Hellenistic Art and its Influences

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses how Hellenistic Art was primarily influenced by Alexander the Great's conquests, which introduced the culture, arts and philosophies of foreign lands into the Greek milieu and how it mirrored Alexander's pride, his vision and his stature. It looks at how the term "Hellenistic" describes the arts that fuse the Greek with Asian traditions and reflects a shift in Greek consciousness away from the pantheon of gods toward a private, wealthy sector of art collectors. It evaluates how while the Classical arts of Ancient Greece adorned temples, Hellenistic art decorated the palaces of kings and of the private houses of wealthy connoisseurs.

From the Paper:

"New dynastic centers like those at Pergamum and Alexandria promoted large-scale palace architecture influenced by Oriental styles and scale. New royal patronage for the arts differed from that of Classical Greece city-state patronage. Instead of the anonymous, religious statues like that on the Athenian Parthenon, statues honored war victories, new syncretic deities, and portraiture of royal families. The faces and figures of gods and goddesses changed, influenced by the religious traditions of Egypt, the Far East and the Middle East. In short, Greece was less important to Greek art. The Classical period climaxed and left a legacy as grand of that of the Athenian Parthenon. Towns were already established, their architecture preserved."

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