Art&Arch Key Terms

martyrium

a shrine to a Christian martyr

oil paint

a medium in which pigments are suspended in linseed or walnut oil. It is slow-drying, but very durable when dry. It offers the effects of both transparency and brilliant color

poesia

A term describing “poetic” art, notable Venetian Renaissance painting, which emphasizes the lyrical and sensual

colorito

Italian “colored” or “painted”. Characteristic of the application of paint of 16th century Venetian artists who emphasized the application of paint as a important element of the creative process

glazing

the application of successive thin, transparent, or semitransparent layers applied over a color to alter it slightly

ultramarine

a brilliant deep blue pigment obtained from lapis lazuli. it was the most expensive oil pigment

refectory

the dining hall of a Christian monastery

sfumato

A smoke like haziness that subtly softens outlines in painting; particularly applied to the paintings of Leonardo da Vinci

cartoon

a full-size preliminary drawing from which a fresco, oil painting, or tapestry is made

Stanza della Segnatura

“Rooms of the signature”; rooms associated with the papal palace in the time of Julius II, eventually gets its name from formal signings of papal decrees and the like that would occur there