Art Inspiration: The Greek Gods Distraction on Olympus: Olympus

 

 

“Distraction on Olympus” is a project I worked on with my students at the school I work in.  It was the final project for the drawing club where I taught the children how to draw in the style of comic and cartoon characters.  The class had decided to go with the theme of the Greek gods and I would help them draw a scene around that idea.

With all the different characters in place then came the task of creating a background.  These are the Olympian gods therefore we created what we thought was mount Olympus.  Mostly it was just a hill with apple trees on it but there was one element that I added and the children liked. The floating palace of the Gods. 

I started with a floating rock or island idea and then I added the Parthenon and the Oracle at Delphi.  I told the children a little about the Parthenon that it is in Athens and part of the Acropolis.  It is the Temple to Athena the patron god of the city. 

I also added the Oracle at Delphi on the left side of the Parthenon.  The Oracle at Delphi was a very prominent figure in the Ancient Greek world.  She was woman, a high priestess devoted to Apollo.  It has been mentioned in several sages including:

 

1. The Theban Saga with Oedipus
2. The Mycenaean Saga with Orestes
3. Trojan Sage and Iliad with Telephus
4. Jason, Medea and the Argonauts with Pelius 
5. Even the Might Hercules went to the Oracle at Delphi

 

I added this as a way to say that even though humans have been to Olympus there is still one part on the gods can get to.  The children loved it and it added a lot to the final project.

I hope you enjoy Olympus, Palace of the Gods.

 

Olympus, Palace of the Gods.

 

 

Art Inspiration: The Greek Gods Distraction on Olympus: Hephaestus

“Distraction on Olympus” is a project I worked on with my students at the school I work in.  It was a final project in a drawing club the children where in when I taught them how to draw in the style of comic and cartoon characters, they were most familiar with.  The class had decided to go with the theme of the Greek gods and I would help them draw a scene around that idea.

In the process of creating the scene, the children asked to be represented as the gods in the project.  They choose their own character of who they wanted to be.  No one choose Hephaestus but I modeled him after a child in the class.  He wanted to be Zeus or Poseidon, but we weren’t using them or Hades in this project.  I wanted the children to learn about different Greek gods and not just the six original Olympians.

The child did not know much about Hephaestus but I told him that he was the god of the forge and creator of arms of the gods.  After I told him a bit more about Hephaestus he was all right with the choice and felt a bit pleased with it.  You see the child was a good artist and great with his hands.  You give him a project to do and he will create wonderful things out of anything. Once I told him that Hephaestus created beautiful pieces of art out of almost anything, he was hooked.

I did not tell him the whole history about Hephaestus.  Hephaestus had a rough ride from the beginning.

Poor Hephaestus was a lame god and the son of Hera and Zeus, or sometimes the son of Hera alone.  His mother, ashamed by his disfigurement, cast him out of Olympus.  On another occasion Zeus hurled him down from Olympus because he interfered in a fight between Zeus and Hera.

He was married to the gorgeous Aphrodite, but she would always go to Ares and had “encounters” with him.  This enraged Hephaestus and he built ways of capturing the two in the act.  On one occasion he created unbreakable chains that was as fine as spider silk. He caught the two and displayed them for his amusement.

Hephaestus was reinstated to Olympus and became the great artisan and blacksmith of the gods.  He had the 3 Cyclopes help him in his workshop and he created wonderful masterpieces including the following.

–       The Shield of Achilles

–       The silver Bow and Arrows of Artemis and Apollo

–       A chain net of unbreakable chains as fine a spider silk.

–       The Spear of Athena

–       The Breastplate of Hercules

–       The Specter of Zeus

–       The battle armor of the gods

–       Jewelry

–       The first robots that helped him get around.

I drew Hephaestus working on a sword and with a forge that looked like the top of a volcano.  In many stories he uses volcanoes as his forges.  If you think about it, Hephaestus is the only Greek god that is in manual labour.  Poor Hephaestus is just a working Joe like many of out there.  However, he works hard for his craft and makes the most amazing creations.  A true artisan to be revered for his talents.

Hephaestus
The Artisan and Smith to the gods.

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Art Inspiration: The Greek Gods Distraction on Olympus: Hermes

“Distraction on Olympus” is a project I worked on with my students at the school I work in.  It was a final project in a drawing club the children where in when I taught them how to draw in the style of comic and cartoon characters, they were most familiar with.  The class had decided to go with the theme of the Greek gods and I would help them draw a scene around that idea.

In the process of creating the scene, the children asked to be represented as the gods in the project.  They choose their own character of who they wanted to be.  One child wanted to be Hermes and I saw that this was a right choice for him.  He was quick on his feet and a sly little fellow who could charm you at one moment and pick your pocket the next.  When I described Hermes to him he was happy with the choice.

Hermes is the son of a union between Zeus and a beautiful nymph Maia.  An extremely gifted baby it was said that he was born at dawn, created and played the lyre by midday and stole the cattle of Apollo by the evening.

The main and important attributes of Hermes are that he was the quintessential trickster and a master of persuasion.  He had many duties but the two main were the divine messenger of the gods and the god that guides the souls to the underworld.

Here is a list of the many qualities of Hermes.

–       Divine Messenger of the gods

–       Guides the souls to the underworld

–       Guide of dreams

–       A prince of thieves and a spy in the night

–       Slayer of Argus, the hundred-eyed giant

–       Devious, ingenuity and a clever talker

–       Lord of flocks and Mt. Cyllene and Arcadia

Every god has his or her own accessories and Hermes is no exception.

–       The Petasus, a broad-brimmed hat with wings

–       Sandals with wings

–       The Caduceus, a herald’s staff that was entwined with two snakes.

I drew Hermes with all three of his accessories and of course flying over Olympus.  With the children, we focused on the gods and their drawing before tackling the background.  I will be presenting a god or to every week until I unveil the final version.  I hope you enjoy the latest god drawing as much as the children.

Hermes
The divine messenger of the gods and the god that guides the souls to the underworld.

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