Painting and the Related Arts
Painting is the process of applying pigments on a smooth surface – paper,
cloth, canvas, wood or plaster – to secure an interesting arrangement of forms,
lines and colors.
Further explanation:
Painting is one of the most common classification of art among the
others. The term “painting” can be both used as a noun or a verb. In other
words, it can be the act as well as the result. Additionally, it is the expression
of ideas and emotions that produces certain aesthetic qualities in a two-
dimensional language. This language includes these specific elements of art;
the shapes, lines, colors, tones, and textures.
The following are the mediums in painting:
a. Encaustic – one of the earliest mediums is the application of a mixture of
hot beeswax resin and ground pigment to any porous surface, followed
by application of heat to set the colors and bind them to the ground.
Further explanation:
Encaustic painting was invented by the ancient Greeks and was brought to
b. the peak of its technical perfection by the genre painter Pausias in the 4th century
bce. This is the kind of medium that has no tentative usage of tools. In other
words, an artist can freely construct the design he/she desires.
In the process of using this medium, an artist melts bees wax and tree
resin in a pan. Then he/she prepares a canvas or any porous surface used for the
artwork. The melted mixture can now be poured repeatedly onto the surface with
his/her desired ground pigments. To create a scattered abstract pattern, the wax
can then be heated using a torch or a heat blower.
Tempera – paints that are made of earth or material pigments mixed with
Further explanation:
Tempera painting can be dated back in the ancient Egypt and it was the
primary medium used by painters until the production of oil paints in the 1400s.
Generally, this medium uses only natural materials.
In the process of using this medium, an artist prepares a separated egg
yolk and egg white. The yolk will then be mixed with equal parts of water. After
that, ground pigments desired by the artist will be mixed. This medium behaves
like a watercolor paint which is another medium of art since its consistency is also
watery and is using a layering method to achieve a silky and smooth transition of
colors.
egg yolk and egg white.
c. Fresco – the application of earth pigments mixed water on plaster wall
while the plaster is still damp so the color sinks into the surface and
becomes an integral part of the wall.
Further explanation:
This medium was popularly used during the renaissance period, particularly
the Giatto period. This medium is somehow similar to tempera since it also uses
earth pigments.
The process of using this medium in a painting starts by applying a rough
mixture of plaster which is one part lime and three parts of rough sand in a wall.
When dried, an artist places another layer of plaster, but this time, it is already a
fine mixture composed of a fine sand and lime. while it is still wet, the artist poke
holes into it using a tracing paper duplicating the pattern of the refence. These
holes will allow the ground pigment to pass through the tracing paper. After that,
the artist paints the still-wet plaster using ground pigments starting with a
technique called verdiaccio where black, white and yellow are mixed to create the
basic monochrome tonality. Once dried, the artist can now paint it white for
highlights and other colors.
d. Watercolor – tempered paint made of pure ground pigment bound with
gum. Arabic Painters apply damp so that the color in thin, almost
transparent films.
Further explanation:
The use of watercolor can be dated back thousands of years ago. In
traditional Chinese art, watercolors were developed around 4,000 BCE, primarily as
a medium of decorative art.
Watercolor when applied is similar to tempera in terms of paint consistency
and drying duration. From the name itself “watercolor”, the consistency of the paint
is very watery and translucent. This medium also uses layering technique wherein
several colors are applied over another once the previous layer of color has dried.
Most watercolor brands have their watercolor products as cubes, but some comes in
tubes where pigments are already mixed with water.
e. Oil – pigments ground on linseed oil is applied primed canvas.
Further explanation:
The origins of oil painting, as was discovered in 2008, date to at least the
7th century CE, when anonymous artists used oil that may have been extracted
from walnuts or poppies to decorate the ancient cave complex in Bamiyan,
Afghanistan.
Oil paint is the perfect medium for hyper-realistic arts in traditional painting.
Aside from its vibrant pigment, oil paint is also ideal for painting that uses a lot of
transition colors since the drying duration is suspended by the linseed oil it contains.
Unlike the previous mediums mentioned, oil paints are opaque and has a rich muddy
consistency that is ideal for large-coverage painting. This medium is used a lot
during the late renaissance period as hand painted portraits are popular at the time.
f. Acrylic – synthetic paints using acrylic polymer emulsions as binder are
the newest mediums and the ones that are widely used by the painter
today. It is a combination of transparency and quick- drying
characteristics of watercolor and the flexibility of oil.
Further explanation:
Acrylic paints were first developed in 1934, later used in the 1940s and is
widely used by artists since the 1960s.
This medium is also opaque which is similar to oil paint. Most artists today
prefer to use acrylic paints since this is much cheaper than oil or watercolor paint.
Acrylic paints are also ideal mediums for aspiring artists who wants to start learning
how to paint because of its availability anywhere. It can be found in any bookstores
because of its increasing demand in the market.
