How the ancient Greeks portrayed the dog
The ancient Greeks saw the world through Greek eyes, they portrayed the world through the Greek style. And everything Greek for them was superior. Representing one of her goddesses, they included alongside hers her slender, meandering hounds that aided her in hunting her. The goddess was Artemis; the hounds were the Greek hounds, known today as greyhounds.
Greyhounds are tall and long-bodied, and are specially built for speed. Its head is long and narrow, pointed at the muzzle, wide between the ears. It is supported by a long and muscular neck, slightly arched. Because a greyhound is made to run, it has a naturally long frame, packed with light muscles, which an artist can highlight when depicting one in action. Special care must be taken when depicting the general muscular structure of the Greyhound so that it does not appear as heavy as that of a Great Dane.
Dobermans, Pointers, and Greyhounds are similar in build in many respects, but the latter’s back, while muscular, is slightly arched. And of course, while Dobermans are best depicted in size, the Greyhound possesses a long, thin, tapered one that curves slightly upwards.
The Greeks have enjoyed elegantly portraying the greyhound as the companion of a charming and seductive goddess who, in the Renaissance, gained a rather feminine typecasting alongside poodles. The Greeks loved the white greyhound of hers, probably to signify the sexual purity of the virgin goddess. In reality, however, greyhounds also appear in shades of beige, black or blue. And the dark colors are perfect in the modern interpretation of the firm muscles of the dog.
The Greeks, however, did not bother to provide muscles for a mere beast. But almost all of his paintings showed greyhounds in action: jumping, trotting. And the somewhat meandering curve of their bodies is more noticeable, making for an exciting subject to experiment with using the line of action.
Today most artists make full use of the line of action when drawing figures in motion. Succinctly, a line of action will represent the pose of the figure and how all the elements of its composition will fit together. In the greyhound, the line of action will be from the tip of the snout to the end of the tail. The entire line should not be convoluted that might put the dog figure in an awkward pose. The course of action should be simple and uncomplicated. In this sense, the Greek artist was a master.
Yet with all the elegance, a classic work featured greyhounds in the midst of a fleeing herd of deer. Here, the dogs were almost indistinguishable from the deer if the latter had not been represented with antlers. The presence of this confusion may lie in how the Greeks represented both species in the same graceful way.
Some artists will make points of similarity between a greyhound and a cheetah, particularly in the depiction of the action. In this regard, be careful. While both are built for speed, their perceived reactions to speed are different. A performance of a cheetah running with its feet in the air, not touching the ground, may not always look convincing with a greyhound. Modern photographs of greyhound racing have imputed preconceived impressions of the dog with at least two of its paws touching the ground.