| A | B |
|---|
| representational or figurative | more or less realistic depictions of recognizable scenes and figures |
| abstract, abstraction | simplification of scenes or figures by omitting realistic detail |
| non-objective, non-figurative | pictures without recognizable scenes or figures |
| portrait | depiction of an identifiable person |
| genre | tthe types of painting |
| religious, mythical, literary | subjects from religious and mythic traditions or literary works - many with iconographic symbols or references |
| historical | scenes of important moments from a national or heroic tradition |
| landscape | an outsoor scene or view;predominates over human actors |
| still life | a scene of nonliving objects, such as food, flowers and vessels |
| narrative | any subject that tells a story |
| symbol | a pictorial element that refers to an anstract idea or meaning |
| medium | the kind of paint; also the surface or support to which the paint is applied |
| oil paint | yields lustrous colors and allows over-painting |
| acrylic paint | dries more quickly than oil and is widely used by painters today |
| tempera | a blend of egg yolk, water and pigment |
| watercolor | any pigment dissolved in water |
| gouache | thicker and less transparent than conventional watercolor |
| pastel | gummy crayons much like chalk |
| fresco | painting on a plastered wall or ceiling, usually applied when the plaster is wet |
| mixed media | refers to any mixture of different paint and media |
| scroll | paper or cloth rolled on scrolls, usually painted in ink |
| canvas | a widely used painting surface because it is light, cheap and easily rolled for storage |
| panel | a flat wood surface |
| paper | a less expensive surface, often used for sketching |
| mosaic | a picture made by cementing small pieces of stone, glass or tile onto a wall or floor |
| scale | the size of a picture, often an important factor in the cost |
| texture | the feel of a painted surface to the touch |
| form | includes shape, line, color, composition and pictorial space |
| line | any point extended vertically, horizontally or diagonally |
| shape | any figure bound or defined by line |
| curvilinear | curving or swirling lines |
| rectilinear | straight and perpendicular lines |
| geometric | triangles, squares and circles |
| organic | floral, animal and other natural shapes |
| composition | the arrangment of different pictorial elements |
| symmetry | balance of elements lift to right or top to bottom on either side of a dividing line |
| asymmetry | imbalance of elements |
| movement | the direction in which figures seem to be moving in the pictorial space or direction in which the picture directs the viewer's eye |
| foreground/middle ground/background | divisions of a picture into planes - slices of the pictorial space from front to back as it appears to the viewer |
| perspective | methods of creating the illusion of depth in a flat picture |
| linear perspective | technique of making parallel lines (like railroad tracks) converge at a point |
| atmospheric or aerial perspective | technique of blurring the outlines and altering the color of distant objects |
| pattern | any meaningful repetition of an element in the picture |
| unity | feeling of coherence and oneness in a work of art |
| hue | the difference between red, orange, and yellow; generally we mean color |
| primary colors | red, yellow and blue; other colors can be derived from these |
| complementary colors | two hues that, taken together, combine all three primary colors |
| value | whether the color is light or dark |
| intensity | how bright or "saturated" the color is |
| palette | the range of colors a painter chooses in a particular work |
| light and dark | italian chiaroscuro, the pattern of light and shadow that causes objects to seem round |
| style | the distinctive manner of painting used by an individual or group |
| patron | the client for whom a picture is produced |
| audience | the real or implied group to whom a painting is addressed |
| rock art | pictures selected or painted on rock surfaces; also cave art or cave painting |
| graffiti art | general name for art applied (often illegally) to walls and trains, usually with spray paint |
| mural | any painting applied to a wall |
