Physical Arts

Display of Physical Prowess and Beauty

Artifacts of Physical Arts

Topic Description and Links

What examples of the physical and health arts can be found in the artifacts and settings of ancient to contemporary Greece? How were these physical and health arts depicted in the artifacts of other domains such as painting, sculpture, music, poetry, drama, and elementary education?

When you visit Athens look around and be aware of the physical settings. Learn how they contribute to the Greek understanding of the balance of body and mind for a healthy life. For example, the ancient Greeks founded the Olympic games which are still held around the world today.

Physical mobility and strength necessitated much of the work of the ancient Greeks. This physical beauty and prowess was reflected in their artwork: from paintings and sculpture to the size and placement of their edifices. For example, the art of dance taught students how to use their body and mind to tell a story. Here a dancer’s conviction to incorporate action, feeling and/or dynamic abilities of other people without the help of words or pictures tells a myth.

How did other artists exhibit the balance of physical and health arts? Examine depictions of heroes and physical prowess in Greek painting, music, and poetry. Consider how these displays of physical activity and prowess acted as examples or cases for which the ancient Greeks could reason and pattern their lives.

Generative Questions and Hints

To help you reason through this case, answer these questions and record your responses to recall during the corresponding lesson activities in Greece and for the reports that you will make on what you have learned.

	How is the importance of a strong and healthy body represented in the art of ancient Greece? In what media are these ideas represented? What media are used similarly today in contemporary Greece and elsewhere?
	Who were the models of physical beauty and prowess? How do we represent them today?
	What ancient artifacts are produced through the combination of intellect, imagination, and physical strength? What artifacts of this type do we have today?

Lesson Activity

Find and record examples of the idealized body in the art and artifacts of ancient and contemporary Greece. Some sculpture depicts the bodies of women and men, especially in invoking their gods. Look on the Acropolis for an example of statues of women that are used as columns to hold up an ancient temple.

Explore an Olympic stadium which is found right in the heart of Athens.

Explore Olympia which is the birth-place of the Olympic games.

Explore the ruins of the ancient stadium which at one time held 45,000.

Explore the workshop of Pheidias that in which the statue of Zeus was built.

Render images (in photos, video, and drawing) of ancient and contemporary Greek artifacts that reflect the Greek importance of balancing mind and body.

Return to Lesson Unit Page