overpaintings
Art concealing art
Overpaintings are layers of paint applied over an existing painted surface.
In art restoration, overpainting may conceal original work—sometimes deliberately hiding damage, sometimes reflecting later taste.
Conservators often discover earlier compositions beneath overpaintings: X-rays revealed overpaintings that obscured the artist's original background.
The term can also describe an artist's own revisions to a work in progress.
Prior image resurfacing
- underdrawingInitial sketch beneath paint
- palimpsestReused writing surface, traces remain
- hiddenKept out of sight
- veiledConcealed or obscured
obscured · buried · latent · underlying · original · beneath · layers · covered
Preventing waste or loss
- retouchingPost-capture image enhancement
- inpaintingReconstructing missing image regions
- varnishLiquid that dries glossy
- cleaningRemoving dirt and mess
solvent · relining · restorer · pigment · canvas · patina · stabilization · microscopy
Act of altering something
- revisionAltering to improve
- reworkingModifying something already made
- correctionFixing of mistakes
- censorshipOfficial content restriction
bowdlerization · editing · changing · covering · updating · addition · erasure · falsification
Wavelengths shorter than violet
- spectroscopyStudy of light-matter interaction
- imagingProducing visual representations
- scanningSystematic visual examination
- analysisMethodical study of parts
examination · investigation · dating · scientific · technology · revealing · documentation · catalog
pentimento
Prior image resurfacing
- underdrawingInitial sketch beneath paint
- palimpsestReused writing surface, traces remain
- hiddenKept out of sight
veiled · obscured · buried · latent · underlying · original · beneath · layers · covered · masked
conservation
Preventing waste or loss
- retouchingPost-capture image enhancement
- inpaintingReconstructing missing image regions
- varnishLiquid that dries glossy
cleaning · solvent · relining · restorer · pigment · canvas · patina · stabilization · microscopy · xray
modification
Act of altering something
- revisionAltering to improve
- reworkingModifying something already made
- correctionFixing of mistakes
censorship · bowdlerization · editing · changing · covering · updating · addition · erasure · falsification · forgery
ultraviolet
Wavelengths shorter than violet
- spectroscopyStudy of light-matter interaction
- imagingProducing visual representations
- scanningSystematic visual examination
analysis · examination · investigation · dating · scientific · technology · revealing · documentation · catalog · scholarship
overpaintingsunderpaintings
Base layers beneath artwork
underlayers · primer · gesso · base coat · substrate
overpaintingspaint removal
Eliminating applied coatings
stripping · cleaning · uncovering · revealing · paint stripping