Paint is essentially a pigment, a binder and a solvent with the occasional additives. Pigment colour depends on its chemical structure, and it provides the colour and the opacity. The binder is what is essentially left once the paint dries, the surface film if you will. The solvent is the thinner, and makes the paint applicable. Additives give additional qualities to the paint.
Paint in pre-historic times
The first paint formulas were very simple and wouldn’t have been able to withstand human interference and the elements for very long as paints do today. However because the early art works were completed in caves, and then were essentially sealed off from access, they were protected. Rock slides were common which concealed a lot of caves for many thousands of years, preserving the inside.
This became evident when the Altamira Cave was discovered in Spain. It is approx. 1000m long and dates back to between 14,000 and 18,000 years ago. It was open to the public in the 1970s and the paintings were beginning to get damaged by the carbon dioxide and water vapour that was coming into the air due to the amount of visitors. Access was banned to the public in the 2000s when mould started to appear.
Pigments
The use of pigments is thought to go back even further than the first cave paintings that were found, 100,000 years ago. It would have been used to decorate bodies as well as other objects that are now lost to us.
Iron oxide is one of the most common minerals. Depending on the chemical composition, iron oxide can create yellow and red ochre, these were used quite extensively in Paleo times. Charcoal would have given black and natural chalk provides white. The pigments would have been ground down and mixed with a liquid. It could have been water, blood, urine, egg yolk or oil.
Ancient Egyptians
The ancient Egyptians used pigments derived from natural materials like rocks, plants, and animals, and they were ground into fine powders before being mixed with a binding agent to create paint. One of the most commonly used pigments in ancient Egyptian paint was ochre as we’ve seen above. This yellow-orange pigment was made from naturally occurring iron oxide deposits and was used in a wide variety of art forms, from tomb murals to funerary objects. Another popular pigment was lapis lazuli, a deep blue stone that was highly prized for its rich colour. It was used to create jewellery, figurines, and even inlays in tombs.
Egyptian artists also used a variety of plant-based pigments to create paint. One such pigment was indigo, which was derived from the leaves of the indigo plant. It was used to create a range of blue hues and was often mixed with other pigments to create different shades. Henna, a plant that is still used today for temporary tattoos, was also used as a pigment in ancient Egyptian paint. It was used to create a range of reddish-brown hues and was often used in funeral preparations.
Animal-derived pigments were also used in ancient Egyptian paint. One such pigment was carbon black, which was made by burning animal bones or ivory. It was used to create black lines and shadows in paintings and was also used as a cosmetic, particularly in eye makeup.
To create paint from these pigments, the ancient Egyptians would grind them into a fine powder and then mix them with a binding agent. The binding agent was often made from a plant resin or gum, such as gum arabic or frankincense. The resulting paint was then applied to a variety of surfaces, from papyrus and wood to stone and ceramics.
Watercolours
This is known to be the oldest type of paint, where pigments are suspended in a water based solution, which is what prehistoric people would have used as well. In East Asia, early art works using watercolour was brush painting or scroll painting, using blacks and browns to create imagery.
In the renaissance, watercolours took off. Some Baroque painters would use watercolours to do their sketching and designs, whilst others used it for landscapes and other imagery. Botanical paintings became hugely popular and refined with watercolours in the renaissance.
During 18th century, the elite was taught watercolour painting as it was considered good education. Mapmakers and engineers would use it for depicting motifs in their works and for painting terrains. This then led to wide scale manufacture of brushes and surfaces to paint on. Chemistry breakthroughs lead to synthetic pigments being created. In the 19th century, watercolour was being industrially produced in tubes.
Gouache
Gouache is similar to watercolour but modified to be opaque. The particles are larger than in watercolour and the pigment to binder ratio is greater. It has great reflective qualities. A form of it was used in ancient Egypt, in Persia and for the Mughal Empire. It was generally used in conjunction with other mediums.
Today it is used less commonly than acrylic or watercolour however the opaque qualities of gouache provide a unique finish
Oil Paints
Oil paints were first used in Asia as early as 7th century using walnut as poppy seed oils as the base. In the classical periods, oil based paints were more used as varnish to protect objects and paintings. They made their way to Europe by 12th century. Oil painting as commonly known today, dates back to the early 15th century when Flemish artists began experimenting with oil-based mediums.
The earliest oil paintings were created using oil extracted from walnuts or linseed. The oil acted as a binder, allowing the pigments to adhere to the canvas and creating a durable surface. Artists found that these paints had a smoother consistency and allowed them to create finer details in their work. This led to the development of the glazing technique, where layers of transparent paint are applied over one another to create depth and luminosity in the final work.
During the Renaissance, oil painting became the preferred medium for artists. The flexibility of oil paint allowed artists to create realistic portraits, landscapes, and still lifes that were unparalleled in their depth and detail. Oil paint also allowed for the creation of large-scale works, such as frescoes and murals.
Synthetic pigments and modern paints
In the 19th century, chemists began developing synthetic pigments that could be mass-produced. This led to the creation of colours that were previously impossible to achieve, such as bright blues, greens, and purples. Artists like Vincent van Gogh and Claude Monet were quick to adopt these new colours.
In the 20th century, new technologies like acrylics and spray paints revolutionized the world of art and design. Acrylic paints are water-based and can be mixed with other media, such as oil or watercolours. They dry quickly and are easy to clean up, making them a popular choice for artists and designers.
