Both Praxiteles and Lysippos used very natural and human elements in their sculptures. While both sculptures surely calculated the dimensions and designs of their masterpieces on purpose, both men are well known for the immense detail that can be seen in their pieces. In a 2009 article by Jack et al., the authors write that Praxiteles’ Aphrodite of Knidos is so accurate that Aphrodite herself could come down to earth and ask “When did Praxiteles see me naked?” Later in the same article, the authors also write about Lysippos and how he preferred to sculpted things as he actually saw them (Jack P. et al., 2009). This train of thought allowed Lysippos to convey genuine human emotions throughout his art, which gave way to just as many natural elements as Praxiteles’ human curvatures and features did.

In addition to their abilities to introduce natural and human elements into their art, both sculptors were able to utilize curves and three dimensionality in a way that was rarely seen during their primes. Praxiteles was documented to use S shapes and curves in almost all of his major works, while Lysippos is credited for being the first to introduce “true” three dimensionality to sculptures with his “open” forms that allowed viewers to take in his art from more than one viewpoint (Greek Sculpture – Praxiteles and Lysippus, n.d.). These are huge credits that are being attributed to these artists because these are features that have been used in architecture and sculpting all the up into this present era.

Of all the sculptures that these two created, my favorite is Lysippos Farnese Hercules. It is my favorite because Hercules is actually one of my favorite mythological characters/superheroes. Also, it looks to be as accurate as a sculpture of a humongous man could possibly be. It’s as if the Hercules from American comic books was standing in front of you in real life.