Apelles(369 av. J.-C. — 305 av. J.-C.)
Apelles
8 min read
Apelles was the most celebrated painter of Greek Antiquity, active in the 4th century BC. He served as the official painter of Alexander the Great and the Macedonian court. None of his works have survived, but ancient texts bear witness to his exceptional mastery.
Frequently asked questions
Key Facts
- Active around 350–300 BC, originally from Cos or Ephesus
- Appointed official painter of Alexander the Great
- Creator of the famous Aphrodite Anadyomene, a painting described by Pliny the Elder
- Pliny the Elder devotes extensive passages to him in his Natural History (Book XXXV)
- None of his works have survived to the present day
Works & Achievements
A painting executed for the Temple of Artemis at Ephesus, depicting Alexander holding a thunderbolt like Zeus. Pliny reports that the hand and the thunderbolt seemed to project out of the picture, and that Alexander and Bucephalus appeared so lifelike that spectators stepped back in astonishment.
Aphrodite rising from the sea, commissioned by the city of Cos. Regarded as Apelles' absolute masterpiece, this work was left unfinished and later transferred to Rome by Augustus. It inspired countless depictions of the birth of Venus in Western art, including that of Botticelli.
An allegorical composition representing Calumny, Envy, Deceit, and Truth. Described in detail by Lucian of Samosata several centuries later, it directly inspired Botticelli's *Calumny of Apelles* (1494–95), allowing an indirect transmission of the composition to the Renaissance.
Apelles had to paint this one-eyed general of Alexander in three-quarter view to conceal his disability. This skillful adaptation of the composition to the model's physical reality was widely cited in Antiquity as an example of artistic tact and ingenuity.
One of the first major official portraits of Alexander, executed when the prince was still a teenager. This painting helped shape the public image of the future conqueror and served as a model for the representation of Hellenistic royal power.
Anecdotes
One day, Apelles hid behind one of his paintings displayed on a public street to listen to the comments of passersby. A cobbler pointed out an error in the depiction of a sandal, which Apelles immediately corrected. The next day, emboldened, the same man began criticizing the knee of the figure. Apelles then stepped out from his hiding place and delivered the now-famous retort: “Cobbler, not above the sandal!” — in Latin, *ne sutor ultra crepidam*.
Apelles and his rival Protogenes faced off in a celebrated pictorial contest. During a visit to Protogenes' workshop in his absence, Apelles drew on a blank panel a line of incomparable fineness. Protogenes, upon returning, immediately recognized the master's hand and drew over it an even finer line. This duel of lines illustrates the Greek ideal of technical mastery pushed to its extreme limit.
Alexander the Great entrusted Apelles with the task of painting a portrait of his favorite, Campaspe. According to the tradition reported by Pliny the Elder, Apelles fell deeply in love with the young woman while executing the portrait. Alexander, moved by this, offered him Campaspe as a gift — an exceptional token of the esteem in which the conqueror held his official painter.
Apelles left his famous *Venus Anadyomene* unfinished, judging that no painter could worthily complete the face he had begun. The Ancients reported that the work was so perfect in its finished portions that no one ever dared lay a brush to it after him, and that it was later brought to Rome by Augustus.
Apelles had a working rule he never broke: to let no day pass without drawing at least one line. This habit, captured in the Latin proverb *nulla dies sine linea* (not a day without a line), reflects his belief that the artist's craft is as much a matter of daily discipline as it is of natural talent.
Primary Sources
Apelles surpassed all the painters who had come before him and all those who were to follow. His foremost quality was what the Greeks call *charis*, an indefinable grace that no other painter could imitate, even though his rivals equaled him in other respects.
Apelles had depicted Slander in the guise of a furious woman, led by Envy and Deceit, while Ignorance and Suspicion held the ears of the judge. Behind them, Truth walked dressed in white, alone and forsaken.
Apelles, Zeuxis, and Protogenes — who would grasp their art if stripped of the rules of drawing and proportion? And yet, what a difference between them! Apelles surpasses all others in grace.
His Venus Rising from the Sea, commissioned by the people of Cos, was placed in the temple of Asclepius. Augustus had it transported to Rome to be housed in the temple of Caesar his father. The lower portion of the painting, left unfinished, no other painter was ever able to complete.
Key Places
The likely birthplace of Apelles, located in Ionia on the Aegean coast of Asia Minor. It was in this rich Greek cultural environment that he received his earliest artistic training before leaving to study at Sicyon.
A city in the Peloponnese where Apelles studied under Pamphilus, head of the great Sicyonian school, which established geometry and theory as the foundations of pictorial training.
Capital of the kingdom of Macedonia, where Apelles served as official painter to Philip II and then to Alexander the Great. There he produced his celebrated royal portraits, which helped shape the image of the conqueror throughout the Greek world.
A major Greek city in Asia Minor where Apelles worked on several occasions. The Temple of Artemis at Ephesus, one of the Seven Wonders of the ancient world, housed his portrait of Alexander holding the thunderbolt of Zeus.
An Aegean island where Apelles retired after the death of Alexander. There he painted the *Venus Anadyomene*, dedicated to the temple of Asclepius. According to ancient tradition, it was also where he died around 305 BC.
