Le figure dei pittori tra analisi estetica e biografia in Aristotele, Teofrasto, Clearco e Duride

Abstract

Concerning the description of painters, it is possible to identify some common threads between Aristotle, Theophrastos, Duris and Klearchos. In particular, richness and reactions to defeat seem to become noteworthy themes for short biographical notes, as well as the role of the πρῶτος εὑρετής. These biographical notes are also influenced by the changing role of the artist in society: the sculptor Parrhasios, indeed, seems to have described himself as a luxury lover in an epigram, whereas an anonymous reader appears to have reminded him of the practicality of his art. Besides these short biographical sketches, painters are also used as a mean of comparison with poets and poetry in Aristotle’s Poetics, where their painting style seems to become subject to Aristotle’s poetical categories and analyses.