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How to Make a Greek Statue

Making a Greek-inspired statue is a wonderful activity. It combines history, creativity and a hands-on approach to investigating ancient sculpture, while encouraging us to consider how ancient sculptors represented balance, movement and emotion. I offered this workshop to primary-school children aged about six, but it can easily be adapted for older children by introducing additional levels of complexity.

Ancient Greek sculptors worked in several materials, including marble, bronze and terracotta. They created images of gods, heroes, athletes, rulers and ordinary people. Although many of the statues displayed in museums today have lost limbs, attributes and surface decoration, they can still tell us a great deal about how Greek artists understood the human body and experimented with different ways of representing it.

STEP 1 - Research and get inspired

Before beginning your statue, spend some time exploring ancient Greek sculpture. You can look at books, museum catalogues and online museum collections. Digital repositories such as Sketchfab also contain three-dimensional models of ancient sculptures that can be rotated and examined from different directions. This is particularly helpful because a statue is not a flat image. It was designed to occupy space and may look very different when viewed from the front, side or back.

Look at several statues together and discuss what you notice. How is the figure standing? Where has the sculptor placed its weight? Is the pose symmetrical or uneven? Does the figure appear calm, active or emotional? Does it seem to be looking at the viewer, another figure or something beyond the sculpture?

As you explore, compare statues made during three important periods of ancient Greek art. The categories below are useful, but remember that ancient artists did not all work in exactly the same way. Styles changed gradually, and different artistic approaches existed at the same time.

Archaic Sculpture

The Archaic period lasted approximately from 600 to 480 BCE. Many surviving statues from this period represent standing young men, known as kouroi, or young women, known as korai.

Archaic figures are often:

upright and frontal

carefully balanced and symmetrical

shown with their arms close to their bodies

represented with patterned or stylised hair

given a small expression sometimes called the ‘Archaic smile’

arranged in a relatively fixed pose, often with one foot placed in front of the other

The figure may appear to be walking, but its weight is generally distributed evenly between both legs. Look closely at the body. Does it seem relaxed or tense? Does the statue look as though it could really take a step?

Classical Sculpture

The Classical period lasted approximately from 480 to 323 BCE. Sculptors became increasingly interested in naturalistic anatomy, balanced movement and the way the different parts of the body respond when a person shifts their weight.

Classical figures are often:

more relaxed and naturalistic than Archaic statues

shown with their weight resting mainly on one leg

carefully balanced, even when the body is not symmetrical

represented with idealised bodies and controlled expressions

arranged so that the shoulders, hips and legs respond to one another

A pose in which the figure rests its weight on one leg is often called contrapposto. One side of the body becomes tense while the other relaxes. Try standing in this way yourself. What happens to your hips and shoulders when you move your weight from both feet onto one leg?

Hellenistic Sculpture

The Hellenistic period began after the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BCE and continued until approximately 31 BCE. Hellenistic sculpture developed many earlier Greek traditions but often placed greater emphasis on movement, drama, emotion and the figure’s relationship with the surrounding space.

Hellenistic figures may be:

twisting, turning, bending or reaching

shown during an action rather than standing still

represented with strong expressions or visible emotion

designed to be viewed from several directions

accompanied by deeply folded or windblown clothing

arranged in complex groups with several interacting figures

represented at different ages and with a wider variety of bodies

STEP 2 - Choose your statue

Once you have explored several examples, choose the statue you would like to recreate.

A figure with a clear pose and a strong outline will usually be easier to reproduce than one with many delicate, unsupported limbs. Examine your statue from as many angles as possible. A three-dimensional model is particularly useful because it allows you to investigate how the body turns through space. We have chosen a Hellenistic statue for this activity because we wanted to explore movement.

Before continuing, ask: Which part of the body carries the figure’s weight? Are the shoulders and hips level or tilted? Is the figure leaning forwards, backwards or sideways? Are the arms close to the body or extended? What is the most important line of movement? Which features will be essential for making your model recognisable? All these questions will help

STEP 3 - Set up and collect your materials

Find a table or another clear working surface and protect it with a plastic tablecloth or reusable craft covering. Air-drying clay can leave marks and small pieces may become attached to unprotected surfaces. Talk through the stages of the activity before beginning.

Please note: Wire cutters and sharp tools should be used by an adult or under close adult supervision. Cut wire can have sharp ends, so bend the ends inwards and make sure that they are completely covered by clay.

For making the internal frame

Aluminium craft wire, thick enough to hold shape but thin enough that tiny hands can fold it
Pliers (if the craft wire is too thick)
A wire cutter
Tin foil
A base for your statue (optional)

For modelling the statue

Air-drying clay
A small bowl of water
Simple clay-modelling tools
A damp cloth

For decorating the finished statue

Acrylic paints
Paintbrushes in different sizes
A recycled container for mixing colours
A bowl of clean water for washing the paintbrushes

STEP 4 - Make the frame of your statue

Your statue will need an internal frame, sometimes called an armature. This supports the clay and helps the figure retain its pose. Begin by looking again at your chosen statue. Try to identify its main line of movement. Imagine a line running from the head, through the body and down towards the supporting leg. Is this line straight, curved or diagonal?

If a base is needed, attach the wire securely to your base. Twist and bend the wire to create the legs, torso, arms and neck. A small loop can be used to indicate the position of the head. The frame does not need to reproduce the anatomy precisely. At this stage, it only needs to approximate the figure’s height, proportions and movement. Concentrate on the pose rather than the details.

Check the frame from different directions. Does it lean in the same way as the original statue? Are the shoulders and hips at approximately the correct angles? Are the arms and legs positioned convincingly? It is much easier to adjust the wire now than after it has been covered in clay.

Make sure that the frame is stable before continuing. If the figure falls over or twists away from its base, adjust the supporting leg or strengthen the connection to the base.

Once done, cover your frame with tin foil, to begin developing some of the volumes you will need to cover later with air drying clay.

STEP 5 - Adding the clay

Once you are happy with the frame, begin adding the air-drying clay. Work gradually from the bottom upwards. Start around the feet, ankles and supporting leg, making sure that the lower part of the figure is firmly connected to the base. Then continue towards the hips and torso. Take small pieces of clay and press them around the wire. Make sure that the metal frame is completely covered. Add the clay gradually rather than trying to create the entire body from one large piece.

At first, concentrate on the main volumes: the lower legs and thighs, the hips and pelvis, the chest and abdomen, the shoulders and upper arms and finally the head.

You may find that some parts need more clay while others have become too large. Add, remove and reshape the material until the main proportions feel convincing.

Use your fingers or a simple modelling tool to blend the joins between separate pieces. A very small amount of water can help smooth the surface, but do not soak the clay. Too much water may make it soft and difficult to control.

STEP 6 - Refine the body and add the details

Once the main volumes are in place, begin refining the shape of the body. Look carefully at the relationship between the limbs and torso. Avoid treating every part as a separate tube or block. Notice how the thigh connects to the hip, how the shoulder joins the chest and how the neck supports the head.

If your figure is clothed, identify the difference between the body and the fabric covering it. Clothing does not simply sit on the surface. It hangs from the shoulders and hips, stretches across raised areas and gathers in folds where the body bends. Do not try to reproduce every fold. Select the most important lines and use them to reinforce the pose.

When you are satisfied with the main proportions and volumes, begin working on the smaller details. You might add: the face, nose, mouth and eyes, the ears, the hairstyle, adding individual locks or groups of hair, fingers and toes, jewellery or other attributes and textures on the surface.

STEP 7 - Leave your statue to dry

Once you are happy with your statue, leave it to dry completely. Place it somewhere safe and well ventilated where it will not be moved or knocked over. Drying time will depend on the thickness of the clay and the instructions provided by the manufacturer. Thicker areas will take longer than thin ones. Do not place the statue directly against a radiator or attempt to dry it very quickly, as this may encourage cracking. Follow the instructions on the clay packaging.

STEP 8 - Paint your statue (optional)

Did you know that ancient Greek statues were not simply white?

Many Greek sculptures were originally painted in bright colours. Hair, eyes, lips, clothing, jewellery and other details could be coloured, and some sculptures were also decorated with gilding or additional materials. Much of this surface decoration has faded or disappeared, creating the misleading impression that ancient sculptors intended their marble statues to remain plain white.

Before painting your model, look at examples of reconstructed ancient sculpture. What colours have researchers identified? Where were patterns and details placed? How does colour alter the way you understand the figure?

Make sure that your clay is completely dry before painting it.

You might decide to:

investigate surviving evidence and create a historically inspired colour scheme
use colour only for selected features such as the eyes, hair and clothing
experiment with patterns on garments
create your own imaginative reconstruction
leave one side unpainted so that the difference can be compared

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