Greckie malarstwo wazowe - wprowadzenie

Pottery is virtually indestructible. Though it may break into smaller pieces (called sherds), these would have to be manually ground into dust in order to be removed from the archaeological record. As such, there is an abundance of material for study, and this is exceptionally useful for modern scholars. In addition to being an excellent tool for dating, pottery enables researchers to locate ancient sites, reconstruct the nature of a site, and point to evidence of trade between groups of people. Moreover, individual pots and their painted decoration can be studied in detail to answer questions about religion, daily life, and society.

Wykonane z terracotty (gliny wypalanej), starożytne greckie garnki, kubki lub "wazy" jak są zwykle nazywane, były dostosowywane do różnych kształtów i rozmiarów (zob. wyżej) i bardzo często kształt naczynia jest powiązany z jego zamierzoną funkcją. Na przykład krater był używany do mieszania wody z winem podczas greckich sympozji (imprez przeznaczonych wyłącznie dla mężczyzn). Umożliwiało to wlewanie płynów do jego szerokiego otworu, mieszając zawartość w głębokiej miseczce, ułatwiając dostęp do mieszanki, które następnie nabierało się chochlą lub słoikiem. Natomiast waza znana jako hydria była używana do zbierania, przenoszenia i nalewania wody. Składa się on z bulwiastego ciała, chudego dziubka, oraz posiadała trzy uchwyty (dwa po boku, do trzymania i jedna z tyłu naczynia w celu przechylania i nalewania).

In order to discuss the different zones of vessels, specialists have adopted terms that relate to the parts of the body. The opening of the pot is called the mouth; the stem is referred to as the neck; the slope from the neck to the body is called the shoulder; and the base is known as the foot).

Na zewnątrz, greckie wazy ukazują namalowane kompozycje, które często odzwierciedlają styl w określonym okresie. Przykładem są naczynia stworzone w okresie geometrycznym (ok. 900-700 p.n.e.), cechują się wzorami geometrycznymi widocznymi na słynnych [wazach dipylońskich](http://smarthistory. rg/dipylon-amfora/) (zobacz poniżej), podczas te ozdobione w okresie orientacyjnym (ok. 700-600 p.n.e.) pokazują pochody zwierząt i motywy Bliskiego Wschodu, tak jak widać na wcześniejszej amforze korynckiej (Muzeum Brytyjskie).

Później, w okresach archaicznych i klasycznych (ok. 600-323 p.n.e.), wazy ukazywały głównie aktywność ludzką i mitologiczną. Pokazywane sceny mogą się znacznie różnić od codziennych wydarzeń (np. przynoszenie wody z fontanny) do heroicznych czynów i homerycznych opowieści (np. Theseus i byk, Odyseusz i Syreny), ze świata bogów (np. Zeus uprowadzający Ganimedesa) przez teatralne przedstawienia i konkurencje lekkoatletyczne (np. Oresteja, wyścigi rydwanów). Należy jednak podkreślić, że sceny, które były malowane nie powinny być traktowane jako fotografie dokumentujące rzeczywistość, aczkolwiek pomagają w rekonstrukcji życia i wierzeń starożytnych Greków.

To produce the characteristic red and black colors found on vases, Greek craftsmen used liquid clay as paint (termed “slip”) and perfected a complicated three-stage firing process. Not only did the pots have to be stacked in the kiln in a specific manner, but the conditions inside had to be precise. First, the temperature was stoked to about 800° centigrade and vents allowed for an oxidizing environment. At this point, the entire vase turned red in color. Next, by sealing the vents and increasing temperature to around 900-950° centigrade, everything turned black and the areas painted with the slip vitrified (transformed into a glassy substance). Finally, in the last stage, the vents were reopened and oxidizing conditions returned inside the kiln. At this point, the unpainted zones of the vessel became red again while the vitrified slip (the painted areas) retained a glossy black hue. Through the introduction and removal of oxygen in the kiln and, simultaneously, the increase and decrease in temperature, the slip transformed into a glossy black color.

Krótko mówiąc, starożytne greckie wazy pokazują kilka technik malowania, które często są specyficzne dla danego okresu. Podczas okresów geometrycznych i orientalizujących (900-600 p.n.e.), malarze stosowali cyrkle do znakowania idealnych okręgów i stosowali sylwetki, a także zarysy w celu nakreślania kształtów, figur i postaci (zobacz obrazek poniżej).

Around 625-600 B.C.E., Athens adopted the black-figure technique (i.e., dark-colored figures on a light background with incised detail). Originating in Corinth almost a century earlier, black-figure uses the silhouette manner in conjunction with added color and incision. Incision involves the removal of slip with a sharp instrument, and perhaps its most masterful application can be found on an amphora by Exekias (below). Often described as Achilles and Ajax playing a game, the seated warriors lean towards the center of the scene and are clothed in garments that feature intricate incised patterning. In addition to displaying more realistically defined figures, black-figure painters took care to differentiate gender with color: women were painted with added white, men remained black.

The red-figure technique was invented in Athens around 525-520 BCE and is the inverse of black-figure (below). Here light-colored figures are set against a dark background. Using added color and a brush to paint in details, red-figure painters watered down or thickened the slip in order to create different effects.

Watered down slip or “dilute glaze” has the appearance of a wash and was used for hair, fur, and anatomy, as exemplified by the sketchy coat of the hare and the youth’s musculature on the interior of this cup by Gorgos (below). When thickened, the slip was used to form so-called “relief lines” or lines raised prominently from the surface, and these were often employed to outline forms. Surprisingly similar to red-figure is the white-ground technique.

Though visually quite different with its polychrome figures on a white-washed background, white-ground requires the craftsman to paint in the details of forms just like red-figure, rather than incise them (see the Kylix below).

Alongside figures and objects, one can sometimes find inscriptions. These identify mythological figures, beautiful men or women contemporaneous with the painter (“kalos” / “kale” inscriptions), and even the painter or potter himself (“egrapsen” / “epoiesen”). Inscriptions, however, are not always helpful. Mimicking the appearance of meaningful text, “nonsense inscriptions” deceive the illiterate viewer by arranging the Greek letters in an incoherent fashion.

Vases and Reception

The overall attractive quality of Greek vases, their relatively small size, and—at one point in time—their easily obtainable nature, led them to be highly coveted collector’s items during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Since the later part of the nineteenth century, however, the study of vases became a scholarly pursuit and their decoration was the obsession of connoisseurs gifted with the ability to recognize and attribute the hands of individual painters.

The most well-known vase connoisseur of the twentieth century, a researcher concerned with attribution, typology, and chronology, was Sir John Davidson Beazley. Interested in Athenian black-, red-figure, and white-ground techniques, Beazley did not favor beautifully painted specimens; he was impartial and studied pieces of varying quality with equal attention. From his tedious and exhaustive examinations, he compiled well-over 1000 painters and groups, and he attributed over 30,000 vases. Although some researchers since Beazley’s death continue to attribute and examine the style of specific painters or groups, vase scholars today also question the technical production of vessels, their archaeological contexts, their local and foreign distribution, and their iconography.