When realism became an objective in the ancient Greek art of pottery making, the style was limited. The silhouetted and incised drawings were basically two-dimensional, giving the human form the kind of quality that was present in the sculptures of the same archaic period.
The decoration was first outlined in black, leaving the design in the lighter reddish colour of the undecorated vase. Details were then added with a fine brush applying black or diluted black, which appeared as brown after the refining.
