Tempera Painting: A Medieval Medium Revived in 20th-Century Art

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Tempera Painting: A Medieval Medium Revived in 20th-Century Art
(058)

From 1930 to 1950, a renaissance of the medieval technique of tempera painting occurred among many well-known American artists. Although stylistically and technically diverse, the artists shared an affinity to this ancient medium. Yet, while scholars and critics have occasionally noted tempera's rebirth, it has never been thoroughly analyzed or its causes well explained.

A new exhibition organized by the Brandywine River Museum addresses this void by examining tempera's 20th-century reemergence in the United States. Milk and Eggs: The American Revival of Tempera Painting, 1930-1950 includes more than 50 works of art done in tempera by such important artists as Andrew Wyeth, Thomas Hart Benton, Jackson Pollock, John Sloan, George Tooker and Paul Cadmus.

The word "tempera" derives from the medieval Latin "temperare," meaning blending or mixing. Today, the word indicates a medium bound with emulsions, combined with dry pigments and water. The exhibition considers techniques using both egg yolk (egg tempera) and milk proteins (casein tempera) as principal emulsions.

The history of tempera painting predates oil painting. The monk Theophilus Presbyter described the use of casein tempera in the 12th century. Egg tempera, on the other hand, was the primary medium for painters in 14th-century Italy. Tempera faded in popularity after the 16th century, however, when pigments ground in oil became more widely used.

During the late-19th and early-20th centuries, many American revivals occurred in architecture, painting and sculpture as interest in classical, gothic and Renaissance art increased. As artists studied works of the past, they became interested in the use of historical methods of painting. Tempera once again gained popularity.
In the United States, the Yale University School of Fine Arts was one of the first centers of the revival. There, in the late 1920s, Daniel V. Thompson, Jr. established a course in tempera and published on the subject. When Thompson left in 1933, his student Lewis York took over the course until 1950, teaching artists such as Saul Levine, Andrew Petryn and Robert Vickrey.

Beginning in the 1920s, two teachers at the Art Students League in New York City were extremely influential in the revival. Kenneth Hayes Miller and Thomas Hart Benton both taught mural courses at the League and promoted tempera as an ideal medium for large works. Their group of colleagues and pupils eventually grew to include John Sloan, Paul Cadmus and Jackson Pollock. Through his teachings at the Kansas City Art Institute, Benton also influenced many artists working in a regionalist style. Additionally, the Works Progress Administrationsí Federal Art Project of 1935 sponsored a number of works in tempera by artists including Ben Shahn, O. Louis Gugliemi and Mitchell Siporin.

Egg tempera was used in N.C. Wyethís studio in Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania during the 1930s. Wyethís student, Peter Hurd, experimented with the medium and shared his knowledge of and enthusiasm for it with N.C. Wyeth and his students, including Wyethís youngest son, Andrew, and artist John McCoy. Andrew Wyeth made egg tempera his primary medium and is highly acclaimed for his use of it today.

The physical and visual qualities of tempera have attracted artists for centuries. Some prefer the discipline of mixing the paint, preparing the surface and applying the tempera in layers. Others favor temperaís ability to dry quickly. (After tempera paint dries, it becomes insoluble, allowing artists to paint over without disturbing underlying layers.) Others choose tempera for its matte finish as an alternative to the glossy quality of oil paintings. Still others select tempera because it is a durable medium. In fact, many tempera paintings completed in the 15th-century still retain a fresh appearance today, enabling artists to study and learn from the work of medieval and Renaissance masters.

Milk and Eggs: The American Revival of Tempera Painting, 1930-1950 is the culmination of more than ten years of research initiated at the Brandywine River Museum. The research was undertaken by guest curators Richard J. Boyle, former director of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, and Hilton Brown, a professor of Art History, Art Conservation and Museum Studies at the University of Delaware. Together, Boyle and Brown conducted interviews with many artists, including Paul Cadmus, Jacob Lawrence, George Tooker and Andrew Wyeth. Recent scientific analysis performed by Richard Newman, head of scientific research at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, has added significantly to the knowledge of tempera by identifying ingredients of works of formerly ambiguous media.

The exhibition is accompanied by a 230-page catalogue containing more than 200 illustrations- 100 in color. In addition to comprehensive essays by Boyle, Brown and Newman, the catalogue includes extensive technical charts, artists' biographies and a selected bibliography.

After its debut at the Brandywine River Museum (March 9 through May 19, 2002), Milk and Eggs: The American Revival of Tempera Painting, 1930-1950 will travel to the Akron Museum of Art (June 15 through September 1, 2002) and the Spencer Museum of Art at the University of Kansas (September 21 through November 17, 2002).

This project has been supported by a grant from the Philadelphia Exhibitions Initiative, a program funded by The Pew Charitable Trusts, and administered by The University of the Arts, Philadelphia. Additional support has been provided by The Dietrich Foundation, The Charles Engelhard Foundation, Elizabeth S. Hooper Foundation, Samuel H. Kress Foundation, The Henry Luce Foundation, and the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission.

The Brandywine River Museum is located on U.S. Route 1 in Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania. The museum is open daily 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Effective January 19, 2002, admission is $6 for adults; $3 for seniors, students and children ages 6 to 12; and free for children under six and members. For more information, please call (610) 388-2700

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Brandywine River Museum, U.S. Route 1 and PA Route 100
P.O. Box 141, Chadds Ford, PA 19317
For more information send email to: inquiries@brandywine.org
© 2002 Brandywine Conservancy

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Tempera Painting: A Medieval Medium Revived in 20th-Century Art (058) From 1930 to 1950, a renaissance of the medieval technique of tempera painting occurred among many well-known American artists. Although stylistically and technically diverse, the artists shared an affinity to this ancient medium. Yet, while scholars and critics have occasionally noted tempera's rebirth, it has never been thoroughly analyzed or its causes well explained. A new exhibition organized by the Brandywine River Museum addresses this void by examining tempera's 20th-century reemergence in the United States. Milk and Eggs: The American Revival of Tempera Painting, 1930-1950 includes more than 50 works of art done in tempera by such important artists as Andrew Wyeth, Thomas Hart Benton, Jackson Pollock, John Sloan, George Tooker and Paul Cadmus. The word "tempera" derives from the medieval Latin "temperare," meaning blending or mixing. Today, the word indicates a medium bound with emulsions, combined with dry pigments and water. The exhibition considers techniques using both egg yolk (egg tempera) and milk proteins (casein tempera) as principal emulsions. The history of tempera painting predates oil painting. The monk Theophilus Presbyter described the use of casein tempera in the 12th century. Egg tempera, on the other hand, was the primary medium for painters in 14th-century Italy. Tempera faded in popularity after the 16th century, however, when pigments ground in oil became more widely used. During the late-19th and early-20th centuries, many American revivals occurred in architecture, painting and sculpture as interest in classical, gothic and Renaissance art increased. As artists studied works of the past, they became interested in the use of historical methods of painting. Tempera once again gained popularity. In the United States, the Yale University School of Fine Arts was one of the first centers of the revival. There, in the late 1920s, Daniel V. Thompson, Jr. established a course in tempera and published on the subject. When Thompson left in 1933, his student Lewis York took over the course until 1950, teaching artists such as Saul Levine, Andrew Petryn and Robert Vickrey. Beginning in the 1920s, two teachers at the Art Students League in New York City were extremely influential in the revival. Kenneth Hayes Miller and Thomas Hart Benton both taught mural courses at the League and promoted tempera as an ideal medium for large works. Their group of colleagues and pupils eventually grew to include John Sloan, Paul Cadmus and Jackson Pollock. Through his teachings at the Kansas City Art Institute, Benton also influenced many artists working in a regionalist style. Additionally, the Works Progress Administrationsí Federal Art Project of 1935 sponsored a number of works in tempera by artists including Ben Shahn, O. Louis Gugliemi and Mitchell Siporin. Egg tempera was used in N.C. Wyethís studio in Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania during the 1930s. Wyethís student, Peter Hurd, experimented with the medium and shared his knowledge of and enthusiasm for it with N.C. Wyeth and his students, including Wyethís youngest son, Andrew, and artist John McCoy. Andrew Wyeth made egg tempera his primary medium and is highly acclaimed for his use of it today. The physical and visual qualities of tempera have attracted artists for centuries. Some prefer the discipline of mixing the paint, preparing the surface and applying the tempera in layers. Others favor temperaís ability to dry quickly. (After tempera paint dries, it becomes insoluble, allowing artists to paint over without disturbing underlying layers.) Others choose tempera for its matte finish as an alternative to the glossy quality of oil paintings. Still others select tempera because it is a durable medium. In fact, many tempera paintings completed in the 15th-century still retain a fresh appearance today, enabling artists to study and learn from the work of medieval and Renaissance masters. Milk and Eggs: The American Revival of Tempera Painting, 1930-1950 is the culmination of more than ten years of research initiated at the Brandywine River Museum. The research was undertaken by guest curators Richard J. Boyle, former director of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, and Hilton Brown, a professor of Art History, Art Conservation and Museum Studies at the University of Delaware. Together, Boyle and Brown conducted interviews with many artists, including Paul Cadmus, Jacob Lawrence, George Tooker and Andrew Wyeth. Recent scientific analysis performed by Richard Newman, head of scientific research at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, has added significantly to the knowledge of tempera by identifying ingredients of works of formerly ambiguous media. The exhibition is accompanied by a 230-page catalogue containing more than 200 illustrations- 100 in color. In addition to comprehensive essays by Boyle, Brown and Newman, the catalogue includes extensive technical charts, artists' biographies and a selected bibliography. After its debut at the Brandywine River Museum (March 9 through May 19, 2002), Milk and Eggs: The American Revival of Tempera Painting, 1930-1950 will travel to the Akron Museum of Art (June 15 through September 1, 2002) and the Spencer Museum of Art at the University of Kansas (September 21 through November 17, 2002). This project has been supported by a grant from the Philadelphia Exhibitions Initiative, a program funded by The Pew Charitable Trusts, and administered by The University of the Arts, Philadelphia. Additional support has been provided by The Dietrich Foundation, The Charles Engelhard Foundation, Elizabeth S. Hooper Foundation, Samuel H. Kress Foundation, The Henry Luce Foundation, and the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission. The Brandywine River Museum is located on U.S. Route 1 in Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania. The museum is open daily 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Effective January 19, 2002, admission is $6 for adults; $3 for seniors, students and children ages 6 to 12; and free for children under six and members. For more information, please call (610) 388-2700 Top of Page
Brandywine River Museum, U.S. Route 1 and PA Route 100 P.O. Box 141, Chadds Ford, PA 19317 For more information send email to: inquiries@brandywine.org © 2002 Brandywine Conservancy