Support (art)

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In visual arts, the support is a solid surface onto which the painting is placed, typically a canvas or a panel. Support is technically distinct from the overlaying ground, [1] but sometimes the latter term is used in a broad sense of "support" to designate any surface used for painting, for example, paper for watercolor or plaster for fresco. [2]

Contents

The support for an oil painting can be either rigid or flexible, both providing certain opportunities and challenges for the artist. In order to get both the stability and the desired texture, painters for finished paintings usually use canvas that are pre-stretched on a solid frame or panel [3] (so-called stretchers usually made of stretcher bars [4] ). These stretched canvas became popular in Venice in the 17th century. [4] Since these supports are expensive, studies are frequently executed on pieces of canvas or paper. Canvas board, a piece of canvas mounted onto a paper board, provides another low-cost alternative for sketches. [3]

The hardwood (oak, birch, poplar) panel was the original choice of support for painters in the ancient times. Masonite is the modern engineered wood that is also used for painting. Many contemporary artists still use panels due to their smooth surface and stability that simplify painting of the small details. [3]

Acrylic paint is forgiving in the terms of support: it is more flexible and sticks to the surfaces better. Therefore, in addition to the traditional supports, the cloth made from polyester (untreated) or glass fiber would work, as would metals, leather, glass, and slate. [5] Encaustic is not flexible and requires porous or textured surface, so the canvas on open stretchers will not work, but (scratched) metals and abraded sculptures will. [6] Tempera is not flexible and requires the use of a board. [7]

Types of support

Fabrics

The oldest known use of fabrics (linen) as a painting support dates back to the Dynasty XII in Egypt (2000 BC). The continuous use can be traced in both Europe and Asia. In Medieval Europe fabrics was overtaken by the wood panels for church use; Renaissance, with its wider spread of paintings, saw wide use of canvas, occasionally glued to the wood, a practice that originated in the Ancient Egypt, but became very popular in the 13th-15th centuries in Italy, with paper sometimes used as a ground layer. The modern practice is to stretch the canvas on a wooden frame. [8]

Fabric made of glass fiber has an advantage of being mold-resistant, but is brittle when sized. [9]

Fabrics are relatively fragile and deteriorate with time, so the relining (gluing of another layer of fabric to the back of the original canvas) is used for the last few centuries. [10]

Canvas board

Canvas board is a piece of canvas mounted onto a paper board, typically used as a low-cost alternative for sketches, [3] amateurs, and students. It is also known under the name "mill board", and, if coated with the ground layer. The mill boards were manufactured since at least the end of the 18th century, originally as pasteboards made of cheap fibres, academy boards started to appear in catalogs around the middle of the 19th century. The canvas board, with ground-coated canvas attached to a side of a paperboard, arrived in late 1870s. Yet another option, a paper board with surface grained to imitate canvas, appeared in the late 1880s under the name "Rushmore board". [11]

Wood

Wood was used as a support for a very long time: wooden statues were painted in the Old Kingdom of Egypt during the Fourth Dynasty (2600-2500 BC), by the time of the Dynasty VI the easel painting had started. [11] Historically, many wood varieties were used:

Sheet glass

In addition to the classic stained glass with its vitrification of the applied pigments, the paint can be applied to the glass as to any other support despite the smoothness of its surface. Da Vinci had suggested to make painting on the glass that are observed through the glass. This was supposed to reduce the diffusion of light from the paint surface, few experiments from later times have survived. [22]

Metals

Due to the high cost of sheet metal prior to the end of the 18th century a mismatch between the flexibility of the metals and paint layers, and the ease with which metals can be bent or dented, the metallic materials were rarely used as supports. [14] Copper use as a support started once it become inexpensive in sheet form around 16th century (the written record of use starts in the 17th century, along with other metals). [14] Iron (sometimes with a tin coating) had seen very limited use, primarily for miniatures and coats of arms. [23]

Ivory

Ivory for practical purposes includes, in addition the elephant's tusks, the material from tusks of walruses and hippopotamuses. Ivory was commonly used for painting since Ancient Greece, but became rare in the Medieval Europe. Thin slices of ivory came back as a support for miniatures in the 18th century due to the suitability for painting with transparent colors [23] and ability to imitate the pale skin tones with intense red pigments applied to the back side of the slice.

Engineered wood

Artificial fiber boards have one advantage over wood as a support, besides the lower cost: they are homogenous and lack grain and are therefore unlikely to shrink or expand unidirectionally. Large panels need to be structurally reinforced to prevent them from buckling under their own weight. [24] Masonite boards are of the particular interest to the painters, as they have a rough side (an imprint of a mesh used in the manufacturing process) with texture resembling a canvas. A gesso or other ground can be applied to the rough side, boards are hard and do not flex easily. [24]

Paper

Paper in all its forms, since papyrus times (that dates as far back as 3rd millennium BC, times of First Dynasty of Egypt [25] ), was primarily used for writing, drawing and painting most likely went in parallel, notably in China and Japan. First mention of use as support for painting in Medieval Europe is from 11th-12th centuries, regular use started around 1400 AD. Combinations of paper on wood or on cloth get into use in the 16th-century France [26]

Plaster

Plaster coating for the walls was used as a support for the paintings since Paleolith and prehistoric times in Egypt, the selection of the plaster materials was varying by the location and date. Modern practice of murals follows the centuries-old traditions. [27]

Leather

Leather was occasionally used for painting from the Antiquity to the 17th century. [28] In particular, the use of parchment for paintings is mentioned by Pliny the Elder (1st century AD), became widespread for the illuminated manuscripts and lasted into the 17th century. [29]

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Acrylic paint</span> Water resistant paint type meant for canvases

Acrylic paint is a fast-drying paint made of pigment suspended in acrylic polymer emulsion and plasticizers, silicone oils, defoamers, stabilizers, or metal soaps. Most acrylic paints are water-based, but become water-resistant when dry. Depending on how much the paint is diluted with water, or modified with acrylic gels, mediums, or pastes, the finished acrylic painting can resemble a watercolor, a gouache, or an oil painting, or have its own unique characteristics not attainable with other media and are meant for canvases.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oil painting</span> Process of painting with pigments that are bound with a medium of drying oil

Oil painting is the process of painting with pigments with a medium of drying oil as the binder. It has been the most common technique for artistic painting on canvas, wood panel or copper for several centuries, spreading from Europe to the rest of the world. The advantages of oil for painting images include "greater flexibility, richer and denser colour, the use of layers, and a wider range from light to dark". But the process is slower, especially when one layer of paint needs to be allowed to dry before another is applied.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tempera</span> Fast-drying painting medium

Tempera, also known as egg tempera, is a permanent, fast-drying painting medium consisting of pigments mixed with a water-soluble binder medium, usually glutinous material such as egg yolk. Tempera also refers to the paintings done in this medium. Tempera paintings are very long-lasting, and examples from the first century AD still exist. Egg tempera was a primary method of painting until after 1500 when it was superseded by oil painting. A paint consisting of pigment and binder commonly used in the United States as poster paint is also often referred to as "tempera paint", although the binders in this paint are different from traditional tempera paint.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gesso</span> Paint primer composed of a white pigment and a binder

Gesso, also known as "glue gesso" or "Italian gesso", is a white paint mixture used to coat rigid surfaces such as wooden painting panels or masonite as a permanent absorbent primer substrate for painting. It consists of a binder mixed with chalk, gypsum, pigment, or any combination of these.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canvas</span> Extremely heavy-duty plain-woven fabric

Canvas is an extremely durable plain-woven fabric used for making sails, tents, marquees, backpacks, shelters, as a support for oil painting and for other items for which sturdiness is required, as well as in such fashion objects as handbags, electronic device cases, and shoes. It is popularly used by artists as a painting surface, typically stretched across a wooden frame.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Easel</span> Upright supporting frame used for displaying and/or fixing something resting upon it

An easel is an upright support used for displaying and/or fixing something resting upon it, at an angle of about 20° to the vertical. In particular, easels are traditionally used by painters to support a painting while they work on it, normally standing up, and are also sometimes used to display finished paintings. Artists' easels are still typically made of wood, in functional designs that have changed little for centuries, or even millennia, though new materials and designs are available. Easels are typically made from wood, aluminum or steel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sandpaper</span> Abrasive material used for smoothing softer materials

Sandpaper, also known as glasspaper or as coated abrasive, is a type of material that consists of sheets of paper or cloth with an abrasive substance glued to one face. In the modern manufacture of these products, sand and glass have been replaced by other abrasives such as aluminium oxide or silicon carbide. It is common to use the name of the abrasive when describing the paper, e.g. "aluminium oxide paper", or "silicon carbide paper".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oil paint</span> Type of slow-drying paint

Oil paint is a type of slow-drying paint that consists of particles of pigment suspended in a drying oil, commonly linseed oil. The viscosity of the paint may be modified by the addition of a solvent such as turpentine or white spirit, and varnish may be added to increase the glossiness of the dried oil paint film. The addition of oil or alkyd medium can also be used to modify the viscosity and drying time of oil paint. Oil paints were first used in Asia as early as the 7th century AD and can be seen in examples of Buddhist paintings in Afghanistan. Oil-based paints made their way to Europe by the 12th century and were used for simple decoration, but oil painting did not begin to be adopted as an artistic medium there until the early 15th century. Common modern applications of oil paint are in finishing and protection of wood in buildings and exposed metal structures such as ships and bridges. Its hard-wearing properties and luminous colors make it desirable for both interior and exterior use on wood and metal. Due to its slow-drying properties, it has recently been used in paint-on-glass animation. The thickness of the coat has considerable bearing on the time required for drying: thin coats of oil paint dry relatively quickly.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Masonite</span> Type of hardboard

Masonite is a type of hardboard made of steam-cooked and pressure-molded wood fibers in a process patented by William H. Mason.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Casein paint</span>

Casein paint, derived from milk casein, is a fast-drying, water-soluble medium used by artists.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Panel painting</span> Painting made on a flat panel made of wood

A panel painting is a painting made on a flat panel of wood, either a single piece or a number of pieces joined together. Until canvas became the more popular support medium in the 16th century, panel painting was the normal method, when not painting directly onto a wall (fresco) or on vellum. Wood panels were also used for mounting vellum paintings.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Picture frame</span>

A picture frame is a protective and decorative edging for a picture, such as a painting or photograph. It makes displaying the work safer and easier and both sets the picture apart from its surroundings and aesthetically integrates it with them.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stretcher bar</span>

A stretcher bar is used to construct a wooden stretcher used by artists to mount their canvases.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Blinky Palermo</span> German painter

Blinky Palermo was a German abstract painter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Transfer of panel paintings</span> Conserving an unstable painting on a deteriorated panel by transferring it to canvas or a new panel

The practice of conserving an unstable painting on panel by transferring it from its original decayed, worm-eaten, cracked, or distorted wood support to canvas or a new panel has been practised since the 18th century. It has now been largely superseded by improved methods of wood conservation.

The lining of paintings is a process of conservation science and art restoration used to strengthen, flatten or consolidate oil or tempera paintings on canvas by attaching a new support to the back of the existing one. The process is sometimes referred to as relining. Most often a new support will be added directly to the back of an existing canvas. In cases of extreme decay, however, the original canvas may be completely removed and replaced. The height of the practice's use peaked in the late 19th century and in the following years its usefulness has been debated. There are many different factors that influence whether lining a painting will be successful. By paying close attention to an artwork's condition and response to treatment, conservation professionals better understand the lining process and when to apply it.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Conservation and restoration of paintings</span> Preservation of heritage collections

The conservation and restoration of paintings is carried out by professional painting conservators. Paintings cover a wide range of various mediums, materials, and their supports. Painting types include fine art to decorative and functional objects spanning from acrylics, frescoes, and oil paint on various surfaces, egg tempera on panels and canvas, lacquer painting, water color and more. Knowing the materials of any given painting and its support allows for the proper restoration and conservation practices. All components of a painting will react to its environment differently, and impact the artwork as a whole. These material components along with collections care will determine the longevity of a painting. The first steps to conservation and restoration is preventive conservation followed by active restoration with the artist's intent in mind.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Enamelled glass</span> Glass which has been decorated with vitreous enamel

Enamelled glass or painted glass is glass which has been decorated with vitreous enamel and then fired to fuse the glasses. It can produce brilliant and long-lasting colours, and be translucent or opaque. Unlike most methods of decorating glass, it allows painting using several colours, and along with glass engraving, has historically been the main technique used to create the full range of image types on glass.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ground (art)</span> Term in art

In visual arts, the ground is a prepared surface that covers the support of the picture and underlies the actual painting. Occasionally the term is also used in a broad sense to designate any surface used for painting, for example, paper for watercolor or plaster for fresco.

References

  1. ↑ Osborne 1970a, p. 1115.
  2. ↑ Osborne 1970b, p. 517.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Friel 2010, p. 46.
  4. 1 2 Friel 2010, p. 48.
  5. ↑ Pearce 2019, p. 33, Acrylic Painting.
  6. ↑ Pearce 2019, p. 45, Encaustic Painting.
  7. ↑ Pearce 2019, p. 52, Tempera.
  8. ↑ Gettens & Stout 1966, pp. 228–229.
  9. ↑ Gettens & Stout 1966, p. 235.
  10. ↑ Gettens & Stout 1966, p. 230.
  11. 1 2 Gettens & Stout 1966, p. 221.
  12. ↑ Gettens & Stout 1966, p. 224.
  13. ↑ Gettens & Stout 1966, p. 237.
  14. 1 2 3 Gettens & Stout 1966, p. 240.
  15. 1 2 Gettens & Stout 1966, p. 242.
  16. 1 2 Gettens & Stout 1966, p. 225.
  17. ↑ Gettens & Stout 1966, p. 239.
  18. ↑ Gettens & Stout 1966, p. 250.
  19. ↑ Gettens & Stout 1966, p. 232.
  20. ↑ Gettens & Stout 1966, p. 254.
  21. ↑ Gettens & Stout 1966, p. 258.
  22. ↑ Gettens & Stout 1966, p. 234.
  23. 1 2 Gettens & Stout 1966, p. 236.
  24. 1 2 Gettens & Stout 1966, p. 223.
  25. ↑ Wiedeman, H. G.; Bayer, G. (1 October 1983). "Papyrus The Paper of Ancient Egypt". Analytical Chemistry. 55 (12): 1220A–1230A. doi:10.1021/ac00262a774. eISSN   1520-6882. ISSN   0003-2700.
  26. ↑ Gettens & Stout 1966, pp. 247–248.
  27. ↑ Gettens & Stout 1966, pp. 251–252.
  28. ↑ Gettens & Stout 1966, p. 238.
  29. ↑ Gettens & Stout 1966, p. 249.

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