Supports
Painting supports are any material onto which paint is applied. Canvas, wood, and paper are common traditional painting supports, but the types of supports used for artwork are very extensive. Modern painting supports can include plastic, metal, and composite materials such as aluminum composite material or ACM.
While we do not know why oil painting on copper enjoyed popularity from the sixteenth to eighteenth centuries, we may be able to provide some reasons based on historical evidence linked to artistic tradition in both the cultural and economic context of the period. This article details the reasons why copper enjoyed brief popularity and may provide the initiative for today’s art renewal and the second renaissance of copper painting...
With the recent surge in popularity of painting on metal, such as aluminum composite material (ACM) and copper, some have questioned its viability regarding the thermal expansion of the metal. When an object is heated or cooled, its length changes by an amount proportional to the original length and the temperature change. This is known as “linear thermal expansion,” or the change in the length of a material...
Support Induced Discoloration (SID) occurs when paint changes color due to pulling up water-soluble substances from the substrate. As the paint dries, these particles remain in the paint, discoloring it. Read how to avoid the discoloration of paint on wood supports...
For over a hundred years, most of the causes of cracking have been explored: humidity and temperature, expansion and contraction, stress, and paint embrittlement. The symptoms were obvious—cracking and paint loss—but the causes were not clearly understood. In 1982, Marion Mecklenburg and other scientists at the Smithsonian Institute reported the first systematic explanation of painting mechanics, especially that of canvas paintings...
Canvas has become the most common support for oil painting, replacing wooden panels. One of the earliest surviving oil paintings on canvas is the French Virgin and Child with Angels from around 1410 in the Gemäldegalerie, Berlin. However, panel painting remained in everyday use until the sixteenth century in Italy and the seventeenth century in Northern Europe. Mantegna and Venetian artists were among those leading the change. Religious differences and guild practice, as well as the availability of supports—good quality wood in Northern Europe and a flourishing flax growing and weaving tradition in Southern Europe—likely influenced the preference and adoption of supports. As materials and paintings were imported and exported and artists traveled to Italy, the influence of Italian techniques filtered north...
The best practice for preparing Dibond (tradename for a brand aluminum composite materials or ACM) for oil painting...
Welcome to Natural Pigments' Glossary of common and not so common Paint and Art Terms. Here we hope to give you a brief definition of various art terms which might be unfamiliar. If you have any questions, comments, or ideas, please contact us...
Unsized paper is called “waterleaf” paper. It is usually composed of hydrophilic cellulose fibers, meaning they ‘love water.’ This is a good quality while the paper is being made, but it can lead to unfortunate consequences once the paper is made. The extreme porosity of an untreated sheet of paper means that printing or drawing inks and water-based paints will soak into the paper spreading quickly and randomly. This is called ‘bleedthrough.’ Sizing retards some of the paper’s absorbency...
Beginning with this installment, this series of articles discusses the technique of making icons in abundant detail, from obtaining the wood for the painting panel to putting on the final picture varnish or olifa of icons. A guide to wood properties and selecting the optimal wood for painting panels. This is the first in a series of articles on painting icons, beginning with selecting the panel, preparing it for painting, and the painting technique. Although this series of articles applies specifically to the preparation and painting of icons, it has a wider application for preparing solid wood panels for painting...
Part one on preparing wood panels for painting with the application of chalk grounds and fifth in our technical series on painting icons, this article discusses the history and materials used in the preparation of wood panels for tempera painting—size, pavoloka, and gesso — since the earliest period of Christian art until today. While the series specifically applies to making icon boards and preparing them for painting egg tempera icons, it has application to preparing wood panels for painting in any medium on chalk grounds...
Third, in our technical series on painting icons, this article discusses the different types of braces found in Russian icons since the 12th century and their use in icon panels from the past to today. This series of articles applies specifically to preparing and painting icon panels but has a broader application to preparing wood panels for painting...
Second, in our technical series on painting icons, this article discusses the technique of making joined icon panels from several boards in detail, from wood structure to joinery. Although this article applies specifically to icon boards, it has a broader application to making solid wood panels for painting...
