By John Howard Oakley - The Greek Vase: Art of the Storyteller

by John H. Oakley

HardCover. Pub Date :2013-10-14 156 English Thames & Hudson Wonderfully preserved Greek vases are a unique source of information about the mythology. religion. drama and daily l ife of the ancient Greek world This sumptuous. photographic book offers a superb visual introduction to the artistry of ancient Greek vases. exploring them not merely as beautiful vessels to bear water and wine. but also as instruments of storytelling and bearers of meaning. Presenting the vases and the ir imagery in their full narrative glory. The Greek Vase interprets the ir forms and stories along a variety of themes. from the adventures of gods and mythological heroes. to expressive scenes of sexual intimacy and depictions of social. family and domestic life. Throughout. the text highlights what these pictures would have meant to the people who lived with and used them...

Genres: History, Art, Greece

Hardcover

First published October 1, 2013

Reviews

[Wren · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a wonderful introduction to Greek pottery. Why 4 stars? At times it went into too much detail for the lay reader.

Nevertheless, I have a richer understanding about how various types of pottery were made and what kinds of images were typical. I also learned that the Fransois Vase is the most famous (but it was not depicted because it is not owned by the British Museum or the J. Paul Getty Museum--those who provided the photographs of the pottery.

Chapters:

Preface
Fabric, Form and Function
Potters and Painters
Depicting the Divine
Meeting the Myth Makers
A Life Well-Lived
Seducing the Senses
Further Reading

Yes, of course, Keats' poem "Ode to a Grecian Urn" echoed through my mind as I leafed through the pages of this book. Here is just one stanza. I highly recommend reading the poem alongside reading this book.

Thou still unravish'd bride of quietness,
Thou foster-child of silence and slow time,
Sylvan historian, who canst thus express
A flowery tale more sweetly than our rhyme:
What leaf-fring'd legend haunts about thy shape
Of deities or mortals, or of both,
In Tempe or the dales of Arcady?
What men or gods are these? What maidens loth?
What mad pursuit? What struggle to escape?
What pipes and timbrels? What wild ecstasy?

I enjoyed looking over the photographs, and it's hard to pick a favorite. But I liked ones that featured multiple figures that represented complex narratives. For example, there are painting of Herakles on various quests. And one one cup there are 7 scenes featuring Theseus (founder of Athens) from 440-430 BCE (page 73). And even though abduction isn't my favorite theme, the figures appear in motion on a vase depicting Peleus abducting Thetis created circa 360-355 BCE (page 78).

And even though I find much of the activities of the Greek symposia to be self-indulgent, sexist, and focused on making backroom deals regarding public issues (war, legislation, judicial matters, business), there are some very beautiful images using that setting--couches with the mature men guests. Before these men of luxury are women and young men entertainers (some providing music, dance, and gymnastics, some providing sex). And proximate to the people are tables, musical instruments, and (oh, so very meta-) pottery for diluting their wine and drinking it.

The more I read about the Ancient Greeks--the 5th C. Athenians specifically--the more mixed my response to them becomes. They had a genius for art, architecture, drama, poetry, and more. They also found ways to evolve past monarchies and oligarchies to give power to more people. But the Athenians achievements in the arts were funded by slavery, restricting property ownership, and extorting hundreds of other Greek city-states.

[Nick H · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent introduction to the artwork adorning Greek pottery. There’s so much to unpack in these images that I had no idea about. I’m doing an illustration project involving Greek-influenced artwork and picked up this book, but now I’m hooked- I definitely want to find out more on the subject. Excellent photographs, both close-up for artistic reference, and wide to get an idea of where the images lay on the vessel. Well-structured too, breaking everything into nice, bite-sized sections. I’m impressed.

素晴らしいクラシックギリシャ美術本。一流写真。簡単と面白い作文。

[Eric · Rating 5 out of 5]

John Oakley has written a very educational and very readable introduction to ancient Greek vases, which, besides being beautiful works of art and practical containers, turn out to be key to the understanding of many aspects of ancient Greek life, including childhood, adolescence, courting and sexual mores and death. The color photographs in this oversize book are of excellent quality and complement the accompanying text very well.

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5

[Melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Beautiful pictures but text is for a real enthusiast of all things ancient Greek.

[Xole · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great table book - one to dip into it from week to week rather than reading in a single hit. It was incredibly interesting to see these vases up close, and read about the large quantity of information that can be gleaned just from artistic representations of the past. A much-appreciated birthday gift!

[Emma · Rating 3 out of 5]

More of a coffee table book than a textbook, as it was assigned to me. However it has lovely pictures with good descriptions, but not much more than that.