Master of Attic Black Figure Painting

'Exekias is generally agreed to have been the best of the Athenian painters of black-figure vases in the middle of the sixth century BC, and he has not been neglected by scholars. His subjects range from heroic myth to the everyday, even the seemingly trivial. But this engaging study offers something new. It focuses on the major works and considers aspects of their motivation and appeal, much of which may have escaped many connoisseurs and scholars in their detail: for instance the relationship of the scenes to everyday life; to poetry, written or declaimed; to religion; and the degree to which the artist was influenced by his fellows and predecessors in the craft. This is an exemplary 'academic' book but composed in a novel manner, with discursive bibliographies for each chapter which will help the general reader, anyone approaching the subject for the first time, and all scholars. It might well give the venerable study of Greek vase painting a new and welcome life, and widen the appeal of a very important demonstration of a Greek artist at work. The illustration is lavish and well chosen.' - Sir John Boardman, FBA, Emeritus Lincoln Professor of Classical Archaeology & Art, University of Oxford 'Professor Moignard's study presents a vivid and detailed account of the pre-eminent Athenian potter-painter, Exekias, and shows how he transcended the work that his predecessors had produced. In concentrating on his major compositions, she uncovers the layers of emotionally expressive scenes, urges us to make direct contact with the images and highlights the intensity of feeling that lies within the figures of Achilles, Dionysos and particularly Ajax 'the loser'. This is a deeply researched treatment presented in a clear and accessible manner.' - Brian A Sparkes, Professor Emeritus of Classical Archaeology, University of Southampton, author of The Red and the Black: Studies in Greek Pottery (1996) and of Greek Pottery: An Introduction (1991)