influential pre-Surrealist Greek-Italian painter that founded Metaphysical art. Jannis Kounellis ranks among the pioneers of the Arte Povera artistic movement. Theodoros Stamos was a renowned abstract expressionism painter. Takis, Chrysa and Constantin Xenakis are internationally acclaimed artists of Kinetic sculpture. Other notable Greek artists are Hermon di Giovanno, Varotsos, Dimitris Mytaras , Fassianos, Theocharis Mores, Steven Antonakos, Kostas Tsoklis, Nikos Hadjikyriakos-Ghikas. Contemporary Greek Art It is defined as the art produced by Greek artists after World War II. Abstract Expressionism Theodoros Stamos (1922-1997) was a great abstract expressionism art from Lefkas that lived and worked in New York in the 40s and 50s. His work has been exhibited throughout the world, and can be found in major museum collections such as the Whitney Museum of Art, the Guggenheim Museum, Smithsonian and the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. Kinetic Art Takis was born in 1925 in Athens, and he is an internationally acclaimed selftaught sculptor. He travelled, worked exhibited in Athens, Paris, London, New York and in many other cities. He is particularly known for his telemagnetic sculpture that formed the basis of his aesthetic expression and his musical sculptures. Takis' musical sculptures are based on the simple concept of using magnetic waves caused by electricity as a means to activate repeated musical sounds: the latter are to be heard every time a needle strikes a string, when attracted by a magnet. He won the Grand Prize at the Paris New Biennale in 1985. An illustrative example would be the installation of a real forest of numerous Signs in the Place de la Defence in Paris (1984-87), the original and imaginative illumination of the Arc de Triophe at the same period, the transformation of the aqueduct at Beauvais into a musical tower with a network of vertical metallic strings, in 1992, and his design for the layout of a subway station in Toulouse in 1993. Takis' non-morphological inquiries have continued through successive rejections of represantationalism; his method and the acoustic sensations which it calls forth retain their austerity. These are the features which place his artistic inventions among the most important achievements of contemporary, post-World War II art. Another famous Greek kinetic art artist is Chrysa. Arte povera In Arte povera, artists use any medium they could get for free or very, very cheap. The main Greek representative of arte povera is Jannis Kounellis, who introduced found objects in his paintings, such as live animals but also fire, earth, burlap sacks, gold. He replaced the canvas with bed frames, doorways, windows or simply the gallery itself. Stuckism Stuckism is an international artistic movement that was created as a reaction to conceptual art. Stuckist painter Odysseus Yakoumakis on September of 2004, founded the first Greek group of Stuckism International named The Romantic Anonymous Fellowship to oppose to the provinciality of the mainstream contemporary Greek art and in particular post-modernism. Digital Art Miltos Manetas is an internationally acclaimed artist who makes paintings, videoworks, prints and performances about video games, players and computer hardware. Andreas Angelidakis is an architect and artist working at the intersection of digital culture and architectural production. He is one of the first artists that treated internet as a real place, a site where he designed and built online communities such as the Chelsea Project, Neen World. He also designed and built spaces, intended to appear as computer renderings, sparking a discussion as to whether they were ever built (Pause pavilion, Stockholm 2002) and spaces that included a garden of mummified plants used as a virtual horizon for a laser beauty clinic (Forever Laser, Geneva 1998 and 2003). Angelidakis has realized projects in Sweden, Switzerland, USA and Italy for publications, museums and cultural foundations. Angelo Plessas is a digital artist that makes animations. He worked for the British musician Gnac'site and Breeder magazine. |
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