Paint in America

About this book

Since the time of the Lascaux caves (ca. 10,000 B.C.), people have been decorating and protecting their shelters with paint. The painter, according to one Victorian writer, was the most welcome of workers. The use of paint in the United States to achieve these twin goals - beauty and practicality - is definitively described in Paint in America. Leading architectural historians, paint conservators, and paint investigators describe historic paints and painting techniques, recount the process of paint research at sites such as Mount Vernon and Colonial Williamsburg, explain modern paint analysis, and outline the basic nature of paints. Special sections present a newly authenticated palette of colonial paint colors as well as a list of the most common pigments used from 1600 to 1850. With its 115 illustrations (90 in color), Paint in America is an indispensible guide for everyone interested in restoring exteriors and interiors to their historically appropriate colors.