Contemporary Paintings: Treasures To CherishContemporary paintings of the olden days are valuable ones which need to be preserved since it is the indication of the nation's artistic flair for art. In the normal painting a sizing is given in the base layer and the paint is applied in various layers above that. A varnish coating is applied over the traditional paintings. The layers of paint used in contemporary painting include pigments, plant gums, wax, acrylics, tempera from egg, casein from milk and distemper. Other than canvas, paper, board etc the other supports used for contemporary paintings include glass, copper, plaster, stone, ivory etc. The contemporary paintings that existed in the olden days are subjected to undergo certain changes due to ageing. It can be noted that the color of the painting turns yellow due to the grime accumulation or loss of color of the varnish. The oil paint may become more transparent and some faint cracks may develop on it. These changes are inevitable. Some of the damages like tears, flaking of paints etc that occur to these contemporary paintings of the past can be restored with the help of conservators. Contemporary paintings of the olden ages are reproduced in a modified form. This can be seen in abstract designs. Many of the traditional depictions are now a day represented in an accentuated form through modern arts. These contemporary paintings are priced so high even up to several hundreds of thousands of dollars. Contemporary paintings are not only the possessions that can be admired but can also be good decorative accessories in the living room. Contemporary paintings of the present day are mostly based from the past. Today, contemporary paintings are the elegant ones which use the methods and technologies of modern art. The mediums that are used for the contemporary paintings are acrylic on canvas, acrylic on paper, digital art, drawing with pen, use of mixed media on canvas, use of mixed media on paper, oil on paper, oil on board, oil on canvas, water on mount board, water on paper, etc. Many of the contemporary paintings of the olden days find their place in museums. Now with the advancement of technologies the paintings by hand have given way to the advanced computer paintings which offer wide range of color effects, photographic prints etc. But still the worth of the hand painting using the traditional mediums has not diminished. Each country has got its own traditional way of painting. There are institutions that offer short term courses of varying duration on contemporary paintings. The course mainly covers the methods of restoring the contemporary paintings of the olden ages. Some others will also cover the use of different mediums in the modern art too. |