The Ohrid School represents a distinct Macedonian branch of Byzantine fresco painting, characterized by elongated figures, emotionally charged faces, and agitated drapery folds unlike anything from Constantinople or Ravenna. Flourishing between the 9th and 14th centuries on the shores of Lake Ohrid, master painters like Mihailo Astrapas and Eutychios spread this style across the Balkans.

This design system captures the candlelit narthex atmosphere of St. Sophia Ohrid — smoke-blackened plaster grounds, tarnished gold halos, deep cinnabar reds, and the distinctive ultramarine drawn from the lake-sky horizon.