Compare and contrast the treatment of the human form in the Cycladic figurines and the so-called Snake Goddesses.

Question

 Aegean Art

Answer 1

The Cycladic figures were sculpted in an abstract matter with very little consideration of actual human anatomy. The head and body are treated as flat planes. They're quite beautiful specifically because of their very conceptual treatment of the human figure. The snake goddess was sculpted with more attention to the actual attributes of the human body. Breast, hips, eyes, and hair (for example) are all part of the depiction in an effort to come close to actual anatomy. There is also generalization but within an attempt at the simulation of the human figure.