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Acrylic paint is fast-drying paint containing pigment suspended in an acrylic polymer emulsion. Acrylic paints can be diluted with water...

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Fingerpaint is a kind of paint intended to be applied with the fingers; it typically comes in pots and is used by small children, though it has very occasionally...

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A fresco (plural frescoes) is any of several related painting types. The word comes from the Italian affresco which in turn derives from...

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A mural is a painting on a wall, ceiling, or other large permanent surface. Murals of sorts date to prehistoric times such as the paintings...

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Oil painting is done on surfaces with pigments that are ground and mixed into a medium of oil — especially in early modern Europe, linseed oil...

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A Panel painting was a painting support medium in popular use in the West for about 300 years, from the late 12th century until the 16th century...

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Pointillism is a style of painting in which small distinct points of primary colors create the impression of a wide selection of secondary colors...

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Watercolor (or watercolour also known as aquarelle) is a painting technique using paint made of colorants suspended or dissolved in water...

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Fingerpaint

Fingerpaint is a kind of paint intended to be applied with the fingers; it typically comes in pots and is used by small children, though it has very occasionally been used by adults either to teach art to children, or for their own independent use.

Technique

Although the name implies that the paint is applied with the fingers, expert use of this medium makes use of the hands and lower arms too. Use of the entire arm smooths the paint on the paper prior to more detailed modeling with the fingers and other parts of the hand. Sometimes sponges, cloth, and other tools are used to obtain a specific texture.

Some artists are known to solely paint with their hands, as a way to become more intimite with the process. These artists do not use traditional "Fingerpaint." This style, "Reckless Art," is most accurately catagorized as a sub-genre of outsider art. Painters like Tyler Ramsey have vowed never to touch a brush, but the use of surgical gloves for safety is common when using toxic oils. Tyler Ramsey claims that, "Rejecting brushes gives a painter the opportunity to approach the craft from a fresh perspective." "Reckless Art" started in 2002 as a way to refuse the idea that "Everything has been done already."

Fingerpaint treated repeatedly by means of decalcomania on the same paper tends to generate fractals, as studied at Yale University .

Materials

Fingerpaint is non-toxic, and is usually sold in packages of six bright colors. The paints can also be prepared from non-toxic household products such as flour or cornstarch.

Some childcare facilities use Jello Pudding as fingerpaint eliminating the need to keep the children's fingers out of their mouths.

Fingerpaints are often used on a paper specifically produced for the purpose.