Exhibition Of Paintings In The Traditional Medium Of Egg Tempera

Attleboro Arts Museum presents an exhibition of paintings in the traditional medium of egg tempera.

- John O’Hern

At the end of the 14th century, Cennino Cennini (ca. 1370–ca. 1440) wrote one of the most important early treatises on the art of painting, Il Libro dell’Arte, which has been translated as The Craftsman’s Handbook. Fresco and egg tempera were the media of the time. He advised on the grinding of pigments and how to live a virtuous life and his practical advice for egg tempera painters included, “When painting the faces of young persons...use the yolk of the egg of a city hen, because they have lighter yolks than those of country hens.”

In egg tempera, pigments are mixed (tempered) with egg yolk and with water, and then they are applied to a firm support (usually a wood panel) in thin, nearly transparent layers to build up a hard, complex surface. Byzantine religious portraits were painted in egg tempera on special carved panels.

Tempera painter Diane Savino has assembled a group of contemporary artists in the medium for an exhibition, Tempera: Nature & Narrative, which will be shown at the Attleboro Arts Museum, Attleboro, Massachusetts, April 6 through May 4.

She explains, “The show revolves around the theme of nature and narration, but it also refers to the ‘nature of egg tempera.’ Nature can portray the environment, plants and creatures, or it can be characterized by the behavior of human beings, with the natural world and human world often intersecting. The Renaissance artists paid homage to both the natural world and the sacred. They were amazing visual storytellers and their narrative paintings could be read by everyman… These artists feel a kinship with the medium, drawing inspiration from early masters and continuing their artistic lineage. Contemporary artists create narratives in a more earthly and temporal manner.”