acrylic (acrylic resin) A clear plastic used as a binder in paint and as a casting material in sculpture.
artist proof Artist's proofs are a special subset of the regular limited edition. They usually sell for 10-30% more than the regular edition. Artist's proofs began back when limited editions were all hand-pulled from a one-man litho press. The artist's proofs were the first prints pulled off a fresh "stone" (the plate which was drawn or etched by the artist to create the prints). The stone wore down as the number of prints was increased, so that the APs were the sharpest and most colorful of the lot. Thus, they sold for more, being a better product. These days, in the world of modern offset lithography, all the prints in an edition are nearly identical. Artist's proofs maintain their collectability and value because A) They are a small subset of the edition, and B) they usually come directly from the artist. In these days of mass marketing, getting something directly or even indirectly from the artist is rare. Publishers usually turn over the artists proofs to the artist for his or her own use, and retain all the other prints in the edition. How rare? it varies. Traditionally, artist's proofs number 10% or less of the total edition, so if there is an edition of 500, usually there will be only 50 artist's proofs. In other countries, it may be more or less. In Russia, for example, the artists' proofs may run 30% of the edition. Artist's proofs are signed "A/P" or "Artist's Proof" and may or may not be numbered with the serial number of that portion of the edition. Artist's proofs are generally considered a status symbol in the world of art collecting. And their resale value is proportionally higher than the numbered editions.
collage From the French coller, to glue. A work made by gluing materials such as paper scraps, photographs, and cloth on to a flat surface.
complementary colors Two hues directly opposite one another on a color wheel which, when mixed together in proper proportions, produce a neutral gray. The true complement of a color can be seen in its afterimage.
composition The bringing together of parts or elements to form a whole; the structure, organization, or total form of a work of art.
contour The edge or apparent line that separates one area or mass from another; a line following a surface drawn to suggest volume.
cool colors Colors whose relative visual temperatures make them seem cool. Cool colors generally include green, blue-green, blue, blue-violet, and violet. The quality of warmness or coolness is relative to adjacent hues. See also warm colors.
edition In printmaking, the total number of prints made and approved by an artist, usually numbered consecutively. Also, a limited number of multiple originals of a single design in any medium.
expressionism The broad term that describes emotional art, most often boldly executed and making free use of distortion and symbolic or invented color. More specifically, Expressionism refers to individual and group styles originating in Europe in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. See also Abstract Expressionism.
Giclee A giclee (zhee-CLAY) is an individually produced, high-resolution, high-fidelity reproduction done on a special large format printer. Giclees are produced from digital scans of existing artwork. Also, since many artists now produce only digital art, there is no "original" that can be hung on a wall. Giclees solve that problem, while creating a whole new vibrant medium for art. Giclees can be printed on any number of media, from canvas to watercolor paper to transparent acetates. Giclees are superior to traditional lithography in several ways. The colors are brighter, last longer, and are so high-resolution that they are virtually continuous tone, rather than tiny dots. The range, or "gamut" of color for giclees is far beyond that of lithography, and details are crisper. hatching A technique used in drawing and linear forms of printmaking, in which lines are placed in parallel series to darken the value of an area. Cross-hatching is drawing one set of hatchings over another in a different direction so that the lines cross.
hue That property of a color identifying a specific, named wavelength of light such as green, red, violet, and so on.
impasto In painting, thick paint applied to a surface in a heavy manner, having the appearance and consistency of buttery paste.
Impressionism A style of painting that originated in France about 1870. Paintings of casual subjects, executed outdoors, using divided brush strokes to capture the mood of a particular moment as defined by the transitory effects of light and color. The first Impressionist exhibit was held in 1874.
intermediate color A hue between a primary and a secondary on the color wheel, such as yellow-green, a mixture of yellow and green.
lithography A planographic printmaking technique based on the antipathy of oil and water. The image is drawn with a grease crayon or painted with tusche on a stone or grained aluminum plate. The surface is then chemically treated and dampened so that it will accept ink only where the crayon or tusche has been used.
matte A dull finish or surface, especially in painting, photography, and ceramics.
medium (pl. media or mediums) 1. A particular material along with its accompanying technique; a specific type of artistic technique or means of expression determined by the use of particular materials. 2. In paint, the fluid in which pigment is suspended, allowing it to spread and adhere to the surface.
Minimalism A nonrepresentational style of sculpture and painting, usually severely restricted in the use of visual elements and often consisting of simple geometric shapes or masses. The style came to prominence in the late 1960s.
mixed media Works of art made with more than one medium.
monochromatic A color scheme limited to variations of one hue, a hue with its tints and/or shades.
oil paint Paint in which the pigment is held together with a binder of oil, usually linseed oil.
pastels Sticks of powdered pigment held together with a gum binding agent.
perspective A system for creating an illusion of depth or three-dimensional space on a two-dimensional surface. Usually refers to linear perspective, which is based on the fact that parallel lines or edges appear to converge and objects appear smaller as the distance between them and the viewer increases. Atmospheric perspective (aerial perspective) creates the illusion of distance by reducing color saturation, value contrast, and detail in order to imply the hazy effect of atmosphere between the viewer and distant objects. Isometric perspective is not a visual or optical interpretation, but a mechanical means to show space and volume in rectangular forms. Parallel lines remain parallel; there is no convergence.
pigment Any coloring agent, made from natural or synthetic cords of subjectssubstances, used in paints or drawing materials.
primary colors Those hues that cannot be produced by mixing other hues. Pigment primaries are red, yellow, and blue; light primaries are red, green, and blue. Theoretically, pigment primaries can be mixed together to form all the other hues in the spectrum.
prime In painting, a first layer of paint or sizing applied to a surface that is to be painted.
print (artist's print) A multiple-original impression made from a plate, stone, wood block, or screen by an artist or made under the artist's supervision. Prints are usually made in editions, with each print numbered and signed by the artist.
realism A type of representational art in which the artist depicts as closely as possible what the eye sees.
relief printing A printing technique in which the parts of the printing surface that carry ink are left raised, while the remaining areas are cut away. Woodcuts and linoleum prints (linocuts) are relief prints.
relief sculpture Sculpture in which three-dimensional forms project from a flat background of which they are a part. The degree of projection can vary and is described by the terms high relief and low relief (bas-relief.)
reproduction A mechanically produced copy of an original work of art; not to be confused with an original print or art print.
screenprinting (serigraphy) A printmaking technique in which stencils are applied to fabric stretched across a frame. Paint or ink is forced with a squeegee through the unblocked portions of the screen onto paper or other surface beneath.
secondary colors Pigment secondaries are the hues orange, violet, and green, which may be produced in slightly dulled form by mixing two primaries.
shade A hue with black added.
size Any of several substances made from glue, wax, or clay, used as a filler for porous material such as paper, canvas or other cloth, or wall surfaces. Used to protect the surface from the deteriorating effects of paint, particularly oil paint.
still life A painting or other two-dimensional work of art representing inanimate objects such as bottles, fruit, and flowers. Also, the arrangement of these objects from which a drawing, painting, or other work is made.
style A characteristic handling of media and elements of form that gives a work its identity as the product of a particular person, group, art movement, period, or culture.
stylized Simplified or exaggerated visual form which emphasizes particular or contrived design qualities.
support The physical material that provides the base for and sustains a two-dimensional work of art. Paper is the usual support for drawings and prints; canvas and panels are supports in painting.
Surrealism A movement in literature and the visual arts that developed in the mid 1920s and remained strong until the mid 1940s, growing out of Dada and automatism. Based upon revealing the unconscious mind in dream images, the irrational, and the fantastic, Surrealism took two directions: representational and abstract. Dali's and Magritte's paintings, with their uses of impossible combinations of objects depicted in realistic detail, typify representational Surrealism. MirŮ 's paintings, with their use of abstract and fantastic shapes and vaguely defined creatures, are typical of abstract Surrealism.
value The lightness or darkness of tones or colors. White is the lightest value; black is the darkest. The value halfway between these extremes is called middle gray.
warm colors Colors whose relative visual temperature makes them seem warm. Warm colors or hues include red-violet, red, red-orange, orange, yellow-orange, and yellow. See also cool colors.
wash A thin, transparent layer of paint or ink.
watercolor Paint that uses water-soluble gum as the binder and water as the vehicle. Characterized by transparency. Also, the resulting painting.
woodcut A type of relief print made from an image that is left raised on a block of wood.
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