Papers by Studi Poliziani di Egittologia 1 Artists and Painting in Ancient Egypt
Cet article est consacre au personnage Haroua, haut fonctionnaire thebain sous la dependance de l... more Cet article est consacre au personnage Haroua, haut fonctionnaire thebain sous la dependance de la Divine Adoratrice Amenirdis durant la Basse Epoque. L'etude de sa tombe permet de mieux definir son role. Sa monumentalite et le fait qu'elle ait ete decoree a Thebes font de la demeure eternelle de Haroua une exception. L'A analyse la structure funeraire, creusee dans le sous-sol calcaire de la plaine de l'Assassif, en tant que modele inspirateur et ses significations. Il etudie ensuite la decoration : le discours inscrit sur les murs est interprete comme le parcours que l'egyptien davait suivre pour atteindre le dieu Osiris et acceder a la vie eternelle. Il s'interesse plus particulierement a la decoration de la paroi meridionale de la cour qui apporte des informations complementaires sur Haroua dont l'une des fonctions etait de superviser la realisation des effigies de la Divine Adoratrice. Enfin l'A evoque les themes de la vie et de la mort illustres...
Restaurateur en chef de la MANT Boursier de doctorat à l'U Liège "L'âme d'un grand artiste ne se ... more Restaurateur en chef de la MANT Boursier de doctorat à l'U Liège "L'âme d'un grand artiste ne se laisse pas étouffer par des lois : elle vibre, au contraire, d'autant plus ardemment que les barrières sont rigides… Il y a, sans contredit, une manière de traiter tel ou tel thème qui varie d'une époque à l'autre ; mais il y a davantage encore un style propre à chaque artiste, et c'est ce que l'on n'a pas assez vu. Seul un examen attentif des tombes permet de déceler ce caractère individualiste. Pareille étude ne peut donner d'heureux résultats que par l'observation patiente des origenaux et l'accumulation de documents relatifs à la technique, à la gamme des couleurs employées, à l'esthétique de chaque peintre. La photographie en couleurs est un appoint que nos prédécesseurs n'ont pas eu. Il faut en user judicieusement et l'appliquer surtout aux détails propres à faciliter la recherche dans la voie qu'on s'est tracée. La récompense d'un tel effort est grande : l'un après l'autre, les peintres de talent se détachent de la masse des décorateurs d'hypogées ; la « griffe » des plus grands d'entre eux se reconnaît parfois exceptionnellement dans deux tombes différentes ; et le but final est de pouvoir citer un jour le Maître de Menna ou celui de Horemheb au même titre que les Primitifs, ces autres anonymes, auxquels cependant on réussit à attribuer plusieurs oeuvres." (Mekhitarian 1956, 247-8) As is well known, Roland Tefnin, 2 in his own research over the last decade of his life, passionately pursued this approach to Egyptian art formulated by Arpag Mekhitarian in the mid-1950s. Unfortunately, the "abductor", as he is called in Ancient Egyptian texts, came to carry him off before he could reach the end of the long and fascinating adventure he started. Indeed, taking the opportunity of the Mission Archéologique dans la Nécropole Thébaine (the Belgian Archaeological Expedition in the Theban Necropolis), which he founded, Roland Tefnin undertook, with the assistance of his wife Ariane, a systematic documentation of stylistic clues that would allow him to begin the search for artists in the necropolis for the entire reign of Amenhotep II and its immediate chronological surroundings. The passion that animated and characterized Roland Tefnin, particularly his passion for Theban painting, was imparted to us during ten unforgettable years working at his side in the necropolis. And so, we too have decided to keep track of the painters of the Theban necropolis in the 18 th dynasty, so 1 The present article is a translated version of a contribution we made for another volume dedicated to the memory of Roland Tefnin: Laboury and Tavier 2010. We wish to express here our deepest gratitude to our colleague and friend Todd Gillen for his invaluable help in the translation of this article into English. Of course, any mistake remains entirely ours. 2 Cf. his last contributions: Tefnin 2006 and 2007.
This article discusses the methodological and technological methods that are used in Egyptian pai... more This article discusses the methodological and technological methods that are used in Egyptian painting. Given the wide-range of surfaces that were adorned with pigment, the major issues, techniques, and problems associated with flat painting will be explored. The study of Egyptian painting is typified by the plurality of approaches available to the researcher. The most traditional and often-used approach, stylistic analysis that traces similarities between groups of paintings and painted forms to create a typology as well as to date works of art. This type of analysis is utilized in art history to outline the qualities and forms of an artwork characteristics which are connected to historical, cultural or religious trends and, sometimes, to identify the style of particular artists, their workshops, techniques and work processes. In aesthetics, the nature and significance of works of specific media, periods, genres or styles are studied. Painting is also examined according to its magical function in specialized contexts (temple, tomb, palace, house) and how it intersected with the living, the dead, and the gods. The transmission of models, issues of center-periphery, gender, and the analysis of the ‘other’ have also received scholarly attention. The role of iconography is consistently explored in painting, both in terms of its meaning and function within sacred space and its communicative aspects. The interplay between text and image is examined particularly within the context of literary theory. Technological examinations have elucidated the properties of pigment, binders and resin and offer some important applications for dating and artistic workshop practices. The article examines the pros and cons of each approach and suggests future applications in the study of ancient Egyptian painting.
This article discusses the methodological and technological methods that are used in Egyptian pai... more This article discusses the methodological and technological methods that are used in Egyptian painting. Given the wide-range of surfaces that were adorned with pigment, the major issues, techniques, and problems associated with flat painting will be explored. The study of Egyptian painting is typified by the plurality of approaches available to the researcher. The most traditional and often-used approach, stylistic analysis that traces similarities between groups of paintings and painted forms to create a typology as well as to date works of art. This type of analysis is utilized in art history to outline the qualities and forms of an artwork characteristics which are connected to historical, cultural or religious trends and, sometimes, to identify the style of particular artists, their workshops, techniques and work processes. In aesthetics, the nature and significance of works of specific media, periods, genres or styles are studied. Painting is also examined according to its magical function in specialized contexts (temple, tomb, palace, house) and how it intersected with the living, the dead, and the gods. The transmission of models, issues of center-periphery, gender, and the analysis of the ‘other’ have also received scholarly attention. The role of iconography is consistently explored in painting, both in terms of its meaning and function within sacred space and its communicative aspects. The interplay between text and image is examined particularly within the context of literary theory. Technological examinations have elucidated the properties of pigment, binders and resin and offer some important applications for dating and artistic workshop practices. The article examines the pros and cons of each approach and suggests future applications in the study of ancient Egyptian painting.
Paper on the connections between the Roman funerary portraits of Egypt and the early Christian po... more Paper on the connections between the Roman funerary portraits of Egypt and the early Christian portraiture painting.
La question des origenes de la peinture est obscure et n'entre pas dans le plan de cet ouvrage. L... more La question des origenes de la peinture est obscure et n'entre pas dans le plan de cet ouvrage. Les Égyptiens déclarent qu'elle a été inventée chez eux six mille ans avant de passer en Grèce : vaine prétention, c'est bien évident.
Drafts by Studi Poliziani di Egittologia 1 Artists and Painting in Ancient Egypt
Study on the colour in the Amarna art with some interesting conclusions especially on the use of ... more Study on the colour in the Amarna art with some interesting conclusions especially on the use of yellow and red and in which way they were used to create subtle variations of hue according the subject depicted.
The paper deals with artistic conventions in Old Kingdom tombs taking as case study the work of t... more The paper deals with artistic conventions in Old Kingdom tombs taking as case study the work of the artist Seni at Hawawish.
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Papers by Studi Poliziani di Egittologia 1 Artists and Painting in Ancient Egypt
Drafts by Studi Poliziani di Egittologia 1 Artists and Painting in Ancient Egypt