Why does the statue art of ancient Greece occupy an important position in the history of western art?

1. Due to the democratic politics of slavery in ancient Greece, people's creativity was less suppressed, and artists' work received more attention, which created favorable conditions for the all-round development of culture and art. 。

2. Long myths and legends are the source of ancient Greek sculpture art. Why do you say that? Marx once pointed out in "Introduction to Criticism of Political Economy": "Greek mythology is not only the arsenal of Greek art, but also its soil." Therefore, the portraits in ancient Greece are mostly based on Greek mythology. The Greeks created God in the image of man. God and human beings are alike. God has the appearance and personality of human beings. They are as happy as human beings and have the thoughts, feelings and weaknesses of ordinary people. So God is the embodiment of the most powerful and perfect person in people's ideal, so we appreciate the image of people by appreciating the statues of Greek gods.

3. Advocating sports, citizens can participate in competitive sports naked, which improves the favorable conditions for artists to observe, create and be realistic. Because of the Greek city-state system, in the case of backward military technology and low defense and offensive ability, in order to save themselves, invade others, plunder slaves and wealth, we must have a strong body. Therefore, the Greeks paid special attention to physical exercise. In Greece, where the climate is mild, people often exercise naked when they are engaged in sports and religious and cultural performances, and being naked has become a unique custom of the Greeks. This social atmosphere has created a society that generally respects bodybuilding. They believe that a perfect and healthy body is people's pride, and a perfect body is regarded as a feature of the gods. Because of nude sports and general competitive activities, sculptors have the opportunity to observe, study and express the human body, paying special attention to the bodybuilding and strength of male nudity and the female dynamics of women, forming the artistic tradition of western art advocating human beauty. This social atmosphere and artistic practice have prompted Greek sculptors to create unprecedented human statues. In the ancient Greek concept, the revered God and man are of the same sex, and God is the embodiment of the most perfect man. Therefore, when creating the image of God, take the most perfect human body in the world as the model. This shows that the Greek worldview is to pull God into the realm of human beings, to see human nature from the essence of God, and to see divinity from the essence of human beings. In essence, the Greek belief in God means the affirmation of human beings, which is the uniqueness of their social consciousness.

Ancient Greek sculpture has two themes:

On the one hand, it is rich and colorful Greek mythology, including wonderful legends of gods and heroic achievements of heroes;

On the other hand, it reflects the daily life of the times and the competition of athletes.

It is precisely because of its unique theme and formal beauty that ancient Greek sculpture has laid its exemplary role in the history of western art and of course occupies a very important position.