The Artist's Handbook of Materials and Techniques PDF
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evisecf \ott Artisfs Handbook and of Materials Techniqu OilsTempera-Mural Painting Pigments-Mediums Grounds-Water Color • Prints-Sculpture New Chapter on Synthetic Materials Ralph Mayer HANDBOOK OF / THE ARTISTS ANDTECHNIQUES MATERIALS Since 1940, when it was originally published, The Artist's Handbook has become indispen- sable for thousands of practicing artists. In the last decade, however, new art movements have ledtounprecedented changesinthetechnology ohfasarntiostws'domanteeraiamlsa.joArccroervdiisinognlyo,f RhiaslpbhooMka.yHeer has made extensive changes in every section bysupplyingtheverylatest information.Achap- ter has been added on the synthetic resins, luminescent pigments, and other new materials, with detailed technical advice, and Mr. Mayer has added notes on new print-making trends and on collage, and even asection on rubbings. The author assumes that this encyclopedic volume will be referred to frequently. He there- foreconsistentlygivesspecific, practical advice on every aspect of his subject, be it the com- pounding of mediums, the selection of pig- ments, or the preparation of canvas or wall. Tphiegrmeentiscaatlailstogoufe,reatanidl saonurexcteesnsoifvemaateprpieanld,ixa giving conversionfactors,figuresforoil absorp- tion etc Thedetailed index makes all the infor- mation immediately accessible to the reader. Completely updated, expanded, and reset thethird edition ofthisdefinitive referencework now morethaneveran invaluableaidtowork- iisng artistHsa.nTdhbeoofikrstweanntd sinetcoonnidneedpirtiinotnisngofs Tahned Artist's were translated into three foreign languages, attracting users all over the world. JACKETDESIGNBYHALSIEGEL 0870 THE ARTIST'S HANDBOOK of Materials and Techniques By Ralph Mayer THIRD EDITION / Revised and Expanded NEW YORK THE VIKING PRESS Copyright 1940, renewed 1968, Copyright © 1957, 1970 by Ralph Mayer All rights reserved Newly revised and reset edition issued in 1970 by The Viking Press, Inc. 625 Madison Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10022 Published in Canada by The Macmillan Company of Canada Limited Originally published in 1940, with a revised edition issued in 1957 SBN 670-13665-4 Library of Congress catalog card number: 56-9222 Printed in U.SA. by Vail-Ballou Press, Inc. To Bena Preface This book has been prepared for the purpose of giving the artist a com- plete and up-to-date account of the materials and methods of his craft. It is based on my experience in the paint, varnish, and pigment industries, where I was engaged for a number of years in chemical research and in the manufacture of most of the basic materials used by painters; and on my experience as a lecturer and consultant to artists and as a painter. It is because the last is my chief interest that I have endeavored to present the subjects from the viewpoint of the artist and arrange the material in a mannermost useful to him. The artist studies his materials and methods in order to gain the great- est possible control over his manipulations, so that he may bring out the best characteristics of his chosen technique and express or convey his in- tentions properly, and in order to insure the permanence of his results. Haphazard departure from approved methods will often involve a sacri- fice in one of these directions, but those who have acquired a complete and intelligent grasp of underlying principles are usually able to vary the established procedures successfully, to suit their individual requirements. At present there are numerous materials and methods the use of which is well established by painters, but which are in an unstandardized state as regards scientifically correct knowledge or procedure. For instance, few modern investigators are in a position to pass judgment on the dura- bility oftraditional mural-painting methods under present-day conditions or to evaluate the merits of newly developed materials as definitely as viii Preface such decisions may be made in other technical fields, where materials and methods have been more completely studied for their applications to modern requirements. There are still many gaps in our knowledge which well-directed investigation could fill in. I have included few notes on matters that are not ordinarily classified with materials and methods but that bear a similar practical relation to the artist's technique. I have also departed from conventional procedure in the rather frequent mention of trademarked names, commercial prod- ucts, and names oftheirsellers. These widely available standardized prod- ucts have in many instances taken the place of the ungraded materials of former times, and they have been referred to here solely from the view- point of the retail purchaser, as they are discussed among artists. It seems to me to be just as important to know where one may obtain a raw material and what to ask for as to know the Latin name of the tree from which it comes or how it is dug out of the ground. Because I have found from experience that a fairly large proportion of inquiries deals with ob- solete or discredited materials and methods, I have mentioned some sub- jects which might ordinarily be omitted from a work of this nature. On the other hand, certain subjects which are of greater concern to the theorist than to the active practitioner have been given less attention than they customarily receive. In reviewing the techniques of the past, I have confined my remarks to periods or schools rather than considered the specific methods and materials ofindividual masters. The reader will find fewer instructions on the specific application of materials and methods to plastic and graphic arts than are customary in books on these subjects, because I believe that many such instructions are beyond the scope of a technical work, particularly since they are often open to divergent opinions or criticisms from a purely artistic view- point. In each case one must determine just where the discussion leaves the field of technology and enters the field of aesthetics, and I have at- tempted to confine technical data to their general application to artists' techniques and to avoid either criticism or approval except on technolog- ical grounds. Ingeneral, each ofthe various processes has beenpresented first in out- line form, and then given step-by-step detailed treatment, the degree of completeness varying with the nature and importance of the process. Al- lusions to chemical and other scientific principles have been subordi- nated to a clear understanding of the subjects, and the reader has been referred to a separate chapter for the chemical aspects of the various top-
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