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Eggs Nature's
near perfect painting medium
No one knows when someone first used egg as a paint binder. It is easy
to imagine the accidental spilling of egg into an early paint mix, or
for someone to notice that spilled egg could harden into a strong film.
It could have happened tens of thousands of years ago. On the other
hand egg is not naturally very sticky unless in thin layers and works
best on prepared surfaces. No one will ever know, it is the sort of
thing that could have been invented and forgotten many times in the
past. What we do know is that as the Greek practice of encaustic
painting died out, egg tempera was the preferred painting medium that
took its place.
By Medieval times in Europe painting on gesso prepared panels with egg
tempera was normal. Oil paint existed but tempera was the preferred
method. We are indebted to early writers for writing down their
experience in this regard.
Related Links:
Oil binders
Acrylic binders
Gums
for Watercolor, Gouache, and Pastels
Waxes and natural resins
The egg advantage Paint
that stands the test of time
Tempera painting has many advantages, Like Acrylic to which it has many
affinities, it is not prone to cracking nor does it yellow like oil
paint does. Those who are unfamiliar with egg tempera often assume that
the bright yellow color of the yolk must interfere with the look of the
paint. Quite the opposite in fact. The yolk of an egg is an emulsion.
It is a property of emulsions that they exhibit more color when wet
than when dry. Take a look at an Acrylic medium, which is basically the
resinous part of the paint without any color added yet. Notice it is a
milky white, yet when it dries it will be crystal clear. Egg yolk is
similar. It does have a small coloring component but much of the color
is due to the emulsion. When the Tempera dries it loses a lot of that
color immediately, and then the remainder is bleached clear by the
action of light within weeks. The Tempera in fact displays little
active color of its own, but instead enables the full brilliance of the
pigments to show.
Some purists suggest that tempera can only be painted with tiny brushes
in little strokes. This is not entirely true. It is suited to a wide
range of modern and experimental techniques including spattering ,
glazing, scraping back and so on. It can be applied with palette knives
or sponges or brushes. It is very versatile, its only real limitation
is that it can never be applied thickly. There is no limit however to
the number of layers, and since they dry very quickly, quite startling
effects can be arrived at in very little time. It is paint that
is as new as a fresh laid egg, and as old as the old masters.
Cennini Il Libro dell'Arte
-The Craftsman's Handbook
Cennino d'Andrea Cennini wrote at length on all aspects of the artist's
trade in his book published in 1437. He had quite a lot to say about
eggs and tempera. For different purposes he advised using the white of
the egg, particularly in gilding, but for painting he recommended the
yolk of the egg. He was very particular. Eggs had to be fresh and
supplies needed to be kept of both country eggs and town eggs as he
said the country ones were redder and better suited to the making of
blue. The town eggs on the other hand were whiter and better suited to
light colors. He also suggested that town eggs are suitable for
painting young faces, while country eggs were better for painting old
men. I can recommend reading Cennini for those who wish to immerse
themselves in this otherwise lost artist's lore. Dover sells an
annotated translation that should be in every artist's library.
The modern egg The problem
of freshness
In medieval times it was easy to get fresh laid eggs, but unless you
live in the country, keeping chickens is not feasible and we are
reliant on eggs produced by large scale farming usually a long way
away. The equivalent of Cennini's country eggs are the free range eggs,
but it is hard to find an equivalent for his 'town eggs' as modern
farmers realized in the last few years that the thing that gives egg
yolks their color is protein in the diet, so now almost all chickens
are fed with protein supplemented diets since yellower yolks sell
better than lighter ones. It does seem however that it is the cage or
barn eggs that are probably most like 'town eggs'. Getting the eggs
fresh enough is important as the egg loses vitality with time and is
not so suitable for painting. Avoid the cheaper generic brand eggs as
they are often older than premium brands. If you live in a small town
then I would advise befriending a local farmer because in the end fresh
laid eggs are preferable.
I grew up in the country and learned a few tricks along the way. This
is an old way of judging an egg's freshness: Hold the egg up to a light
strong enough to show through the egg, if an egg is not fresh you
should see the faint outline of the air space at the blunt end. New
eggs have a small air space and it grows with time. Looking at eggs
over a period of time will enable you to learn to judge the eggs to
avoid and which are still good with high accuracy.
Separating the yolk Basic
instructions
It is desirable to use yolk without any white in it. This is because
the percentage of albumen in the white is too low to make a good paint.
The traditional cook's way of separating whites is to crack the egg
horizontally and carefully pouring the egg from one shell half to the
other over a glass to catch the white. I find it easier to hold the
yolk in my fingers, allowing the white to slip between the small gaps,
but the easiest way is to buy a
purpose made separator that neatly does the job for you. You will find
them in kitchen supply stores. Which ever means you use it is important
not to break the yolk membrane at this point.
Once the yolk is separated gently place it on a paper towel and roll it
around taking care not to break it yet. Cennini would have dried it by
passing it from one hand to the other, wiping each hand on his apron to
achieve the same result. Transferring the yolk to the flat of the palm
you are ready to extract the contents. using the thumb and index finger
lift and hold the yolk sack over a clean glass. Puncture the skin
at the bottom with a neat hole in order to minimize the chance of skin
fragments getting into the glass. A stanley knife or scalpel are ideal
for this cut.
Care in obtaining the purist yolk in this way will make significantly
better paints and avoid trouble down the track. The yolk is now ready
to use for paint making.
References
Alberti, L B, On Painting 1435
(Penguin Classics)
Cellini, B, The Life Of Benvenuto
Cellini, finished 1562 but not published until 1730
(Heron)
Cennini, C d'A, The Craftsman's
Handbook. 1437 (Dover)
Doerner, M, The Materials Of The Artist And Their Use
In Painting, 1921 (Harcourt Brace)
Eastlake, Sir C L, Materials For A History Of Oil
Painting, 1847 (Dover)
Feller, R L, Artists Pigments 1986
(National Gallery Of Art / Cambridge University)
Gottsegen, M D, A Manual Of Painting Materials And
Techniques, 1987 (Harper & Row)
Maire, F, Colors: What They Are And What To Expect Of
Them, 1910 (Drake)
Mayer, R, The Artists Handbook Of Materials And
Techniques, fifth edition 1991 (Faber
& Faber)
Merrifield, Mrs M P, Medieval And Renaissance Treatises On
The Arts Of Painting 1849 (Dover)
Muther, R, The History Of Painting From The Fourth
Century To The Early Nineteenth Century, 1907 (Putnam)
Parkhurst, D B, The Painter In Oil 1898
(Lothrop, Lee & Shepard)
Patton, T C, Pigment Handbook, 1973
(Wiley)
Pliny, The Elder (Gaius Plinius), Natural
History, 77AD (Penguin Classics)
Taubs, F, A Guide To Traditional And Modern Painting
Methods, 1963 (Thames & Hudson)
Theophilus, On Divers Arts, 1125 (Dover)
Various, Encyclopedia Britannica,
fifteenth edition 1981 (Encyclopeadia Britannica, Inc)
Various, Paint And Painting, 1982,
(Winsor & Newton / The Tate Gallery)
Various, The Artist's Colourmen's
Story, 1984 (Winsor & Newton)
Vasari, G, The Lives Of The Most Excellent Painters,
Sculptors And Architects, 1568 (Penguin Classics)
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