The Invention of Art History in Ancient Greece

Offers a contemporary sociological approach to fundamental questions in the history of Greek art.

Offers a sociological approach to fundamental questions in Greek art: the causes and the cultural significance of the development of naturalism in classical Greek religious art; the sociogenesis and social functions of portraiture; the role, status and agency of artists; and the origins of art history writing in the Greek world.The ancient Greeks developed their own very specific ethos of art appreciation, advocating a rational involvement with art. This book explores why the ancient Greeks started to write art history and how the writing of art history transformed the social functions of art in the Greek world. It looks at the invention of the genre of portraiture and the social uses to which portraits were put in the city state. Later chapters explore how artists sought to enhance their status by writing theoretical treatises and producing works of art intended for purely aesthetic contemplation, which ultimately gave rise to the writing of art history and to the development of art collecting. The study, which is illustrated throughout and draws on contemporary perspectives in the sociology of art, will prompt the student of classical art to rethink fundamental assumptions about Greek art and its cultural and social implications.