How Thick Is The Paint On Artists' Paintings?

A visit to a major art museum will show you just how much variation there is in the way that artists apply paint. A bit like fingerprints, each artist's way of painting is very unique. For instance, the painter Bonnard often used very thin washes of paint. He would add colour; then, if the colour wasn't right, he would wipe it away with a cloth and try again. Other artists simply painted over their mistakes to create a thick paint surface. Van Gough is an extreme contrast to the work of Bonnard. His paintings are famous for their rich and textured surfaces. The paint is applied very thickly in places. These are examples of how artists' different temperaments affected how they applied paint. There are other reasons for the difference though. Paint which is layered and thickly applied takes longer to dry. Artists may apply paint thinly simply for the sake of speed.

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