Egyptian Art: Sculpture and Painting - Abstract

Speaking of egyptian art It is inevitable not to think about its famous pyramids of Gizeh, however, there are other types of art that are subordinate to architecture, therefore, in this lesson from a PROFESSOR we will make a brief summary regarding sculpture and painting to somehow get a closer idea of ​​this culture so surprising. Delve into the magical world of this ancient civilization and discover a abstract sculpture and painting of egyptian art. Travel with us in time!

We start by doing a abstract sculpture of egyptian art. These sculptures bring with them the concept of survival Y hostel. The statuary found in the tombs is almost exclusively limited to portraits as support for the soul "ka”, Its purpose being the material support to fix the personality of the God or deceased.

We will also find figurine sculptures performing daily tasks and working for the service of the deceased in the afterlife, as they did in the one before his death.

If you want to learn more about this fascinating ancient civilization, in this other lesson from a PROFESSOR we will discover a

list with the most important Egyptian gods.

We continue with this summary of the sculpture and painting of Egyptian art, speaking now of the different periods of history in which the Egyptian sculptural art is divided.

Predynastic period (2800 BC) C.)

We have two important works the ritual knife of Gebel Arak, made in ivory and the narmer palette, where the pharaoh Tinis is represented, responsible for the unification of Upper and Lower Egypt.

Old Kingdom (2600 BC) C.)

It is the time when sculptures have the greatest idealization. We highlight the giza sphinx which represents the face of Pharaoh Kefren, who is identified with the sun and is the guardian of the necropolis. Another is the Menkaure triad that it is a high relief where the pharaoh appears accompanied by his wife and a goddess. Also the Scribe figure (Louvre Museum), of polychrome stucco and representing doing his work.

Middle Kingdom (1900 BC) C.)

The Head of Pharaoh Sesostris III made of pink granite.

New Kingdom (1500 BC) C.)

In this period we have to mention the cultural and religious revolution carried out by Pharaoh Amenophis IV, also called Akhenaten, and it was a revolution because he had the audacity to be the first monotheistic pharaoh by changing the God Amon for that of God Aten, and changing the capital from Thebes to Tell el Amarna; also with him art became more realistic Y naturalist.

All of this is reflected in the Akhenaten portrait and the famous Nefertiti bust, his wife, who appears with a shaved head and a spectacular headdress, the material of which is polychrome limestone.

After the fall of Akhenaten happened to him on the throne Tutankhamun, who returned to the rite of the God Amon and to Thebes as capital. The most important thing is his grave and trousseau. This period closes with the dynasty of the Ramésidas, which was of a militaristic and imperialist type, which is reflected in the famous tomb of Abu Simbel and in the Colossi of Memnon.

Saitic period

It is so called because now the capital of Egypt was changed to the city of Sais, in the delta of the Nile and His sculptures are characterized by capturing great realism, leaving the law of the frontality. As an example, there is the Green head, in basalt, representing a priest of Amun.

Let's now do the abstract egyptian art painting to better understand the characteristics and main elements of this art.

Egyptian painting is generally found as part of the tomb ornamentationprivate. The necropolis of Thebes is an abundant source of testimonies about the slowness in the evolution of the artistic tradition. Also in them we can find some extraordinary illustrations that show us what life was like at this time.

The pictorial medium provided greater probabilities than the sculptural medium, by granting the I created the opportunity to conceive colorful illustrations referring to life around the world. Nile river.

Most Egyptian painting is done on stone previously prepared with stucco, although we can also find it on papyrus. The colors used are going to be earthy and lively.

As in sculpture, the law of frontality, where the head is usually shown in profile and the body from the front, which corresponds to an underdeveloped state of perspective representation techniques. The composition of Egyptian painting is usually in stripes, although we can also find a whole wall with a single representation.