Art Glossary

For those interested in Art but still not familiar with all the day to day terms used by galleries we have produced this list of definitions. We hope you find them useful. If there are any art terms not listed which you know of or would like answered please email us and we will try to help.


ABSTRACT - Art which departs from real subjects and representational accuracy in preference to shapes, color and texture. This form of Scottish Art is sometimes referred to as non-representational art.

ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISM - New York painting movement of the 1940's with its artistic roots based upon Abstract Art. This type of painting is often referred to as action painting. .

ACCENT - where an artist highlights specific parts of a painting and in the process creates in them more attention.

ACRYLIC - Rapidly drying paint used by artists. Acrylic is made from synthetic materials that are water soluble while wet but once dried and cured become tough and flexible. The paint is long-lasting with good color fastness and has little or no fumes. British Artists favor Acrylic Art when a painting is going to hang in public areas where people might touch the painting or it might be exposed to dust. British Artists showing at Red Rag Modern British Art Gallery and specializing in Acrylic paintings include: Sylvia Antonsen

ACTION PAINTING - where artists use vigorous physical activity to create paintings usually on a large abstract style.

AERIAL PERSPECTIVE - Painting technique used to reproduce real life vistas - makes distant objects appear to have less color, texture, and distinction.

AESTHETIC - art term relating to beauty and beautiful

ART DECO - Art style popularized in the 1920s and 30s. Art Deco utilized modern materials and the art style was characterized by repetitive, geometric lines, patterns and curves.

ART NOUVEAU - Art style based on organic forms featuring swirling shapes and curves

ART RESTORATION - The repair of artworks, and returning art to as close as original condition as possible. Art prevention is better than cure - for advice from Red Rag Gallery see looking after your British Art

AVANT-GARDE - French term meaning at the forefront. Art which is innovative and producing new ideas and subject matter. First appeared in France during nineteenth century and is usually credited to Henri de Saint-Simon. He believed in the social power of the arts and regarded artists, alongside scientists and industrialists, as the leaders of a new society.

The term Avant-garde art began around the 1850s with the Realism of Gustave Courbet. He was strongly influenced by early socialist ideas. Successive art movements such Cubism and Surrealism built upon the idea. Avant-Garde today is closely associated with the term Modern Art particularly when artists work is seen as high on originality.

BEAUX-ARTS - A school of fine arts located in Paris which stressed the necessity of academic painting.

BEESWAX - Art material made from honeycombs, used as a medium in modeling and in wax varnishes.

BINDER - Used to ensure particles of pigment stick to one another in artist paint such as Oil or Acrylic

BRITISH IMPRESSIONISM - The French Impressionist artists Daubigny, Monet, and Pissarro spent considerable time living and painting in London. But the development of British Impressionism revolved around - an American, James McNeill Whistler. He introduced the British to Impressionism in the early 1860's after moving from Paris. Other British artists that Whistler encouraged in this new art form were Sickert, Scott, Steer and Roussel. The development of British Impressionism was further promoted with the founding of the New English Art Club (NEAC) in 1886.

BRITISH SURREALISM - Founded in 1936 the British Surrealist group leading figures were David Gascoyne, Paul Nash, Roland Penrose and Herbert Read. In 1947 the British Surrealist group combined with their French counterparts. Red Rag British surrealist artists include: Simon Garden, Peter Messer and David Schofield


BRONZE - An alloy of copper and tin used by Artists for sculpture.

CANVAS - Fabrics that are prepared and used for painting. They maybe in panels, stretched on frames, or obtained by the yard. Art canvas varies from very fine such as the linen type used by Red Rag Gallery artist Sylvia Antonsen to the more textural canvas preferred by James Watt.

CANVAS TRANSFER PRINTS - This technique simulates the rich texture and appearance of an original oil painting It is an intensely detailed process whereby the image of a painting is chemically 'lifted' off and transferred onto an artist canvas. Red Rag Prints are produced using rigid quality standards and meticulous attention to detail ensuring the ink retention, paper removal, and bonding are successful and the art work remains true to the original and is guaranteed by the artist.

CASTING - The method by which Artists produce Sculptures. Liquid materials such as clay, bronze and plastic are poured into a mold and allowed to cool and harden. The material is transformed into the shape of the mold. British Artists showing at Red Rag Modern British Art Gallery and using this process include: Deidre Hubbard , Margaret Lovell , Anita Mandl , Charlotte Mayer and Guy Portelli.

CASTING - Used by Artists to reproduce original art sculpture. Casting moulds are typically made from plaster, clay, or wax.

CERAMICS - Hard glasslike compound. Ceramics are made by exposing clay to extreme heat in a kiln. The result is earthenware and stoneware art pieces. British Artists showing at Red Rag Modern British Art Gallery and specializing in Ceramic Art include: Walter Awlson and Brian Hollingworth .

CHIAROSCURO - The dramatic use of light and shadow to create a mood or a focal point in a painting.

COLLAGE - A painting technique used by artists where groups of different textured materials or objects are glued together to make a work of art. Red Rag Gallery British artists who use this technique include:Barbara Stewart

COLOR WHEEL - Circular presentation of colors based on color theory where relationship of colors to one another is displayed

COMPOSITION - the design and organization of individual components to produce a piece of Art. The term typically applies to two dimensional Art where balance and proportion are essential.

CONCEPTUAL ART - Art which is intended to communicate an idea or concept where the concept or idea and process is of greater importance than any tangible result and therefore does not have necessarily involve the creation or appreciation of a traditional art object such as a painting or sculpture.

CONTE CRAYON - Pencil lead used by British Artists such as Darren Baker and invented by Nicolas Conte.

CONTEMPORARY ARTIST - The term contemporary artist applies to all British Art being undertaken now. Generally it refers to any British Art made from around the 1960s to the present, or after the end of the modern art period. All Red Rag paintings are obtained from British Contemporary Artists who are living artists.

CUBISM - Influential art movement of the twentieth century. Cubism was begun by Pablo Picasso (1882-1973) and Georges Braque (1882-1963) in 1907. They were inspired by African sculpture, and by painters Paul Cézanne (1839-1906) and Georges Seurat (1859-1891), and by the Fauves. In Cubism the subject matter is broken up, analyzed, and reassembled in an abstracted form. Picasso and Braque initiated the movement following advice from Cézanne, who said artists should treat nature "in terms of the cylinder, the sphere and the cone."

DADA - An early twentieth century art movement which emerged during the First World War. Rather than supporting a specific art style of its own Dada ridiculed traditional art forms and contemporary culture. Dada artists produced art works which were considered deliberately nonsensical.

EN PLEIN AIR - "in the open air" is a term describing paintings that have been undertaken outdoors rather than in the Artist’s studio. Plein air painting was taken up by the English painters John Constable (1776-1837) and it became common place for Impressionists painters. Its popularity was aided by the development of easily portable painting equipment and materials, including paints sold in tubes. British Artists showing at Red Rag Modern British Art Gallery and painting en plein air include: Andrew Macara and John Martin .

ENGRAVING - Method used by printmakers to create images on hard wood or metal surfaces by using a burin (sharp tool)

ETCHING -
The earliest print graphic. The artist draws, using a sharp tool referred to as a burin, on the surface of a copper or zinc plate. Each plate is coated with an acid-resistant varnish, or "ground". As the artist draws - ground and varnish is removed leaving an image on the plate from which the print is made.

The plate is dipped in acid, which reacts with the soft, exposed metal, creating grooves or sunken channels, which will hold the ink. Ink is then applied onto the plate filling the grooves. The surface is wiped clean and the inked plate pressed onto moist paper, releasing the ink and creating the image in monotone. In most cases, the plate is then defaced or destroyed preventing the creation of any additional prints.

EXPRESSIONISM - A concept of painting in which traditional adherence to realism and proportion is secondary to the artist's emotional response to the subject.

FAUVISM - Painting style of early 20th century. The word means “Wild Beast”, so called because of the use of bold, clashing and vibrant colors. Henri Matisse and André Derain were leading artists known for this type of painting. The Fauve movement was a major influence in the paintings of the early Scottish Colorists.

FIGURATIVE - Figurative is a term used to refer to any form of modern or contemporary art that retains strong references to the real world. It is used to describe Landscape and Architectural painting subjects, but more often it is associated with the human figure. In a general sense figurative also applies retrospectively to all art before abstract art.

FINGER PAINTING - Painting where an artist applies paint using the hand rather brush or palette knife. Typically applied to strong non-absorbent paper which does not smear.

GENRE - Genre painting is Art that depicts subjects and scenes from everyday life, ordinary people and common activities. Also a type of painting can be identified by the Genre i.e. the genre of the painting is Landscape or Marine.

GESSO - An under-painting medium consisting of glue, plaster of Paris, or chalk and water. Gesso is used to size the canvas and prepare the surface for painting. Red Rag Scottish Artist Jock MacInnes paintings are undertaken on Gesso boards.


GICLEE - (Pronounced: Zhee-clay) Considered an original graphic, Giclee prints are produced as multiples. Red Rag Limited Edition Prints are normally limited to 100 or 195. The term originates from the French "to spray" and employs inkjet color application and digital color separation. Giclee is a computer controlled, fine art print making process. It uses millions of ink particles in a very fine spray, about 15 microns in size which is four times smaller than a human hair. The microscopic jet-stream spray is applied simultaneously to the paper and is controlled by a crystal frequency. The print is then coated with up to 15 layers of waterproof U.V. varnishes.

The result is a fine art print with flawless color reproduction and extraordinary consistency

GOUACHE - A heavy, opaque watercolor paint, sometimes called body color, producing a less wet-appearing and more strongly colored painting than ordinary watercolor. British Artists showing at Red Rag Modern British Art Gallery and using Gouache include: Susan Brown

HARD-EDGE PAINTING - A style adopted by recent contemporary artists where the forms are shown with precise, geometric lines and edges

HERRINGBONE PERSPECTIVE - is where lines of projection converge not on a vanishing point but on a vertical axis at the centre of the painting or drawing.

IMPASTO - The thick textured build up on the surface of a painting which is produced by an Artist when repeated application of paint is applied.

IMPRESSIONISM - Art style developed in France where artists like Degas, Monet, Pissaro and Renoir painted images of their subjects showing the effects of color, sunlight and shade on things at different times of day. The artists dissected light into its component colors. Each artist concentrated on light and the way it effected the visible world. Short brush-strokes of bright color were chosen to represent light which was then broken down into its spectrum components and re-combined by the eyes into another color when viewed at a distance. Current British Artists showing at Red Rag Modern British Art Gallery and painting in this style include Romeo di Girolamo.

KINETIC ART - An art style which contains and incorporates movement as part of the art piece.

LANDSCAPE - Categorization for artist paintings that predominantly features natural scenery rather than figures, architecture or other objects. British Artists showing at Red Rag Modern British Art Gallery and specializing in Landscape paintings include: Stephen Brown , Andrew Macara, Stephen Outram and Tom Wanless

LINEAR PERSPECTIVE - is a technique used by artists in painting and drawing to create an illusion of spatial depth on a two dimensional surface. The artist uses consistent geometric rules to make objects appear as they do to the human eye. For example: parallel lines appear to converge in the distance although in reality they do not; or lines of buildings are angled inward to make them appear to be going back into space. The recognition of linear perspective dates from the 15th century and is attributed to Filippo Brunelleschi's use of perspective painting.

LITHOGRAPH - Offset Lithograph has become the most widely used commercial printing process for art prints. This is a method of printing from a metal or stone surface on which the printing areas are made ink-receptive. Rather than pressing inked images onto paper using plates with raised or etched plates, an image is transferred to the paper using oil-based inks, chemically-treated plates made from photographic negatives, and an offset cylinder. Today the field of signed and numbered offset lithographs has become accepted in the art market and many have proved a reasonable British Art Investment.

MEDIUM - The material used by Artists to create a painting or sculpture artwork. For example: Oil, Acrylic, Mixed Media, Watercolor, Bronze.

MEDIUM - The term is used widely. Firstly to describe the material used by an Artist to produce an art work. Secondly it can be a binder for paint e.g. oil. And thirdly can used to describe art such as drawing, sculpture and painting

MINIMALISM - A Mid 20th Century style of painting and sculpture. The finished piece of art is reduced to a minimum number of lines, colors and shapes. Space and relationship of the elements are key in the art work.

MIXED MEDIA - Art term used to describe works made from different media. The use of mixed media began around 1912 with the Cubist collages and constructions of Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque. Essentially art can be made of anything or any combination of things, but British Mixed Media Art is mostly associated with contemporary paintings of oil paint with newspaper, card or wood. British artists showing at Red Rag Modern British Art Gallery and specializing in Mixed media painting include: Susan Brown and Barbara Stewart.

MODERNISM - An Art style that breaks with traditional art forms and searches for new modes of expression (early 20th century).

MONOCHROMATIC - In a contemporary painting the color scheme that involves using different degrees of a single color.

MONOPRINT - A one off kind of art print made by painting on a sheet of glass or metal, then transferring the still-wet painting to a sheet of paper. Sufficient original paint remains on the plate after the transfer so that the same or different colors can be re-applied to make subsequent prints, but no two prints are ever exactly alike.

MURAL - A continuous painting which is designed to fill a wall or other architectural area.

NEOCLASSICISM - New Expressionism was an Art style applied to 19th century Western Art. It reflected the classical art works of Greece and Rome. Paintings have well defined images, deliberate composition and utilize cool understated colors.

OIL PAINTINGS - A slow drying paint made when pigments are mixed with an oil. Linseed oil is the most traditional component. The oil dries with a hard film, and the colors are protected. Oil paints are usually opaque and traditionally used on canvas. They can have a matt or glossy finish. British Artists showing at Red Rag Modern British Art Gallery and specializing in Oil paintings include: David Cobley, Charles Hardaker, John Martinand William Selby

ORIGINAL PRINT - A print made from the original plate, block, stone, screen, etc. which the artist has created and printed.

PAINTERLY - A form of painting where images are predominantly created by use of colors rather than by defined lines. The Artist’s brushstrokes are very evident.

PASTEL - A medium made from gum and water, which when pressed into a dried stick form produces crayons. Chalk is similar to pastel, but more tightly bound. British Artists showing at Red Rag Modern British Art Gallery and who paint using Pastels include: Darren Baker, Moira Huntly and Barbara Stewart .

PERSPECTIVE - The way artists create an illusion of a three dimensional image onto a two dimensional painting or drawing. Art techniques used to achieve perspective are: ensuring variation between dimensions of scenes, placing images that are on the ground as lower when nearer and higher when deeper. There are three major types of perspective: aerial, herringbone, and linear.

POINTILLISM - The art of Pointillism is a form of painting in which tiny dots of primary-colors are used to generate secondary colors to produce a luminous quality. Pointillism is focused on the specific style of brushwork used to apply the paint. The term "Pointillism" was first used with respect to the work of George Seurat, and he is the artist most closely associated with the art term. Pointillism is considered to have been an influence on Fauvism. British Red Rag artist Nicholas Turner uses this technique.

POP ART - An art style derived from commercial art forms. Typically paintings and sculptures are larger than life replicas of day to day subjects. Pop Art developed in the late 1950s and was characterized in the 1960s by such artists as Andy Warhol, Claus Oldenberg, Roy Lichtenstein, George Segal, and Robert Indiana.

PROVENANCE - Provenance is the record of all previous ownership of a painting or work of art. Ideally this should cover the time it left the artist's studio to the present location, so there is evidence of unbroken ownership history. All Red Rag British and Scottish art and paintings are sourced directly from the Artists studio.


RAKU - Technique used by Sculptors to produce porous low-fired ceramic ware. The finished art pieces are characterized by subtly changing colors, over which the Sculptor has little control. British Artists Walter Awlson and Brian Hollingworth are specialists in producing Raku sculptures.

REALISM - Art style which evolved in the 19th century where a painting produced a view of the natural world in a highly representational way. Subjects were selected from everyday events and situations.

REPRESENTIONAL - Art works reflecting the real world

SCULPTURE - A three dimensional art form. Artists use a variety of materials to produce sculptures including wood, metal and clay.

STILL LIFE - Arrangement of subjects typically flowers, fruit and tableware. The organization and relationship of the objects to one another together with contrasting colors and shapes provide interest. British Artists showing at Red Rag Modern British Art Gallery and specializing in Still Life art include: Darren Baker, Tobias Harrison and Dawn Sidoli.

STRAINER - The canvas of most contemporary paintings is secured to a wooden frame that is commonly referred to as a strainer or stretcher. Strainers are equipped with expandable corner joints that can be adjusted to insure that the painting remains taught. The joints can be expanded by driving small wooden wedges into the interior corners of the strainer at the back of the painting.

STRETCHER - The canvas of most contemporary paintings are secured to a wooden frame that is commonly referred to as a stretcher or strainer. Stretchers are equipped with expandable corner joints that can be adjusted to insure that the painting remains taught. The joints can be expanded by driving small wooden wedges into the interior corners of the stretcher at the back of the painting.

STUCKISM - Stuckism is a radical art movement which seeks to promote Figurative Painting and against Conceptual Art. Stuckism values self-expression and adopts a holistic approach to art.

SURREALISM - A movement in literature and the visual arts that developed in the mid 1920s. Based upon revealing the subconscious mind in dream and hallucinatory images, the irrational, and the fantastic. A painting style that focuses on compositions with images often in unrelated or unexpected situations. Paintings can have dream and fantasy like aspects. Surrealism took two directions: representational and abstract. Surrealist British Artists showing at Red Rag Modern British Art Gallery include: Simon Garden Peter Messer, and David Schofield

TEMPERA - A traditional painting medium which requires the Artist to make-up his paints each day using egg yolk as a binder. British Artists showing at Red Rag Modern British Art Gallery and using Egg Tempera include: Peter Messer and Rob Milliken.

VISUAL ARTS - Visual Arts are all art forms which are primarily visual in nature as opposed to other arts e.g. performing arts. Visual Arts includes: painting, sculpture and photography.

WATERCOLORS - Any paint that uses water as a solvent. Paintings undertaken using this medium are known as watercolors. What carries the pigment in watercolor (called its medium, vehicle, or base) is gum arabic.

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