Statue "Praying Ephebe" (original size), bronze version
Statue "Praying Ephebe" (original size), bronze version
Quick info
bronze | original size 139 cm | weight approx. 80 kg
Detailed description
Statue "Praying Ephebe" (original size), bronze version
The Attic sculptor Leochares (375-310 BC), who helped complete one of the ancient Seven Wonders of the World at the Mausoleum of Halicarnassus, realised the ideal of the god-like heroic Olympian with the "Praying Epheb". In the consecrated district of Diadumenos near Olympia, the radiance of the eternal fire shone on the youth, crowning himself with the fillet of victory. Raising his arms far above his head, he invokes the blessing of the immortals.
Original: Bronze, Staatliche Museen Preußischer Kulturbesitz Berlin, Pergamonmuseum. Leochares, c. 320 BC.
Edition in bronze. Original size 139 cm. Weight approx. 80 kg.
Producer: ars mundi Edition Max Büchner GmbH, Bödekerstraße 13, 30161 Hanover, Germany, [email protected]
About Leochares
Together with Praxiteles, Leochares is the most important Greek sculptor of the Late Classical period. He lived in the 4th century BC and probably came from Athens. Pliny puts his creative period between 370 and 320. Since only little is known about his life and work, his oeuvre can only be reconstructed based on copies.
However, it is certain that the artist was involved in the sculptural decoration of the Mausoleum of Mausolos at Halicarnassus around the year 350. According to Pliny, he is said to have made the panels with the Amazon battle frieze. However, the attribution of the models for the "Apollo Belvedere" and its counterpart, the "Artemis of Versailles" remains controversial.
The Greek sculptor's great fame among his contemporaries was based primarily on his portraits and images of the gods. Before 338 BC, for example, he was commissioned to depict the royal family of Philip II of Macedon as a family portrait in the Philippeion in Olympia. He also portrayed his son Alexander in other portrait busts. A work by Leochares that was still famous in Roman times was the statue depicting an eagle abducting Ganymede.
The free sculptural works have their peculiarity in their slender proportions and space-grasping movements. If the attributions are correct, he has shown unusual group dynamics for his time in the multi-figure scenes and decorative surface filling. Thus, his work stands at the threshold of the classical art of the 5th century BC towards Hellenism.
An alloy of copper with other metals (especially with tin) used since ancient times. It is an ideal metal for high-quality artistic castings, capable of enduring for millennia.
When casting bronze, the artist usually applies the lost-wax technique which is dating back more than 5000 years. This is the best, but also the most complex method of producing sculptures.
First, the artist forms a model of their work. This model is embedded in a liquid silicone rubber mass. Once the material has solidified, the model is cut out, leaving a negative mould. Liquid wax is then poured into the negative mould. After cooling down, the wax cast is removed from the mould, provided with sprues and dipped into ceramic mass. The ceramic mass is hardened in a kiln, where the wax melts away (lost mould).
Finally, the negative mould is ready, into which the 1400° C hot molten bronze is poured. After the bronze had cooled down, the ceramic shell is broken apart, reavoling the sculpture.
Next, the sprues are removed, the surfaces are polished, patinated and numbered by the artist or by a specialist, following their instructions. Thus, each casting is an original work.
For lower-quality bronze castings, the sand casting method is often used, which, however, does not achieve the results of a more elaborate lost-wax technique in terms of surface characteristics and quality.
Minoan Culture, Mycenean Culture
Cretan art is also called Minoan art, named after the legendary King Minos.
Cretan-Minoan art is the art of Crete from about 2900 to 1600 B.C., the Mycenaean art from Crete and the Greek mainland from about 1600 to 1100 B.C., continuing in Crete until 1200 B.C.
In the shaft graves of Mycenae, which reached their peak in the 14th and 13th centuries B.C., the German archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann discovered significant evidence of this culture. One preserved monument is the Lion Gate from the 13th century B.C.
Splendidly decorated vases are the artworks of ceramics that have best survived the turmoil of millennia. The famous Snake Goddess (around 1500 B.C.) is a faience statuette that has been recovered from the ruins of the Repositories Temple of the Knossos palace. Bronze vessels from that time were primarily used in the household. Daggers, swords, and armour were also made of bronze.
The jewellery of the Cretan-Mycenaean women was made of gold, rock crystal, lapis lazuli, ivory, faience, and glass.
Geometric Culture
As a continuation of Late Mycenaean art, geometric art developed on the Greek mainland towards the end of the 11th century B.C. Replacing the naturalistic Crete-Mycenaean forms, geometric art introduced a mathematically ordered style. Another new feature was the use of the ruler and the compass. Jewellry from this time is also based on strict geometric principles.
Archaic Culture
Temple architecture in the 8th and 7th century B.C. developed significantly. Initially, mudbrick and wood were used for building, later the forms were transferred to stone. A monumental style developed in sculpture. Materials such as marble, bronze, clay, and limestone were used. The nude young male figure type was used to represent gods, heroes, and victorious athletes. However, gods or other consecration figures were portrayed as clothed.
In addition to freestanding sculptures, relief art developed, which was preferably used for decoration of temples.
Statuettes made of clay and bronze first appeared in the 6th century B.C., depicting humans, animals, and mystical beings, all of high quality.
Classical Culture (5th and 4th century B.C.)
The beginning of the Greek classical art coincides with the time of the great statesman Pericles. Because of his democratic politics, Athens became the centre of cultural life and artistic creation in ancient Greece.
Classic architecture refined the shapes and proportions to perfection. The Temple of Zeus at Olympia, the Parthenon on the Acropolis of Athens, and other major temple buildings were built in that time.
In sculpture, the time of the Severe style began. The rigid forms of the earlier period were outdated, the human body was studied anatomically. Top works of the Severe style include the Charioteer of Delphi and the Artemision Bronze, which was recovered from the sea by fishermen.
The high classical period saw further progress. Sculptors such as Myron, Phidias, and Polykleitos created sculptures that affect the statuary art to the present day (e.g. "Discobolus," "Athena-Marsyas Group," and "Riace Bronzes," etc.)
In the 4th century, a romantic conception prevailed. Praxiteles and Lysippos determined the art of the time. Sculptures such as "Hermes and the Infant Dionysus," "Pouring Satyr," and especially the "Aphrodite of Knidos" are magnificent examples of the artistic conception of Classical Greece.
Hellenistic Art
With Alexander the Great's conquests, the Greek art dominated the Mediterranean and the Orient. In temple architecture, the Ionic and Corinthian style prevailed.
The Hellenistic sculptural period was initiated by Lysippos. Temple complexes, such as those in Pergamon, were richly decorated with statues. At the beginning of the 2nd century B. C., The "Winged Victory of Samothrace" was created, and towards the end of the century, the "Venus de Milo." The period of Hellenistic sculpture reached its final peak with "Laocoön Group". The painting of that time was determined by Apelles. The Hellenistic painters depicted themes such as historical events, portraits, and genre paintings.
A plastic work of sculptural art made of wood, stone, ivory, bronze or other metals.
While sculptures made of wood, ivory, or stone are carved directly from the material block, in bronze casting, a working model is prepared at first. Usually, it is made of clay or other easily mouldable materials.
The prime time of sculpture after the Greek and Roman antiquity was the Renaissance. Impressionism gave a new impulse to the sculptural arts. Contemporary artists such as Jorg Immendorf, Andora, and Markus Lupertz also enriched sculptures with outstanding works.