Fresco Painting
Fresco painting is a very old technique. The first fresco-type paintings date back to no less than 30,000 years ago with the paintings created in the Chauvet cave in France. Some 15,000 years ago frescoes were created in other caves in Lascaux, France and Altamira, Spain. These early examples of fresco painting are a testimony of the long and varied history of this art form. By 1500 BC the techniques of fresco painting evolved to painting on wet plaster, allowing more flexibility in the use and location of frescoes for decorative purposes. These frescoes are found on the island of Crete in Greece. It reached the height of splendor with the Renaissance masters and was used to decorate buildings and church vaults. The most celebrated frescoes in western Europe were painted by the great Italian masters: Giotto, Michelangelo, Raphael, and Tiepolo.
Fresco is a form of mural painting in which earth pigments are applied directly to wet lime plaster. The painting must be done quickly and surely, before the base has time to dry. The chemical reaction between the calcium hydrate and carbonic acid in the atmosphere fixes the painting and makes it insoluble and permanent. It is a very durable form of decorative painting for both interior and exterior spaces.
Lisa Agosti studied the art of buon (true) fresco painting at The Fresco School in Los Angeles, CA in 2011 under fresco artist, Ilia Anossof. In an age of information and technology, fresco offers a refreshingly simple beauty created entirely by organic materials from the earth. Earth pigments mixed with plain water is painted on wet plaster made of sand and lime. The organic nature of the materials creates a natural beauty in the texture of the surface of the fresco as well as the image itself.
Fresco is a truly green and organic form of painting. As fine art and paint industries move more toward the use of green products, fresco stands as the original organic method of painting. Fresco painting uses no petroleum-based solvents, glues or man-made materials, and therefore no toxic fumes associated with volatile organic compounds (VOC's) are created.
"Fresco is the most beautiful and enduring of all the plastic arts. Part of the wonder is that at its completion, the beauty of the work has just begun to radiate. Over the years, while the fresco feeds the hearts and souls of those fortunate enough to abide under its splendor, the chemical process of carbonization continues within the wall, continually increasing the visual unity and luminosity of the work." (Lucia Wiley)
