Ancient Egyptian Art: Sculpture, Reliefs, and Painting Styles

Ancient Egyptian Sculpture: Forms and Characteristics

Sculpture in ancient Egypt played a complementary role in funeral and religious architecture. Three main groups of sculpture can be identified:

• High relief figures of gods within temples.
• Colossal statues of pharaohs on temple facades.
• Statues of the deceased in tombs.

The weight of tradition and the rejection of foreign influences explain the relative uniformity of the Egyptian sculptural style, characterized by:

• "Block statue" technique: A method resulting from carving a figure from a prismatic stone block, with the drawing of the figure on each side.
• Rigidity: Figures often appear rigid, whether seated, standing, or in other attitudes.
• Law of frontality: The human body is divided into two identical halves along a vertical axis of symmetry.
• Hieratic solemnity: A sense of sacred dignity and formality.

However, when representing the pharaoh or a divinity, sculpture sometimes achieved great realism and naturalness, as exemplified by the famous seated scribes.

Egyptian Bas-Relief and Painting: Decorative Functions

Bas-relief and painting shared the same function: to decorate the paneled walls and exteriors of temples and tombs. In both cases, the aim was an intellectual understanding of the theme or motif, rather than naturalistic representation. Representations were often unnatural and stylized.

Human Figure Representation in Egyptian Art

The human figure typically combined different viewpoints, selecting the best information for each body part:

• Head: Shown in profile.
• Eye: Almond-shaped, depicted from the front.
• Shoulders and upper torso: Shown from the front.
• Single leg: Depicted in profile.
• Arms: Rigid, close to the body or in an offering posture (V-shape).
• Fingers: Of unnatural, equal length, with thumbs.

Compositional Conventions in Egyptian Art

Compositions also followed specific, often unnatural, conventions:

• The Law of Respect (Hierarchy of Scale): Pharaohs and gods are depicted larger than other figures, indicating their importance.
• Disregard for the Third Dimension: The idea of depth is suggested through various procedures, such as bands, overlapping shapes, and combinations of different visual angles, rather than true perspective.
• Horror Vacui (Fear of Empty Space) and Juxtaposition: Figures and unrelated elements are often placed close together to fill all available space.

Finally, note the application of flat, spot colors on well-defined outlines.