Leagros Group

The Leagros group is a named with a Notnamen Attic black-figure vase-painters group. The works are dated in the past 20 years of the 6th century BC.

The Leagros group is the last major group of Attic vase painter of the black-figure style, showing large pictures on vases. Their importance is so great that you called their creative period as " Leagros time ". The group will be about 400 vases, especially hydriai and neck amphorae assigned, which include about half of the group assigned vases. In addition, other amphora shapes, craters, lekythoi and in smaller amounts, other shapes are painted. Your Notnamen got the group on the basis of an associated group of five vases applied Kalos name Leagros.

Hydriai the group are similar to those of Antimenes painter, but they often show more ausschwingende lips and flatter but wider shoulders. In place of the previous animal frieze - predellas and decorated with ivy leaves frame strips are now entering palmettes with broad and separate sheets. They are arranged in rounded loops or eyes. Thus, they show a pattern that was shown previously only rarely on black-figure vases and that should be very popular, especially in the emerging in time for the red-figure vase painting Leagros group. Sometimes take representative of the group white-ground necks for their amphorae, which goes back to the Antimenes painter again. The ornaments of the neck amphorae meet its decoration schemes, however, the plant ornaments that adorn the necks are better developed and the lotuses are more reminiscent of celery perennials.

The character images show once again the strength and complexity of the black-figure style. There are commanded intricate figurative scenes and shown overlapping figures. The carvings are powerful and clear, the visualization of anatomical details remain moderate. Deck colors are used only restrained. Drapery and garment patterns are only sometimes and then only moderate shown. To show the painters of the group, which can afford the black-figure style. But at the same time, the artists of the pioneer group, which can afford the new style. You revel in near anatomical and clothing details. In the Leagros group do you manage to take over some of the innovations in practical shape with the more limited resources of the new style. When muscles or draperies be shown then in a much reduced manner. Striking are also the small eyes of the characters. They particularly benefit from the new technology in perspective and space-filling representations, but remain rare. The figures all show a heroic physique and facial expression. They work especially when compared with the figures of Antimenes painter quite stocky. The group wasted no space, the image fields are always well stocked and only act not on the basis of the drawing skill of the painter overloaded. The picture compositions are mostly consistent and tense. Sometimes can project details from the actual image fields out.

Within the group, several other sub-groups and individual painters could be identified, but this is not always easy, because resemble the styles of each representative lot. Most important here are the Achelous - painter and the Chiusi Painter. Especially like the group illustrates mythological themes, here scenes from the Trojan War and the adventures of Heracles in turn are particularly preferred. So multiply Achilles and Ajax are shown playing a boardgame. Some image issues are first taken up by painters of the Leagros group, others have shown and interpreted by the group in a new way. At the same time similar happened also in the red-figure style, but both are probably to be regarded in isolation from each other developments, although influences are not mutually exclude. A workshop connect to the pioneers is possible, but use for example, Euphronios, Phintias and Euthymides the Kalos name Leagros. Total of the compound and the influence of both groups and successive research has been controversial. John Boardman it looks like there are more in parallel, Heide Mommsen sees strong interactions.