Woodford, Susan. Cambridge Introduction to the History of Art: Greece and Rome. Cambridge University Press, 1982.
The book begins with a brief history of Greece and Rome to include art and literature. The second chapter begins with a brief history of Greek sculpture and when the different periods took place. This was helpful to me because it pointed out exactly when a certain style was dominating. It also helped me understand the state of Greek culture during the creation of various pieces. The author goes on to discuss the direct origins of Greek Archaic sculpture from Egyptian sculpture. She gives both a comparison and contrast of both cultures' figures. She also gives informative descriptions of how pieces were formed and carved. An example is her description of the "lost wax method" or cire-perdue. She says,
To make a bronze statue the artist would first make a model in clay. He could round the model as he worked and change it as he went along, adding curves and adjusting contours in a way that it would be impossible for a sculptor of marble. When the model was complete, the artist would cover it with a thin, even coating of wax. The surface of the wax would show what the finished surface of the bronze statue would look like. Next, the artist surrounded the model with a mould, made mostly of clay, thick and strong enough to withstand the pressure of the molten metal. It fitted neatly around the wax and was held in place by iron rods that ran through to the core of the clay model. The wax was then melted out, leaving a gap between the clay model core and the outer mould. Molten bronze(an alloy of copper and tin) was poured into the gap to fill the space originally occupied by the wax. After the bronze had cooled and solidified, the mould was chipped away and the completed bronze figure was smooth and finished.
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Woodford also says that the Greek artist went through an evolution of solving problems of form. The artists were confronted by more problems once the first were solved. It was by trial and error that the artist would overcome these until reaching perfection in the Hellenistic period. It was normally foolish for a sculptor to stray too far away from the 'ideal' method of working. If the sculptor did stray too far, the piece may have been unsuccessfully carved and considered a failure. The Greek sculptor, however, would overcome this sense of security to experiment and try new methods. By experimenting over time, using the Kouros from Anavysos as an example, took on a more naturalistic form. Although this new style of naturalism was exciting to the sculptor, it also caused a new unforeseen problem. There was now a clashing of styles that was not evident before in earlier works. The hair of the kouros was still a mass of stylized, bead-like patterns fastened to a head and body that were clearly more natural than before. The sculptor would eventually overcome this by cutting the hair down as in the Kritos Boy.
She explains that marble would have been too weak to allow any great stress from weight due to an unbalanced form or pose. This held the Archaic sculptor to carving balanced, symmetrical forms. Bronze was ideal for the sculpting of unbalanced form such as the Dancing Satyr. By using the hollow bronze method, the sculptor could accomplish any pose without difficulty. This led to the development of the Classical and Hellenistic styles in sculpture.
The author was precise and direct in her way telling the story of Greek sculpture. Although the photographs were in black and white, they were well composed and helped support the author's thoughts and ideas. I enjoyed this book because it is a basic overview of the styles and techniques of the Greek artist. It does not go overboard on Greek thought and philosophy and its effect on the arts. I find these books difficult for me to separate the vital information from the parts that get too deep into it as I am reading. Therefore, I would recommend this book to anyone wanting to learn about Greek art for the first time.