Lysippos is a sculptor of Ancient Greece, and his works

Lysippos is considered the last sculptor of ancient Greek classics. His work is still admired. Little is known about the artist himself. However, contemporaries knew that the only teacher who recognized the great Greek was nature.

How did the great sculptor start?

At the dawn of his career he worked as an ordinary copper-maker Lysippos. The sculptor, of course, dreamed of becoming something great, but he did not have money for the teacher.

Perhaps, the sculptor would remain an unknown person, who lived in the IV century BC, if he had not once heard the speech of a painter named Evlomp. He assured that only nature can be the best teacher, and not a man. The artist, after listening to this speech, made conclusions for himself and went to observe nature.

It was Lysippos who at one time learned to create more believable sculptures. He made the legs of his characters longer, and his head - less. In addition, as Skopas, the artist worked on the transfer of movements in his works.

By the way, it is these great sculptors - Skopas, Lysippos - who are the last representatives of the ancient Greek classical era.

Features of the work

On the one hand, the artist did not reject classical works. Heroism was traced in the works of Lysippos. On the other hand, the innovator enlivened the sculptures. His figures were more dynamic, even dramatic, and the faces resembled the faces of contemporaries.

His favorite material was bronze. Unfortunately, this alloy of copper is often melted down. If it were not for the Romans, today no one would know who the sculptor Lysippos is. His work can be studied only on copies. It is believed that Roman artists more truly were able to recreate the sculpture of the athlete Apoxyomen.

Returning to the peculiarities of the artist's works, it is worth noting that he portrayed people not as they are, but as Lysippos himself represented them. The sculptor of Ancient Greece loved to work on characters the most. In addition, this is the first artist who broke the human body on a plane. Thanks to this, his works began to look lighter and lively than, say, the monumental statues of Poliklet.

Sculptures of Lysippos

It is difficult to understand completely how the artist's works looked during his lifetime. Perhaps the Roman copies would have been surprised by the Lysippos sculptor himself. His works nevertheless today are divided into more and less successful.

The most popular include:

1. The statue of "Apocryomene". This composition has won recognition all over the world. Although the motif of the work is quite simple: the athlete after the competition cleans his body with a scraper.
2. Sculptures depicting Hercules. All the feats of the hero were immortalized. Today in the Hermitage you can admire the very first of them. There is a copy of the sculpture "Hercules struggling with a lion".
3. "Resting Hermes." The God of Lysippos is very much like an ordinary person.
4. "Eros". Image of a proportional child figure.
5. A colossal statue of Zeus in Tarenta. The work reached 20 meters in height.

In addition, it is believed that the first turned to the genre of the portrait is also Lysippos. The sculptor mainly worked on recreating the image of Alexander the Great. He is also credited with portraits of Socrates and seven wise men.

The famous "Apoxyomen"

The statue of "Apoxyimena" is considered the most famous work that the great Lysippos left to us. The sculptor, the photo confirms this, did not just create the statue, but managed to convey all the experiences of the tired athlete.

Even in the picture it is clear that Apoxiomen is a young man who is still excited after the struggle. It's like stepping from foot to foot, and the hair, hand-picked up on one side, allows you to guess that the athlete is sweating. The open mouth shows that the athlete has not yet had time to take a breath, and in the sunken eyes - fatigue.

At the same time, art critics are sure that the marble copy could not convey the depth of Lysippos's work. Moreover, when in the XIX century the sculpture came to the Roman restorer Tenerani, the artist suggested that in the hand of Apoxyimena is a dice. Soon, archaeologists have found evidence that in the original the athlete simply cleans himself with a scraper. The dice were removed from the work.

The diverse "Hercules"

Almost every ancient Greek author had his favorite mythical hero. Lysippos at one time chose Hercules. Art critics believe that the artist saw him as his protagonist. And they are asking themselves what qualities of Hercules were emphasized by the ancient sculptor Lysippos?

In some works the hero fights, other sculptures show the tired demigod, on the third the son of Zeus simply rests from the earthly burdens of life. The evolution of the Greek hero can be traced in three works of the author.

1. "Hercules struggling with a lion."

They say that if you bypass the sculpture from four sides, then you can live a famous feat of the hero with him. Front viewer will assess the beginning of the fight. Hercules and the lion are ready to fight, both are confident of victory. When viewed from the right side, it seems that the demigod is about to lose his balance. From the back it becomes noticeable that the force is on the side of the hero. To the left - the beast is almost smitten.

1. "Resting Hercules".

There is already a hero after the feat. He is tired and inactive. It seems that if the demigod did not lean on a club covered with a lion's skin, he would have fallen powerless.

1. "Young Hercules feasting on Olympus" (figurine).

The hero has already accomplished all his exploits, completed the earthly path, and, finally, got on Olympus. He is careless, does not hurry anywhere, but simply enjoys a feast.

If you believe the historians, it was the third statue that Lysippos presented to Alexander the Great. The governor liked the work so much that he did not part with her until her death.

Gods in the works of Lysippos

The gods of ancient Greece also paid much attention to the great sculptor Lysippos. His work, on the one hand, makes the inhabitants of Olympus more alive and close to people, on the other hand - immediately it is clear that they are celibates.

For example, "Resting Hermes". The god of trade and eloquence sits on the edge of the cliff. He is tired, breathing heavily, it seems that this is an ordinary man who now will continue the hard way. However, the buckles on his feet betray the god, they can not walk - you can only fly.

Statue of Satire. The face of this horned god reminds the old man. He is bearded, his forehead is deeply wrinkled, his eyes are narrowed. The forest god rose on tiptoe and, it seems, went somewhere. But if you look closely, you can see that he dances his bacchic dance, only restrained.

Poseidon in the works of Lysippos looks majestic, as befits a lord. At the same time, the artist was able to depict the underwater king part of the sea. Folds on the forehead, curls on the head, movements of the hands - everything resembles waves.

Very strongly, Zeus Lysippos stands out against the background of the images of the main Olympic god in the works of other authors. His Zeus is not just the lord of the world, but also a very tragic and even tired character. God, on whose shoulders is a huge responsibility.

An attempt to portray a figure in sculpture

As you know, the artists did not immediately learn how to portray children. Usually they used the face and figure of an adult as a basis and simply "reduced" it. The first in ancient Greece to break this tradition decided Lysippos. The sculptor portrayed the young Eros as a child.

The body turned out to be tender, not yet developed. The head is larger than that of an adult, puffy lips, a small mouth and cheeks, - everything indicates that the god is still very young.

It is clear that Eros is tense. The boy tries to pull the string, but it is given to him with great difficulty. So he bent, stretched out his arms and turned his head.

And then you can trace the find of the sculptor - the author depicts a figure in different planes. What gives the statue depth and space.

The court painter of Macedonian

Contemporaries appreciated and admired the works of the nugget. Alexander the Great himself could not pass by. Sculptor Lysippos was awarded the honor of becoming a personal artist of Macedon.

Unfortunately, in our time it is impossible to appreciate the work of the sculptor, depicting the commander in full growth. They, like other works, have not reached our days. The Romans also made good copies of them.

They say the most famous was the sculpture "Alexander with a spear." The commander looked at him in the direction of the left shoulder, with his left hand leaning on the spear, his right hand was on his side. Later, artists often borrowed the motif of this work, depicting kings and generals in the same pose. All the great rulers wanted to be like Macedonian.

Today, the "Alexander with a spear" can be viewed in the Hermitage. There is a copy of the great statue, however, its size does not exceed a few centimeters.

Portrait genre

More lucky portraits of Alexander of Macedon. Almost the founder of portrait sculpture in Ancient Greece became Lysippos. The sculptor so artistically portrayed the commander that the Macedonian did not allow anyone else to do his portraits.

In his works of the great king, Lysippos depicted, on the one hand, as a strong personality, on the other hand, as a man who had lost his peace and confidence. Often the commander looks like a man who has survived a lot and is tired of life.

The sculptor did not idealize his ruler. He portrayed a person, not a classic hero.

Art historians believe that Lysippos at one time dazzled portraits of Socrates, seven wise men and Euripides. These were works not from nature, but made from memories, descriptions and early painted portraits.

Also, there is reason to believe that the found Roman bronze head, the portrait of an unknown athlete, belonged to the hand of the great sculptor. Moreover, it is probably a self-portrait. Here the author showed a simple man with a rude face.

last years of life

It is difficult for our contemporaries to understand what the great sculptor Lysippos was for a man. Biography of the artist is almost unknown.

According to legend, the ancient author died of hunger by a deep old man. Ostensibly Lysippos could not tear himself away from the last sculpture, so he forgot about the physiological needs.

At the same time, historians are sure that his students, assistants and sons worked with him in the workshop. Therefore, it is difficult to talk about the exact cause of Lysippos's death.

Another legend says that after each successfully sold work the great Greek laid it off on a gold coin. After his death, it turned out that more than 1500 coins.

The artist's many-sided creativity brought him fame outside of ancient Greece. Then it began to be compared with the greatest classic - Fidium.

Contribution of the sculptor to the world culture

Summing up, we can say that the artist "created a revolution in the art world with" light hand movements ". Is he:

• Changed the proportions of the body in sculpture, extended his arms, reduced his head;
• Learned to represent their inner impulses in the movements of his characters;
• Tried to depict in sculpture life itself with its troubles and doubts;
• In his works the young heroes face and body are like children;
• Opened the road to portrait sculpture;
• Created the ideal of man - depicted characters not as they are, but as the artist represented them.

Lysippos was the most famous sculptor of antiquity. In each work, the artist tried to depict the restless character of his era. And he did it.