rilievo stiacciato

Rilievo stiacciato, or "flattened relief," is a subtle form of low-relief sculpture characterized by extremely shallow carving. This technique, most notably associated with 15th-century Italian Renaissance artists like Donatello and Desiderio da Settignano, relies on finely engraved lines and minimal projection from the surface. The effect of stiacciato is largely dependent on how light interacts with the material, often white marble, to reveal delicate lines and subtle textural variations. This contrasts with high relief, where forms project significantly from the background, and sunken relief, where the carving is incised below the surface level.12