Cennino Cennini – Giotto’s technique

The procedures of an egg tempera painting according to the technique described by Cennino Cennini and used by Giotto in the 14th century

Egg tempera painting

With egg yolk and applied to the surface of the panel using small brushstrokes which fused together to create a chiaroscuro, from dark to light…

Botticelli – Emulsion tempera: “tempera grassa”

Already, in this initial phase, Botticelli?s emulsion tempera technique is aimed at obtaining the greatest brightness and luminosity possible.

Van Eyck – Oil painting in Flanders

The technical innovation consists in using the light reflected from the light ground preparation. The preparation was made by applying two or three thin layers of white chalk and animal glue that were smoothed down with great care.

Caravaggio technique

Caravaggio – The Seventeenth Century technique in Italy

The literary sources affirm that Caravaggio did not draw but painted directly with colour from the model. Frequent changes and “pentimentos” while working on his paintings, and evidenced by x-ray radiography, seem to confirm this fact.