Art terminology explained in a series of animated short videos

Artist Name: The name by which the artist is known professionally.

Catalogue Raisonné: Complete documentary listing of all works by an artist known at the time of compilation. It includes an identifying catalogue number for each work listed, as well as information such as provenance, current location and/or exhibition history.

Condition Report: Notes any damage or unusual characteristics relating to an item or work of art. The type and location of damage are explained in detail to ensure a complete examination.

Edition: Set of prints, photographs or sculptures, made from a single image of one plate, negative, or mold, and numbered consecutively. For example, a piece marked 20/100 is the 20th print out of 100 prints which were produced. These editions vary in size, and artists often choose to duplicate impressions on different types of paper or color states.

Estimate: An approximate calculation of degree or worth. When quoting the value of a piece, appraisers often take into consideration specific characteristics such as date, medium, size, technique, style, condition, and/or rarity.

Exhibition: The public display of a work of art. Artists can have a solo exhibition, retrospective exhibition, or be part of a group exhibition. Solo exhibitions consist of a single artist and may include a variety of works. Retrospective exhibitions typically look historically at the career of an artist or summarize the artist's works to date. Group exhibitions are usually created around a specific theme or idea, or composed of a variety of works from multiple artists, and embody many different mediums.

Foundry: A workshop where cast metal sculpture is created.

Markings: Any identifying features found on an item for sale (e.g., signature, stamp, manufacturers mark, silver mark).

Medium: The material/materials an artist utilized in creating a work of art, such as oil paint, acrylic or bronze. The material that a work was created on, such as canvas or wood, is also considered part of the medium. For example, one might say that the medium of an oil painting is "oil on canvas."

Print / Casting Year: Works of art produced in an edition, such as prints, sculpture, and photography can have a second applicable date. For example, a photograph might have been taken in 1932, but printed or re-printed in 1975 from the original negative.

Provenance: The history or exact record of ownership for a work of art. The provenance of a work of art helps museum staff, curators, gallerists and auction houses determine valuation and authenticity.

Publications: Any publication in which either the specific work of art or artist was noted.

Publisher: The printer or foundry that produces an artist's work in multiples (i.e., an edition). For example, Atelier Mourlot of Paris, France, was the publisher for Pablo Picasso's prints.

Size: An item's height, width and depth noted in either inches or centimeters.

Title: The name by which a work of art is formally known.

Year: The year a work of art was created.

Media: 

Painting: The practice of applying pigment combined with a binding agent to a surface such as paper, canvas, wood, glass or other.

Acrylic: Water-based plastic paint consisting of pigments bound in an acrylic resin mixture. Can be thinned with water while wet, but becomes tough and water resistant once dry.

Alkyd: Synthetic resin used in the manufacturing of paints and varnishes. An alkyd is a mixture of alcohol and acid and must be thinned with solvent or paint thinner. Alykds dry faster than oils but not as fast as acrylic paints.

Encaustic: The process of painting by mixing dry pigments with molten wax and varying amounts of Damar varnish. Hot wax painting is easily manipulated, resulting in a variety of textures and color combinations.

Fresco: A painting technique, perfected at the time of the Renaissance, in which pigments suspended in water are applied to a damp plaster surface. As the pigments dry, they become a part of the plaster or wall surface.

Gouache: Painting medium similar to watercolor characterized by pigments suspended in water. However, due to the presence of chalk, gouache produces a heavier and more opaque image than watercolor.

Ink / Wash: Also known as East Asian brush painting, ink/wash painting was developed in China during the Tang Dynasty (618-907). Artists typically grind their own ink by combining water with densely packed ink sticks on a grinding stone. Ink/Wash paintings require a highly skilled artist since brushstrokes cannot be erased.

Mixed Media Painting: A mixed media painting employs multiple media to create a final piece. For example, a work on canvas that combines paint, ink, and collage is considered a mixed media painting.

Oil Paint: Technique developed during the 15th and 16th centuries in which slow-drying paint is made by mixing color pigments with an oil base.

Pastel: Pastels are sticks of color, typically made from oil or chalk. Artists use pastels to create a soft and delicate image. The medium can often be unforgiving, as it is difficult for the artist to fix a mistake.

Chalk pastels: The most widely used form of pastel, soft chalk pastels are brightly-colored and easily blended.

Oil pastels: Oil pastels have similar characteristics to chalk, or soft, pastels. However, they are difficult to blend and have a more buttery consistency.

Sumi-e: Literally meaning “ink painting,” Sumi-e paintings are monochromatic and typically associated with the practice of Zen Buddhism. This elegant form of painting was developed in China during the Song Dynasty (960-1279).

Tempera: A medium that was prevalent in Orthodox paintings during Southern Europe’s Middle Ages. The artist combines egg yolk, egg white, and oil to bind a range of pigments on a rigid support such as wood paneling.

Watercolor: Painting that is characterized by colorful pigments dissolved in water to produce a translucent image.

Printmaking: 

Printmaking: Process in which a work can be recreated from a single image.

Intaglio Methods: Intaglio includes the engraving, etching and drypoint methods of printmaking, and is produced via cuts made in a metal surface. These incised areas are then filled with ink and rolled through a press, thus transferring an image to paper. All intaglio prints have platemarks.

Aquatint: In this intaglio method of printmaking, a porous ground coats a metal plate, which is then immersed in acid allowing an even biting of the plate. The resulting image has a grainy and textural effect.

Chine Colle: A chine colle print is created by affixing layers of thinner sheets of paper to a heavier sheet, and then making an intaglio impression. The thinner top sheets take the impression much more easily than a heavier paper, creating a sense of depth in the printed image, both physically and visually.

Drypoint: Often used in combination with engraving or etching techniques, lines are scratched or gouged onto a metal plate creating a burr. The raised burr is quite pronounced and is not eliminated when printing, resulting in a heavier line than with engraving alone.

Engraving: The most popular of the intaglio methods of printmaking, an engraved print is created by scratching or cross-hatching into the surface of a polished metal plate. The plate is then inked, covered with a sheet of paper and run through a press. The areas of the plate which are incised print, transferring the final image to paper.

Etching: Etching refers to the process of using acid to cut into a metal plate. After the plate has “etched”, it is covered with ink and run through the press revealing the etched image on paper.

Mezzotint: In this method of printmaking the artist creates a dark base on a metal plate using a cutting instrument called a "rocker." Then, using a scraper, the artist burnishes the plate in the areas in which he desires to achieve a lighter color. Finally, the artist inks the plate and rolls it through a press topped with a piece of paper to create the final image.

Mixed Method Engraving: This is a method of intaglio printmaking which combines two or more methods.

Photogravure: Developed in the 1830s by Henry Fox Talbot, photogravure is an intaglio printmaking process in which an image is transferred to a flat, etched copper plate, hand-inked and printed.

Steel Engraving: Steel engravings utilize plates composed of a harder metal, as opposed to the traditional copper plate. This method is preferable when creating designs intended for large editions as the plate will not degrade as rapidly.

Stipple Engraving: Rather than etching lines, the design in this method of printmaking is created by applying large numbers of incised dots to the plate’s surface, similar to pointillism in painting.

Planographic Methods: Planographic methods include all types of prints which are drawn on a flat surface and run through a press.

Lithography: Lithography is a method of printmaking based on the concept of the repulsion of oil and water. In this process, the artist uses a grease-based chalk to draw an image on stone. An oil-based ink is then applied to the stones surface allowing the ink to stick to the greased areas of the stone. The stone is then inked, and the image is transferred to paper, after being run through a press.

Chromolithography: This term refers to any lithograph which is printed in color. A chromolithograph requires a separate printing for each color.

Relief Methods: A relief print is one when material such as part of a wood block, a piece of linoleum, a metal plate or other carvable material left in relief to be printed black and the remainder is cut away.

Embossing: Embossing is the process of creating an impression of an image that results in a raised surface. This can be done alone (blind embossing) or over an already printed image.

Linocut: The linocut is a 20th century variation on the woodcut. It is created in the same manner, except that a piece of linoleum, which is soft and pliable, is used instead of wood.

Ukiyo-e: Literally translated, this means "pictures of the floating world." An Ukiyo-e is a traditional Japanese woodblock print dating from the Edo period (1603-1867).

Woodcut: Woodcut is a printmaking method in which the artist works on a plank of wood, cutting away the parts of the design which are not to be printed. The wooden surface is then inked, covered with a sheet of paper and run through a press.

Wood Engraving: A wood engraving is a variation on the woodcut. Differing from a woodcut, it is done using the cut end of a piece of wood, as opposed to the plank side. Harder wood is typically employed to create a finer line in comparison to the soft, heavy lines associated with woodcuts.

Stenciling Methods: This printmaking method refers to the principle of cutting or creating a hole in a protected surface and applying color through the hole to the surface beneath.

Serigraph or Silk-Screen: Serigraphs, also known as silk-screens, are created from a special type of stencil. A screen is made of porous fabric and stretched over a wood or aluminum frame. Parts of the screen are covered with non-permeable material forming a stencil. The areas which allow ink to pass freely create the final image, which can be printed on a number of different grounds, including fabric and paper.

Pochoir: Defined as "stencil" in French, a pochoir print is hand-colored and created with a series of carefully cut stencils. This method of printmaking was most prevalent during the early part of the 20th century in Paris and frequently used for fashion plates during the Art Deco period.

Monotype or Monoprint: The monotype/monoprint incorporates both printmaking and painting, producing a single impression by using pressure to transfer a painted image to paper.

Works on Paper: 

Works on Paper: Works on Paper include artworks drawn, painted or otherwise created on paper using a variety of media.

Acrylic: Water-based plastic paint consisting of pigments bound in an acrylic resin mixture. Can be thinned with water while wet, but become tough and water resistant once dry.

Charcoal: Charcoal refers to the drawing utensil employed by artists as a medium for sketches, finished works, and under-drawings for paintings. The black and crumbly nature of charcoal produces a freer and less dense line than graphite.

Collage: The word collage derives from the French, coller, which means to glue. Here a work of art is created by clipping and adhering flat articles, such as photographs, newspaper and fabric, to a two-dimensional surface.

Colored Pencil: Colored pencils are hand-held writing or drawing instruments typically used to create designs on paper.

Crayon: Crayons are sticks of colored wax used for writing and drawing.

Gouache: Gouache is a painting medium similar to watercolor that is characterized by pigments suspended in water. However, due to the presence of chalk, gouache produces a heavier and more opaque image than a watercolor.

Graphite: Graphite is a medium known for its greasy texture and metallic gray color which can be easily removed with an eraser.

Ink / Wash: Ink is a liquid medium composed of a variety of pigments and dyes used to color a surface. It is often used for drawing or writing with a pen or brush. Thicker inks are used in letterpresses and lithographic printing.

Mixed Media Work on Paper: A mixed media work on paper employs multiple media to create a final piece.

Oil Paint: This term refers to the technique developed during the 15th and 16th centuries in which slow drying paint is made by mixing color pigments with an oil base.

Pastel: Pastels are sticks of color, typically made from oil or chalk. Artists use pastels to create a soft and delicate image. The medium can often be unforgiving, as it is difficult for the artist to fix a mistake.

Chalk pastels: Soft chalk pastels are brightly colored, easily blended, and the most widely used form of pastel.

Oil pastels: Oil pastels have similar characteristics to chalk, or soft, pastels. However, they are difficult to blend and have a more buttery consistency.

Tempera: Tempera is a medium that was prevalent in Orthodox paintings of Southern Europe's Middle Ages. The artist combines egg yolk, egg whites, and oil to bind a range of pigments on a rigid support such as wood paneling.

Watercolor: Watercolor painting is characterized by colorful pigments dissolved in water producing a translucent image.