Acrylic Painting Vocabulary

Acrylic paint: A fast-drying paint Impasto: Thick, opaque paint made of pigment suspended in applied with a brush, knife or acrylic polymer emulsion. Acrylic fingers, creating various textural paints are water-soluble, but features on the surface of the become water-resistant when dry. painting.

Double-loaded brush: Two or more Matte: A dull surface. colors on a brush to create blended color in one stroke. Mixed-media: Refers to an artwork of which more than one medium Fluid medium: A substance added has been used. For example, a work to paint for variety of uses such as on canvas that combines paint, ink, extending the volume of thin paint, and collage could be called "mixed reducing viscosity of heavier paints, media". etc. Palette knife: A shaped, metal Gel medium: A substance added to spatula used for painting instead of paint for variety of uses and a brush. techniques such as added body to thinner paint, added transparency, Palette: A rectangular or oval- slow drying times, etc. shaped flat surface used for mixing colors. Also refers to the selection Gesso: A plaster-like material of colors used by an artist. spread upon a surface to prepare it for painting. Pigment: Refers to color or hue.

Glaze : Transparent painting over a Prime: To make ready. The light under-painting. preparatory coating.

Gloss: A shiny surface. Saturation: The greatest possible intensity of the color. Heavy body: Refers to the viscosity or thickness of the paint. Heavy Scumbling: Dragging paint in a body paints works best for impasto broken manner over a previously and will hold a brush or knife stroke. painted dry surface.

High flow acrylics: Paint with ink- Sgraffito: Involves scratching like consistency that lends itself to through a layer of still-wet paint to a wide range of techniques such as reveal what’s underneath. staining, calligraphy and mixed media.

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Acrylic Painting Vocabulary

Soft body: Refers to the viscosity or thickness of the paint. Soft body paints work best for watercolor techniques, or when smooth coverage is desired.

Stretcher: The wooden frame on which canvas or paper is stretched.

Study: A comprehensive drawing or painting. Also refers to a detail that can be incorporated into a finished painting.

Tacky: Sticky, partly dried.

Tempera paint: A fast-drying paint consisting of colored pigments mixed with a water-soluble binder.

Transfers (acrylic transfer or gel medium transfer): A method where a photocopied image is transferred to another surface thought the aid of gel medium.

Underpainting: A monochromatic sketch put down on the canvas first, as an infrastructure, which will be completely covered up by the painting.

Viscosity: The thickness of a liquid.

Wash: The application of color in a thin, fluid manner. Also refers to diluted pigment.

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