With our 7th-grade classes, we dived into the fascinating world of medieval sculpture. Building on our Visual Arts lessons—where we explored the artistic languages of architecture, sculpture, painting, and photography—we took a closer look at sculpture as a three-dimensional art form and value (chiaroscuro) as a tool to represent space. This workshop breaks away from the traditional outline drawing approach: students learn to build forms exclusively through lights and shadows, developing visual perception, hand-eye coordination, and a greater awareness of three-dimensional reality.
Materials Needed:
- Black and white photocopies of medieval bas-reliefs (fantastic animals, warriors, decorations, and monsters)
- Tracing paper sheets
- Colored pencils (preferably dark shades)
- Masking tape
- Scissors
- Colored cardstock
- Glue stick
We started with a rich collection of images featuring medieval bas-reliefs populated by fantastic animals and monstrous creatures. We taped the tracing paper over the black and white photocopy to overlay our observation work.
We began tracing the figure without ever drawing outlines. Using a dark colored pencil, we worked with gradual pressure: in areas of deep shadow, we pressed very hard to get a dense, solid color, making the drawing clearly visible against the photocopied background.
Moving on to the mid-tone areas, we reduced the pencil pressure, blending gradually. In the areas of intense light, however, we left the paper completely white or barely touched by color, understanding that the shape comes to life precisely through the contrast between highlights and shadows.
Once the value was finished with all the lights and the shadows, we detached the tracing paper from the sheet underneath. This chiaroscuro tracing process proved to be an excellent graphic exercise for understanding form structure and volume.
Finally, we carefully cut out the drawing, leaving 1 cm board, and glued it onto a piece of colored cardstock. The colorful background enhances the shade of the chosen pencil and gives our graphic bas-relief a striking visual impact!
Here are the finished drawings:
