Painting Media
Introduced| English | Meaning |
|---|---|
| binder/ˈbaɪndə/ | The substance that holds pigment together on a surface. |
| painting/ˈpeɪntɪŋ/ | Making an image by applying paint to a surface, or the artwork produced by that process. |
| watercolour/ˈwɔːtəkʌlə/ | watercolour |
| acrylic/əˈkrɪlɪk/ | Fast-drying paint whose pigment is held in a plastic medium. |
| oil/ɔɪl/ | Paint whose pigment is held in a slow-drying fat from seeds. |
| gouache/ɡwɑːtʃ/ | Opaque water-based paint that can cover what is underneath. |
| gesso/ˈdʒesəʊ/ | A preparatory coating applied to a painting surface to create a suitable ground. |
| glazing/ˈɡleɪzɪŋ/ | A thin transparent layer of colour laid over a dry layer. |
Pigment and binder
- Painting 绘画 applies pigment held in a binder 粘合剂 to a surface.
- The binder is what makes the pigment stick and sets its qualities.
- Different binders make watercolour, acrylic, and oil behave differently.
What makes pigment stick to a surface in paint is the...
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The binder holds the pigment and sets the paint's qualities.
The main paints
- Watercolour 水彩 is transparent; gouache 水粉 is opaque and water-based.
- Acrylic 丙烯 dries fast; oil 油画 dries slowly and blends richly.
- Choice of paint sets the working speed and finish.
Oil painting builds colour in layers: media choices shape surface, value and space
Which paint quality?
Match each paint to its key quality.
Oil paint dries very quickly, so soft blending is difficult.
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False. Oil paint stays wet for days, which makes slow, soft blending easier. Acrylic is the fast-drying paint.
Select all water-based paints.
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Watercolour, gouache, and acrylic are water-based; oil is not.
Match each paint to its quality.
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Watercolour = transparent; oil = slow; acrylic = fast.
Ground and technique
- The support (paper, canvas) and ground (gesso 石膏底料 primer) affect how paint behaves.
- Techniques include washes, glazing 罩染, wet-on-wet, dry-brush, and impasto.
- Layering builds depth of colour and value.
The white primer that prepares a canvas for painting is called ____.
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Gesso primes the ground so paint adheres well.
Choose paint by how you want to work. Watercolour and acrylic dry fast — good for quick, layered work but hard to blend slowly. Oil stays wet for days — great for soft blending but slow to finish. The medium shapes the method, not just the look.
For a glowing sky, a watercolourist floats one transparent wash over another (glazing), letting each dry. An oil painter instead blends colours wet-on-wet directly on the canvas for a soft gradient. Same goal, different media, different technique.
Painting applies pigment in a binder. Watercolour (transparent), gouache (opaque), acrylic (fast), and oil (slow, blendable) behave differently. The support, ground (gesso), and techniques like glazing and impasto shape the result.
Write from pigment plus a binder
- Two red paints look the same in hue.
- One is watercolour and one is acrylic.
Two red paints share a hue. One is watercolour and one is acrylic. What is different about them if the pigment colour matches?
Paint is pigment plus whatever holds the pigment.
What differs when the red hue matches?
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The colour name can match while the binder, and so the paint, differs.