Terracotta fragment of a kylix (drinking cup) 530 BC

This terracotta fragment of a kylix, or drinking cup, was crafted by Oltos and is now housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The fragment features a stark contrast: the lustrous black glaze that dominates the exterior is set against the warm, reddish-orange clay of the interior. Notice the fragment of a painted figure on the interior. We see a head and torso delineated with precise lines, the details rendered in black against the clay ground. The eye is drawn to the composition, which plays with positive and negative space, figure and ground, in a sophisticated manner. This interplay between the form and the void creates a dynamic tension that challenges our perception. The fragment speaks to the power of art to evoke a sense of history and to provoke aesthetic contemplation. The formal elements, like the curves of the cup and the lines of the figure, function not just aesthetically but also as part of a larger cultural and philosophical discourse.