ritplatta

Ritplatta is a drawing plate used as a sketching aid in art education and professional drawing. The term derives from Swedish rit, meaning "to draw," and platta, "plate." A ritplatta is a flat, rigid surface that supports drawing paper during practice or demonstration. It is commonly made from glass, acrylic, wood, ceramic, or composite materials and comes in sizes ranging from small practice boards to larger easel-mounted panels. Some versions include a grid or ruled lines to help with proportion and alignment, while others are plain for freehand work. In instructional settings, students place paper on the plate and use tracing, gesture, or perspective exercises, often with a reference image positioned nearby.

Ritplattor can also refer to light-assisted versions, where light from beneath the plate helps illuminate a reference image for tracing or underdrawing. This variant functions similarly to a lightbox but is typically simpler and less expensive. The tool is most common in Swedish-speaking contexts and in Nordic art education, though similar drafting aids exist worldwide under various names such as drafting boards or lightboxes.

Historically, drawing plates and their variants have served as inexpensive, portable aids before the widespread use of digital tablets. Today, the ritplatta is valued for its simplicity, tactile feedback, and reliability in teaching basic line work and composition.

See also: drafting table, lightbox, tracing paper, drawing board.