Unit 3: The Media of Art Chapter 7: Painting

Painting Drawing with paint

3 Components of Paint Pigment: Provides color Binder: Mixes with pigment to hold pigment particles together and attach particles to the surface Vehicle: Makes pigment liquid, spreads the pigment

Oil paints vs. Tempera Paints Oil Paints: Binder: linseed oil Vehicle: turpentine Tempera Paints: Binder: egg yolk Vehicle: water

Pigments Derived from plants, animals and minerals

Support and ground Support: Flat surface to apply paint Ground: Support of which the surface is prepared for paint

Support is prepared by sizing the canvas (sealing) and then covering it with an opaque primer.

Watercolor Pigments suspended in solution of water and gum arabic Blocks or tubes

Watercolor Staining technique Applied in thin layers called washes White-paper Spontaneous, translucent, (somewhat) permanent

Gouache Opaque watercolor Includes small amounts of chalk powder

Winslow Homer

Fresco Ancient wall painting technique Finely ground pigments in water applied to damp lime plaster Colors reach greatest intensity years after completion 2 square yards takes hours to complete

Sistine Chapel Ceiling

Encaustic Popular in the ancient world but little used today. Pigments dissolved in binder of molten beeswax. No vehicle (wax sufficiently fluid for application.) Resulting colors have deep, resonate glow. Hard to work with, had to be kept hot.

Tempera Paint Perfected during the Middle Ages Binder-egg yolk Luminous, matt finish Applied to a surface covered in Gesso

Negatives? Color changes during drying Dries quickly Not flexible, needs rigid support (usually wood panel)

Niccolo Semiticolo; 1367

Oil Paint Favorite Medium of Western art for 500 years. Originally applied to wood panels smoothed with gesso. Paint from light to dark and opaque to translucent Applied in thin coats called glazes.

Oil Paint Glaze: oil paint thinned with a glazing medium. Allows light to pass through top layers of paint and bounce off lower layers. Why did oil paint replace tempera as medium of choice in the 15 th Century?

Oil Paint Has better opacity when thick, greater transparency when thinned. Slow drying time (first thought of as disadvantage) allowed blending and changes. Does not change colors when dry (although darkens and yellows with time.) Physically flexible; could be painted on canvas. Light, easier to transport.

Mona Lisa; Leonardo da Vinci

Impasto Oil paint applied thick Direct Painting Wet on wet paint applied in one setting

Acrylic Most widely used synthetic painting media Pigments suspended in acrylic polymer medium Fast drying and flexible Water soluble when wet/ water resistant when dry

Acrylic Acrylic medium highly transparent allowing high intensity Rarely darkens or yellows with time Dries quickly allowing faster glazing

Airbrush Small scale paint sprayer capable of projecting a fine, controlled mist of paint.