Dionysus and Pan: The Sculpture

The sculpture Dionysus and Pan

The sculpture Dionysus and Pan portray Dionysus, which was believed to be the god of the grape yields and wine, holding Pan, his devoted follower. This artwork depicted the relationship that existed between Dionysus and his subject Pan in the form of a statue. The sculpture was modeled using the best marble that was produced in AD 50-150 during the Roman era (Kleiner 123). During this period, artists devoted most of their attention to ensuring that statues served as an expression of feeling and gesture. From the analysis and observations made on the first assignment, the sculpture may be classified under the late classical period. This paper seeks to explore Dionysus and Pan Sculpture in the cultural, religious, political, and social contexts.

The revolution in Greek artworks during the late classical period

It is believed that during the late classical period, a revolution took place in the Greek artworks as witnessed by the new styles of sculptures as well as their functions. Artists in ancient Greece had great influence and significantly contributed towards the civilization of the West. The late classical era was marked by the Peloponnesian War that pitted Athens against Sparta during 431 BCE. The Greek leadership was corrupt and weakened, and the citizens were experiencing economic depression (Eliav, Elise and Herbert 16). The political instability eroded idealism which was widespread during the early classical era and also had a huge impact on art. It led to the emergence of individualism and artists began to increase their attention to their individual visions. This implied that artists ceased to impose order on nature with perfect art pieces and instead, they began to concentrate more on the truth and drama. Artists sought to make figures which could reflect real world as well as the contemporary society, and not the ideal world that had perfect people. It was also common for artists to humanize their heroes and gods within the Greek culture.

Characteristics of the Dionysus and Pan sculpture

In the statue, Pan is nearly two-thirds the size of Dionysus and their bodies are captured in an athletically proportional position. Their toes and fingers are long, thin and attractive, perhaps because the Greek artists often liked to develop images that resembled perfect humans. The facial expressions of both Dionysus and Pan seem to be natural and their firm facial expressions produce a feeling of mental, emotional, and physical stability. The emotions expressed by Dionysus and Pan appear to be warmer and more welcoming than those of earlier classical era sculptures which were remote and cold (Kleiner 123-124). Further, Dionysus expresses a somewhat innocent and lively feeling like a child but Pan’s facial expression displays maturity. Dionysus is gazing into Pan’s eyes, which in turn is also looking appreciatively at the young-looking god and their interaction appears lively. The artists who made the sculpture made efforts to enliven the figure, making the sculpture look more realistic. The interaction between any two individuals is quite common in the real world but the practice of creating interaction between images in a sculpture was rare before the onset of the fourth century (Kleiner 124). Furthermore, the late classical era saw increased emphasis being placed on the emotions as an expression of the artworks. During this time, sculptures were known for perfect symmetry and proportion and the artists put more emphasis on the bodies and faces of the sculptures, such as calm expression or deep facial features.

The use of “contrapposto” in the sculpture

There is a tree trunk behind both figures to support them. The ’contrapposto’ posture is observable since Pan’s arm is attached to Dionysus’s back while Dionysus’ hand is resting on the shoulders of Pan to create stability. The sculptors used ’contrapposto’ and canon of proportion to produce extreme realism (Kleiner 124-125). The statue was developed in organic-like shape with a human-like look, as well as a curving and flowing appearance. There was no color that was painted on the sculpture, but the shadow and light tend to make it solid. Typically, Greek artists liked to use bronze and white marbles to make statues.

The three-dimensional view of Dionysus and Pan sculpture

Besides, most sculptures were made not just for anterior viewing but it was common for artists to make statues which could interact with the environment in all three dimensions. As such, it is important to observe the sculptures in numerous angles so as to have a complete profile of these sculptures. Dionysus and Pan can be observed from the three-dimensional view in different angles with similar effectiveness (Kleiner 126-128). Although it may not be possible to trace the creators of the figure, the creators seem to have followed and incorporated ideas of ancient and famous artists in making the sculpture. The features of the statue might be found in other sculptures that were made in the same era. In the late classical era, many artists observed similar concepts in art especially the emphasis on individualism.

The human body in Greek sculptures

In addition, most of the sculptors in ancient Greece included images that depicted the human body, especially when sculpting figures of Greek heroes and gods. Greeks tended to attach greater importance to the human body since the gods which they used to worship were considered anthropomorphic and they also believed that their gods were flawless and perfect (Eliav, Elise and Herbert 45-46). As such, most of the Greek sculptors were renowned for depicting the gods in a humanistic form. The majority of Greek artworks were associated with the gods as a sign of gratitude to the gods for wealth and good fortune, as well as to get favor in the eyes of the gods for better times in the future. Religious beliefs and the everyday lives of people were usually mixed together. People in ancient Greece placed more importance on humanity and religion while creating their artworks. Artists also sought to portray the statues in ways that would reflect the actual contemporary society, and they usually portrayed the gods in the daily lives of the people.

Humanization of myths in Greek sculptures

What is more, sculptors in ancient Greece used their sculptures to humanize the myths. They tended to create pieces of artworks that represented a myth, or symbol of the daily life of a person. In the sculpture, Dionysus is seen holding a cup that has handles that are in the form of grapevines. The seemingly drunken and young god is portrayed in a more humanistic way, in that he is enjoying some good moments with his friend, Pan (Eliav, Elise and Herbert 45-46).

Conclusion

The sculpture of Dionysus and Pan provides different cultural, religious, political, and social contexts of artworks in ancient Greece. For example, the sculpture is presented in a human-like way where there is an interaction between Dionysus and Pan. Ancient Greek sculptors were also fond of modeling images of their gods and heroes as is the case with the sculpture.

Works Cited

Eliav, Yaron Z., Elise A. Friedland, and Sharon Herbert. “The sculptural environment of the Roman Near East.” Reflections on Culture, Ideology and Power, 2008.

Kleiner, Fred S. Gardner’s art through the ages: The western perspective. Cengage Learning, 2008. 123-128. Print