Vocabulary Flashcards
Iconic
representation, of the church, an object, etc
Convention
traditions followed to communicate to the viewer quickly and clearly. often includes religious figures. ex- Mary wears blue.
Fresco
Type of painting done on a wall using water and pigment onto wet plaster.
Tempera
widely available commercial paint.
Illustrated Manuscript
Bible decorated with borders, illustrations and color. intended for individual or personal use.
Triptych
set of three panels of art painted and set side by side. often with similar subjects.
Oil painting
act of using oil based paint to paint.
Altarpiece
piece painted typically in oil paints with religious references. Used as an altarpiece in a church.
Donors
person who donates money to the artist for a work.
Classical
of or relating to the greek and roman art
Humanism
Belief that man is the center of the universe and in control. Geometry and symmetry is important. Not depicting a believable human body.
Lost-wax casting
Process by which multiple bronze (or silver, gold, etc) sculptures are cast from an original sculpture.
Gilt-bronze
Term for when finely ground, high-carat gold is applied to a bronze sculpture.
Contraposto
Italian for counter balance; when a subject is leaning on one leg rather than standing straight. Seen in sculptures and paintings.
Bas-relief
Sculpture technique in which the subjects are barely more prominent than the (overall flat) background.
Linear Perspective
Means for creating perspective in a painting. creates the illusion of space and distance on a 2d surface through the use of a horizon/vanishing point.
Vanishing point
The point in linear perspective where two receding parallel lines appear to converge.
Atmospheric Perspective
use of color and shading to create realistic images in a 2d piece. Foreground being brown, middle-ground green, background blue. Colors fade as they get farther away.
Medici
very wealthy family in Italy who commissioned many paintings
Foreshortening
made an object smaller or distorted to convey the illusion of 3d space.
Trompe l’œil
meaning “trick of the eye” in french, uses realistic imagery to create an optical illusion.
Chiaroscuro
Painting technique in which there is strong contrast between light and dark.
sfumato
Chiaroscuro technique in which the painting looks almost smoky. without lines or borders.
Painterly
painting technique in which artists focus more on visible brushstrokes, complementary and contrasting colors, applied in a less than controlled manner, opposite of linear, not following drawn out lines.
Impasto
technique in which paint is thickly applied to the surface, and when dry provides texture to the canvas. Brushstrokes are often visible.
Palladian Window
style of architecture in which a central light with a semicircle arch rests above two pilasters.
Ex: Villa Rotonda
Engraving
practice of carving a design into a hard, usually flat surface, which is then used to print for artist advertising.
Ex: Adam and Eve
Tenebrism
extreme chiaroscuro, used to tell a story, bright whites and very dark blacks.
Ex: The Calling of St. Matthew