The art of miniature painting.
Miniature – in the visual arts a small picture of a thorough and elegant finish, with a subtle overlay of colors. Miniatures on paper, on porcelain, on bone, stone, wood, metal, watercolor miniatures, sculptural and graphic, carved, relief works of small forms. A special type of miniature is painting with varnish, oil or tempera on the surface of small lacquerware. In the art of miniatures there are various schools and directions.
Historically, the art of miniatures was known as the art of designing handwritten books – these are images of capital letters, then an ornament appeared, which then turned into a border, and a border – into a frame around the page text. In the thirteenth century miniatures, having already occupied a whole page in the book, turned into separate paintings.
Miniature painting is an area of great interest and attracting an increasing number of artists. An area that is truly exciting and fascinating.
A true miniature, traditional or modern, is painstakingly executed on a small scale, using very thin strokes. The picture miniature should not be inferior in quality to works of large scale, and must withstand a significant increase. Miniature painting is an exceptional quality of work, the paintings look amazing, and even more amazing at a distance of 10-15 centimeters. Only a magnifying glass will allow you to truly appreciate the incredible skill invested in the production of these tiny masterpieces.
Over the centuries, the art of miniature has evolved, and embraces various, ever-changing trends and ideas; Today there are many different painting techniques and surfaces used by artists all over the world. To help contemporary artists who are new to the genre, some Societies set their guidelines for size, others define, for example, that the head in a portrait or the main object depicted cannot be more than 2 inches (5 centimeters). One of the requirements often used – painting should be “portable”, i.e. should fit in the palm of your hand.
For a collector, paintings of miniatures represent an elegant and compact piece of fine art that can be easily placed anywhere — the entire collection of this original art can be displayed on a single wall or stand.
For more than 100 years, the Royal Society of Miniaturists, a community of artists, sculptors and engravers, has been active in the Royal Society of Miniature Painters, Sculptors and Gravers (RMS). It was founded in Great Britain, London in 1896 by the miniature portrait artist Alin Williams. In November 1995, the I World Exhibition of Miniatures was held in London, dedicated to the celebration of the 100th anniversary of the Royal Society of Miniaturists. Many annual international exhibitions of miniaturists are held in different cities of the world. And the world miniature exhibitions are held once every five years on different continents, in which Russia not only takes part, but also is awarded with memorable prizes, and Russian miniaturists are international certificates.
Miniature is a form of art that is very rich in history, which continues today thanks to artists from all over the world.
