Berlin Painter

One of the most famous Greek red-figure vase painters is known today as the Berlin Painter. Like Exekias, he was from Athens. The reason we call him the Berlin Painter is that we don't know his name, because he didn't sign his vases. He is called the Berlin Painter because one of his most famous vases is now in Berlin, in Germany. We don't know anything else about him, either.

Based on the style of the vases he painted, the Berlin Painter lived about 500-480 BC. His vases generally show one person, or a couple of people, alone in the middle of the scene, with a lot of black around them.

Europa and the bull

We can tell his vases apart from vases painted by other artists from the style of the painting.

(For a vase-painting project, click here.)

To find out more about Greek red-figure vase painting, check out these books from Amazon.com or from your library:

Ancient Greek Art, by Susie Hodge (1998)- for kids ages 9-12.
Understanding Greek Vases: A Guide to Terms, Styles, and Techniques (Getty Museum Publications 2002) by Andrew J. Clark, Maya Elston, Mary Louise Hart

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