,
13 tweets,
4 min read
Read on Twitter
A short thread on favorite paintings depicting the Greek temples ruins in Magna Graecia:
Caspar David Friedrich-Temple of Juno (Hera) in Agrigento-1828-30
Caspar David Friedrich-Temple of Juno (Hera) in Agrigento-1828-30
A nostalgic luminosity bathing the temples of Paestum
Jules Coignet-The temples of Paestum in the evening light-ca.1845-50
Jules Coignet-The temples of Paestum in the evening light-ca.1845-50
A spectacular bird's eye view of Paestum's temples & beyond [1759] by Antonio Joli, one of the great Italian vedutisti.
Recommend you to zoom-in for details in this wonderful veduta "view" by Joli [1]
Turner infuses this print with the ominous as dark stormy clouds envelop the ancient temples.
J.M.W. Turner- Paestum- mezzotint on paper ca.1825
J.M.W. Turner- Paestum- mezzotint on paper ca.1825
A wonderful depiction of the ruins of the Great Temple at Selinus, with two goats [foreground]. 1777 Pen and brown ink, with watercolour drawn by German artist Philipp Jakob Hackert.
The Temple of Concordia is the largest & best-preserved Doric temple in Sicily.
The Temple of Concordia, Agrigento 1857 by German architect & painter Leo von Klenze.
The Temple of Concordia, Agrigento 1857 by German architect & painter Leo von Klenze.
Another wonderful veduta of Paestum with a view from the west: The temples of Poseidon and Ceres (Athena) by Pietro Fabris painted in late 1770's.
Interior of the Temple of Hera at Paestum, capturing its Doric ruins yet still majestic colonnade by Pietro Fabris painted in late 1770's.
The temples of Paestum became a popular destination for the Grand Tour, thus becoming an inspiration for painters in the 18th century. Artists like Pietro Fabris capitalized in the depiction of its ruins for English Grand Tourists [1]
The Temple of Segesta is the most evocative of the Magna Graecia Doric temples, maybe because of the pathos it projects: it's wonderfully preserved yet it was never completely finished.
Thomas Cole-The Temple of Segesta with the Artist Sketching ca. 1842
Thomas Cole-The Temple of Segesta with the Artist Sketching ca. 1842
I'd like to finish with a photograph by Pino Musi that captures the essence of this whole thread: The Temple of Segesta standing magnificently alone and ageless among the unspoiled beauty of Sicilian hills.
P.S. I highly recommend you
this excellent intro on Greek temples: The Earth, The Temple and the Gods: Greek Sacred Architecture [1979 revised edition] by Prof. Vincent Scully.
this excellent intro on Greek temples: The Earth, The Temple and the Gods: Greek Sacred Architecture [1979 revised edition] by Prof. Vincent Scully.
