4. The Andokides Painter, the Lysippides Painter and the Pioneers

About this Lecture

Lecture

In this module, we come to the end of the sixth century BC and the invention of red-figure style, focusing in particular on: (i) the limitations of the black-figure technique, which had reached its zenith under Exekias and the Amasis Painter; (ii) the opportunities afforded by the red-figure technique: (iii) the tentative steps towards exclusively red-figure pottery, including the creation of ‘bilingual’ pots featuring both black-figure and red-figure technique; (iv) the (playful?) competitiveness between the earliest practitioners in the red-figure style, a group known as the Pioneers; and (v) some examples of the red-figure technique’s ability to show bodies twisting and turning in space, e.g. the Krater of Antaeus, the Euphronios Krater.

Featured pots:
– Belly amphora by the Andokides Painter and the Lysippides Painter, 520-10 BC. Staatliche Antikensammlungen, Munich 2301
– Amphora, attributed to the Andokides Painter, c. 525 BC. Antikensammlung, Berlin, Schloss Charlottenburg F2159
– The Revellers Vase, c. 510 BC. Staatliche Antikensammlungen, Munich 2307
– Krater of Antaeus, c. 515-10 BC. Louvre G 103
– The Euphronios Krater, c. 515 BC. Cervetri, Museo Nazionale Cerite 187 (previously Metropolitan Museum of Art 1972.11.10, L.2006.10 LOAN, Mus. Naz. Etrusco di Villa Giulia, Rome L.2006.10)

Course

In this course, Professor Robin Osborne (University of Cambridge) explores vase-painting in the Greek world from the eighth century to the middle of the fifth century BC, tracing a narrative that includes each of the vases on the OCR A Level Classical Civilization specification (H408), as well as several that are not on the specification. In the first module, we concentrate on the Dinos of the Gorgon Painter, and think about the ways it might be seen as a ‘transitional’ piece. In the second module, we look at the Sophilos Dinos and the François Vase, before turning in the third module to the works of Exekias and the Amasis Painter. In the fourth module, we think about the transition to the red-figure technique and the group of painters known as the Pioneers, before turning in the fifth module to trace the development of the red-figure style into the mid-5th century BC, from the densely-packed arrangements of the Kleophrades Painter to the minimalism of the Berlin Painter and beyond. Finally, in the sixth module, we think about the development of Greek art more generally in this period and ask whether Greek vase-painting undergoes a comparable ‘revolution’ to that seen in freestanding sculpture.

Note on referencing: pots are cited using their conventional name if applicable (e.g. ‘The Eleusis Amphora’) or (if not) their shape and the name of the painter of not (e.g. ‘Kylix attributed to the Berlin Painter’). We have also included details of estimated production date and the museum/collection in which the pot can currently be found (e.g. Dinos of the Gorgon Painter, c. 580 BC. Louvre E 874). Further details which might be of interest (e.g. height and diameter, painting style, etc.) can be found on museum websites.

Lecturer

Robin Osborne is Professor of Ancient History at the University of Cambridge and a Fellow of King’s College, Cambridge and of the British Academy. He works on Greek History (political, social, economic, cultural) and Greek Archaeology (field archaeology and art history) between 1000 B.C. and 200 B.C, and has published extensively across a range of topics.