Sculpture Relief at www.japanese-home-gardens.com

sculpture relief, both large and small, may be ii the round, made to stand free and be observe from all sides, or it may be in relief, that ii to say, either attached to a background or madf to be placed against a background. Most sculpture in the round proportionally reproduces the full roundness of the object represented, while sculpture relief in relief may vary from full roundness (high relief, alto rilievo), to a much flattened representation ' (low relief, bas-relief, basso rilievo).

An intermediate degree of flatness is called mezzo relief (or meszo rilievo) ; and an extremely flattened effect is spoken of as rilievo schiacciato (literally: crushed or squashed relief). sculpture relief in relief is made to be seen from a limited angle of vision, while sculpture relief in the round may be designed to be viewed all the way round. To achieve success in sculpture relief in the round, the sculptor strives to produce a form which will have profiles and interrelations of masses that are interesting and effective from all points of view.

The Gothic period of the 13th and 14th centuries witnessed a gradual and partial emancipation of sculpture relief from architecture. Then, as seen on the great cathedrals of Amiens, Reims, and Bourges, sculpture relief in low relief and sculpture relief that was placed high remained, as in the Romanesque period, a part of the architecture giving textural richness and added emphasis to architectural form. But statues in niches or scenes in high relief which were near eye level began to be more independent of their architectural setting, though still heeding its demands.