1000 Years of Khmer Sculpture - summary

(part 3: Angkor 12th to 15th century)

Angkor Vat style (late 11th century - 1175)

With the gorgeous temple of Phimai, in present-day Thailand, just before 1107, the foundations for the totally classical architecture of the second half of the 12th century were laid. In 1113 Suryavarman II (1113- at least 1145), an ambitious conqueror and passionate builder, ordered the construction of the Vishnuite temple Angkor Vat, one of mankinds most impressive religious monuments.
As was not uncommon in the development of Khmer art, especially in sculpture, elements of earlier style-periods were taken up again. After the 11th centurys remarkable softness, at odds with the grandeur expected of an art that was to reflect the regimes political power, sculpture returned - maybe consciously - to a esthetics close to that of the first half of the 10th century (Bakheng, Koh Ker), without however repeating its haughtiness or cold, superhuman perfection.
The new elements that enable us to clearly distinguish Angkor Vat sculpture from 10th century pieces are (e.g.) the belt with double ovals and two rows of small pearls, the long decorative panel with a fishtail-shape on the dress of female statues (a novelty of the 11th century) and the jewellerys design.
Generally the glory of the Angkor Vat style is considered to be the gorgeous relief-art, rather than the free statues. Nonetheless splendid free statues have survived as well.
Buddhist imagery continues to occupy an important place, with the naga-Buddhas, bodhisattvas and also standing Buddhas that were influenced by the Dvaravati culture (Thailand).

Bayon style (late 12th - early 13th century)

After the plundering of Angkor Vat by the Champa in 1177 the Khmer empire reached the height of its glory under Jayavarman VII, who apart from freeing Angkor and annexing Champa, had the Khmer empire grow to its greatest expansion - and building activity.
The architecture of this period introduced novelties such as towers with faces and the giant-roads in between them, but was also a continuation of the earlier tradition. However, a certain lack of care was manifest. Many decorative reliefs show signs of a hasty execution, the plans of the monuments are often confused, and even the construction methods seem to have deteriorated. This loss of quality is due to the enormous scale of the building projects, for which in fact the means were lacking. Even so, many pieces of a superior quality were made in this period as well.
Jayavarmn VII was a devout follower of Mahayana Buddhisme and the sculptures under his riegn were indeed greatly influenced by Buddhism, not only in their iconography, but also in their esthetics. The Bayon style reflected a more earthly and human ideal of beauty than the grandiose Hindu art of the previous centuries. The sculptures became lifelike again. We could wonder where the artists had learned their skill. Nothing seems to have prepared them for the subtile technique that combines a tempered realism (musculature discretely but accurately rendered) with an intense expressiveness: the faces show spiritual concentration, serenity and at times physical agony. However, the realism and expressiveness of this period was never meant to embody feelings, not even the most lofty or deeply religious. The genius of Jayavarmans artists consisted in having translated the essence of Buddhist liberation in plastic forms.
The face is oval. The eyebrows form an uninterrupted curving line. The eyes are almost completely closed in meditative concentration, in contrast with Hindu statues whose wide-open eyes stare with an extraverted force. The broad mouth forms a serene smile. The hair, separated from the forehead by a narrow band, is rendered in large, flat curls. The ushnisha (Buddhas cranial protrusion) is covered by various layers of lotus petals. Standing male statues often have kneecaps accentuated by a semi-circled line. The legs are fairly heavily built.
The dress is often no longer folded as it was before, but rather decorated with floral motifs. The overhanging hem disappears, the frontal flap has the shape of an up-side-down shark-fin. The sampot of male images is very short and the lower hem is usually decorated with pearls. At the back the belt is decorated, e.g. with a flower.

Post-Bayon style (2nd half 13th century - 1431)

The effect of the profound changes during the reign of Jayavarman VII was not very long-lasting. The period was the climax, but also the very end of a particular view on kingship. During the reign of Jayavarman VIII (1243-1295) an iconoclastical Shivaite reaction destroyed a great many Buddha statues. For a short while Hinduism became the official state religion. In this period practically no great temples were built anymore, even though existing temples continued developping their decorations and reliefs. Meanwhile, from the 13th century on, Theravada Buddhism was introduced in Cambodia on a large scale: the final blow to Hinduism in the region.
In this period the Theravada influence gave birth to a new type of Buddha image forming a link with the so-called post-Angkor period. They were named after their discoverer: Commaille Buddhas. Their stylistic and iconographical characteristics may have originated in the Lop Buri school, a provincial Khmer style in present-day Thailand. The sculptures are at the same time supple and monumental, with smiling, natural faces. Early European scholars qualified them higher than the more stylised primitive pieces of the previous centuries. Small or even tiny haircurls cover the head and the conical ushnisha - at times with a flame, which was a Sri Lankese influence on Thai and Khmer Buddhas from the late 13th century onwards.
The dress is simple and has no decoration and is tied with an undecorated belt. The upper robe is visible between arms and upperbody, which is a novelty. Buddhas adorned with a crown and jewellery, already diminishing in number from Anghkor Vat to Bayon, become rare.

Post-Angkor period (1431 - )

Already since its very foundation in 1350 the Thai kingdom Ayutthaya formed a threat to the weakening Khmer empire. In 1431 the armies of Ayutthaya conquered Angkor. After this defeat with great material and human costs, the Khmer left Angkor. The city was too vulnerable for the agressive and ambitious neighbouring peoples. The new capital lay near to present-day Phnom Penh.
In spite of the dramatic events in 1431, there was no break in the stylistic evolution of Khmer art. Little is known of this period, not in the least because wood was often used, which in most cases has not survived the tropical climate. Of some of the surviving pieces the quality is disappointing, but enough masterpieces have been preserved to show that the tradition was not entirely lost.
Influences of the Ayutthaya style are clearly present, especially in the mass-production of Buddhas adorned with jewels. Both the Thai and the Khmer now shared the same religion - Theravada Buddhism - and moreover, the kingdom Ayutthaya had an immense aura in Southeast Asia since the beginning of the 14th century.
Nevertheless, on the whole the Khmer sculptures of this period remain more serious and stern in their expression than the Thai pieces, and particularly in the jewellery the 12th-century Angkor influence is still strong. In the diadem (still layered) and jewels, the pattern of diamond-shaped flowers of the Angkor period is replaced by floral curls with arabesque-like curves.

Bibliography

Ibbitson, Helen and Zïshir, Thierry, Sculpture of Angkor and Ancient Cambodia - Millennium of Glory, Thames and Hudson, London-New York, 1997.