Art Terms

Find common art term definitions here! (Definitions for terms were sourced from Oxford Languages):

• Paint: A colored substance which is spread over a surface and dries to leave a thin decorative or protective coating.
• Sculpture: The art of making two- or three-dimensional representative or abstract forms, especially by carving stone or wood or by casting metal or plaster.
• Drawing: A picture or diagram made with a pencil, pen, or crayon rather than paint.
• Stencil: A thin sheet of cardboard, plastic, or metal with a pattern or letters cut out of it, used to produce the cut design on the surface below by the application of ink or paint through the holes.
• Ink: A colored fluid used for writing, drawing, printing, or duplicating.
• Pencil: An instrument for writing or drawing, consisting of a thin stick of graphite or a similar substance enclosed in a long thin piece of wood or fixed in a metal or plastic case.
• Pen: An instrument for writing or drawing with ink, typically consisting of a metal nib or ball, or a nylon tip, fitted into a metal or plastic holder.
• Paper: Material manufactured in thin sheets from the pulp of wood or other fibrous substances, used for writing, drawing, or printing on, or as wrapping material.
• Abstract art: Art that does not attempt to represent external reality, but seeks to achieve its effect using shapes, forms, colors, and textures.
• Crayon: A pencil or stick of colored chalk or wax, used for drawing.
• Eraser: An object, typically a piece of soft rubber or plastic, used to rub out something written.
• Model: A figure or object made in clay or wax, to be reproduced in another more durable material.
• Sketch: A rough or unfinished drawing or painting, often made to assist in making a more finished picture.
• Marker: A felt-tip pen with a broad tip.
• Ceramic: Pots and other articles made from clay hardened by heat.
• Canvas: A piece of canvas cloth prepared for use as the surface for an oil painting.
• Photo-referencing: The practice of creating art based on a photograph.
• Color wheel: A circle with different colored sectors used to show the relationship between colors.