Strength, Serenity, and Idealism

Particular, is a word used to single out something or someone who is great or intense. It is the word I chose to describe Kouros of Tenea, an ancient Greek statue of a young man. The work of art caught my eye just seconds after walking into the room. While I did notice every other statue, this is the one that brought about my curiosity. The artist, anonymous, built the statue around the mid-6th century BCE where it is now on display at the Glyptothek Museum in Munich, Germany. Throughout that time, the Greeks had begun building sculptures of young men and women. Kouros of Tenea was originally created using marble, and was later reconstructed using plaster casts. It was the mixture of creativity throughout the figure as a whole that captured my attention. Although the statue itself did not represent emotion, the artist was successful in bringing about my emotions. Kouros of Tenea illustrated a vigorous frontal pose of the body accompanied by a soft natural looking face. Surprisingly, the artist made me feel a sense of strength and serenity. While the combination of these words isn’t typically found together, several aspects of the statue’s structure made it possible.

When beginning my sketch, I took a moment to analyze the work of art and found that the statue illuminated a sense of serenity. Like most viewers my initial reaction was to explore the statue from head to toe as I sought out the different elements and principles of art. The statue was close to life-size and just about my height, so looking straightforward we were eye to eye. I noticed the softness gathered about the facial structure, but all the same time the depth and complexity that was engulfed around the muscularity of the body. The rigorous symmetry was accounte...

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...hat surprised me the most. It is rather fascinating how the human anatomy in the mid-6th century BCE was as ideal to the human anatomy today. The artist is presenting the viewer with an ideal illustration of a male, and considering I was in awe of the bodily features, I think the artist’s presentation was nearly flawless. The artist also gave me the opportunity to feel a mixture of emotions throughout the sketching of this work. While the context within the facial structures felt relaxed, and the contouring within the leg muscles was strong, the artist created an equally balanced environment between the two. This balance was the reasoning behind my emotions of strength and serenity. Kouros of Tenea represents a strong man with a rather calm state of mind; at least that’s how I see it. This work of art defined something great and intense. It was in fact, particular.