Berlin Painter

The Berlin Painter (active c. 490s-c. 460s BCE) is the conventional name given to an Attic Greek vase-painter who is widely regarded as a rival to the Kleophrades Painter among the most talented vase painters of the early 5th century BCE (see Pottery of Ancient Greece). The Berlin Painter was named by Sir John Beazley for a large lidded amphora in the Antikensammlung Berlin (the Berlin Painter's "namepiece"). [ [http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/vaseindex?lookup=Berlin+F+2160 Perseus Project. Berlin F 2160] "Side A: satyr and Hermes. Hermes strides to the right swinging his arms. He holds a large kantharos and a kerykeion (herald's wand) in his forward hand, and a small oinochoe in his hand which he swings behind him. He is dressed in a short tunic and chlamys, and wears a winged cap and winged boots. A satyr stands in front of him facing right, his head turned to the left. He is holding a barbiton (lyre) in one arm, his fingers splayed across the strings. In his other hand, held out behind him, he holds the end of a string attached to the lyre. He has a long beard and wears a wreath, and his right leg is shown in three-quarters view. A fawn stands between the two figures, its head gracefully turned up. The figures are carefully superimposed on one another, forming a unified contour isolated against the black background of the vase. Side B: satyr. A satyr stands to the right, holding a large kantharos and a lyre. The kantharos is raised to his lips, while he holds the lyre at his side, his fingers touching the stings. His long hair is tied at his neck and he wears a wreath. Above the scene is a carefully drawn band of ivy leaves and grape bunches; below, forming a groundline but not extending all the way around the vase, is a running spiral, a rare pattern ornament in Attic Red Figure vase paintings. Condition: The vase is in good condition. Side A is well-preserved, but side B has suffered surface wear and discoloration.] The Berlin Painter began working in the Late Archaic style and helped develop the Classic style of Attic red-figure pottery. He produced a series of Panathenaic amphora. His painted figures are usually isolated or paired without framing devices against a glossy black ground, so integral to the forms of their superbly-made bodies that the wares are thought also to have been produced in his shop. Over a long career he trained many younger vase-painters, including, probably, the Achilles Painter. Many of his valued works were preserved as elite grave goods in the necropoli of Magna Graecia, notably at Vulci, Nola and Locri.

References

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* [http://www.artcyclopedia.com/artists/berlin_painter_the.html Artcyclopedia - Berlin Painter]
* [http://www.swan.ac.uk/classics/staff/dg/lectures/ics/berlinp.htm The Berlin Painter: Archaeology of the Corpus] Present and former whereabouts of the vases attributed to the Berlin Painter.
* [http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/browser?object=Vase&field=Painter&value=Berlin+Painter Perseus Project: "Thirty-three Vases whose Painter is 'Berlin Painter'"]
* [http://www.trentu.ca/ahc/welcome2icon.html Antikenmuseum, Basel: Lidded Amphora]
* [http://www.smb.spk-berlin.de/ant/vg/s1.html Altes Museum, Berlin: Amphora attributed to the Berlin Painter]
*Martin Robertson. "The Art of Vase-Painting in Classical Athens". Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1994. ISBN: 9780521338813 (ISBN10: 0521338816).
*Andrew J. Clark, Maya Elston, and Mary Louise Hart. "Understanding Greek Vases: A Guide to Terms, Styles, and Techniques". Getty Museum Publications, 2002.
*Donna Carol Kurtz (editor). "The Berlin Painter: Drawings by Sir John Beazley". Oxford Monographs on Classical Archaeology, 1983.