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Painting Vocabulary

A

Acrylic paint

A fast-drying paint made of pigment suspended in acrylic polymer emulsion. Acrylic paints are water-soluble but become water-resistant when dry.

B

Bristles

Stiff hairs (natural or artificial) on a tool such as a brush or a broom.

D

Double-loaded brush

Two or more colors on a brush to create blended color in one stroke.

F

Ferrule

A usually metal sleeve used especially for joining or binding one part to another (the bristles and handle of a brush). See image

Fluid medium

A substance added to paint for a variety of uses such as extending the volume of thin paint, reducing the viscosity of heavier paints, etc.

G

Gesso

A plaster-like material spread upon a surface to prepare it for painting.

Glaze

Transparent painting over a light under-painting.

Gloss

A shiny surface.

H

Heavy body

Refers to the viscosity or thickness of the paint. Heavy body paints work best for impasto and will hold a brush or knife stroke.

High flow acrylics

Paint with ink-like consistency that lends itself to a wide range of techniques such as staining, calligraphy, and mixed media.

I

Impasto

Thick, opaque paint applied with a brush, knife, or fingers, creating various textural features on the surface of the painting.

M

Matte

A dull surface.

Mixed-media

Refers to an artwork of which more than one medium has been used. For example, a work on canvas that combines paint, ink, and collage
could be called “mixed media”.

P

Painbrush

A paintbrush is a brush used to apply paint or sometimes ink.

Palette knife

A shaped, metal spatula used for painting instead of a brush.

Palette

A rectangular or oval-shaped flat surface used for mixing colors. Also refers to the selection of colors used by an artist.

Pigment

Refers to color or hue.

Prime

To make ready. The preparatory coating.

S

Saturation

The greatest possible intensity of the color.

Scumbling

Dragging paint in a broken manner over a previously painted dry surface.

Sgraffito

Involves scratching through a layer of still-wet paint to reveal what’s underneath.

Soft body

Refers to the viscosity or thickness of the paint. Soft body paints work best for watercolor techniques, or when smooth coverage is desired.

Stretcher

The wooden frame on which canvas or paper is stretched.

Study

A comprehensive drawing or painting. Also refers to a detail that can be incorporated into a finished painting.

T

Tacky

Sticky, partly dried.

Tempera paint

A fast-drying paint consisting of colored pigments mixed with a water-soluble binder.

Transfers (acrylic transfer or gel medium transfer)

A method where a photocopied image is transferred to another surface through the aid of a gel medium.

U

Underpainting

A monochromatic sketch put down on the canvas first, as an infrastructure, which will be completely covered up by the painting.

V

Viscosity

The thickness of a liquid.

W

Wash

The application of color in a thin, fluid manner. Also refers to diluted pigment.

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