Activity #10 Mediums and Techniques

In 1960, Jasper Johns created “0 through 9”, using stone in black on Arches paper. The medium used is lithography. Lithography is a printmaking technique. Lithography was invented by Alois Senefelder a young German actor and playwright in the 1790s. (199) Lithography is a planographic process, which means that the printing surface is flat – not raised as in relief or depressed as in intaglio. (200) Lithographic print is created by drawing the image on stone using a greasy material; “tusche”, and then using an acid based solution which enable the print to adhere to the stone thus preparing it for printing. Lithography is a remarkably flexible medium and capable of a broad range of effects. (202) This is seen by the way Johns uses thin lines to represent the numbers, “0 through 9”. The thin lines are black and embedded on the stone to create the overlapping of numerals. When looking at the painting, your eyes are drawn to the visual elements of the diagonal lines Johns uses to convey direction and motion. (82) Thus, creating a surface which is considered to be active to anyone looking at the piece of artwork. When looking at this lithograph, one can see the importance of the numbers. Each represents a number which is unique from the others.

Joseph Mallord William Turner’s 1835 painting “Keelmen Heaving in Coals by Moonlight” utilizes the medium of oil painting on canvas. It is say that oil painting was invented in the 15th century and consist of pigment compounded with oil, usually linseed oil. (172) An advantage of oil is that it is a medium that can be worked in an almost infinite range of consistencies, from very thick to very thin. (175) This painting has areas in which Turner uses thick and thin brush strokes. This is especially the case when you look at the way he uses thick and thin brush strokes to represent the sky. For the moon’s reflection on the water, he uses heavy brush strokes. This technique is called “impasto”. Impasto is a technique from the Italian for “paste” where paint is layered thick. (175) This technique allows Turner to create the atmospheric perspective of the moon setting for the evening providing light while the keelmen work through the night. To accomplish this effect, Turner uses value to create lighting and darkening effect seen in the painting. Value is shades of light and dark (92) He also uses broken color by tinting the sky using blue and white paint.

In conclusion, both artists have created beautiful pieces of artwork. The medium used by Johns is lithograph while Turner uses oil on canvas.