mid-relief
Half-raised sculptural carving
Mid-relief is a sculptural technique where figures project from a background surface by roughly half their natural depth—between the shallow projection of bas-relief and the near-freestanding forms of high relief.
The term appears primarily in art history and museum contexts: The temple friezes were carved in mid-relief.
Shaped three-dimensional art
- carvingShaping by cutting away
- projectionSomething that extends outward
- depthDistance below surface
- modelingSimulating or demonstrating form
undercutting · chiseling · tooling · finishing · polishing · casting · molding · plaster
Ornamental architectural band
- pedimentTriangular architectural crowning element
- facadeDeceptive outward appearance
- corniceOrnamental upper trim
- tympanumSound-receiving ear membrane
entablature · pilaster · colonnade · portal · lintel · spandrel · medallion · cartouche
Ancient Greek hilltop temple
- DonatelloQuattrocento Florentine sculptor
- RenaissanceEuropean cultural reawakening
- RomanesqueRound-arched medieval building style
- ByzantineOf Constantinople's civilization
Egyptian · Assyrian · Persian · Greek · Roman · Hellenistic · antiquity · sarcophagus
Seventy-five percent portion
- foregroundNearest visual plane
- figure-groundPerceptual separation of object and background
- shallowWithout much depth
- deepFar from surface
protruding · recessed · flat · volumetric · graduated · transitional
sculpture
Shaped three-dimensional art
- carvingShaping by cutting away
- projectionSomething that extends outward
- depthDistance below surface
modeling · undercutting · chiseling · tooling · finishing · polishing · casting · molding · plaster · limestone
frieze
Ornamental architectural band
- pedimentTriangular architectural crowning element
- facadeDeceptive outward appearance
- corniceOrnamental upper trim
tympanum · entablature · pilaster · colonnade · portal · lintel · spandrel · medallion · cartouche · panel
Parthenon
Ancient Greek hilltop temple
- DonatelloQuattrocento Florentine sculptor
- RenaissanceEuropean cultural reawakening
- RomanesqueRound-arched medieval building style
Byzantine · Egyptian · Assyrian · Persian · Greek · Roman · Hellenistic · antiquity · sarcophagus · stele
three-quarter
Seventy-five percent portion
- foregroundNearest visual plane
- figure-groundPerceptual separation of object and background
- shallowWithout much depth
deep · protruding · recessed · flat · volumetric · graduated · transitional