Students draw a Greek-style vase and decorate it with their own patterns inspired by ancient pottery designs.
This project connects to multicultural studies by introducing students to decorative pottery from ancient Greece and can be easily adapted to explore vases from other cultures around the world, such as Chinese porcelain, Native American pottery, or African ceramic vessels. It’s a great way to blend art, history, and cultural appreciation in a hands-on, creative format. The gold wash adds a magical touch that makes each student’s artwork feel like a museum-worthy artifact.
Teaching Tools
Greek Vase Video
Greek Vase Short Video
Google Slides
PDF Tutorial
Art Vids for Kids: Greek Amphora
Step by Step Instructions
Time needed: 1 hour
How to draw and paint a Greek Vase
- Draw the neck of the vase.
- Add the symmetrical shape below.
- Draw matching handles on each side.
- Draw curved horizontal lines and fill with patterns.
- Paint over the patterns with gold watercolor paint. When dry, trace the pencil lines with a black marker.
- Paint the background.
- Another Greek vase option.
- Another pattern to try.
- Paint the vase with gold tempera paint. When dry, trace with black marker. Paint the background with black tempera paint.
Materials for Greek Vase
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Watercolor Paper*
Liquid Watercolors*
Permanent marker
Rounded Paintbrush
Pencil*
