UPMSP High School Painting key terms

One of the basic visual building blocks used to make any artwork: line, shape, form, space, value, colour and texture. Artists combine these to build images.

A guideline for arranging elements of art effectively, such as balance, contrast, emphasis, rhythm, movement, pattern, unity and proportion. Principles describe how parts work together.

A mark made by a moving point, such as a pencil stroke on paper. Lines can be straight, curved, thick, thin, rough or smooth, and they suggest direction and feeling.

A flat, two-dimensional area enclosed by an outline or edge, such as a circle, triangle or a painted leaf form. Shapes may be geometric or organic.

A three-dimensional quality suggesting height, width and depth, as in a sphere, cube or sculpted figure. In painting, shading and perspective create the illusion of form.

The lightness or darkness of a colour or grey tone. Value contrast builds form, depth and mood, and a value scale runs from white through greys to black.

The visual or actual surface quality of an artwork, such as rough, smooth, glossy or grainy. Artists suggest texture with brushwork, mark-making and material choice.

The distribution of visual weight in a composition. Symmetrical balance mirrors forms on either side, asymmetrical balance uses unequal but stable masses, and radial balance spreads outward from a centre.

The principle of making one area or object the focal point so the viewer's eye goes there first. Contrast, isolation, placement and size are common ways to create emphasis.

The sense that all parts of an artwork belong together as a whole. Repeated colours, consistent brushwork and shared shapes help achieve unity with variety.

A principle created by repeating or alternating elements so the eye moves through the work in a measured way, similar to a beat in music.

The noticeable difference between elements placed together, such as light against dark, warm against cool, or rough against smooth. Contrast creates interest and clarifies forms.

A line that describes the outer edge and important inner ridges of a form. Contour drawing records edges without shading and trains careful observation.

A quick, loose sketch that captures the action, pose or energy of a subject rather than fine detail. Artists use it to study movement before detailed work.

The relative size of one part to another or to the whole figure. Correct proportion makes a drawing believable; head-to-body ratios and sighting help check it.

A system for showing depth on a flat surface. Linear perspective uses a horizon line and vanishing points, while atmospheric perspective lightens and softens distant objects.

The point on the horizon line where parallel receding lines appear to meet in linear perspective. One-point and two-point perspective each use different numbers of these points.

Drawing a form as it appears when pointing toward or away from the viewer, so it looks compressed. It is used to show limbs or objects projecting into space.

Building tone with pencil, charcoal or paint to show light and shadow on a form. Gradual shading creates volume; hatching and stippling are common shading techniques.

A colour that cannot be mixed from other colours. In traditional painter's pigments the primaries are red, yellow and blue; mixing them produces secondary colours.

A colour made by mixing two primary colours. Red and yellow give orange, yellow and blue give green, and blue and red give violet.

Two colours opposite each other on the colour wheel, such as red and green or blue and orange. Placed side by side they intensify; mixed, they neutralise each other.

A circular diagram arranging hues by their mixing relationships. It helps artists choose harmonious schemes, complements and analogous groups when planning a painting.

Colours that sit next to each other on the colour wheel, such as yellow, yellow-green and green. Analogous schemes feel calm and unified because the hues are closely related.

The name of a colour family, such as red, blue or yellow, regardless of how light, dark or dull it is. Hue is one of the three dimensions of colour.

The purity or intensity of a colour. A fully saturated hue is vivid; adding grey, its complement or white reduces saturation and makes the colour duller.

A colour lightened by adding white, such as pink from red. Tints raise value and usually reduce apparent saturation.

A colour darkened by adding black or a dark pigment, such as maroon from red. Shades lower value and are used for shadows and depth.

A colour of low saturation, such as grey, or a brown made by mixing complements. Neutrals calm a palette and let stronger hues stand out.

Ancient Buddhist mural painting found in the rock-cut caves of Ajanta in Maharashtra, dating roughly from the 2nd century BCE to the 6th century CE. The murals show courtly and religious scenes in refined naturalistic style.

A small, finely detailed painting, often on paper or cloth, made for manuscripts or albums. Indian schools such as Mughal, Rajput and Pahari miniatures use delicate brushwork and mineral colours.

Court painting patronised by Mughal emperors from the 16th century, known for portrait studies, historical scenes, nature studies and fine detail blended with Persian and Indian traditions.

A group of Rajput court painting styles from Rajasthan, flourishing from the 17th century, marked by bold colour, flat profile figures and themes of Krishna, seasons and court life.

Painting from the Himalayan hill states, especially from the 17th to 19th centuries, known for lyrical Krishna themes, soft colour and graceful figures, with Kangra and Basohli as noted centres.

A folk painting tradition of the Mithila region of Bihar, done on walls and paper with double outlines, dense pattern filling and symbolic motifs such as fish, lotus and the sun.

A tribal wall painting tradition of the Warli people of Maharashtra, using white rice paste on a mud-brown ground to depict simple geometric figures, daily life and ritual scenes.

A period of European art from roughly the 14th to 16th centuries that revived classical ideals, studied anatomy and nature, and developed linear perspective and oil painting techniques.

A French movement from the 1870s whose painters worked outdoors, using broken colour and visible brushmarks to capture fleeting light and atmosphere rather than polished detail.

Strong contrast between light and dark used to model forms and create dramatic depth. It is associated with Renaissance and Baroque painting, including the work of Caravaggio.

An opaque water-based paint with pigment, chalk or white extender and gum binder. It dries matte, covers underlying layers and is widely used in Indian miniature and poster work.

Paint made of pigment bound in gum arabic, thinned with water. Its transparency and flowing washes suit soft edges and layered glazing on watercolour paper.

Pigment ground in a drying oil such as linseed oil. It dries slowly, allowing blending and reworking, and can be applied thinly as glaze or thickly as impasto.

A paint in which pigment is bound with an emulsion, traditionally egg yolk. It dries quickly to a matte finish and was the main panel-painting medium before oil.

Painting with pigment on dry lime plaster, usually with a binding medium. Unlike true fresco, the paint sits on the surface and is more fragile.

Applying a thin, transparent layer of paint over a dry lower layer. Light passes through the glaze and reflects back, giving depth and luminous colour, especially in oil and watercolour.

Paint applied thickly so that brush or palette-knife marks stand out from the surface. Impasto catches light and adds texture and energy to a painting.

The arrangement of elements within the picture space. A strong composition guides the eye, balances masses and supports the meaning of the work.

The area of an artwork that first attracts the viewer's attention, created by contrast, placement, detail or colour. A painting may have one main focal point or several.

A composition guide that divides the picture into a three-by-three grid and places key subjects near the grid intersections rather than at the centre, producing a livelier image.

The space occupied by the main subjects or shapes in an artwork, as opposed to the surrounding empty areas. Careful balance of positive and negative space strengthens a design.

The empty or background area around and between subjects. Artists use negative space deliberately to define shapes and give a composition breathing room.

Painting outdoors directly from the subject, usually landscape, rather than in a studio. It demands quick work to capture changing light and weather.

A bound book of drawing paper used for studies, notes and ideas. Regular sketchbook work develops observation and provides source material for finished paintings.

A curated collection of an artist's finished works and studies, presented to show range and skill. For exams it should be organised, labelled and include preparatory sketches.

A large painting made directly on a wall or a fixed surface. Murals often address public or religious themes and require planning for scale and viewing distance.