MATERIALS for PANTING and DRAWING

acrylic noun
a type of paint

airbrush noun
a machine that scatters paint using air pressure, which is used for painting or for delicate
improvement work on photographs

brush (TOOL) noun

an object with short pieces of stiff hair, plastic or wire fixed into a usually wooden or plastic base or
handle, which is used for cleaning, tidying the hair or painting:
I can't find my brush, but I still have my comb.
You'll need a stiff brush to scrape off the rust.
a clothes brush
a nail brush
a scrubbing UK/scrub US brush
a pastry brush

brush (TOOL) noun

used as a combining form:
a hairbrush
a toothbrush
a paintbrush

canvas
a piece of canvas used by artists for painting on, usually with oil paints, or the painting itself:
These two canvases by Hockney would sell for ?500 000.

charcoal
a hard black substance similar to coal which can be used as fuel or, in the form of sticks, as
something to draw with:
charcoal for the barbecue
I prefer sketching in charcoal to pencil.
a charcoal drawing
The uniform is charcoal (grey) (= dark grey) and red.

drawing board
a large flat table, often with a top that can be moved into different positions, which is used as a desk
for drawing or designing something

easel noun
a wooden frame, usually with three legs, that holds a picture, especially one which an artist is
painting or drawing

glitter noun
very small pieces of shiny material used to decorate the skin or used by children to make pictures

Indian ink UK (US India ink)

a thick black ink used especially for drawing

lead (PENCIL) noun

(the narrow strip of) coloured material, usually black and made of graphite, in the centre of a pencil

manikin UK (MODEL), mannikin, US: mannequin noun

a model of the human body, used for teaching medical or art students

oils plural noun

thick paints with an oil base, used for painting pictures:
Do you paint in oils or watercolours?

oil paint
a thick type of paint with an oil base, used for painting pictures

paints plural noun

tubes of paint or blocks of dried paint used for making pictures:
oil paints

paintbrush
a brush used for putting paint on a surface or on a picture

palette
a thin board with curved edges and a hole for your thumb, used by an artist to mix their paints on
while they are painting

palette
SPECIALIZED the range of colours that an artist usually paints with:
Matisse's palette typically consists of bright blues, greens and oranges.

palette knife
a knife with a wide thin blade, a rounded end and no sharp edge, used to mix paints together and
also to spread soft substances when cooking

pastel (MATERIAL) noun

a colouring material which can be powdery or slightly shiny and is usually in the shape of a small
stick, or a picture made by using this:
Do you like working with pastels/in pastel?
The show includes eighty-five paintings, pastels and sculptures.

poster paint/colour noun

brightly coloured paint used for painting pictures

sitter noun
someone who is having their portrait (= picture of their face or body) painted

sketchpad (ALSO sketchbook)

a number of sheets of plain paper fixed together for drawing on

stencil noun
a piece of card, plastic, metal, etc. into which shapes have been cut, and which is used to draw or
paint patterns onto a surface
template noun
a pattern made of metal, plastic or paper, which is used for making many copies of a shape or to
help cut material accurately

watercolour
a paint which is mixed with water and used to create pictures, or a picture which has been done with
this type of paint:
Generally, I prefer painting with watercolours.
He's done some lovely watercolours.

woodblock noun
a piece of wood on which a pattern is cut which is used for printing:
She designs her own fabrics using woodblocks and stencils to create patterns on the material.