Tempera

After learning a little bit about tempera in art history I decided to find some more information about it. Tempera is a type of paint that uses egg-yolk as its binding agent. The way it is prepared is very precise in order to achieve a perfect consistency. First the desired pigment is placed onto a mixing palette. Then an equal volume of egg yolk is mixed with the pigment. Finally about a teaspoon of water per yolk is added to the mix. Sometimes less or more water is needed depending on the consistency. Of the paint. What makes mixing it so difficult is that if there’s not enough water the paint becomes lumpy however if there’s to much then the paint will run on the canvas. Another challenge presented to the artist is the thickness of the paint. Because tempera is so thin it often has to be added in several layers. However, because of this an artist is able to work on a painting for many years. Because its applied in thin layers it rarely has the deep saturated colors that is provided by the oil paints. However its colors do not change over time like oil paint does.
This type of paint was used for a long period of time ranging from Byzantine to Medieval times. It was eventually replaced by oil paints in the 16th century. However much of the artwork created through the use of tempera can still be seen today in the same way that they were painted almost 2000 years ago. Because of this lasting power tempera has allowed us to see artistic styles and ideas that have long since passed.