PH
Buying a ready-made tube of paint is relatively modern convenience.
Historically, artists and their workshops often had much greater responsibility for turning raw materials into usable artistic supplies.
Pigments could need to be ground and combined with appropriate binders before they became paint.
Artists also fashioned or prepared tools such as pencils and brushes using knowledge transmitted through workshops.
This meant knowledge of materials was an important part of artistic training.
Industrialization gradually changed the system as manufacturing and commercial suppliers increasingly produced standardized art materials.
That transformation didn't simply make painting more convenient—it affected what materials and techniques artists had available to them.
The history of art is therefore partly a history of technology and manufacturing too.
© National Gallery of Art