Introduction
Back in 2009, I wrote Don’t Fall Flat: Helpful Design Concepts For Medallions for the RESS publication, The Boat. It was a pretty in-depth discussion on how to design an effective palm-sized medallion from composition to narrative to casting concerns. But now it’s 2026 and we need to expand on that discussion since relief sculpture has explored more advanced concepts such as multi-panel pieces, standees, even switchplates, jewelry, beads, and ornaments.
Indeed, relief sculpture has exploded these past two decades for good reason — it’s highly rewarding. Indeed, it’s refreshing to sculpt with its novel new challenges with design, texture, and narrative not often encountered with “in the round” full-body work. Relief sculpture is also a nifty way to teach many sculpting skills from getting a feel for the clay to anatomy to composition to learning aptitude with the tools. Relief sculpture is also quite versatile, able to be cast in just about any media and applied in all sorts of ways from awards to giftware to home accents and more, even jewelry, belt buckles, and barretts. What’s more, relief work is more affordable, making it highly collectible between all the fun compositions and narratives. It also tends to have a more accessible price tag, and with lots of media to choose from, from ceramic to resin to metal to glass, stone, wood, and even soap or chocolate candy, the options are wide open. Just as much, relief work is also an ideal way to teach painting techniques as its smaller size, affordability, and relative ease (you only have to paint one side) make it far less intimidating to learn on than an expensive Artist Resin. Relief work is often easier to prep for painting or finishing, too, an automatic plus! What's more, many shows host classes, even divisions, for relief sculpture now, fueling demand by showcasing the art form en masse. And on a larger scale, Brookgreen Gardens has an entire building dedicated to medallion work! It's truly amazing!
As such, perhaps we’d like to try our hand at sculpting relief sculpture, too! It isn’t as hard as we may think, it’s a cool challenge, and it’s a whole lot of fun to boot, so why not? So let’s talk about some considerations when it comes to designing an effective relief sculpture to jumpstart our own explorations into this exciting art form! So let’s go!…
Understanding The Assignment
Above all, effective relief sculpture isn’t just a matter of sculpting an equine “on the half shell” and calling it a day. You see, it’s not enough to sculpt one well in terms of realism. Honestly, no matter how realistic a relief is sculpted, if the composition is off, that’s a missed potential all the same. Instead then, we need to apply some composition tenets to also create a well-designed one that engages the eye and draws us in. Quite literally, a relief sculpture should be approached more as a logo or painting than a sculpture insofar as all the drawing and design concepts apply in spades. So think of a relief more as a 3D painting, and we’ll nail it. Indeed, the very best reliefs exhibit convincing realism — yes — but are paired with sophisticated compositions, novel concepts, and strong narratives, creating a symbiotic confection elevated to new heights!
That being the case, an overly-simplified composition and approach will cause our relief sculpture to fall flat in the design department when we want more novelty, more punch, more sophistication in how we bang one out. That’s not only a fun challenge, but it gives our relief work an edge that positions it better in the sea of relief sculpture already out there. But this is exactly why some relief sculptures seem so compelling while others have a “seen it before" impression. Absolutely, even the most simple concepts, a horse head on a background, can be made punchier through the application of some simple design tricks. In fact, the more successful pieces are designed with more in mind than simply the central horse figure — they’re designed as a visual language in which every inch of the relief serves a purpose to further the overall concept from a compositional perspective. That’s to say things like “traveling eye” precepts, negative and positive space, edge work, borders, textures, “sculpting with light,” perspective, narrative, motifs and flourishes, shapes, cut-outs as well as an adept application of The Flattening and The Deepening (as Maria Hjerppe puts it) all conspire together to push our relief beyond the “seen it” factor.
Perhaps most of all though, it’s important to remember that a good relief sculpture is about telling a story. The most interesting medallions have a kind of narrative, or a driving concept that shapes the overall design. In short, they have something to say, and they say it cleverly, clearly, and confidently.
But how exactly do we achieve all this? What ideas can we apply and how? Well, let’s explore some design concepts and tricks to clarify our objectives to give ourselves the best shot at creating a truly appealing relief sculpture…
Different Types of Relief Sculpture
Knowing the different styles of relief work lets us develop in a way that marries best with our aesthetic while also keeping practicalities in the game. And while there are different approaches, there's also no reason why we can't mix them up on a single piece! So play around with all of them to find what works best to forward the piece. For that then, the different types of relief work are, as follows:
- Basso-relievo or low relief or bas-relief: When the design projects only a little bit off the flat surface. Coins are a good example of basso-relievo.
- Alto-relievo or high relief or alto-relief or haut-relief: When the design projects at least half its circumference beyond the flat surface, being almost completely "in the round." Many flourishes on old buildings are a good example.
- Mezzo-relievo or middle relief or mid-relief: Between basso-relievo and alto-relievo. Many medallions in our art form are good examples of mezzo-relievo.
- Sunken relief: When the design is sculpted into the flat surface, sunken below the level. A common example are ancient Egyptian wall carvings in tombs.
- Stiacciato or relievo-schiacciato or "squashed relief": Associated with the 15th century sculptors, Donatello and Desiderio da Settighnano, this entails a series of fine chisel lines surrounding areas partly carved in basso-relievo.
- Counter-relief or intaglio or cavo-relievo: When the design is sculpted down into the flat surface rather than being built up onto it like with conventional relief, and often so deeply, it goes beyond sunken relief, becoming more like a sunken version of alto-relievo.
Shape
Choosing a shape for our relief isn’t so obvious because it can actually impact the effectiveness of the overall design in a big way all by itself. So don’t be too quick to choose the obvious like a circle or square but consider other shapes like ovals, triangles, rectangles, arches, trapezoids, hexagons, or even free-form shapes like blobs, amoebas, puddles, or shards. Maybe even stars, horseshoes, apples or other themed shapes could work in an interesting way, too. There's also free-from where it's just the central figure that's cut out. Quite literally then, the options are limitless so give it a good think.
Most of all when it comes to shape though, think about how it can influence the impact of our concept by maximizing the use of space. For instance, if a circle produces too much negative space around our central figure, try a square or trapezoid instead. In short, the shape should forward our central figure in a flattering, design-conscious way so keep the use of space at the forefront of our choice and we’ll pick an effective shape almost automatically.
And we should pick a shape for novelty reasons, too, to challenge ourselves and to set our medallion apart from others. Keep this in mind though: Different shapes inspire different emotional reactions. For instance, rectangles inspire a sense of stability and order, triangles illicit feelings of tension and energy, ovals are soothing and graceful, circles feel “coiled” and controlled, arches bring a sense of nobility and formality whereas themed shapes can root our design in a larger idea. Then free-forms can offer a wide variety of emotional options that pique curiosity and intrigue the eyes. With all this in mind then, pick a shape that best suits not only the use of space, but also forwards our concept and the emotional response we want.
Recommended Reading: The Inner Eye: Quick Visualization Tips For Sculpture
Size
The dimensions of our medallion can matter a lot when it comes to targeting the impact of our piece to pinpointing a specific price point to pinging a functional objective, so put some thought into it. Like maybe our relief has to insert into something or it has to be a certain size to be the most stable, a consideration with standees. Generally speaking, too, the smaller the medallion, the cheaper it is to produce (so we can sell it at a lower price point) whereas the bigger it is, the opposite applies. However, we can often get a lot more detail in a bigger relief than a smaller one so that will play out in our choice as well.
What’s more, collectors seem to appreciate a certain size range so sticking within that bubble tends to find more sales success than creating outlying sizes. For example, sizes ranging from 3” to 12” tend to generate higher demand than smaller or bigger pieces. Possible reasons are the ease of painting to affordability to the problems of display or storage, so keep all this in mind when finalizing size.
As such, a solid basic choice is a relief approximately in the 3”-6” range along its longest side or diameter as that offers paintability paired with an affordable price point paired with effective display space. Of course we can explore different sizes over time, but a good beginner size falls within that bubble. Plus, other kinds of relief sculpture such as a standee often do well on the bigger side to be seen among other home decor whereas jewelry pieces like beads, pendants, earrings, or pins need to be on the small side for weight issues.
Casting Concerns
We have to consider how we intend to produce our relief before we design it. Like will it be cast in bronze, resin, slip-cast or tile-pressed ceramic, glass? Will it entail a flexible silicone mold or a rigid plaster or ceramic mold? How we intend to reproduce our medallion will dictate what style of sculpting we can apply and in what media.
For instance, the use of strong undercuts or 3D aspects is a no-go for ceramic castings, but better suited for resin or bronze. In contrast, tile-pressing usually necessitates a flatter interpretation of sculpting to pull cleanly from the mold. Similarly, delicate tendrils and cut-outs may be difficult to reproduce in bronze or glass, but can work with resin or fine bone china.
But in all this, also remember the hierarchy of media in the collecting markets. For example, while resin casting offers many freedoms in sculpting design, it’s not always welcomed in the conventional art market. Instead, casting our design in bronze, ceramic, or glass are often the better choices but will narrow our sculpting options much more. However, resin casting is ubiquitous in the equine collectibles market, often making resin the better choice there. So know your target market first as well.
Positioning
Don’t assume the conventional side profile is the best one. Too many medallions already employ this layout so rethink repeating it. Instead, consider three-quarter views or views from the front, rear or top, with the head, neck or body held in novel ways. In other words, the more novel the view, often the better. Plus, if we can get more of the body in, like with a rear or front view, we can provide painters with more opportunities for pigments, patterns, and effects, as well as the challenge with perspective painting.
Now yes, a classic side-view may be easier to sculpt in terms of perspective, but we got this! We can do a more complicated perspective, especially when it adds a lot more interesting flavor to our piece. That said, however, if we’re a real beginner, perhaps the simple profile view will be a better choice so we can work through the process and The Flattening and The Deepening with less complication introduced by sharp perspectives.
Likewise, try not to chop off the horse’s bust mid-neck. Designs do better with some context and “rooting,” and chopping our portrait off mid-neck often leaves the main subject oddly floating within the design. Instead, compose the piece to end at the shoulder, or configure it to depict some other part of the body, too. On the other hand, we can crop the composition really close to depict only a specific aspect of the head, or closer still, only the eye. It’s these kinds of new choices that will make our medallion stand out in the crowd.
Remember, too, that there are options other than a horse head. Like we can sculpt in a whole or partial body, or even include more than one horse in the design. When doing so though don’t forget the elements of design that will improve the layout. For example, a common mistake with multiple horses is to center them floating in the middle with excessive negative space around them. Rather, make use of every inch by increasing the size of the central figures or decreasing the shape so we have a closely cropped picture. Another option is to add in a border, design elements, or flourishes in the background that use up the empty space.
Speaking of which, the position of the mane, tail, and feathers aren’t to be overlooked either or treated as afterthoughts. Absolutely, they can be some of the most tricky elements to sculpt because they must forward the composition, realistically flow with passive physics, and be textured accurately, three aspects that can compete with each other at times. The mane and tail can also feature as structural components like providing hanging loops or cut out areas so there’s that to factor in as well, as needed. What’s more, the mane and tail can feature prominently, even establish the outline shape of the piece, making them a major component in the composition. Manes, tails, and feathers can also be sculpted in a more fantastical manner, adding a lovely fantasy feel to the piece that increases its novelty. In short, never treat the mane and tail (or feathers) as afterthoughts because they’re actually major players in the composition game.
Believe it or not, too, but the emotion depicted in the piece is part of the composition as well. Really, it’s an element in the design just as much as a mane or a leg. Why? Because the emotion involved in the relief plays a big part in its overall impact and the “grab” it has with someone’s attention. So like if we created a whinnying, snorting, or angry horse, apply that with intent rather than simply as an afterthought.
The point is this: The positioning of the subject within the overall design needs careful thought because it’s not as straight-forwards as we may think. If needed then, work out the position concerns in sketches or mock-ups to make it as effective as possible, it’s that important. Absolutely, the positioning of our central subject alone can make or break the entire piece.
Sets
Like all other kinds of art, relief sculpture can be offered as as set. In fact, relief sculpture is particularly suited for sets which can offer not only a lot of fun possibilities with design, but collectors appreciate the addition of such novelty in their collection. When we design a set, however, we should infuse design elements that marry them so they're cohesive and make sense together. In other words, all the pieces need to look like they really belong together, being of the same "flavor profile."
What's more, we can offer sets as an ongoing series (discussed below). So there's literally no limit to how you can stretch this way of offering our work. It'll provide a lot of exciting options for us and tons of flair for someone's collection. And it's satisfying and fascinating to design work as variations on the theme rather than forcing ourselves to pick just one interpretation. We have a lot of creative ideas that spring from a single concept, so why not express more of them?
Series
Along those lines, consider this, too — maybe we’d like to explore many variations of a theme rather than committing just to one or two interpretations. We can do this by sculpting what is referred to as a “series,” of a collection of reliefs all based on a similar concept that's a larger exploration than a set. This is actually a wonderful challenge and loads of fun, plus collectors often appreciate this exploratory creative excursion. Because really, sometimes it’s just too hard to stick with just one interpretation when there are so many possibilities — so explore them all in a series!
And a series can literally be focused on anything! For example, perhaps explore a Holiday series by employing joy, peace, love, rejoicing, etc. as motifs? Or maybe “trotting whinnying stallion” or "cantering, full-of-beans mare" or "grazing family group" can be explored any number of different ways. The point is, we have options! If we have a lot of ideas for a theme then, crank ‘em out as a series!
A series can be different sizes, too, from small (three to six pieces), to medium (seven to fifteen pieces), to large (over ten pieces), or even ongoing with no end. And who's to say that we can't also create a series of sets? Just as along as all this is variations on a cohesive theme, sky's the limit!
Collection
Think of a collection as a big set, say more than four or five, but it can get much bigger than that, depending on our vision. For example, many luxury fashion houses offer up to sixty pieces a single season. For the purposes of art though, the typical number offered in a collection is roughly between seven to twenty. Collections are often cohesive to some degree, some very, some more loosely, but they do tend to poke at the edges of possibility a bit more than a series or set. Many collections are organized by the holiday, season, or year, but we can determine it really how ever we wish based on our needs and motivations.
Two-Sided
Maybe we’d like to create a relief that’s two-sided such as a two-sided ornament, earrings, or medallion. They’d certainly make a novel addition to the plethora of relief work out there! In this, however, consider display options as well as casting, prepping, shipping, and handling concerns to avoid breakage, weight, or excess difficulty.
Space
A relief sculpture is, by definition, a finite space. It has boundaries, a bordering outline that mimics that of a painting, drawing, photograph, sketch, and especially a logo. Yet this is exactly what many artists forget and so they miss a more savvy use of that finite, defined space.
Indeed, a common error is to have a relatively small central figure surrounded by all this empty space. Instead, we want the central figure of the equine to be as big as possible with every other aspect of the design furthering it, accentuating it, complementing it, not the other way around. Never forget that the reason why we’re doing all this is to showcase the equine, not the blank space. Every aspect of the relief needs to forward, balance with, and complement the central figure so if we do that, we’ll nail it every time.
This means we should be mindful of how every inch of our relief is used to forward the whole piece and the central figure — it must all work together. In fact, the use of space can spell the difference between a good relief and a great one. In this, play with positive space and negative space exactly how we would with flatwork, photography, or logo design. Positive space is the space used up by our central figure and sculpted elements where as negative space is the empty expanses in between them, including between body parts, even between the mane and tail and the body. In this, not only must the positive space be interesting, but so should the negative space. Like if we were to have a relief sculpture deconstructed down to just its negative space, it should be just as interesting and well-composed. In this, both the positive and negative spaces should also be engineered to be balanced and complementary to lend harmony and complexity to the overall composition. So don’t just focus on the main subject or motifs — learn to play with the spaces shaped around all of that, too.
Because while we may not overtly notice negative space, our brains are registering it all the same and using it to interpret things. Truly, when both positive and negative spaces are designed cleverly, the entire medallion has far more appeal, harmony, flow, and interest, with a lot more punch.
Flow
Along those lines, we should understand flow, or the “traveling eye,” or how the eye travels over the piece as a natural outcome of gazing upon it. While this may seem like an odd thing to consider, it actually has tremendous impact on our relief’s appeal. In other words, how each aspect of our composition “pulls the eye around” or allows the “eye to travel” around our piece creates a far more sophisticated impact.
In this, we want to keep the eye traveling within the confines of the composition, inside the borders of the relief, in our prescribed ways to “keep the eye moving” around our desired points of interest. We do this by manipulating facets of the design to direct the eye to the next part we want it to travel too, from point to point to point to back again. For instance, a tendril of mane, a flick of an ear, the way the neck is held, the use of texture, the layout of negative space, or the swish of the tail can all redirect the eye back to where we want it to go, such as back into the center or back to the head where it can again wander around in an infinite loop of interest. The last thing we want then is for the eye “to shoot out of the composition” or “get stuck in the composition,” or a clumsy element to “stop the motion.” Nope — we want to keep that eye moving around.
Recommended Reading: Go With The Flow: Improving Compositions With The Traveling Eye
Anchors
Consider areas we want to draw the eye to specifically to create “anchor points” around which we can manipulate flow. For example, the subject’s eye or face is a highly effective anchor point since humans, being a visual species, gravitate first to the face. So we should use that to our advantage. However, another anchor point may be a rather flamboyant or intricate tail or wild mane. So think about where the eye will go when considering what to treat as an anchor point and design accordingly.
In this, pop in those anchor point(s) into places that forward the composition in a harmonious way. For example, think about placing it in the center “bubble” — not in the dead center per se but near it. Placing an anchor point in the dead center can be useful at times, but it can also create a lot of empty negative space around our subject or an awkward composition if we don’t engineer things well enough, so take care here. As such, a centered anchor point tends to read more about stability, formality, and order whereas an off-center anchor point, especially one really off-center, can read more exciting and dynamic, even chaotic. That said though, there aren’t hard and fast rules here. For example, a sharply off-set anchor can be a problem if we cannot manipulate the flow to really bounce the eye around the piece, making more of a centered anchor point the better choice, even for a central figuring depicting a lot of motion. So remain sensitive to the needs of the composition when deciding where to place anchor points to make the most of the concept.
Bookending
Another nifty trick to help along the design is to create "bookends," or components that mirror or echo each other on either end of the piece to "contain the eye" within it. If we engineer it well, the eye will just keep bouncing back between them over the piece, activated and interested. Bookends can also amplify the cohesiveness of the piece, a handy way to marry things together if they're especially chaotic or dynamic.
Borders
Sometimes we may want to sculpt in a border, from simple to ornate, while other designs do better without one, all depending on the needs of the concept. But know this: A border doesn’t just have to be a plain component, but can do a lot to forward the narrative if conceived cleverly. Be inventive! Absolutely, a well-designed border can amplify the theme or really facilitate the flow, or solve a lot of composition problems with a clever use of space. Just as much, too, it can be a structural boon by providing loops or hooks to hang the piece from a ribbon, wire, or a nail.
Whatever border we sculpt though, it’s smart to keep six concerns in mind:
- Balance: We don’t want our border stealing attention away from the central figure. This doesn’t mean it cannot be ornate and elaborate, just keep its design, textures, and intricacies in balance with the main subject.
- Forwarding the composition: The border shouldn’t compromise the overall design of the piece. If it does, leave it out.
- Context: Avoid borders that don’t make sense with the theme. For example, don’t put a cowboy lasso border around a Saddlebred central figure, or jockey silks bordering a Percheron design.
- Precision: It should be as precisely sculpted as possible because it’s likely the most architectural aspect of the piece and anything that structural does better with clean work. Indeed, careless work with something meant to be precise can be a real distraction.
- Design: Play around with a novel treatment of the border when possible. For instance, the border doesn’t have to enclose the entirety of the piece but have cut-out areas or overlapping areas to heighten interest.
- Explore: The border doesn’t have to be something like a picture frame. Use that imagination! Like it could be anything from floral designs, ribbons, ropes, carrots and apples, or whatever else such as art nouveau or art deco touches. The point is, play around it it and don’t get mired in obvious choices.
Recommended Reading: Border Wars
Flourishes
Another option is to add flourishes, those extra design touches that increase interest and amplify the complexity of our relief, or add narrative and context. Sometimes a flourish can help solve a design problem, too, so don’t forget about how effective they can be. For example, themed flourishes can be added to a series to marry it all together, or a flourish can be added to the top of an oval relief to hang it from a ribbon, or maybe a themed flourish can affirm the narrative while also better engineering the negative space in an area. Or perhaps a flourish can be a piece of ground or bush to root the visual into a kind of scene, as elaborate or as simple as we need.
Backdrop
The background, backdrop, or "field" surfaces of the relief shouldn’t be treated haphazardly but have intent and purpose. Undeniably, the background is very important by allowing the main figure to pop within the design or by marrying the entire design together harmoniously. It also plays a major role in the composition as negative space. Whatever it is though, it should neither compete with the central figure nor with the overall design so bear that in mind.
Happily in this, we have lots of options! For instance, we can opt for a textured background to harmonize the piece and add interest or we can make more an abstract backdrop to add complexity. We can even create a patterned backdrop to amplify a theme or composition. Or there’s always the flat, plain option that allows painters to play around with painted effects like marbling, or even better, to paint in a cool narrative scene, a super cool, novel touch! What’s more, we can sculpt cut-outs in strategic places to advance the novelty of the design or amplify the central figure. Above all though, don’t be afraid to be innovative. Like all good design in flatwork, relief sculpture is very responsive to clever compositions and inventive use of design elements.
Novelty
There’s a lot of wonderful relief sculpture out there, and ours will have to stand out in the sea of it. Aside from its overt quality, we can help this along by infusing novelty into our composition or concept. Yet this can be the most difficult part of the design process!
Being so, we’ll be asked to think outside the box so don’t allow preconceived notions or safe convention dictate design decisions. For instance, consider unconventional perspectives or some interesting poses other than the typical side view. Borders, flourishes, and backgrounds can lend novelty as can the pose and expression exhibited in the main subject. Remember that creating a relief piece with a unique vision takes thought and planning so give it due consideration. Don’t just do “whatever” — treat the novelty factor with intent.
Just know, however, that novelty doesn’t equate to awesome quality. There’s plenty of relief work out there that’s of awesome quality but which is still rather boring and predictable. Remember, we want to avoid the “seen it already” reaction. We want something fresh and punchy! And what makes our relief fresh then is its unique design interpretation of its novel concept that grabs attention immediately. In the truest sense then, a relief isn’t a test of our realistic sculpting ability per se, but a test of our design skills — so use them!
On that note, consider creating multi-part relief sculpture or standees or large wall-hanging plaques. A relief set that fits together like a jigsaw puzzle is a nifty fresh take and standees are just way too much fun to design and display! And wall plaques allow us to play more with design elements and size, which can be welcome creative excursions from our typical relief work. Mix it up!
Wrap it all up then, and here are some useful questions to ask ourselves when designing a relief sculpture:
- Is my piece unique or have I seen this idea created by lots of other artists before?
- Does my relief have a catchy narrative or point of view in depicting the subject matter?
- Am I breaking new ground with my composition or narrative, or am I falling back into a comfortable formula?
- What can I change to make my design more distinctive or innovative?
- If this is a series, how is the new piece a fresh take on the theme?
The name of the game is novelty and innovation to make the design unique among those already in the market, so light up the imagination and innovation circuits! Distinctiveness is a big incentive to buy a medallion, too, so think beyond the conventional or safe, especially if they’re our own comfort zones.
Layout
A good relief doesn’t depend on the awesomeness of the main subject, but on the sum of its parts. This is because good design relies on the interplay among all the elements to create awesomeness rather than relying on any one aspect, especially the main subject, to carry it.
So be mindful of how it all comes together in terms of composition and quality. Like, let the finished piece sit for a few days and come back to it later to re-evaluate it with a fresh eye. Look at it backwards in a mirror, upside down, or take a photo and see it through the objective lens of the camera. Compare our design to what’s already out there to see if we’ve really pushed our imagination and design skills to create something new. And above all, evaluate every component to determine if the quality of each sculpted part is equitable in precision and realism and “cleanliness.”
For that purpose, it’s a good idea to ponder these questions as we design our layout:
- Does the layout come together into a cohesive, harmonious whole?
- Does each aspect flow into another, to pull the eye around the piece within the border?
- Does the main subject pop within the design or does it get lost?
- Is every inch of the space used, or do some areas appear slapdash, under-utilized, or awkward?
- Does the relief use line, shape, space, and texture in new ways?
- Is the narrative or theme well-forwarded through the design?
- Is the composition well-balanced or does it appear lop-sided, distracting, or heavy-handed in certain areas, especially if they “stop the eye”?
- How “clean” is the sculpting? How precise are the delineations and components?
Cut Outs
Adding cut-out "windows" in our design is a very handy trick for not only lightening the load and reducing the need for casting medium (like expensive resin), but is a nifty design trick to add clever areas of interest and even effective negative space to our layout, bumping up its appeal and complexity. We can add these cut outs just about anywhere from in the mane and tail where they would naturally occur to the background or border, even flourishes. Really, just about anywhere we deem they'd be a benefit.
Just be mindful of three caveats though. First, cut outs can be tricky to cast, regardless of the media. So keep them as shallow as possible and not deeply recessed otherwise we'll have prohibitory complications with casting "through a narrow tube." Second, always consider sturdiness when designing cut outs. We don't want parts to be too fragile during de-molding, shipping, or handling. And third, the cut outs should always forward the design and not distract from it; it should always strengthen the composition. So think in terms of asymmetries and off-center placement whenever possible as that tends to create a more interesting result.
Precision
Consider what will happen with our relief when in the hands of other artists or technicians — will it be cold-painted, faux finished, or will it be cast in glazed ceramic, parian ceramic, bronze, or glass? It’s incredibly important to consider the design of our relief in relation to the intended media.
For instance, glazers and cold-painters appreciate a high degree of precision and “clean” sculpting. Precision is simply easier to paint or glaze and is far less troublesome because no one has to guess, especially when it comes to anatomy, borders, textures, or flourishes. Clean lines also tend to catch art glazes better than ambiguous ones by creating defining pools of intensified color. Sharp, clean edges and contours also catch other kinds of glaze well, something super appreciated by decorators whether underglaze or overglaze.
Similarly, when it comes to glazes, we can play around with how it can pool when fired, allowing us to accentuate our design. For example, outlining our main subject can create a deeper tone in the glaze to really make it pop from the background. We can create deeper trenches in strategic areas of the main subject to heighten the idea of depth and mass, too, or do the same with the design embellishments of the background or border to lend interest. Make the pooling glaze work for us!
Similarly, if we intend our medallion to be cast in bronze, cold-cast metals, glass, or other such media, precision helps the technicians know our intentions. Like clean lines are very clear in their intention and obvious mane tendrils make it clear they aren’t sprues or flashing during the chasing process. Indeed, never put the technician in a position where they’re forced to guess what our creative intentions are!
Also be mindful of pilling, tearing, or inconsistent, rough areas on all of our sculpted areas. Overall, the sculpting should be consistent, smooth and “clean," being devoid of debris, relics, inconsistencies, or confused or overlooked or with under-smoothed portions. It should all marry together as a cohesive and clean whole.
As a general rule then, it’s a good idea to sculpt with clean lines and clear ideas rather than fudging sculpted aspects if we wish to maximize the applications of our medallion, especially when those other than ourselves are involved in the process. The more clear and clean our sculpting, the less fudging and guessing others have to do, and that just means a lot less disappointments or headaches for everyone down the line.
Pathway To The Back
Portions that don't have a pathway or channel to the flat backside of the relief, which are more free-standing or alto-relievo, can present a problem with casting so engineer them carefully. Like they can be difficult, even impossible to cast, but even more, they can break in de-molding, a very real problem. These things don't just pop out of their molds like cupcakes. There's some manhandling involved when it comes to those silicone molds for resin casting so always bear that in mind when designing not only the thicknesses of delicate parts, but those areas that would do better with a pathway to the back to avoid such complications.
Consistency
Every aspect of the relief should be consistent in its sculpted finesse. Like if the central figure is given a lot of attention but the flourishes are sloppily done, that’s a big problem. So absolutely, for a good relief to work, everything should be on the same page.
The topography of the sculpting in the depicted perspective should also make sense, more or less. Like portions that are "closest to us" shouldn't be heavily recessed back whereas portions that are "further away" shouldn't be so far projected forwards. Then there's everything in the middle having to make graded sense, too, relative to these two extremes. Absolutely, the logic of the sculpted topography plays a huge part in how well a relief reads to our eye, so work carefully to ensure that it makes logical sense.
Standees
Upright, self-standing medallions are a relatively new innovation in our art form, a welcome one! What’s particularly cool about them is that it gets a medallion upright and seen, making it a fantastic element of home decor that’s easily displayed, increasing the usability and versatility of relief sculpture.
Just be sure their attachment to the base is sturdy and at a perfect 90˚ angle so they won’t tip over or lean at a strange angle. On that note, make sure the base is big enough to hold it upright without being tippy. A standee should be absolutely stable doing its job.
Wall Plaques or Wall Charms
Particularly large reliefs can be hung on the wall like a framed picture (or we can frame any size medallion and hang it, too.) Multi-panel plaques are particularly clever as wall-hangings, too, creating a kind of in-home art installation that can really accent a room. Just be sure that the hanging situation is sturdy, such as wire housing or deep dents to grab onto nailheads, as that plaque will have some serious weight to it.
Smaller reliefs that have been festooned with fun stuff can be turned into attractive wall charms to accent a room, and are particularly popular as collectibles.
Jewelry
Pendants, earrings, pins, barretts, hair combs, beads, even belt buckles and ear plugs can all feature relief sculptures so don’t overlook those either. Just keep weight in mind when designing them as anything too heavy is often undesirable.
Switchplates
Light switchplates are a great way to make relief sculpture fully functional, given we keep standard sizes and screw configurations in mind. Also remember how people flip on lights — often quickly and clumsily. So make that relief sculpting as shallow as possible to avoid any bits that’ll be broken off or cause injury.
Other Applications
Small medallions or reliefs can be added to ceramic pottery quite easily. In fact, that’s how Wedgewood pieces are made! This opens up mugs, bowls, vases, jewelry boxes, casserole dishes, teapots and tea cups, and all the rest as possibilities. Relief work is also ideal for making Christmas ornaments, even votive accents or home shrine accoutrements, and a ton of awards are possible, too!
The Flattening and The Deepening
Whether we’re sculpting a medallion, plaque, ornament, jewelry, a standee, or a switchplate, always keep the relief sculpting paradigm in mind, the flattened aspect that can be so tricky to engineer effectively. That’s to say try not to sculpt the main subject in a way that looks like we simply took one of our full body sculptures, cut the head off and cut it down the median then simply slapped it onto a flat backing. Instead, we need to employ The Flattening to “flatten” it, to squish it more flat within the relief paradigm. Now yes, sculpting a relief more “in the round” is totally doable and a lot of fun, and often a terrific touch of novelty, but for casting, painting, shipping, or functional concerns, it can present some problematic, if not prohibitive constraints.
Generally speaking then, the more flattened our relief, the easier and cheaper it is to cast, and the easier it is to paint and ship and the less prone it is to breakage. Plus, when it comes to ceramics, we have to sculpt without undercuts or overhangs or other aspects that would catch a rigid plaster mold, so sculpting in a flatter paradigm is simply necessary. What’s more, the more functional the item, the more of The Flattening applies. For example, earrings or a switchplate should be as flat as possible to avoid problems like weight imbalances or breakage.
Also know that within the relief paradigm, anything given the most 3D treatment will attract the eye first and act as a focal anchor because it pops out more, catching more highlights. So plan our most 3D areas as part of the composition rather than sculpting them haphazardly. Because honestly, if we don’t plan them, we can confuse the eye, a bit of a boo-boo.
Now as for The Deepening, those are areas that are more recessed, that catch shadow more, and so appear further away. Learn to use this aspect well then, and we can not only punch up the 3D impression of our relief sculpting, but use it to manipulate the eye around, accentuating the piece nicely. For instance, the leg that is furtherest away from the "front" should be Deepened more, or put "more to the back" as opposed to a foreleg that may be "closer" to us. Do you see how that works? Things "further away" should be the Deepest aspects, the more sticky-iny parts, while those "closest to us" should be the more sticky-out parts.
Being relief sculpture, we also have to think in terms of “extra stuff” when composing them. When we sculpt full-body horses, fully “in the round,” all we have to think about is just that — the body as it is — and we don’t have to consider extraneous stuff beyond that (unless we’re sculpting tack, riders, etc.). With relief work, however, all that extra stuff often present is really important in our design priorities. So if we have a vision in our head that we’d like to translate into a relief sculpture, convert it into a well-composed drawing first before we start sculpting, and work out problems in the drawing. This is a handy trick to create a really effective relief sculpture with the least amount of headaches later.
As for The Flattening and The Deepening themselves, consider five simple rules:
- Whatever is closest to us at that depicted perspective is what will tend to stick out the most. Then things will stick out in a gradually ascending order based on "how close" it would be to us if this was all real.
- Treat sticky-iny portions, The Deepening, with the same hierarchy as in whatever sticks in the most is furthest away from us, in descending order.
- Treat the ears, eyes, and nostrils with about the same degree of sticky-outyness, give or take, depending on the needs of the structures, perspective, and composition.
- Recess strategic areas to add 3D pop rather than adding more of a sticky-outy component, or employ more of The Deepening. This tactic tends to draw the eye in more and add more perspective while also mediating casting issues or parts that might break off or chip, something particularly important with ceramics.
- “Sculpt with light," as in how directional light plays on the surfaces of the clay can inform our sculpting decisions, more or less. For this, squint our eyes to blur our vision then study the in-progress piece under a directional light, from the top or the 1pm position, to better gauge the 3D aspects. In this, shadows tend to look farther away while highlights tend to look closer, and we can manipulate that to forward our design.
So follow those five guidelines for The Flattening and The Deepening, and the relief will literally make itself! And learn to adopt these guidelines as second nature, and there’ll be no perspective, narrative, or composition we can’t tackle!
Distortion
Sculpting full-body "in the round" work is essentially literal — we just sculpt what's there in life. What you see is what you get. However, sculpting relief work is the opposite, it's interpretive, entailing judgment calls that further the illusion of depth, perspective, and factuality. What you get is what you see. Said another way, relief sculpture is sculpting a series of compressed distortions that add up into an illusion of 3D — and a lot of artists find this incredibly difficult. But with a little paradigm shift, we can learn how to sculpt in this funky way, too.
For starters, we should fully understand The Flattening and The Deepening and how they work. For The Deepening, find the portion in the design that would be furthest away in life and then for the Flattening, find the part that would be the closest in life, at that depicted perspective. Now think in terms of layers, like Photoshop layers, with the furthest away on the bottom and the closest on the top. Each "slice" of the composition then relates to each other slice in ascending or descending order between those two reference points. Indeed, once we establish all this, everything literally falls into place as sequential layers in the composition. The game then becomes which parts should ascend or descend between those two reference points and by how much. Keep this in mind and we won't get so confused in the sculpting of it all.
Even so, none of this is gospel, only guidelines to organize our relief layers. Rules are meant to be broken to serve the overall effect, making relief sculpture more by "feel" more than draconian tenets. Absolutely, the 3D illusion is the prime directive so bend or break any rules to serve that first. Aside from serving our illusion better, this also serves logistics better. That's to say following the layers rule too religiously can create foreground layers that stick out too much for practicality or safety while the lowest points can become too thin for durability. We always need to be thinking of our design in the flattened paradigm, like squishing our compositions like a collapsible cup, to serve our overall goal. So we may have to fudge things to make sure the piece is cast-able, ship-able, paint-able, and handled safely. So don't sculpt anything too thin or too skinny. Make sure there's some beefiness to it all for those hallowed practicalities, and we may have to break some rules to do that. On the other hand, don't make things too thick, or sticky-outy either to avoid pieces that are needlessly heavy or use up too much resin for little reason (driving up costs for casting and shipping). Instead, relegate the most sticky-outy portions as pop to serve as focal anchor points designed to move the eye around rather than just doing it haphazardly.
In all this, the use of distortion is a powerful tool for creating a stronger sense of depth, which progressively comes into play the sharper the depicted perspective. That's to say sometimes things have to be more or less "on the same or very similar layer" due to logistics which is where the use of distortion will create our necessary sense of perspective rather than sticky-outy or sticky-iny parts. Yet this is the primary reason why sharp perspectives can be such a challenge to sculpt as relief — there's no WYSIWYG sculpting as with "in the round" sculpting, like, not at all! It's all a series of careful judgment calls. Ack! But it's not as tricky as it would first seem. If we can trust the process implicitly and sculpt those distortions faithfully, we'll find that they trick the brain just as effectively as anything else. The use of distortion actually opens up the possibilities even more, and when we combine it with the layers approach, we have ourselves quite the powerhouse pairing for depth and convincing perspective. To tell the truth, if ever there was an artform that asked us to trust the process most, it would be relief sculpture! So really lean into both the layers approach and the use of distortion to drive home the illusion best.
The Golden Rules of Relief Design
A good relief isn’t designed as a sculpture, it’s designed as flatwork or even more, as a logo, exploiting all those tenets about line, shape, positive or negative space, narrative, novelty, and cleverness. Indeed, they can make or break a relief piece. Because no amount of anatomical finesse, popularity of subject matter, or novelty of an idea can make up for compositional errors, just like with flatwork. In short, relief sculpture isn't about the subject, it's about the design.
When it comes to designing a good composition then, there are twelve specific Golden Rules to consider. A bit more like strong guidelines rather than rules really, we can really lean into them to improve the design of our relief automatically. In fact, adopt them and our relief piece will be ahead of the game right out of the gate! These Twelve Golden Rules are, as follows:
- No kissing: The edge, the components, the main subject, the border, and the flourishes shouldn’t “kiss,” as in abut each other on their leading edges. This is a common error in relief sculpture and it’s easily avoided by doing sketches or mock-ups prior to sculpting to adjust things. This brings us to…
- Overlap whenever possible: To avoid kissing, overlap components whenever we can or keep them a fair distance from each other so it looks intentional. Overlapping elements though makes the overall design pop a lot more by improving a sense of perspective and depth. It’s a nifty trick!
- Sculpt “outside the lines” whenever feasible: Likewise, place components outside of the edge when we can. Now sometimes we can’t, like we need a perfectly circular ornament with no sticky-outy parts, but whenever we can, have parts stick out. And try to do it in odd numbers when we can, too, of one part, three parts, or five parts. Symmetrical even numbers tend to be a weaker design whereas asymmetrical odd numbers tend to be more interesting.
- “Sculpt with light”: If the relief looks odd in directional light, if the highlights and shadows don’t make proper sense, that indicates an issue with The Flattening or The Deepening that needs tweaking.
- No unnecessary empty space: Every inch of the relief should serve the composition and narrative. That's to say, excessive empty space can be necessary to serve the concept, but just use it with intent and good design rather than as an afterthought.
- Consider cast-ability: If our relief cannot be cast in our intended medium — if casting is what we wanted to do — then we’ve just wasted a whole lot of our time and effort, didn’t we? Always keep how cast-able things are in mind as we design and sculpt! Now that said, our casters are adept at making miracles happen, but even so, we really shouldn’t push our luck too much.
- The relief only has to make sense, only has to look good from its intended viewing angle, which is typically from the front. So if we try to make it make sense from more than that one angle, we're going to run into trouble fast because relief sculpture just doesn't work that way. Being so, our relief is going to look really weird and wonky outside of its intended angle, and that's perfectly normal. Don't sweat it.
- Never forget that relief sculpture is interpretive rather than literal like "in the round" sculpture. So learning to do what we have to do to serve the illusion rather than sticking with strict logic will serve us well. In this way, relief sculpture is more instinctive rather than logical, it's more of a magic trick that does better going by "feel" rather than by applying hard and fast rules. So don't be afraid of the fudge things when needed.
- Balance and harmony is the name of the game with relief sculpture. Moving that eye around in a balanced, active way is one of the big goals that will make or break our relief piece.
- Seek novelty; push the design of our relief as far as it can go within the concept. Don't settle for the obvious but really make the most out of every inch and feature. This will make each piece a feast for the eyes that can elevate our portfolio to new heights.
- When the viewer looks at a relief sculpture, it's a more immediate experience, it's more of a "first impressions" response because there's nothing to "look around to." Like with "in the round" sculpture, the view can walk around the piece for new views. Not so with relief work, for the most part. So this means we only get one shot at a first impression, but it also means we can pack one heckuva whollop into the first impression. Make that viewer's first take really count!
- The brain will do a lot of "filling in" for us automatically so lean into that phenomenon. As such, it's going to make assumptions about perspective and depth to do a lot of the work for us, and in this, the use of distortion tends to have a more powerful effect than the use of layers. Exploit that effect!
Tips
There’s more to consider when designing a relief piece from a practical point of view so let’s discuss some extra things to know:
- Consider our target market when designing a relief — what’s already out there that has been done before? Then try to offer something new and innovative. Don’t settle for formula or comfort zones. The “same ol’, same ol’” is just that — same and old.
- Remember that the design of a good relief sculpture has a purpose — it’s based on a visual language that creates a communication with the viewer. This approach infuses emotional impact into our piece rather than being just another horse head on a background.
- Consider offering a variety of textures on the backdrop or field of our relief. If everything is smooth, that can limit how light plays off our relief. This is a big concern for certain media such as bronze or glass where textural differences can manipulate how light reflects off the surface.
- Don’t depend on pigment or patina to do the work for us! Our relief sculpture should stand alone, holding its own in the light. Indeed, if it’s boring blank it’ll still be boring when colored. No amount of expert finishwork will save a boring relief so design a relief that can stand on its own without any pigment.
- Think about how painters, glazers, or patina technicians will handle the background, textures, flourishes, or border. It’s a good idea then to consider our relief to from the finisher’s perspective and motivations and give them something fun to play with whether it’s a pattern, texture, or sculptural elements. And while we can provide them with a flat, blank background, remember that most finishers will simply paint that a flat color so be sure that kind of treatment plays well with our overall composition. For example, having big swaths of flat unused space could translate into a very distracting element when painted, especially if done so with a bright color (and this is yet another reason why well-designed negative space is so important). In short, try to imagine our relief piece colored up to help make sounder preemptive design decisions.
- Work out the design and layout by doing some preliminary sketches or mock-ups. Sketching our idea first can help solve problems quickly, or come up with new and better interpretations much easier than fighting such things in clay.
- If we design our relief on a geometric shape such as a circle, rectangle, square, or triangle, try to find that shape already made to sculpt on. This will result in a more uniform result and be easier to keep our layout from skewing away from the necessary precision and accuracy. For instance, we can have acrylic sheets pre-cut to our specifications for just about any shape we want at TAP Plastics or Etsy. Then simply just sculpt in clay on top of that, and we have a nice precise shape. Another handy trick is to make our own pre-made shapes then cast them in resin in bulk to use as blanks for future relief work.
- It’s often useful to reference clip-art resources for borders or flourishes. Like don’t copy them outright, but be inspired by them for ideas. For example, art nouveau, art deco, arts and crafts, Egyptian, Regency, Victorian, African, Asian, or other such motifs for border ideas can be found online or in clip art books (like Dover) to help guide our own designs.
- Think about the thickness of our relief sculpture. It shouldn’t be so thin as to warp or break, but not so thick as to needlessly add weight and cost. In this, optimum thickness can be dependent on the intended media. For example, metals, cold-cast resin, and other heavy materials do better on the thinner side while white resin, some ceramics, and glass do better on the thicker size. Generally speaking then, a resin or ceramic relief does best about 1/4 inches thick.
- Consider the edges of our relief — will they be rounded, squared, textured, or come to a sharp edge? Our edges should be consistent with our overall design, but also be sturdy enough to withstand casting, cleaning, shipping, and handling without chipping or breaking.
- Think about the back of our relief and even how people will display it. If it’s a tile-pressed ceramic piece, we can create a notch at the top before we remove it from the mold so it can hang from a nail. If slip-cast earthenware, bronze, or glass, we can cast a notch into the piece. We can do the same with resin, but most resin medallions are cast in an open-face, one-piece mold, leaving the back a solid blank. For these pieces then, we can use a moto-tool to carve in a notch, or we can glue mounting parts onto the back, or even push in a hanging wire or sawtooth mount while molding. Or we can simply leave them blank and allow buyers to display them in their own way, often with specialty tabletop plate holders or easels. Some collectors even frame them to hang on their wall. Even so, many painters nowadays paint up the back with scenes, flourishes, or effects to add value and interest, or they may simply cover the back with velvet, cork, or fabric. Which brings us to...
- Remember to sign our relief! Signatures should be applied to the side or front of the relief and not the back, so it’s protected during the casting or painting process. It’s a good idea to indicate year in which we completed the relief with our signature, too.
- Naming our relief edition is a good idea. The name can relate to the narrative of the piece, a pun, or simply any identifying title that trips our trigger. If we do name our edition though, inscribe that title alongside our signature and date for posterity.
- As for sculpting media, most relief work is sculpted in a non-hardening clay such as oil clay, ceramic clay, or Sculpey or FIMO. If using oil clay, however, be sure to use a non-sulphur clay because clay that has sulphur in it will prevent a silicone mold from curing — and that’s a disaster. (For example, I use NSP Chavant in Hard in the green color to sculpt all my reliefs.) (What usually happens for resin casting is that a silicone waste mold is made around this non-hardening clay sculpture from which a resin waste casting is produced. Then we clean up, detail, and refine that resin waste casting for production. Just keep in mind that other media require different materials for the production master such as archival rubber for slipcast mold-making and wax for bronze casting, for example.) However, it’s also conceivable to sculpt in a curing clay such as Magic Sculpt (best) or Apoxie Sculpt (okay), particularly if doing a two-sided medallion or ornament. This gives us an automatic hard copy so we don’t need to make a waste mold and casting from this as it can to straight into production. Suffice to say, the clay original is just the beginning!
- Trust the process! Things will look really weird in process before they start to make sense — that's normal. Just keep going! It'll all make sense in the end.
Recommended Reading: Flat Out Fun: Sculpting In Relief Part I to Part IX (keep clicking "newer post" to move through the Parts)
Conclusion
Relief work offers diversity in our portfolio, which is beneficial for many important reasons. For one, it offers options for our collectors at a friendlier pricepoint, especially for our new collectors. Indeed, relief pieces can serve as great introductory work for those new to collecting our art. Second, sculpting relief work is a great artistic exercise. For instance, it asks us to consider design elements and sculptural approaches that refresh our other work and help to refine our own visual language and strength of narrative. Third, sculpting relief pieces is relatively quick work in comparison to full-body pieces. This means we get lots of practice with sculpting, which can accelerate our learning curve exponentially. It also means we can offer more kinds of relief sculptures for sale, helping to diversify our sales offerings any given year. Fourth, relief pieces make ideal fodder for donations since they’re usually less costly to produce, which can be important if we tend to be an active donor. On the other hand, relief pieces also make wonderful awards, whether we sell them for such a purpose, donate them, or even use them as the incentivizing carrot for specialty classes we wish to see proliferate.
Clearly though, relief sculpture entails far more than simply sculpting a realistic equine "on the half-shell." Putting more thought into the design from a compositional perspective not only creates a stronger relief sculpture, but a far more compelling portfolio. It also pushes us to innovate and think outside of the box, especially our own, as we seek to test the boundaries of the art form, often rethinking our own conventions and sensibilities along the way, too.
Sculpting relief sculpture is, above all, an hugely enriching creative experience. It’s fun to sculpt the equine in fresh new ways and perspectives as well as elements other than horses. Plus, we’re free to sculpt in ways that ornately narrate a story or theme, and the options are so open, we’re limited only by our own imagination and ability to innovate! In this way, medallion work isn’t only a full expression of what it means to be a sculptor, but also a full expression of a sculptor’s Voice. Indeed, we can determine a lot about a sculptor’s Voice simply by studying their relief work alone, it’s that potent! So don’t miss out on the flat out fun! Have an exciting time exploring the literal highs and lows of relief sculpture full of endless creative joy and intoxicating fascinations!
