Praxiteles


 * Praxiteles**

Praxiteles is one of the most celebrated of the Attic sculptors, and although very few facts about his life are certain, it is known that he was from Athens and his father, Kephisodotus, was believed to be another renowned Attic sculptor. Praxiteles was highly influential in the development of Greek sculpture, bringing an elegant and sensuous grace to his work. His innovative style was a transformation from the tone set by his predecessors of impressive yet somehow detached sculpture, especially in representations of the gods. Praxiteles overcomes the problem of distancing the viewer by producing a much more humanising view of the gods. The subjects of Praxiteles work tend to be the younger gods such as Hermes, Apollo and Aphrodite; he was not as interested in portraying the more dignified, elderly figures such as Zeus or Poseidon. Praxiteles' most famous and admired work was his Aphrodite of Knidos. This piece is especially outstanding as it is the first large scale sculpture of a nude female.Praxiteles chose to alter the conventions of the ideal body proportions set out by Polykleitos, by increasing his height and making his head smaller to produce a more elegant form.