Different Mediums and Techniques for Visual Arts

     We make art, and art makes us. Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color, or
another medium to a solid surface. The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush,
but other implements, such as knives, sponges, and airbrushes, can be used. But remember, the
kind of paintings they had before was different from what we have now.
     Historically, paintings were done with the preparations and combinations of what we call in
the art world as "vehicle," meaning liquid mixed with any earth materials or what they call "earth
pigments," an example of which are powdered or crushed seashells for white, or roasted red soil
from St Catherine in Sienna Italy to produce colored brown pigments or orange depending on the
amount of time spend for roasting the soil. While to produce black for shadows, it needs to burn
twigs from trees. Unlike now, all materials are chemically prepared and produced with
exemptions of some like coffee for coffee art, or even garlic for garlic art or other discoveries of
materials as part of what we call innovative arts and mediums. 
 

Ancient Painting Mediums

During the Romans, Greek, and Egyptian periods three well-known types of painting mediums
were used that applied and maximized the earth pigments. They are:
1. Encaustic is commonly used to paint Egyptian tombs. The medium
uses beeswax (pulutpukyutan) and resin to add colors and make it shiny or glossy. Resin is a
sticky liquid substance that comes from the tree or plants.  

Fireworks by James Ensor

Oil and Encaustic on Canvas
2. Tempera is also made from earth materials composing beeswax, resin with egg yolk to
preserve the work. Tempera is applied to wood panels and dries faster; hence no corrections can
be made. The technique used in the application of tempera in panel painting is mixed. 

Idealized Portrait of a Lady by Sandro Botticelli 

Egg Tempera on a Polar Panel
3. Fresco, in addition to the use of earth minerals as its composition, also used damp plaster on
walls to create the work. Images in fresco become fixed. The Sistine Chapel paintings by
Michelangelo is an example of Fresco. 

The Creation of Adam by Michaelangelo

 From the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican
 

Types of Painting Medium

Young Hare 
Water Color on Canvas by Albrecht Dürer
1. Water Color. It is one of the most commonly used media. However, corrections cannot be
made since it dries fast; hence, careful planning and precision is needed. The only advantage,
though, is that it can be done in one seating.
 The Persistence of Memory
Oil on Canvas by Salvador Dali
2. Oil Painting. It is the most flexible of all the medium since it dries slow, corrections can be
made.

Waterfront
Acrylic on Canvas by Hanna MacNaughtan
3. Acrylic. It is a new medium introduced in painting. It dries fast and can be used on all types of
surfaces.
 Abduction of Persephone by Pluto
Mosaic Art — Author Unknown
4. Mosaic is a form of artwork that may be related to painting. The only difference, though, is
that instead of the usual painting mediums, it uses pieces of glasses or stones called tesserae that
are fitted to form a pattern.

Resurrection Cemetry Mausoleum Stained Glass

Stained Glass by Pickel Studios
5. Stained glass. It is part of the Gothic Cathedral designed to illuminate the place and the
religious purpose, such as providing religious instructions and depicting the saints and their lives.
 The History of Constantine
Tapestry by Peter Paul Rubens and Pietro da Cortona
6. Tapestry. It is a heavy fabric used during ancient times to protect from cold weather and heat.
It is thick, heavy, and long enough to cover the windows. However, at present, the tapestry is
called curtains that are mostly light, colorful with various interesting designs and purposely use
to provide the illusion, space, and privacy. In contrast, thick fabrics are used as carpets and wall
decors. 
 

Painting Techniques
 Super Moon over Sagrada Familia View from Park Guell Barcelona
Impasto Painting by Ana Maria Edulescu
1. Impasto. It is a three–dimensional character added to an oil painting either by dabbing lumps
of thick paint on the canvas with a knife to create the subject. Oil paint and acrylic paints are the
traditional media used for the impasto technique.
 Sketch of Santa Sophia
 Oil on Canvas by John Singer Sargent
2. Alla prima. The technique called alla prima or wet-on-wet requires an artist to assign layers
and layers of colors on top of existing colors. Care is observed as not to mix the first layer with
the new ones, thus projecting an impasto effect on the work.
 Mona Lisa
 Oil on Poplar Panel by Leonardo da Vinci
3. Sfumato. A technique used to create perceptions of depth and form. It means “smokey” and is
derived from the Italian word Fumo meaning smoke. It also refers to the blending of color or
tones.
 Girl with the Pearl Earring
 Oil on Canvas by Johannes Vermeer
4. Chiaroscuro. It is characterized by a great difference between light and dark. It also refers to
the contrast of light to achieve volume modeling three-dimensional objects such as the human
body.
 The Four Philosophers
 Oil on Panel by Peter Paul Rubens
5. Repoussoir. It is a technique by an artist who tries to catch the viewers' attention by allowing
the viewer to focus on one subject despite the presence of other subjects surrounding the main
subject.