ART MEDIUMS – WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF ART MEDIUMS?

A Painting and Drawing Art Mediums Acrylic Paint

List
Acrylic paints dry much faster than oil
Out of all the artistic mediums, drawing paints and are water-resistant once dry.
techniques and painting styles have the To create an effect similar to watercolors,
most variation in terms of the different art you can dissolve the paint with a bit of
mediums available to choose from. water before applying it to your painting.
Painting and sketching have been the The advantage of using acrylic paint is
most commonly applied mediums in art that you can add texture and depth by
history, and the art mediums list for this applying layers of acrylic paint until you
section will cover what materials there reach the look you desire. You can also
are available to choose from. add more water to create a kind of matte
look in your artwork.
Tempera
Watercolors
Tempera is a type of painting
medium that has been used for many Watercolors are hugely popular because
centuries due to its quick-drying of the large array of colors one can create
ingredients and long-lasting pigments. from them. However, working with
Some examples of tempera paintings watercolors can sometimes prove to be a
have been dated as far back as the 1st bit tricky for first-time users. Although the
century AD, but most of the examples we range of achievable colors is a great
have left today are from the 12th century advantage, once you commit the paint to
until the 15th, after which oil your chosen canvas, very little can be
paints became more popular. done to change the end result.
Tempera is also called egg tempera, as it Watercolors are great for creating
is usually made of pigments that have landscapes due to the luminosity of the
been bound to a water-soluble emulsion pigments.
such as the yolk of an egg.
Charcoal
Oil Paint
Artists have always created art out of the
Tempera was a popular medium in art available materials around them. Fire has
until the arrival of oil paint, which then been a part of human development and
became the traditional artistic medium in culture for a very long time, meaning that
Europe in the 15th century. Oil paint is a charcoal has been one of the most
slower drying artistic medium and is readily available types of art mediums
made from various pigments mixed with throughout the centuries.
oil, such as linseed. Oil painting became
a popular artistic medium due to its slow-
drying properties as artists could easily Charcoal sticks can be made by binding
change their paintings by adding more organic powder with a waxy
layers to the canvas. This was hugely substance. Charcoal is a rare medium in
advantageous to artists as they weren’t art materials as it can easily be erased,
stuck with the mistakes typical of using so if you are planning on trying it, do
tempera as a medium in art. some research on how to apply fixatives
to your canvases to extend the life of your edit and change your art by erasing your
artwork. mistakes and trying again until you get
the desired result you are after.
Pastels
Color Pencils
Pastels use pigments that are quite
similar to those used in oil paints and are For most of us, color pencils were a
created by mixing these pigments with a commonly used medium in art classes
binding material. Having been a popular growing up. Not only are they perfect art
medium in art since the 18th century, mediums to learn your skill with, but they
there are a variety of pastels that can be are also used to create beautiful works of
used in many ways depending on the professional art. Color pencils can be
techniques you want to apply. Harder used to create very simple line drawings
pastels are great for overall composition or they can be used to create highly
sketching and outlines, while softer detailed and expressive works of art that
pastels look amazing when blended. can even look photorealistic if applied
Another version of the pastel artistic properly.
medium uses a sponge for application,
called pan pastels. Art Medium and Application

Depending on whether you want softer Tempera – Quick drying and long-lasting
toned pastel creations that look similar to paint.
watercolors, or you want vividly colored Oil Paint - Slow drying and can be
vibrant artworks will determine which layered.
pastel art mediums to use.
Acrylic paint - Quick-drying and can be
Chalk layered.
Due to its organic content, chalk is Watercolors - Has a large and luminous
another of the different art mediums that color palette.
have been used since the earliest days of
human art. Materials such as ochre, Charcoal – Readily available and easily
limestone, and black stone were used to fixable.
create colors such as sanguine, white, Pastels – Great for outlines and shading.
and black. Although originally used for
sketching, chalk was soon considered of Chalk – Easily available and easy to use.
equal importance as the other types of art
Graphite Pencils – Great for shading and
medium during the Renaissance period.
outlining.
Color Pencils – Great for detailed and
Graphite Pencils colorful art.
Graphite pencils were first used by artists Ink and Pen Perfect for solid outlines and
in France during the 17th century. They details.
are great for outlining compositions,
Ink and Pen
creating sketches, or even for applying
shading to your artwork. Graphite pencils Pen and ink have also been used as art
are one of the types of art mediums that mediums for centuries. Ink is great for
are great for beginners as you can easily creating solid outlines but must be used
with a steady hand and great care as background. Stone and wood were the
there is no way to erase the ink. Ink and most commonly used materials
pen have been used to create intricate traditionally. However, nowadays artists
graphic art as well as text-based art use many various materials such as
forms such as calligraphy for centuries. plastic, hard styrofoam, and even glass
Depending on what you intend to use to create their sculptures.
your pen for, you can find a multitude of
suitable drawing tools such as drafting Many artists incorporate various
pens, fountain pens, and graphic pens. materials to further highlight a message
their art would like to portray, such as
Now that we have answered the natural materials or litter materials that
question, “what is a medium in art?” and represent an environmental message to
looked at several types of art mediums the viewer.
traditionally used with paper or canvas,
let us now expand our art mediums list Various Three-Dimensional Art
and look at some other techniques that Mediums
you can use to create your next work of There are a few methods you can use to
art. create three-dimensional artwork. Many
Three-Dimensional Art Mediums artists used to carve into stone or wood,
while others would mold or construct
Three-dimensional art refers to them. Let us take a look at a few methods
sculptures, wood carvings, and aspects you can use to create three-dimensional
of architectural design elements. Simply artwork in this sculpture art mediums list.
put, it is an art that is observed in
dimensions of depth, width, and height. Carving and Casting
Figures carved out of stone are some of You can take a raw object such as a
the earliest examples we have of art and stone or piece of wood and can carve
human culture, revealing much about the pieces out. You can also choose to
people who created them and the times smoothen them with various techniques
they lived in. to create the desired shape you are after.
A Brief History of Three-Dimensional Another method is called casting, which
Art involves pouring a liquid into some kind
of pre-made mold of the shape you wish
Certain goddess fertility sculptures have to create. Once the liquid has hardened,
been dated as far back as 230,000 years the mold can be removed and the
B.C., such as the Venus of Berekhat remaining artistic medium is then
Ram and others found in archeological polished off.
sites across Europe. Scholars today
recognize three distinct types of Modeling
sculpture design, being free-standing, Another method you can use to create
bas relief sculpture, and high relief three-dimensional artworks is by
sculpture. modeling them with art mediums such as
Freestanding sculpture can be viewed plaster or clay. This medium is great to
from any angle, bas relief extends slightly work with as it stays soft and malleable,
out of the background, and high relief allowing you to create the shape you
extends significantly beyond the want before letting it dry. You can easily
add some water to your clay if it is drying Castling – Pour a liquid into a
too quickly, and other tools can be used prefabricated mold.
to scrape and cut at the clay to add
textures and designs to the surface. Modeling – Use clay to model shapes as
desired.
Construction
Construction – Build Structures out of
The construction phase of many raw materials.
contemporary artworks is similar to
modeling but incorporates other Mixed Art Mediums and
elements such as wire mesh, glue, and Unconventional Media
other building materials that assist in the Throughout art history, various
framework and design of the art piece. movements have risen and become the
Modeling also includes the delicate and prominent style of their era, and are often
intricate art of glass blowing and glass followed by reactionary movements that
molding as created by skilled glass want to upend the status quo of the
artists. These techniques require a academic establishment and create
furnace or kiln with which to heat the something unique and new that
glass in order to shape it using represents their personal artistic view of
techniques such as fusing and slumping the world. By using anything as a
the glass. potential source of inspiration, artists
Many techniques can also be applied to were able to mix and blend mediums to
the cold glass, such as grinding, create new styles and aesthetics in
polishing, and then etching or engraving the contemporary art world.
the glass using various methods to In this art mediums list, we will look at
decorate the glass surface. some of the avant-garde and unique
Another form of three-dimensional art is uses of art mediums in modern art.
known as installation art. These exhibits Collages
are usually created using various media
such as audio or visual clips along with The word collage comes from the French
three-dimensional objects to relay some word meaning “to glue” and was first
kind of personal, social, or political pioneered by French Cubist artists
commentary that is important to the artist. like Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque.
Artists also often incorporate elaborate Collage art is created by combining bits
lighting effects to create a multi-sensory of everyday objects such as newspaper
experience for the cuttings and cloth and combining them in
observer. Performance art is another art a way that portrays a unique idea out of
form that goes beyond the canvas and existing visual materials. With the wide
involves artists using their bodies as the accessibility to royalty-free images and
medium of expression. intuitive software, it is easier to make
digital collage art today than ever before.
Medium and Technique
Assemblage
Carving – Carve the desired shape from
wood or stone. Assemblage art is almost a kind of three-
dimensional collage, consisting of
apparently random bits of material and
objects that have been placed on a flat First invented in 1826, photography has
surface to create something creative out been a significant factor in the changing
of nothing. This style was made popular manner in which we record our daily lives
by artists such as Robert Rauschenberg and the history of society. Certain
and Jasper Johns in the 1950s and moments of history can be painted to
1960s. portray a certain feeling or impression of
a moment, but no other medium can so
Found Objects easily and clearly replicate reality as well
Similar to assemblage, these mixed as the camera.
medium artworks consist of everyday In the modern era, it has become
objects re-assembled on a canvas to exceptionally easy to use photography as
create something beautiful and a medium of expression as well as
meaningful out of repurposed junk. Many historical documentation.
street artists in South Africa use found
objects to recreate scenes of township Today’s generation is all too familiar with
life, with soda cans and pieces of wire the abundance of photo editing apps
used to create imaginative art. available at their literal fingertips.
Developments in technology have led to
devices that are quick and intuitive to
Art Journaling use, and software that can take your
image of reality and manipulate it in a
Art journaling serves as a visual diary of near-infinite amount of ways to create
past events, such as a scrapbook with your digital masterpiece. A good
various objects that have a special photographer, however, will know that it
connection to a specific time or event, is important to capture the best image
such as bus tickets from a holiday, possible from the start. Certain situations
postcards, feathers, concert armbands, will require specific lenses, settings, and
and so on. The concept behind art light requirements to get the best capture
journaling is to create a multi-medium possible.
experience that has been artistically
created as a constant source of good Documentary Photography
memories. Similar to photojournalism, documentary
Medium and Method photography seeks to capture the real
historical moments, emphasizing the
Collage Art – Paste newspaper cut-outs zeitgeist of the moment by framing the
in unique pattern. situation through the correct angle and
Assemblage – Add objects to a 3D lens.
collage. Landscape Photography
Found Objects – Up-cycle garbage to Landscape photography is the modern
make art. version of the old tradition of landscape
Art Journaling – A multi-media diary of painting. Artistic photographs of
daily objects. landscapes capture the flowing forms
and vivid colors of nature. Although one
Photographic Art Mediums might think that a photographer would be
limited in creative input with a realistic
scenario such as a landscape, yet just as such as Andy Warhol with actual
with landscape painting, a photographer videotape, today’s artists are no longer
can use perspective, color filters, and restricted to the tape medium, and with
framing of unique subject matter to tell a modern digital tools, they can create
story and impart an artistic idea. fascinating visual stories that impart
graphic ideas, concepts, and reflections
Portrait Photography of the modern world through a modern
Portrait photography is another one of medium.
those styles that have roots in older A new emerging medium that has added
traditions such as portrait painting. The another dimension to interactive art is
art mediums may have changed over the video mapping and projection.
years, but the concepts have remained
the same. Although portraits capture the This allows digital artists to overlay a
real image of people, depending on how digital image of a scene over the actual
the photographic artist positions the scene by using a light projector. The
camera and uses lighting, one can bring software can accurately map a surface,
out certain characterizations of the and once projected back onto the
subject in very creative and artistic ways. surface, it can be manipulated in an array
of interesting ways to create out-of-this-
Nude Photography world artistic digital effects.
This form of photography is almost as old Photography Style and Subject Matter
as the invention of the camera itself. The
naked human form has long been a Documentary – Real-life candid
symbol of beautiful form and proportion, moments.
so it is no surprise that it has been a form
of photographic art for many years. Many Landscape – scene of urban and rural
artists also use the human form out of the life.
normal context to paint and position them Portrait – Capturing unique character.
in various ways to visually represent
something else entirely. Nude – Exploring the beauty of the nude
form.
Digital Photography
Digital – Endless possibilities of subject
With the advances in modern technology, manipulation.
it is now possible to create art out of the
most basic of visual resources, layering Video Art – Interactive three-dimensional
and manipulating them in whichever modern art.
creative manner you wish. The speed Key Difference – Artist vs. Artisan
and capacity of modern home computers
make photographic editing one of the The words artist and artisan are often
most popular modern types of art very confusing for most people although
mediums. there is a key difference between the two
words. An artist is a person who performs
Video Art any of the creative arts. This can range
Video art is another popular form of from painting to music. An artisan, on the
digital media used by modern-day artists. other hand, is a skilled worker who
Made popular by prominent art figures makes things by hand. The mere
definition of the two words can be rather Who is an Artisan?
confusing because both involve the
creation of something. The key An artisan is a skilled worker who makes
difference is that while the product or things by hand. This includes various
output of an artisan has a clear objects ranging from jewelry to furniture.
functional value, this may not be the An artisan should not be confused with
case for an artist. The output can be an an artist because there is a clear
expression of the beauty of art itself difference in the things that they create.
without having any functional value. An artisan is able to produce something
Through this article, let us examine the that has a functional value, although it
differences between an artist and an should not be limited to its use value
artisan. alone. However, it must be stressed that
there are cases where the objects
Who is an Artist? created by an artisan have only
decorative value.
An artist is a person who performs any of
the creative arts. This captures all forms Most artisans have the skill of
of art. For example, a person who paints adding aesthetic value to the objects that
can be referred to as an artist. In the they create. This transcends the object
modern world, the term artist is also used from a mere object of utility. This is why
for musicians as well. This is why people most handmade objects are much more
often tend to hear the words ‘young expensive than mass-produced objects.
artist,’ through media to refer to emerging
musicians. Here it is important to What is the difference between Artist
highlight that the term artist is not only and Artisan?
attributed for those who create art as an
occupation, but also for those who are Definitions of Artist and Artisan:
skilled in a particular activity such
as drawing, designing, composing, etc. Artist: An artist is a person who
performs any of the creative arts.
The specialty of an artist is that he is able Artisan: An artisan is a skilled worker
to create art for the sake of art itself who makes things by hand.
without needing any ulterior motives.
Some artists create their works of art for Characteristics of Artist and Artisan:
the satisfaction of the society in which
Artistic Value:
they live. In this case, they have to
confine themselves to the societal Artist: The object has a clear artistic
demands and limitations. However, there value.
are also others who go beyond social
restrictions and create art for the Artisan: The object has an artistic value.
pleasure of creating. It is believed that
through art the artist can create a change Functional Value:
in society. This is because art appeals to Artist: The object has no functional
all senses of people. value.
Artisan: The object has a functional
value.
Object:
Artist: The object has a lot of aesthetic
value and is appreciated for this quality
as it pleases the individual.
Artisan: The object, though utilitarian,
has certain aesthetic attributes to it.