Topic 4: Vase Painting50 minKleophrades and Berlin Painters
The Kleophrades Painter
The Kleophrades Painter (active c. 505-475 BCE) was named after the potter who signed some of his vases. He was a student of Euthymides and became one of the greatest red-figure artists. His style combines powerful emotion with refined technical skill.
He's known for large-scale works with dramatic mythological scenes, particularly his depictions of the sack of Troy and Dionysiac subjects.
Dionysus and the Maenads
c. 500-490 BCE | Pointed Amphora | Staatliche Antikensammlungen, Munich
Dionysiac scene by the Kleophrades Painter - showing the god with his ecstatic followers. Image: Wikimedia Commons
Dionysiac Ecstasy
Maenads (female followers of Dionysus) dance in wild abandon. Their hair flies loose; their heads tilt back. The painter captures religious frenzy.
Drapery
Swirling drapery emphasises movement. The Kleophrades Painter excels at showing fabric in motion - a development from the Pioneers' anatomical focus.
Pointed Amphora
This distinctive shape has a pointed base (designed to be set in a stand or the ground). The elongated body suits vertical compositions.
The Sack of Troy - one of the most powerful narrative paintings in Greek vase painting. Image: Wikimedia Commons
This hydria depicts the brutal Greek sack of Troy after the wooden horse stratagem succeeded. It's one of the most emotionally intense scenes in Greek vase painting.
Priam's Death
King Priam sits on an altar (seeking sanctuary) as Neoptolemos kills him - using the body of Priam's grandson Astyanax as a weapon. An image of ultimate horror and sacrilege.
Cassandra
The prophetess clings to Athena's statue as Ajax drags her away to rape her. Her desperate face shows terror. Even the goddess's protection fails.
Aeneas Escaping
Amidst the destruction, Aeneas carries his elderly father Anchises to safety - the pious act that will lead to Rome's founding. A moment of virtue amid horror.
Emotional Power
Unlike the heroic battles of earlier art, this shows war's atrocities - old men killed, women raped, babies murdered. The painter presents the Greek victory as tragedy.
Persian Wars Context
Painted around the time of the Persian sack of Athens (480 BCE), this scene may reflect contemporary anxieties. The Trojans' suffering parallels Athens' own experience of destruction.
The Berlin Painter
The Berlin Painter (active c. 500-460 BCE) was named after an amphora in Berlin. His style is the opposite of the Kleophrades Painter - where Kleophrades fills his vases with crowded action, the Berlin Painter isolates single figures against empty black backgrounds.
His elegant, refined figures seem to float in space. This minimalist approach emphasises the beauty of individual forms.
Achilles and Hector / Memnon
c. 490-480 BCE | Volute Krater | British Museum, London
Combat scene by the Berlin Painter - showing his characteristic isolation of figures against black ground. Image: Wikimedia Commons
Heroic Combat
Two warriors in combat - identified as either Achilles vs Hector or Achilles vs Memnon. The climactic duel of the Trojan War cycle.
Isolated Figures
The Berlin Painter's signature style: figures stand out starkly against the black background. No ground lines or setting - pure form in empty space.
Elegant Line
His drawing is supremely refined - flowing lines, delicate detail. The beauty of the line itself becomes a subject.
Psychological Restraint
Unlike the Kleophrades Painter's emotional intensity, the Berlin Painter shows Classical restraint. The heroes fight with dignity.
Comparing the Two Masters
Aspect
Kleophrades Painter
Berlin Painter
Composition
Crowded, multiple figures
Isolated single figures
Background
Filled with detail
Empty black space
Emotion
Intense, dramatic
Restrained, elegant
Line
Bold, expressive
Refined, delicate
Effect
Narrative power
Aesthetic beauty
Essay Point
The Kleophrades and Berlin Painters represent two different approaches to red-figure painting - both technically masterful, but with opposite aesthetic goals. Together they show the range of expression possible within Classical vase painting.
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