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Texture
Texture refers to the surface quality in a work of art. We associate textures with the way that things
look or feel. Everything has some type of texture. We describe things as being rough, smooth,
silky, shiny, fuzzy and so on. Some things feel just as they appear; this is called real or actual
texture. Some things look like they are rough but are actually smooth. Texture that is created to
look like something it is not, is called visual or implied texture.

The Visual Element of Texture defines the surface quality of an artwork - the roughness or
smoothness of the material from which it is made.
Texture simply means how something feels when it is touched. If you touched a piece of marble, it
might feel smooth and cold. A piece of wood would feel rough. A piece of cloth or a tapestry might
feel rough or smooth.
Stitches in a tapestry give it texture.
3D texture refers to the way an object feels to the touch 2-D Texture- refers to the way an object
looks as it may feel 2-D patterns created by the repetition of lines of shapes

Artists use texture in their art to help tell a story and to add dimension to a piece. When you see a
piece of art, the texture can add to your enjoyment of the piece if you are able to touch it. Texture
can make a work of art more interesting.

Different Types Of Texture In Art

Optical Texture:

We experience texture in two ways: optically (through sight) and physically (through touch).
An artist may use his/her skilful painting technique to create the illusion of texture. For example, in
the detail from a traditional Dutch still life above you can see remarkable verisimilitude (the
appearance of being real) in the painted insects and drops of moisture on the silky surface of the
flower petals.

Physical Texture:

An artist may paint with expressive brushstrokes whose texture conveys the physical and
emotional energy of both the artist and his/her subject. They may also use the natural texture of
their materials to suggest their own unique qualities such as the grain of wood, the grittiness of
sand, the flaking of rust, the coarseness of cloth and the smear of paint.

Ephemeral Texture:

This is a third category of textures whose fleeting forms are subject to change like clouds, smoke,
flames, bubbles and liquids.

Texture may be used in a work of art to:

create visual interest or a focal point in a composition
to create contrast within a design composition
to help visually balance a design composition

Real Texture or Actual or Tactile Texture

Some artists use a variety of materials to add a real texture to their artworks. This is often called
tactile texture, or actual texture, because you can really feel the texture when you touch it. For
example, an artist may put pieces of stone into a smooth ceramic vase to make the surface rough
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and bumpy. Heavy layers of paint or sand added to paint can make the surface of a painting feel
rough. A sculpture might use a polished stone finish that feels slippery, smooth and cool.

Collage is one art medium that has tactile texture. Collages are made by gluing pieces of paper,
fabric, and other objects, such as feathers, beads, wood, photographs, yarn, and seeds, to a
background. Because they are made of so many different items, collages are full of tactile texture.

Tapestries, which are pictures made of fabrics and threads, also have a lot of tactile texture.
Sculptures can be made of many materials, but often have a great deal of actual texture.

Picture of pebbles wood, an example of real texture

Physical texture gives an artwork a sense of object-ness. It associates it with the concrete physical
world
Visual texture is the real thing.

Visual or Implied Texture

The illusion of a 3-D surface Simulated- imitate real textures

Sometimes artwork doesn't actually have texture, but artists make it look as if it does. A drawing
may be absolutely flat and smooth to the touch, but can look like it should have a texture to it. This
is called implied texture, or visual texture. Many times implied texture is added to a flat artwork
through the use of lines, angles, and shading.

Visual or implied texture can be simulated or invented. Simulated texture is the type that is created
to look like something it is not. For example, in drawing or painting of a cat where its fur is made to
look like real fur. Invented texture, on the other hand may look rough, smooth or any other feel but
is purely made up by the artist. It does look like "real" texture.

Rough textures -
reflect light unevenly

Smooth textures -
reflect light evenly.Smooth texture can be useful for painting calm, out of focus, dark or distant
areas. In my painting below, observe the smooth texture of the sky, clouds and the distant trees.

Matte -
surface that reflects a soft, dull light. Shiny surfaces are the opposite of matte.

Impasto -
Impasto texture also creates tiny shadows on the canvas depending on the direction of the light.
This can produce some interesting results.
a painting technique in which the paint is built up on the surface to create a texture
Paint which has been applied smoothly across the canvas appears very different to paint which
has been applied in a thick, impasto fashion. A general guideline I find useful is to try and match
the physical texture of my paint to the characteristics of the subject I am painting

Values-(The Illusion Of Texture)

When drawing or painting texture, it is important to pay close attention to the values - they reveal
the illusion of texture.

There is only so much value you can get out of the physical texture of your paints. Usually, you will
need to call on the help of the other visual elements to create the illusion of texture. This involves
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the clever arrangement of colours, contrast, brushwork, shapes and so on to mimic the texture of
the subject you are painting.

For example, if you were painting glassy, calm water, you could use long, consistent strokes of
high-key colours with very little contrast. This is demonstrated in the harmonious painting

to use thick texture for clouds, contrasted against a relatively smooth texture for the general sky.
This creates a nice sense of depth, also use thicker paint for areas which are hit by light and leave
the shaded areas of the clouds a bit thinner.

The Importance of Texture in Abstract Art

Broadly speaking there are two categories of texture in art, just as in life: rough and smooth. Both
can be hard or soft, wet or dry, organic or synthetic, etc. And infinite gradations of roughness and
smoothness are possible. But one key difference separates the function texture performs in life
from the function of texture in art. In life texture can be a matter of survival. Our perception of
whether something is slippery, slimy, scaly or fuzzy could mean the difference between life and
death. Texture in art is less dire. Most artworks are not even meant to be touched. And even when
an artwork can be touched its texture relates more to our aesthetic experience than our continued
existence. Nonetheless texture is an important part of our interaction with art. It is one of the seven
formal artistic elements, along with line, colour, shape, form, value and space. It can affect mood,

Drama and Light

One of the earliest ways abstract painters experimented with texture is through a process called
impasto. When we say a painting is impasto, we mean the painter has applied the paint to the
surface in thick layers. An impasto work is considered painterly, since it gives prominence to the
physical marks made by the painter. Post-Impressionist painters like Van Gogh used impasto to
create drama, and to affect the way light interacted with the surface of their images since impasto
layers create shadows and highlights. Abstract Expressionist painters like Jackson Pollock use
thickly layered paint to bring attention to the act of painting and to reveal the personality and
individual technique of the artist.

Texture in Abstract Sculpture

Abstract artists working in three-dimensional space enjoy additional opportunities to deal with the
element of texture because their work is more often intended to be touched. And artists such as
Henry Moore, who made numerous public, outdoor sculptures, have the chance to demonstrate
how time, human hands, and the elements transform the essential character of an artwork over
time.

Texture is of paramount importance to our understanding of abstract art.

Expected questions

What are the four types of texture

How do artists use texture?

What are examples of texture?

How do you describe texture?

What are the 3 types of texture?

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What are different types of textures?

What are some textures?

What is an example of texture in art?

What are some examples of texture in art?

What is texture in drawing?

How do you describe the texture of wood?

What is the importance of texture?