Daniel V. Thompson

I have so very much appreciation for the works of Daniel Varney Thompson, Jr. (1902-1980) If you're not familiar with him, you may remember some recent posts with quotes from his The Practice of Tempera Painting.

Below are back cover quotes from his other books:

The Materials and Techniques of Medieval Painting

"Medieval painters built up a tremendous range of technical resources for obtaining brilliance and permanence. In this volume, an internationally know authority on medieval paint technology describes these often jealously guarded recipes, lists of materials, and processes.

"Based upon years of study of medieval manuscripts and enlarged by laboratory analysis of medieval paintings, this book discusses carriers and grounds, binding media, pigments, coloring materials, and metals used in painting."

The Craftsman's Handbook: "Il Libro dell' Arte" by Cennino d'Andrea Cennini

"This is D. V. Thompson's definitive English translation of "Il Libro dell'Arte," an intriguing guide to methods of painting written in 15th century Florence. Embodying the secrets and techniques of the great masters, it served as an art student's introduction to the ways of his craft.

"Anyone who has ever looked at a medieval painting and marveled at a brilliance of color and quality of surface that have endured for 500 years, should find this a fascinating read. It describes such lost arts as gilding stone, making mosaics of crushed eggshell, fashioning saints' diadems, coloring parchment..."

All three are available as inexpensive Dover's. Fun and interesting reads! And of course, my copy of The Practice of Tempera Painting is getting lots of use. :-)