Lesson 4 Painting

Summary

This lesson introduces painting, covering its definition, media, and various styles. It explains how pigments are applied to surfaces like wood, canvas, or paper, and the role of ground layers to protect these surfaces. The lecture explores four main types of paint—oil, acrylic, watercolor, and tempera—highlighting their unique characteristics. Additionally, it discusses different painting subjects, such as portraits, still life, landscapes, and religious art. The lesson concludes by outlining popular painting styles, including abstraction, Art Nouveau, Impressionism, Cubism, Surrealism, and Pointillism.

Takeaways

• 🎨 Painting is the application of pigments to a surface (support) to create an image, design, or decoration.
• 🖌️ Common supports for painting include paper, wood, canvas, plaster, clay, and concrete.
• 🛡️ A 'ground' is applied to supports to create a non-absorbent layer between the surface and the paint.
• 🖼️ Oil paint is known for detail and contrast but takes a long time to dry and requires toxic thinners like turpentine.
• 💧 Acrylic paints are water-based, dry quickly, and are ideal for beginners, but they don’t blend as well as oils.
• 💦 Watercolor is inexpensive and dries quickly, but it’s difficult to master and hard to correct mistakes.
• 🥚 Tempera paint, often made with egg yolk, is long-lasting but requires multiple thin layers to achieve desired hues.
• 👤 Common painting subjects include portraits, real-life scenes, still life, landscapes, and religious imagery.
• ✨ Painting styles range from abstraction, art nouveau, and impressionism, to more emotional and distorted styles like expressionism.
• 🔲 Techniques like cubism (fragmented subjects) and surrealism (dream-like, symbolic visuals) offer unique artistic approaches.

Q & A

What is the definition of painting as explained in the script?

Painting is the application of pigments to a support or surface to establish an image, design, or decoration. It refers to both the act of painting and the resulting output.

What are some of the different painting media mentioned, and how do they differ in their properties?

The painting media mentioned include oil, acrylic, watercolor, and tempera. Oil paint takes a long time to dry and is best for detail and contrast, but requires turpentine for cleaning. Acrylics are water-based, fast-drying, and easy for beginners but harder to blend. Watercolor is affordable and dries quickly but is difficult to master. Tempera uses egg yolk or glue as a binder, dries quickly, and produces a smooth matte finish.

What is a 'support' in painting, and what is a 'ground'?

A 'support' refers to the surface on which the paint is applied, such as paper, wood, or canvas. A 'ground' is a mixture of binder and powdered material like chalk, applied to the support to create a non-absorbent layer that protects it from damage.

How do oil paints differ from acrylic paints in terms of drying time and cleaning process?

Oil paints take between six months to a year to dry, and they require turpentine for cleaning. Acrylic paints dry much faster and can be cleaned easily with water.

What are the disadvantages of using oil paints?

Oil paints take a long time to dry, require toxic solvents like turpentine for cleaning, and can stain surfaces and clothing. They are also more expensive compared to other painting media.

What are the advantages and challenges of using watercolor paints?

Watercolor paints are affordable, dry quickly, and offer good color saturation. However, they are difficult to master, and it is challenging to correct mistakes once the paint is applied.

What are the characteristics of tempera paint?

Tempera paint uses a mixture of egg yolk or other binders, dries quickly, and produces a smooth matte finish. It is long-lasting but requires thin layers to achieve desired colors and is more time-consuming to work with.

What is abstraction in painting, and how does it simplify subjects?

Abstraction is the reduction or simplification of subjects by omitting realistic details, focusing instead on primary shapes, colors, or forms. The imagery can be so simplified that it becomes non-objective.

What distinguishes Impressionism from Post-Impressionism?

Impressionism is characterized by small, visible brushstrokes and bright colors, with a focus on capturing light and outdoor scenes. Post-Impressionism, on the other hand, features vivid colors, thick brush strokes, and often distorted forms, reflecting the emotional and psychological states of the artist.

What is Pointillism, and how is it applied in painting?

Pointillism, also known as chromoluminarism, involves applying tiny dots of color to a surface. When viewed from a distance, these dots visually blend to form an image. It was developed by Georges Seurat.

Outlines

00:00

🎨 Introduction to Painting and Its Definition

The lecture begins with an introduction to the topic of painting, defining it as the application of pigments to a surface to create an image, design, or decoration. The speaker explains that while most painting involves liquid pigments applied with a brush, exceptions like Navajo sand painting and Tibetan mandala painting use powdered pigments. Painting, along with drawing and sculpture, is one of the oldest forms of creative media. The versatility of painting is highlighted, as it can be applied to various supports, including paper, wood, canvas, and concrete. A 'ground' is often applied to protect the support, creating a non-absorbent layer between the surface and the paint.

05:01

🖌️ Common Types of Paints and Their Properties

This section discusses four main types of paints: oil, acrylic, watercolor, and tempera. Oil paints are known for their permanence, ability to showcase detail, and contrast between light and dark, but they take a long time to dry and are toxic. Acrylic paints are water-based, making them easier to clean and ideal for beginners, though they are less durable than oil paints. Watercolor paints are affordable and vibrant but require special skill to master. Tempera, often referred to as 'egg tempera,' was widely used before oil paints and dries quickly, though it produces less vibrant colors and requires thin layers to build up the desired effect.

10:04

👤 Types of Paintings by Subject

Different types of paintings are categorized based on their subjects. These include portrait painting, which captures the likeness and personality of a person or animal; real-life painting, depicting active scenes such as street views or social gatherings; still-life painting, which portrays inanimate objects like flowers and musical instruments; and landscape painting, which represents outdoor scenes and often uses natural elements like land, water, and sunlight. Religious paintings express spiritual themes, and the speaker notes that one doesn't have to adhere to a particular religion to create a religious painting. Artists can explore various religious traditions and cultures in their work.

15:05

🎭 Painting Styles: Abstraction to Cubism

This paragraph delves into different painting styles. Abstraction involves the reduction of realistic details, with some artworks becoming non-objective. Art Nouveau features decorative flowing lines inspired by natural forms. Impressionism, associated with Monet, emphasizes visible brushstrokes and outdoor painting to capture sunlight's effects. Post-Impressionism, led by artists like Van Gogh, features vivid colors and emotional expression, though it often gets confused with Expressionism, which exaggerates and distorts subjects to show the darker side of human nature. Lastly, Cubism, both analytical and synthetic, breaks subjects into geometric forms and depicts them from multiple perspectives.

20:06

🌙 Surrealism and Pointillism Techniques

The final paragraph explores the surrealist and pointillist styles. Surrealism blends conscious and unconscious experiences to create dreamlike, fantastical images, often using symbolic or collage elements. Pointillism, developed by Georges Seurat, involves applying small dots or strokes of color that, from a distance, visually blend together to form an image. This method requires patience and precision to create a cohesive picture using tiny dots of pigment.

Keywords

💡Painting

Painting refers to the application of pigments to a surface or support to create an image, design, or decoration. In the video, painting is defined both as an action and the result of that action. Examples given include various traditional forms such as sand painting and mandala painting, highlighting the diversity of painting techniques across cultures.

💡Support

Support is the surface on which paint is applied, such as paper, wood, canvas, plaster, or clay. The video emphasizes the importance of supports in painting and explains how different surfaces affect the longevity and appearance of artwork. Supports can be damaged over time if not properly treated, which leads to the introduction of the concept of 'ground'.

💡Ground

Ground is a preparatory layer applied to a support before painting, typically made of a binder and powdered materials like chalk. It creates a non-absorbent surface that protects the support from the paint’s damaging effects. The video explains that applying ground helps prevent paint from soaking into and weakening the surface over time.

💡Oil Paint

Oil paint is described as one of the most durable and widely used types of paint, known for its ability to demonstrate great detail and contrast between light and dark. However, it has a long drying time (up to a year) and requires toxic solvents like turpentine for cleaning. The video contrasts oil paints with other mediums like acrylic and tempera, noting both its advantages and drawbacks.

💡Acrylic Paint

Acrylic paint is a versatile, water-based paint that is easier to use than oil paint. It dries quickly but is less blendable and not as long-lasting as oil paint. The video notes that acrylic is a good choice for beginners due to its simplicity in use, and it can be cleaned easily with water.

💡Watercolor

Watercolor is the least expensive paint medium and is valued for its quick drying time and vibrant color saturation. However, the video points out that watercolor techniques are difficult to master and mistakes are hard to correct. This makes it a medium that requires significant skill and practice.

💡Tempera

Tempera, also called egg tempera, is an ancient painting technique that uses a blend of water and egg yolks (or other organic materials) as a binder. The video highlights tempera’s fast drying time and smooth matte finish but mentions that it is not vegan due to its reliance on animal by-products. It contrasts tempera’s durability with oil paints, which darken over time.

💡Portrait

Portraits are paintings that capture the image of a person or animal, often reflecting their mood or personality. The video explains that portraits are a common type of painting subject, emphasizing the artist’s skill in capturing the essence of the subject beyond mere physical appearance.

💡Abstraction

Abstraction refers to the artistic style of simplifying or omitting realistic details to focus on primary forms, colors, or shapes. The video describes abstraction as reducing elements to their essence, using examples such as an abstract painting of a bamboo forest, which might not be immediately recognizable but represents the subject in a simplified manner.

💡Impressionism

Impressionism is a painting style characterized by small, visible brush strokes and the depiction of light and movement. The video explains that impressionists, like Claude Monet, often painted outdoors to capture the effects of natural light. Bright colors and real-life scenes, especially landscapes, are typical subjects of this style.

Highlights

Definition of painting: the application of pigments to a surface to establish an image, design, or decoration.

Painting is one of the oldest creative media, used by cultures worldwide and applied to various surfaces like paper, wood, and canvas.

Ground: a mixture of binder and powdered material (often chalk) applied to a surface before painting to prevent damage to the support.

Different types of paint include oil, acrylic, watercolor, and tempera, each with its unique properties and applications.

Oil paints offer great detail and contrast but are expensive, take a long time to dry, and require toxic turpentine for cleaning.

Acrylic paints are water-based, quick-drying, and suitable for beginners but lack the longevity and blending capabilities of oil paints.

Watercolor paints are the least expensive but require advanced techniques for proper use and make it difficult to correct mistakes.

Tempera (egg tempera) uses egg yolks or other animal products and dries to a smooth matte finish but lacks the color depth of oils.

Portrait paintings capture the likeness, mood, and personality of a person or animal.

Still life paintings depict inanimate objects like flowers or instruments, focusing on shapes, light, and shadows.

Religious paintings portray sacred stories or express the artist’s faith, and can also include mythological or cultural subjects.

Abstraction in painting simplifies and reduces realistic detail to create a non-objective representation of a subject.

Impressionism focuses on small, visible brush strokes and the use of bright colors to capture the effects of light and movement.

Post-Impressionism shares characteristics with Impressionism but uses vivid colors, thick brush strokes, and emotional intensity.

Cubism involves fragmenting three-dimensional subjects and painting them from multiple perspectives simultaneously.

Transcripts

hello and welcome to Lesson Four

this lecture file will be all about

painting specifically the following will

be covered first the word painting will

be defined and it will be followed by a

few slides that contain basic points

about painting

and then next the types of subjects and

painting Styles will be discussed

painting is the application of pigments

to a support or Surface that establishes

an image design or decoration

in art the term painting describes both

the Act and the result or the output

most painting is created with pigment in

liquid form and apply it with a brush

but there are of course exemptions to

this for example in the Navajo tribe

sand painting and and in Tibet mandala

painting

uh in those two types of outposts or

paintings they use instead powdered

pigments instead of liquid pigments or

liquid paints

painting as a medium has survived for

thousands of years and is along with

drawing and sculpture one of the oldest

Creative Media it is used in some form

by cultures around the world

painting media are extremely versatile

because they can be applied to many

different supports okay again surfaces

are called supports including paper wood

canvas plaster clay and concrete

because paint is usually applied in a

liquid or semi liquid state it has this

ability to soak into

porous or absorbent material which can

over time of course weaken and damage

the support or the surface

in order to prevent this

usually a support is covered with a

so-called ground okay a ground is a

mixture of binder and a powdered

material often times a chalk that when

dry creates a non-absorbent or porous

layer between the Surface or the support

and the painted surface

okay so these are terms that you should

remember surfaces are code support while

the the cover that is a mixture of a

binder and a powder or use or a chalk is

called a ground

common painting

acrylic watercolor and tempera

oil panes are the most expensive and it

is also very permanent many famous

masterpieces dating from the Renaissance

onward are painted in oils they are also

best to use for demonstrating great

detail and the contrast between light

and dark however oil takes a very long

time to dry between six months to a

whole year

in addition oil must be removed from

brushes using turpentine and it is very

easy to stain your clothing and other

surfaces

in addition

most oil paint thinners and turpentines

are toxic and not particularly safe for

prolonged contact

next acrylics like oil are well suited

for detail but it is also

very easy to use so they are best for

beginners acrylics are also water-based

which means you would be needing

turpentines or thinners as they can be

cleaned from brushes using of course

water and it's very easy to remove them

from brushes

acrylic paint dries very quickly as well

and it is not however it is not easily

Blended unlike oils

acrylics are also not very lasting and

like oil they have only existed for

about 50 years

acrylics can contain various toxins

within their pigments as well

the third type is watercolor it is

generally the least expensive of the

three paints

more of the other paints it offers nice

color saturation and dries quickly

however

though it is simple in theory the

techniques in painting using watercolor

these techniques can be difficult to

master it takes a special talent and

lots of practice it is more difficult to

cover a mistake when you use watercolor

lastly we have tempura or tempura

tempera

it is also called egg tempera and it is

a method of painting that replaced oil

painting in the past

tempura employs a blend of water egg

yolks or whole eggs from time to time or

occasionally a little glue honey or milk

are also added

a layer of ground is usually applied to

a surface before painting tempera paint

or before using temper paint

and like oil paint tempura cannot be

applied too thickly and so it lacks the

Deep coloration of oils

but tempera paintings can be very long

unlike all oil paints which tend to

darken or lose color with age

tempra dries rapidly and when dry it

produces a smooth matte finish

one disadvantage of using tempera paint

is that it is time consuming because you

have to apply one at a time thin layers

in order to achieve your desired Hue or

desired shade

okay and another thing is that tempera

is is not vegan so you're using animal

by-products

queso there are many acrylic and oil

paints

Brands which are cruelty free so just

like makeup it would be best if we would

use

products for art which are cruelty free

so if you would choose among these

painting media I would recommend those

which would not require you to use

animal

products or animal by-products

and now so let's move on to the types of

painting according to subjects

okay the first type is a portrait a

portrait is an image of a person or an

animal

besides showing what someone looks like

a portrait often captures a mood or

personality

next we have real life type of painting

Real Life paintings capture scenes of

life in action

examples are a busy street a beach party

a dinner Gathering or any place where

living goes on

third a still life painting shows

objects such as flowers food or musical

instruments in short uh things that do

not move inanimate things which may be

placed on a surface

okay a still live painting reveals an

artist's skill in painting shapes light

and Shadow

next a landscape painting is an outdoor

scene

a landscape artist uses paint to create

not only land water and clouds but also

wind and sunlight or moonlight so if you

would create a landscaping saying it has

to be done of course outside but because

of the restrictions

that we have these days because of the

pandemic

it would be best if you could for

example simply take a picture of nature

or a picture of a place where nature is

abundant only if you would have the

opportunity to visit a new place if

you're

for example surroundings in your village

is

appealing the Naman you may also take a

picture of a certain spot for example in

your Clubhouse okay and then use the

photo as reference for your landscape

painting don't go too far okay so we

still have restrictions because of the

pandemic

the last type of painting according to

subject is a religious painting

a religious painting of course shares a

religious message it might portray a

sacred story or Express an artist's

faith however it may also be based on

mythology and lore

if you are a Christian it wouldn't

actually mean that you should be

choosing a subject

that is Christian for you to create a

religious painting okay for example you

are interested in the Buddhist tradition

or the Buddhist religion you may also

make use of Siddhartha Gautama a subject

for a religious painting

if you are interested for example in

the practices of the weekends

you may also choose or you may also

choose a subject from that particular

belief and portray that subject into

your religious painting okay so it it

wouldn't have to be based on your

religion okay you may also depict or you

may also paint a subject which is not

uh actually a part of your faith

next let's move on to the painting

styles

first we have the abstraction Style

when you use this style then you create

an abstract art or abstract painting

abstraction is the reduction or

simplification of seals or figures by

omitting realistic detail take note of

the words production simplification and

omitting so in short you remove you

reduce details and then you

depict the subject by means of for

example its primary colors

without adding the little details okay

a picture imagery may be so abstract

that it becomes

non-objective take a look at the example

that is actually an abstract painting of

a bamboo forest can you see the bamboo

forest from the abstract painting so

it's very reduced it's very simplified

it looks non-objective but it actually

is the subject actually is a bamboo

forest

you may look for examples online for you

to understand how abstraction works so

again take note of the words reduction

simplification omission

next Style We Have Art Nouveau do you

still remember this from the lecture

about the history of Western Art okay

art nouveau

it's named after an art movement

this style is decorative when you use

this style in painting you use utilize

flowing lines and organic forms lines

taking the form of flowers

stalks and buds Vine tendrils insect

wings and other delicate and curling

natural objects can you see those from

the example painting

okay the usual subjects of an art

nouveau painting are portraits or humans

and animals and landscapes

the next painting style is Impressionism

and it is from the art movement of the

same name impressionism is associated

with French artist Claude Monet

this particular painting style makes use

of lively and small thin visible brushed

Strokes

bright colors are also employed

and instead of painting inside a studio

an artist does the painting outside and

plant air in order to as well capture

the

effects of sunlight on the subject of

the painting okay the usual subjects are

Landscapes and real life scenes

the next artistic style is

post-impressionism it is also an art

movement

the well-known post-impressionist

painters were people who got inspired by

the impressionism movement this people

do not have one particular style in

painting but they share these common

characteristics Vivid colors thick brush

Strokes distorted forms and unnatural

color schemes their paintings are also

emotionally charged and their paintings

depict emotional depict emotional and

psychological states of their creators

the usual subject is a real life scene

both impressionist paintings are often

confused with expressionism for example

Vincent van Gogh is sometimes labeled as

an expressionist

artist but in reality

he is an he is a post-impressionist

artist

expressionists got inspired by Van

Gogh's depiction of his subjects by

means of showing through his paintings

as well his psychological and emotional

states okay that's why sometimes he is

confused with the expressionism movement

but he is a post-impressionist artist

okay so what's the difference between

post-impressionism and expressionism we

will see on the next slide

expressionism just like

post-impressionism

is an artistic style from an artistic

period okay it is characterized by

Distortion and exaggeration in order to

create an emotional effect so paintings

using this particular style just like in

the post-impressionist period

are emotionally charged as well but the

difference is that expressionist

paintings are are distorted they are

exaggerated in order to show the darker

side okay the darker side of human

nature

so expressionist paintings are distorted

they are exaggerated and emotional and

the purpose is to show the darker side

of human nature so you can see the

difference between this painting by

Edward Monk and

Vincent van Gogh okay the painting here

has exaggerated and violent colors that

show

the anxiety of the subject of the

painting okay and it doesn't look as

appealing as Vincent Van Gogh's were

Okay so

so that's it there's a difference

between expressionism and

post-impressionism Vincent van Gogh

is

under the post-impressionism movement

not expressionism okay

we are sometimes confused between the

two because paintings or artworks under

both periods are emotionally charged

expressionism though is more inclined

into showing the darker side of the

human psyche

the next style is cubism it is

non-objective and analytical

so in a Cubist painting

three-dimensional subjects are

fragmented and are painted from several

different points of view simultaneously

there are two types of cubism we have

analytical and synthetic

an analytical

Cubist painting

uses geometrical forms

and it's simple dark and monochromatic

synthetic cubes is more energetic okay

brighter colors are used and sometimes

materials

different materials are added

that forms a collage like output so if

you would choose this particular style

it's best to choose between analytical

and synthetic

the next art movement or artistic style

is surrealism it combines the conscious

and unconscious aspects of experience in

order to depict the world of dream and

fantasy it is irrational

okay so realistic art is characterized

by dream like visuals okay and the use

of symbolism and collage images

the last artistic style or rather

artistic technique painting technique is

pointillism it is also known as

chromoluminarism and it was developed by

George Shroff

do you still remember him from the

lecture from the previous lecture I hope

that you still remember him okay this

technique employs the use of a bunch of

tiny dots in order to make a picture

sometimes small Strokes that are akin to

dots are applied

to a surface so that from a distance

they visually blend together blend

together in order to make or form an

image

if you want to know more about the

points mentioned in this lecture you may

visit these websites

this is the end of Lesson Four