The  three main styles of vase painting.

The 8th-7th centuries B.C. see the initial flourishing of the Greek city-states, which is attended by the introduction of coinage and an increase in trade, both between the different city-states and abroad. The opportunity for trade led to a thriving pottery market. Although Corinthian pottery dominates this market at first, in the course of the sixth century Attic pottery comes to the fore: after c. 550, relatively little significant Greek pottery is produced outside of Attica.

Black-figure vases have designs in black silhouette incised against the  natural red clay background.

Red-figure vases have the designs and figures left in the natural red color while the background is black. The black color is  achieved through the use of a slip, which is a very fine clay that turns black  when the vase was fired.

White-ground:  early white-ground vases are similar to black-figure in that the figures are also in black silhouette with the details incised. Later they are drawn as in red figure (little colour). However the  background is covered with a white slip rather than left naturally red. On later white ground vases figures and scenes are added in tempera colours that outline the decoration and figures. This paint is applied after firing.