Painting Terms and Techniques

A thinned paint made from a solvent or water.

Trick of the Eye illusionary painting techniques

Is the process of layering thin transparencies of paint to create luminous effects

Creating the illusion of depth of space by fading colors and objects that are further away.

the part of the image somewhere between the foreground and background.

dramatic use of intense darkness and light to heighten the impact of a painting

a shading technique used to create a range of value in printmaking

Italian, "drawing" and "design." in Renaissance

a style of painting done in one session while the paint is still wet

a painting style having to do with a line as the method of expressing imagery

a full-size preliminary drawing from which a painting is made.

technique of inlaiding mother of pearl over the surface of a painting

a large painting applied directly to a wall or ceiling surface (wet or dry)

having only one color or shades of one color

An opaque, water-soluble paint. Watercolor to which opaque white has been added.

sticks of powdered pigment held together with a gum binding agent

In two and three-dimensional art, the space between and around shapes and forms

An ingredient in paint that allows it to bind to a surface.

painted architecture that appears to extend real architecture into an imaginary space

(adj.) a range of colors or qualities in an artwork

the technique of shading tones and colors gradually producing softened outlines or hazy forms.

The part of a picture closest to the front of the picture plane and the viewer

an image that has natural scenery as its primary focus.

A visual work in which characters, objects, or actions represent abstractions or symbols

a scene of inanimate objects, such as fruits, flowers, or motionless animals

the material used to create pigment

A type of line which shows the important interior ridges and edges of an object.

The importance of certain design elements over others

The area of an artwork that appears farthest away from the viewer

A technique of painting using pigment mixed with egg yolk

16th-century Venetian painting in which color is employed as an important compositional element

The surface of a painting or drawing itself.

A type of mural painting done on fresh lime plaster.

Painting characterized by loose brushwork in light and dark color areas rather than by outline

any work which cannot be separated or exhibited apart from its intended environment

A three-paneled painting or altarpiece.

scenes of everyday life

The "actual" naturalistic color of an object

the accurate depiction of detail as it is observed by the artist

Substantial changes of light in a painting that contribute to creating dramatic mood in a work. READ CAREFULLY

Highly intense, emotional use of colour which may have nothing to do with the natural colour

A technique of representing perspective in ceiling paintings.

a painting done in neutral shades of gray to simulate the look of sculpture

a darkened box with a convex lens for projecting the image of an external object onto a screen

The more parallel lines converge, the greater their perceived distance.

A dull surface as opposed to a shiny surface

A thick application of paint which added both spatial, textural and expressive qualities

Paintings based on mythological, historical or biblical narratives.

a drawing, painting, or photograph of a person, especially the face

method of rendering a specific figure in a picture in depth through elongation or truncation