W

Walk-off   In graphic printing, the impairment or deterioration of part of an image on the plate during the printing process.
Wall of Troy   See Greek key.
Wall painting   See Mural.
Warm colors   Colors in which red, orange, and yellow predominate.
Warming the ink   In printmaking, the act of softening the ink on a hard surface.
Warp   1.   The bend that develops in stretcher strips, frames, paper boards and Masonite boards, usually due to unseasoned wood or to moisture. 2.   In textile design, the lengthwise or vertical yarn in weaving.
Wash   A thin, liquid application of paint in any medium, brushed on in a free-flowing manner; in oil colors, when applied over dry underpainting, it is a glaze.
Wash out   1.   In lithography, to wash the stone with a sponge and turpentine just before inking. 2.   In water-based painting, to remove a painted area of a picture by applying water and washing out the color as much as possible with brush or sponge.
Watercolor   Paint that uses water as the medium; categories are: traditional watercolors, transparent watercolors-gouache, opaque: casein; a casein glue pigment. opaque, acrylics, used as watercolor, transparent or opaque.
Watercolor block   A number of watercolor papers, bound on all four sides to lie flat, designed so the top sheet may be painted on, then removed singly, leaving the next sheet ready for use.
Watercolor mediums   Mainly water; two special types are available from Windsor & Newton: watercolor medium #1 encourages smooth application and #2 enriches the colors; also called Wetting agents.
Watercolor paper   Paper made specifically for watercolors, hot pressed (HP) medium texture, and not pressed (NP) cold pressed (CP) and rough (R) heavier, rougher texture; 100% rag content is a superior paper.
Watercolor paper sizes   Demi, 15"x20". Medium, 17"x22". Royal, 19"x24". Imperial, 22"x30". Elephant,23"x28". Double Elephant, 261/2"x40". Antiquarian, 31"x53". Imperial is the most common in single sheets, rolls of paper are also available.
Watercolor paper weights   72 lb.-lightweight. Weight-90 lb.-lightweight. 140 lb.-mediumweight. 250 lb.-mediumweight. 300 lb.-heavyweight. 400 lb.-heavyweight. 555 lb.-extra heavyweight. 1114 lb.-extra-extra heavyweight. 72 lb, 140 lb and 300 lb. are the most commonly used.
Watercolor pencils   Pencils made in variou colors of watercolor pigments, used for drawing, or dipped in water to create smooth color application when a wet brush is pulled across the colored line a wash effect is acheived.
Waterleaf paper   Unsized paper.
Watermark   1.A translucent name or design molded into paper during the manufacturing process; more visible when held to a light. 2.Some graphics programs also have "watermarking" ability, such as PaintShopPro, which allows an artist who has loaded pictures of their Works to the world wide web, to internally "mark" the image.
Water mask   In silkscreen, a block-out used as a stencil filler; it dries fast and is removed with water.
Water matte gold size   A stiff paste sizing used for illumination where gilt is applied; can become moist and tacky to accept gilt when it is warmed by breathing on it.
Water-of-Ayr stone   See Snake slip.
Wave scroll   A running design that suggests a breaking wave.
Wax coater   A tool that applies an even coat of wax to paper, plastic film, cardboard, etc., so it is pressure-sensitive for mounting paste-ups; one type is large and stationary and another is a hand-held roller-like tool.
Waxed Masa   A waxed Japanese rice paper, used mostly by textile designers; soft but strong and translucent.
Wax medium   A concentrated wax used for encaustic painting and for preserving wood carvings, paintings, art objects, etc.
Wax painting   See Encaustic painting.
Wax proofing   A method of pulling a rough print from a paper covered with melted wax.
Wax Varnish   A paste varnish made from beeswax and petroleum spirit; can be thinned with rectified petroleum; applied with a cloth or brush.
Weft   See Woof.
Wet-into-wet   Painting additional color into an already wet area, creating a soft, flowing effect; usually applies only to water-based mediums.
Wet palette   A palette of colors that are still loose and workable; the paint is not dry and hard.
Whatman board   Trade name for a quality 185 lb. English paper mounted on a heavy cardboard, suitable for many media.
Wheel, color   See Color wheel.
Whiplash line   A line prominent in Art Nouvrau.
Whistler, James Abbott McNeill   (1834-1903) Born in America, a painter, etcher and portrailist who spent most of his time abroad, most known for the portrait of his mother in a rocking chair, called "Whistler's mother".
White on white   An embossed print made with an uninked plate; some avant-garde Artists have dealt with white on white paintings. See Suprematism.
White sable brush   A brush made from a combination of synthetic fibers; can be used with any medium, but usually with oil or acrylics.
White spirits   See Mineral spirits.
Whitney rotary   Trade name for a tool made of two watercolor brushes, one on each end of one handle, designed for a quick change or lift.
Wiener Werkstatte   A Viennese organization of designers and craftsmen started in 1903, dedicated to certain aesthetic principles, their style is related to "Art Nouveau".
Williamsburg collection   In textile design, designs pertinent to America in the 1700's, and based on the research of the Williamsburg, Virginia restorations.
Willow stick   Vine charcoal. See Charcoal pencil.
Win-gel   Trade name for a clear medium for oils and alkyd, to increase the gloss and transparency.
Winton picture cleaner   Trade name of a product used to clean soiled oil paintings, an emulsified mixture of copaiba balsam, Dipentene and pine oil with ammonia.br>
Wipe-on plate  ' In photolithography, a light sensitive plate.
Woad   A blue dye that was used in the Middle Ages.
Wolf's Carbon pencils Trade name for pencils made with pressed carbon, marked with degrees of hardness.
Wood burning tool   An electric tool with a point or interchangeable points, used to burn or incise a design on wood, leather, and other materials, sometimes to create a wormwood effect on frames.
Woodcut   In graphic Arts, a relief print obtained when knives and tools are used to cut a design with the grain into wood, and the surface not cut away is printed.
Wood engraving   A process in which the design is cut on the end grain of a wood block, usually only very hard, even-grained wood such as cherry, pear, or boxwood is used; against a dark ground.
Wood, Grant   (1892-1942) American, a metal cratsman turned painter who became famous for his realistic but stilted style.
Woodless drawing pencil   A solid stick of graphite, lacquer-coated; can be sharpened to a drawing point; available in a variety of weights.
Woof   In textile design; the filling threads, running horizontally in weaving; also called the "Weft".
Workable eraser   See Kneaded eraser.
Working proof   In graphics, a trial proof on which corrections and additions are indicated.
Worm's eye view  A picture in oblique perspective from an extremely low eye level, with the horizon at the bottom of the picture or below it.
Wrapping  A so-called Art form mainly associated with the Bulgarian, Christo, consisting of wrapping buildings, mountians, islands, etc. with materials such as plastic sheeting; this procedure is called "Empaquetage".
Wrico pen   Trade name of a pen similar to a ruling pen, used for lines and lettering.