Like their Egyptian contemporaries living 500 miles southeast of them, the Minoans illustrated figures with legs standing in profile and eyes, in profiled faces, staring at the viewer. So, the Minoans were not entirely revolutionary painters. Minoan artists did, however, figure out how to show torsos in profile. They drew bodies as working wholes, not as figures awkwardly twisted in the middle. More importantly, the outlines of their figures are rounded and lively. By comparison, the figures in Egyptian scenes appear stiff and uncomfortable.

The Minoans executed paintings in a technique called "fresco," which may have contributed to the liveliness of their works. Derived from the Italian word for "fresh," fresco describes paintings made by applying water-based paints to wet plaster. When dry, the plaster bonds with the color, making the painting extremely durable. The colors are vivid: red, blue, yellow, and green, as well as black and white. They are applied without shading, in flat, bright designs that are easily identifiable, even from a distance.

The Minoan octopus vase, known as the Dendra Vase, is a famous example of the naturalistic, fluid, style that characterizes Minoan painting.