Lowenstam Collection of Ancient Western Art and Archaeology

Search

You searched for: Start Over Repository J. Paul Getty Museum Remove constraint Repository: J. Paul Getty Museum Photographer Lowenstam, Steven Remove constraint Photographer: Lowenstam, Steven

Search Results

1. Lifting of Thetis
Lifting of Thetis
Description
Photograph from the personal collection of Dr. Steven Lowenstam (1945-2003), Department of Classics, University of Oregon.
2. The Judgment of Paris
The Judgment of Paris
Description
Photograph from the personal collection of Dr. Steven Lowenstam (1945-2003), Department of Classics, University of Oregon.
3. Achilles and Ajax
Achilles and Ajax
Description
Scenes from the mythological Trojan War decorate this Athenian black-figure neck-amphora. On the front, Achilles and Ajax, two great heroes of the Greeks, sit playing a board game. The goddess Athena stands in front of the board and gestures. The warriors have their armor and weapons ready, as if just pausing during a break in the conflict. This scene of Ajax and Achilles gaming was very popular in Athenian vase-painting of the late 500s B.C. and was a favorite of the painters in the Leagros Group. Many scholars believe that this mythological scene also served as a contemporary political parable on the value of staying alert, since the tyrant Peisistratos had been able to take control of the city of Athens while the army was distracted. The back of the vase depicts three hoplites, or warriors, in a line. Such files of hoplites are rather unusual in vase-painting, and this depiction may have been meant to relate to the scene on the front of the vase. These hoplites may be Greeks on the march to counter a Trojan attack, while Ajax and Achilles are notified by Athena. Such an interpretation would explain Athena's unusually prominent position on this rendition of the scene. --J. Paul Getty Museum; Bareiss Loan: S.80.AE.292, May, Helmut, ed. Weltkunst aus Privatbesitz, exh. cat. (Cologne: Kunsthalle Köln, 1968), cat. no. A 24.; Bothmer, Dietrich von, and J. Bean. Greek Vases and Modern Drawings from the Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Walter Bareiss. Exh. checklist, The Metropolitan Museum of Art. New York: 1969. p. 2, no. 19.; Brommer, Frank. Vasenlisten zur griechischen Heldensage. 3rd ed. (Marburg: 1973) p. 335, no. 23.; Woodford, Susan.
4. [No Caption] Steven Lowenstam Collection
[No Caption] Steven Lowenstam Collection
Description
Photograph from the personal collection of Dr. Steven Lowenstam (1945-2003), Department of Classics, University of Oregon.
5. Achilles and Ajax
Achilles and Ajax
Description
Photograph from the personal collection of Dr. Steven Lowenstam (1945-2003), Department of Classics, University of Oregon.
6. Departure
Departure
Description
Photograph from the personal collection of Dr. Steven Lowenstam (1945-2003), Department of Classics, University of Oregon.
7. Apollodoros
Apollodoros
Description
Photograph from the personal collection of Dr. Steven Lowenstam (1945-2003), Department of Classics, University of Oregon.
8. Votive relief to the hero Achilles and his mother Thetis
Votive relief to the hero Achilles and his mother Thetis
Description
Photograph from the personal collection of Dr. Steven Lowenstam (1945-2003), Department of Classics, University of Oregon.
9. Reveler with lyre
Reveler with lyre
Description
Reclining on a couch, an older balding man tilts his head back and sings, accompanying himself on the lyre. Several features of the scene, such as the couch, the pillow, and especially the wreath the man wears, reveal that he is a participant at a symposion or drinking party. Many Greek vases, especially elaborate cups, were designed for use at such parties. Therefore, vase-painters frequently decorated these vessels with scenes of revelry and drinking. The circular area or tondo on the interior of a cup presented problems for Greek vase-painters. It was difficult to fit upright figures in this limited, curving space. Artists devised different solutions for this problem: some drew a line across the circle to create an artificial ground-line for their figures. On this vase, Epiktetos came up with a creative solution. He drew a line across the circle but made it the man's couch, rather than a ground-line. The edge of the man's mantle slipping down behind and below the line, creates the impression of depth and space. Epiktetos also used the circular frame of the tondo as part of the composition: it supports the man's pillow, and he props his foot on it. --J. Paul Getty Museum ; Bareiss Loan Number: S.80.AE.252
10. Singer
Singer
Description
Reclining on a couch, an older balding man tilts his head back and sings, accompanying himself on the lyre. Several features of the scene, such as the couch, the pillow, and especially the wreath the man wears, reveal that he is a participant at a symposion or drinking party. Many Greek vases, especially elaborate cups, were designed for use at such parties. Therefore, vase-painters frequently decorated these vessels with scenes of revelry and drinking. The circular area or tondo on the interior of a cup presented problems for Greek vase-painters. It was difficult to fit upright figures in this limited, curving space. Artists devised different solutions for this problem: some drew a line across the circle to create an artificial ground-line for their figures. On this vase, Epiktetos came up with a creative solution. He drew a line across the circle but made it the man's couch, rather than a ground-line. The edge of the man's mantle slipping down behind and below the line, creates the impression of depth and space. Epiktetos also used the circular frame of the tondo as part of the composition: it supports the man's pillow, and he props his foot on it. --J. Paul Getty Museum ; Bareiss Loan Number: S.80.AE.252