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overpainting

Category | Overview and related information

Category details

Categoryoverpainting
Alternative termsoverpainted
SourceArt & Architecture Thesaurus

Overview

The application of paint over already dry areas of a painting. Can include the artist's own application of, for example, glazes and scumbles. In conservation, limited to later work, by a conservator, and distinguished from "inpainting," which refers the filling in of lost areas without covering original paint. For similar work done to cover damage or mask unwanted features and done not by conservators, use "retouching."