Progression of the Kouroi Essay -- Kouroi Greek Sculpture Essays

Progression of the Kouroi What is a kouros? In Greek, kouros means a young man. In art, a kouros is a statue of a young nude male who stands with his hands at his sides and one leg, usually his left, advanced. Throughout the Archaic period, which dates from 610 B.C. to 480 B.C., the basic pose of kouroi (plural for kouros) remained the same, though the anatomy of the figures gradually became more naturalistic or true to life. The ideology that the Greek sculptors wanted to achieve greater naturalism is proven through the progression of the kouroi during the period. At a glance, three main features deem the Getty Kouros under the general classification of a kouros: hands, hair, and feet. The hands are clenched into fists. They remain at the sides of the body. The hair is arranged in a grid-like pattern. Thus, each strand is perfectly vertical, while remaining horizontally equivalent. And the feet show the kouros standing with his left leg forward. There will be a discussion about the placement of the feet later. Before we get too much into the physical characterization of the kouros, let's first look at history of the Getty Kouros. In the spring of 1983, the "Getty Kouros" was offered to The J. Paul Getty Museum situated in Malibu, California. Inquiries were made to the Greek and Italian governments in order to determine if the statue was legally removed from the country of origin. On September 18, 1983, the Kouros arrived at the Museum in seven pieces along with documents claiming it had been in a private Swiss collection since the 1930s. For a period of twelve years after the arrival, art historians, conservators, and archeologists study the Kouros. Most of them believe that it is authentic for scientific t... ...the work. (246) Therefore, as long as the replica has the same qualities and presents the same effect to any viewer, then authenticity does not really matter. The Getty Kouros, whether replicated or authenticated, helps to portray the kouros in the Archaic period in Greek art. And to me, the spirit of the art and the actual comprehension of the kouros is what is important. Works Cited "The Disappointed Art Lover." writ. Francis Sparshott. The Forger's Art. gen. ed. Denis Dutton. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1983. Panels in the exhibition "The Getty Kouros." Located in The J. Paul Getty Museum in Malibu, California. Stokstad, Marilyn. Volume One Art History. New York: Prentice Hall, Inc., 1995. "What is Wrong with a Forgery?" writ. Alfred Lessing. The Forger's Art. gen. ed. Denis Dutton. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1983.