How was the red figure technique done?

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Red figure is, put simply, the reverse of the black figure technique. Both were achieved by using the three-phase firing technique. The paintings were applied to the shaped but unfired vessels after they had dried to a leathery, near-brittle texture.



Correspondingly, what is the red figure technique in art?

Red-figure Pottery is a style of Greek vase painting that was invented in Athens around 530 BCE. The style is characterized by drawn red figures and a painted black background.

Secondly, what is the advantage of the red figure technique over the black figure technique? The advantages of using Red-figure technique for painting on pottery were manifold. Details such as draperies and musculature were more easily delineated on Red-figure pottery because the artist could use thin lines of black paint (relief lines) instead of incisions to make details.

In this manner, how was the black figure technique done?

Techniques. The black color in black figure pottery is not a pigment or dye, but a result of firing clay in the kiln. As the vases were being made, a liquid clay called slip was applied to patch up weak areas or hold pieces together. After the vase cooled, artists could paint details onto the figures.

Where does the red color in Greek pottery come from?

The red-figure vase-painting technique was first developed in Athens (or somewhere in the region controlled by Athens, i.e. Attica) in ca. 530 BC. Red-figure is essentially the reverse of black figure: the background is filled in with a fine slip and has a black colour after firing, while the figures are reserved.

39 Related Question Answers Found

What is the Kouros type?

In ancient Greek the word "kouros" (plural, "kouroi") means male youth, and at least from the fifth century, specifically an unbearded male. Modern art historians have decided to use the term to refer to this specific type of a male nude standing with fists to its sides and left foot forward.

What does the archaic smile mean?

The archaic smile was used by sculptors in Archaic Greece, especially in the second quarter of the 6th century BCE, possibly to suggest that their subject was alive, and infused with a sense of well-being. One of the most famous examples of the Archaic Smile is the Kroisos Kouros; the Peplos Kore is another.

Who is the master of red figure painting?

Euthymides worked mainly between 515 and 500 B.C.E., in a time when artists were exploring the possibilities of red-figure technique, invented in Athens around 530 B.C.E.

How are vases made?

It can be made from a number of materials, such as ceramics, glass, non-rusting metals, such as aluminium, brass, bronze, or stainless steel. Even wood has been used to make vases, either by using tree species that naturally resist rot, such as teak, or by applying a protective coating to conventional wood.

What are the two types of figure painting on Greek vases?


The two most popular techniques of vase decoration were the black-figure technique, so-named because the figures were painted black, and the red-figure technique, in which the figures were left the red color of the clay.

What was a hydria used for?

A hydria (Greek: ?δρία; plural hydriai) is a type of water-carrying vessel in the metalwork and pottery of Ancient Greece. The hydria has three handles. Two horizontal handles on either side of the body of the pot were used for lifting and carrying the pot.

What is a krater used for?

Krater, also spelled crater, ancient Greek vessel used for diluting wine with water. It usually stood on a tripod in the dining room, where wine was mixed. Kraters were made of metal or pottery and were often painted or elaborately ornamented.

What is a Greek vase called?

Made of terracotta (fired clay), ancient Greek pots and cups, or “vases” as they are normally called, were fashioned into a variety of shapes and sizes (see above), and very often a vessel's form correlates with its intended function. Or, the vase known as a hydria was used for collecting, carrying, and pouring water.

What is a Greek amphora?

The amphora (pl. amphorae; from Greek amphi - on both sides, phero - carry) is a two-handled pot with a neck that is considerably narrower than the body. It was used for the storage of liquids and solids such as grain.

Why are Greek pots orange and black?


Vase painting
The black-figure technique was developed by about 700 B.C. in Corinth. The black figures were painted as silhouettes that stand out against the orange-red clay surface of the vase. Details were either incised through the black to the red clay surface below, or added in colors.

What is the difference between red and black figure pottery?

Red figure pottery consists of red images against a black background, while black figure pottery consists of black pictures against the naturally red color of the vase. The two ancient Greek pottery techniques utilize a similar approach as far as creating the vase and bringing out the desired figures during firing.

What are the main styles of Greek pottery?

In ancient Greece, potters were responsible for gathering, molding and firing clay into vessels. Once the vessels hardened and were decorated, the potters sold them in the agora, or marketplace. The four main pottery styles include geometric, Corinthian, red-figure and black-figure designs.

What is black figure ware?

Black-figure pottery painting, also known as the black-figure style or black-figure ceramic (Greek, μελανόμορφα, melanomorpha) is one of the styles of painting on antique Greek vases. It was especially common between the 7th and 5th centuries BC, although there are specimens dating as late as the 2nd century BC.

How was the amphora made?

Production. Roman amphorae were wheel-thrown terracotta containers. During the production process the body was made first and then left to dry partially. Then coils of clay were added to form the neck, the rim, and the handles.

How did Greeks make pottery?


Ancient Greek Pottery. The Ancient Greeks made pots from clay. The Greeks used iron-rich clay, which turned red when heated in the kiln. Potters from Corinth and Athens used a special watery mixture of clay to paint their pots while the clay was still soft.

Who invented black figure pottery?

The Athenians, who began to use the technique at the end of the 7th century bce, retained the Corinthian use of animal friezes for decoration until c. 550 bce, when the great Attic painters, among them Exekias and the Amasis Painter, developed narrative scene decoration and perfected the black-figure style.

What is the Stoa in Greek architecture?

A stoa (/ˈsto??/; plural, stoas, stoai, or stoae /ˈsto?. iː/), in ancient Greek architecture, is a covered walkway or portico, commonly for public use.