Apollodorus (painter)
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Apollodorus Skiagraphos ( el, Ἀπολλόδωρος ὁ σκιαγράφος) was an influential
Ancient Greek Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic peri ...
painter Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called the "matrix" or "support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush, but other implements, such as knives, sponges, and ai ...
of the 5th century BC whose work has since been entirely lost. Apollodorus left a technique behind known as skiagraphia, a way to easily produce shadow, that affected the works not only of his contemporaries but also of later generations. This shading technique uses hatched areas to give the illusion of both shadow and volume.


Life and accomplishments

Little is known about the actual life of Apollodorus, although he was catalogued by the notable historians
Plutarch Plutarch (; grc-gre, Πλούταρχος, ''Ploútarchos''; ; – after AD 119) was a Greek Middle Platonist philosopher, historian, biographer, essayist, and priest at the Temple of Apollo in Delphi. He is known primarily for his ''P ...
and
Pliny the Elder Gaius Plinius Secundus (AD 23/2479), called Pliny the Elder (), was a Roman author, naturalist and natural philosopher, and naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and a friend of the emperor Vespasian. He wrote the encyclopedic '' ...
. It was recorded that Apollodorus was active around 480 BCE; his dates of birth and death, however, are not attested in any surviving historical works or fragments of works.“Apollodorus.” The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. Columbia University Press., 2003. Answers.com 26 Nov. 2008. http://www.answers.com/topic/apollodorus-painter. He was given different names by those who wrote about him. To Pliny, he was the great painter Apollodorus of Athens; therefore, it can be assumed that he lived and worked in the
polis ''Polis'' (, ; grc-gre, πόλις, ), plural ''poleis'' (, , ), literally means "city" in Greek. In Ancient Greece, it originally referred to an administrative and religious city center, as distinct from the rest of the city. Later, it also ...
of
Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...
.Pliny. ''The Natural History of Pliny''. Trans. John Bostock and
Henry T. Riley Henry Thomas Riley (June 1816 – 14 April 1878) was an English translator, lexicographer, and antiquary. Life Born in June 1816, he was only son of Henry Riley of Southwark, an ironmonger. He was educated at Chatham House, Ramsgate, and at C ...
. H.G. Bohn, 1857. 250.
But, to Plutarch and Hesychius, he was known as Apollodorus Skiagraphos, "the shadow-painter, named after his greatest legacy. None of his actual paintings remain, for, due to weathering, almost all ancient Greek paintings have been destroyed, and the elegance and beauty of Greek art can mainly be glimpsed in the Macedonian tombs with their rich artistic programmes, in works such as the
Derveni Krater The Derveni Krater is a volute krater, the most elaborate of its type, discovered in 1962 in a tomb at Derveni, not far from Thessaloniki, and displayed at the Archaeological Museum of Thessaloniki. Weighing 40 kg, it is made of a bronze wi ...
, and in the sculptures and motives that were later copied by the
Romans Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
and architectural ruins that remain. The subjects of some of the paintings were recorded, however, by quite a number of ancient Greek historians. Pliny the Elder recorded two paintings, ''Praying Priest'' and ''
Ajax Ajax may refer to: Greek mythology and tragedy * Ajax the Great, a Greek mythological hero, son of King Telamon and Periboea * Ajax the Lesser, a Greek mythological hero, son of Oileus, the king of Locris * ''Ajax'' (play), by the ancient Greek ...
Burned by Lightning'', that resided in the ancient Greek city of
Pergamon Pergamon or Pergamum ( or ; grc-gre, Πέργαμον), also referred to by its modern Greek form Pergamos (), was a rich and powerful ancient Greece, ancient Greek city in Mysia. It is located from the modern coastline of the Aegean Sea on a ...
which was situated in modern-day
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. Other ancient Greek historians cited the painting ''Odysseus Wearing a Cap'' and also ''
Heracleidae The Heracleidae (; grc, Ἡρακλεῖδαι) or Heraclids were the numerous descendants of Heracles (Hercules), especially applied in a narrower sense to the descendants of Hyllus, the eldest of his four sons by Deianira (Hyllus was also ...
'', a painting that referenced the descendants of
Hercules Hercules (, ) is the Roman equivalent of the Greek divine hero Heracles, son of Jupiter and the mortal Alcmena. In classical mythology, Hercules is famous for his strength and for his numerous far-ranging adventures. The Romans adapted the Gr ...
. Also, one of his paintings was supposedly entitled '' Alcmena and the Daughters of Hercules Supplicating the Athenians''. As demonstrated by the titles of the paintings, it is probable that the majority of his works were similar to the other artists of the era in that their subject matter was most often based around the
Greek gods and goddesses The following is a list of gods, goddesses, and many other divine and semi-divine figures from ancient Greek mythology and ancient Greek religion. Immortals The Greeks created images of their deities for many purposes. A temple would house the ...
or other famous Greek citizens from historical
epic poems An epic poem, or simply an epic, is a lengthy narrative poem typically about the extraordinary deeds of extraordinary characters who, in dealings with gods or other superhuman forces, gave shape to the mortal universe for their descendants. ...
that were passed on for generations in the
oral tradition Oral tradition, or oral lore, is a form of human communication wherein knowledge, art, ideas and cultural material is received, preserved, and transmitted orally from one generation to another. Vansina, Jan: ''Oral Tradition as History'' (1985 ...
. The topics of his paintings may have been unimaginative and common during the time period; however, it was his ingenious technique that made him such a renowned painter. One of the major artistic techniques that Apollodorus developed was called skiagraphia, or shading in English, hence his title “the shadow-painter”. The historian Plutarch recorded an inscription above one of Apollodorus' painting which read, “’Tis no hard thing to reprehend me; But let the men that blame me mend me.” In other words, “You could criticize kiagraphiamore easily than you could imitate it”. The type of shading applied by Apollodorus is highly sophisticated and even today people struggle to master skiagraphia. Apollodorus used an intricate way of “
crosshatching Hatching (french: hachure) is an artistic technique used to create tonal or shading effects by drawing (or painting or scribing) closely spaced parallel lines. (It is also used in monochromatic representations of heraldry to indicate what t ...
and the thickening of inner contour lines as well as the admixture of light and dark tones” to show a form of perspective. Though it expanded the use of perspective in the ancient Greek world, skiagraphia was most effective in the depiction of stationary objects such as drapery, fruit, or faces; but it was ineffective in the painting of a body in action or a spatial setting for which perspective is usually used. Another one of Apollodorus' greatest accomplishments did not have to do with his actual style or technique, but rather with the medium he chose. Apollodorus could very well have been one to the first well-known artists who painted on an easel as opposed to a wall which was the common action of the day.


Effect on contemporaries

Though not much about his life is known, historians have made assumptions about Apollodorus and his works and actions through his contemporaries. Zeuxis of Heraclea was one of Apollodorus' rivals according to Pliny. Zeuxis was tutored in the arts by
Demophilus of Himera Demophilus ( grc, Δημόφιλος) may refer to: * Demophilus of Thespiae led a contingent of about 700 Thespians at the Battle of Thermopylae (480 BC), and was killed there * Demophilus, an ancient Greek artist from Sicily * Demophilus (histo ...
and Neseus of
Thasos Thasos or Thassos ( el, Θάσος, ''Thásos'') is a Greek island in the North Aegean Sea. It is the northernmost major Greek island, and 12th largest by area. The island has an area of and a population of about 13,000. It forms a separate re ...
. At one point, Apollodorus even accused Zeuxis of stealing art techniques from others which might very well have been true because Zeuxis was also attributed with the expansion and development of Apollodorus' prized skiagraphia. Zeuxis is said to have innovated skiagraphia by “adding highlights to shading and applying subtly different colours.”Arafat, Karim. "Zeuxis." The Oxford Companion to Western Art. 2008. 14 May 2006. Oxford Art Online. Lucas Library, Atherton. 26 Nov. 2008. Keyword: https://www.oxfordreference.com/display/10.1093/acref/9780198662037.001.0001/acref-9780198662037-e-2817. Regardless of what Zeuxis did, he was not the only painter to adapt Apollodorus' creation for his own purposes. Another painter named Parrhasius of
Ephesus Ephesus (; grc-gre, Ἔφεσος, Éphesos; tr, Efes; may ultimately derive from hit, 𒀀𒉺𒊭, Apaša) was a city in ancient Greece on the coast of Ionia, southwest of present-day Selçuk in İzmir Province, Turkey. It was built in t ...
, also a rival of Zeuxis, helped expand skiagraphia as well. He purportedly used it in a contest against Zeuxis and won because the curtain that Parrhasius had painted looked so real that Zeuxis tried to pull it back. Whereas Zeuxis examined the technique of light and shade in skiagraphia, Parrhasius looked into the contoured lines that help express depth in a spatial way; therefore taking the meaning of skiagraphia even further.Robertson, Martin. A Shorter History of Greek Art. New York: Cambridge UP, 1981. 147. Not only was skiagraphia prominent in Athens, but also its influence extended beyond Athens' borders into the tomb paintings of
Vergina Vergina ( el, Βεργίνα, ''Vergína'' ) is a small town in northern Greece, part of Veria municipality in Imathia, Central Macedonia. Vergina was established in 1922 in the aftermath of the population exchanges after the Treaty of Laus ...
,
Aineia Aenea (; grc, Αἴνεια, ''Aineia'') was an ancient Greek city in northwesternmost Chalcidice, said to have been founded by Aeneas, and was situated, according to Livy, opposite Pydna, and 15 miles from Thessalonica. It appears to have stood ...
, and Lefkadia in northern
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and even into
Seuthopolis Seuthopolis (Ancient Greek: Σευθόπολις) was an ancient hellenistic-type city founded by the Thracian king Seuthes III between 325–315 BC and the capital of the Odrysian kingdom. Its ruins are now located at the bottom of the Koprinka ...
, a city in what is now modern
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. Though scarce, some of the tomb frescoes in Seuthopolis used only a limited range of colours; however others in Vergina and Aineia used six or more colours further demonstrating the extent of the transformation of Apollodorus' skiagraphia. Skiagraphia continued to mutate and develop until the age of the
Italian Renaissance The Italian Renaissance ( it, Rinascimento ) was a period in Italian history covering the 15th and 16th centuries. The period is known for the initial development of the broader Renaissance culture that spread across Europe and marked the trans ...
when it was given a new name:
chiaroscuro Chiaroscuro ( , ; ), in art, is the use of strong contrasts between light and dark, usually bold contrasts affecting a whole composition. It is also a technical term used by artists and art historians for the use of contrasts of light to achi ...
.


Effect on the development of chiaroscuro

Apollodorus' development of skiagraphia was only the beginning of this form of art's gradual development. In Italian, ''chiaro'' means light and ''scuro'' means dark. So the two together symbolize the combination and distribution of light and dark into one to create a more lifelike image. No longer simply used for paintings on canvas of stationary objects, chiaroscuro is used in all types of art, even
sculpture Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...
,
fresco Fresco (plural ''frescos'' or ''frescoes'') is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plaste ...
es, and
woodcut Woodcut is a relief printing technique in printmaking. An artist carves an image into the surface of a block of wood—typically with gouges—leaving the printing parts level with the surface while removing the non-printing parts. Areas that ...
s. Chiaroscuro is used to produce volume and relief, to unify the objects in a painting, or differentiate them from one another. The simple creation of skiagraphia led to the invention of diverse techniques that continued to be produced from the times of ancient Greece to Gothic times and then it reached its pinnacle in the Italian Renaissance in 14th century. Even today it continues to be important to artists.Bell, Janis C.
Chiaroscuro
" Grove Art Online. Oxford: Oxford UP, 2006. 25 Feb. 2007. Oxford Art Online. Lucas Library, Atherton. 26 Nov. 2008.
In the 15th-century, chiaroscuro was described by
Cennino Cennini Cennino d'Andrea Cennini (c. 1360 – before 1427) was an Italian painter influenced by Giotto. He was a student of Agnolo Gaddi in Florence. Gaddi trained under his father, called Taddeo Gaddi, who trained with Giotto. Cennini was born in ...
, a famous Italian painter. He stated that the ideas of gradation between light and dark, skiagraphia, were combined with medieval techniques known as ''incidendo'' and ''matizando'', which are a “layerings of white, brown, or black in linear patterns over a uniform colour” to indicate relief and volume. These two were previously used by monks in the illustration of religious manuscripts. The addition of these two techniques to skiagraphia was instrumental in the evolution of chiaroscuro.
Giotto Giotto di Bondone (; – January 8, 1337), known mononymously as Giotto ( , ) and Latinised as Giottus, was an Italian painter and architect from Florence during the Late Middle Ages. He worked during the Gothic/Proto-Renaissance period. Giot ...
, a Florentine painter, and
Cimabue Cimabue (; ; – 1302), Translated with an introduction and notes by J.C. and P Bondanella. Oxford: Oxford University Press (Oxford World’s Classics), 1991, pp. 7–14. . also known as Cenni di Pepo or Cenni di Pepi, was an Italian painter a ...
, Giotto's teacher, used chiaroscuro in their late
Gothic painting Gothic art was a style of medieval art that developed in Northern France out of Romanesque art in the 12th century AD, led by the concurrent development of Gothic architecture. It spread to all of Western Europe, and much of Northern, Southern and ...
as well, by mixing large amounts of white into the painting, therefore creating an easy transition between tones. In frescoes,
mosaics A mosaic is a pattern or image made of small regular or irregular pieces of colored stone, glass or ceramic, held in place by plaster/mortar, and covering a surface. Mosaics are often used as floor and wall decoration, and were particularly pop ...
, and
manuscript illuminations An illuminated manuscript is a formally prepared document where the text is often supplemented with flourishes such as borders and miniature illustrations. Often used in the Roman Catholic Church for prayers, liturgical services and psalms, the ...
, artists like Master Honore, a French manuscript painter, and
Pietro Pietro is an Italian masculine given name. Notable people with the name include: People * Pietro I Candiano (c. 842–887), briefly the 16th Doge of Venice * Pietro Tribuno (died 912), 17th Doge of Venice, from 887 to his death * Pietro II Can ...
, a painter and mosaic designer active in the Middle Ages, modelled from underneath with black and white space to create brightness in their works. In the end, Apollodorus' master creation after years of evolution transformed into something that, though it still resembled the original and served the same purpose, was new and thoroughly necessary to all great works of art.


Notes


References

* “Apollodorus.” The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. Columbia University Press., 2003. Answers.com 26 Nov. 2008. http://www.answers.com/topic/apollodorus- painter. * Arafat, Karim. "Zeuxis." The Oxford Companion to Western Art. 2008. 14 May 2006. Oxford Art Online. Lucas Library, Atherton. 26 Nov. 2008. Keyword:http://oxfordartonline.comsubscriber/article/opr. * Bell, Janis C.
Chiaroscuro
. Grove Art Online. Oxford: Oxford UP, 2006. 25 Feb. 2007. Oxford Art Online. Lucas Library, Atherton. 26 Nov. 2008. * Pliny. The Natural History of Pliny. Trans. John Bostcock and Henry T. Riley. H.G. Bohn, 1857. * Pollitt, Jerome J. The Art of Ancient Greece : Sources and Documents. New York: Cambridge UP, 1990. * Robertson, Martin. A Shorter History of Greek Art. New York: Cambridge UP, 1981.


External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Apollodorus Ancient Greek painters 5th-century BC Greek people Artists of ancient Attica Year of birth unknown Year of death unknown 5th-century BC painters