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A roll of inked material, it is used to apply ink to a block or plate for graphic reproductions and to blend oil colors. Dabbers were prevalent in the 19th Century for printmaking but, except for engraving, were replaced by Breyers or rollers. In engraving, the Dabber is still used to force ink into etched or incised lines. For oil painting, Dabbers can create smooth fields of colors and glazes. Sources: Ralph Mayer, "A Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques"; Kimberley Reynolds and Richard Seddon, "Illustrated Dictionary of Art Terms"

Dachau Moss

An art colony location north of Dachau, Germany via Munich, it is in a landscape noted for its appeal to artists because of the visual richness of the meadowland, and pine and swamp forests. Karl Seeger is credited as the founder of the art colony, and others attracted to it include Rudolf Epp, Adolf Hoelzel and Wilhelm Leibl. Source: Wikipedia: Dachau Moss


A word meaning "hobby horse" in French, and "yes, yes" in Slavic, it is linked to poet, Tristan Tzara, who reportedly stabbed a penknife in a dictionary in a random place, and it landed on the nonsense word "Dada". The term was applied to an international movement among intellectuals in the fine arts, drama, and literature, and grew from a gathering in Zurich, Switzerland in 1916 at a club called Cabaret Voltaire. The movement traveled to other major centers including New York City, Berlin, Cologne, Hanover and Paris. Viewed historically, Dada was short lived, and by 1924, was essentially over, but it remains an effective reminder of revolt against World War I and the resulting expressions of cynicism. The loss of more than ten-million persons in that war and the fact that modern technology could cause such havoc led to the bitterness reflected by the Dada artists. Dadaists used improvised, sarcastic expressions of intuition and irrationality to send the message that only that which was absurd could have meaning in a world supposedly rational and yet was so destructive. Among Dada artists were Marcel Duchamp, Jean Arp, Francis Picabia, and Max Ernst. Some of them appropriated ready-made, traditionally unacceptable items for art work such as found objects. Duchamp, expressing Dadaism, did a painting of Mona Lisa with a mustache. Dada was a forerunner of Surrealism, Collage, Performance Art and Found Art. Sources: Ralph Mayer, "A Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques"; Kimberley Reynolds and Richard Seddon, "Illustrated Dictionary of Art Terms"; Julia M Ehresmann, "The Pocket Dictionary of Art Terms"; Robert Atkins, "Artspeak"; Alan Riding, "The New York Times", October 12, 2005.


An obsolete method of photography invented in 1839, it is now considered the first practical photographic process. Joseph Nicephore Niepce and Louis Jacques Daguerre, a French landscape painter and illusionist stage-set creator, were the inventors. The resulting picture, the Daguerreotype, is one-of-a-kind and made on a silver-coated copper surface sensitized by iodine and exposed to mercury vapor. A key factor in the success of Daguerreotypes was the promotion by the French government to counter publicity of a similar process created by Englishman William Henry Fox Talbot. The method, first used by expedition leader John C. Fremont in 1842, proved valuable in documenting explorations of the American West for the U.S. government, which in turn, stirred financial support for more expeditions. By the 1850s, millions of portrait Daguerreotypes had been made around the world. However, the process had drawbacks in that it was expensive; the plates were fragile; they were difficult to copy; and they required lengthy time for exposure and bright light for the recording onto the plate. By 1860, Calotype photography had replaced the Daguerreotype. American photographers who did Daguerreotypes include William Hazen Kimball, Noah North, Samuel Bemis, Solomon Nunes Carvalho, and James Wallace Black. Sources: "The Concise Columbia Encyclopedia"; "The Random House Dictionary of the English Language"; Robert Atkins, "Art Spoke"; "Salt Lake City Tribune", 12/10/1995; AskART database.

Dallas Nine

A group of regionalist painters, print makers, and sculptors who depicted the Southwest, especially Texas, they were active in Dallas, in the 1930s and early 1940s. Jerry Bywaters was their leading spokesperson. In numbers they were seldom 'nine' because the group expanded and contracted. Names most closely associated with the movement were ones who unsuccessfully lobbied the Texas Centennial Commission to decorate in 1936 the walls of the Hall of State, which was the main building of the Centennial Exposition in Dallas. Dallas Nine original members were Jerry Bywaters, Thomas M. Stell, Jr., Harry P. Carnohan, Otis M. Dozier, Alexandre Hogue, William Lester, Everett Spruce, John Douglass, and Perry Nichols. Others associated with the group were Charles T. Bowling, James Buchanan Winn, Russell Vernon Hunter, Merritt T. Mauzey, Florence McClung, Don Brown, Lloyd Goff, Dorothy Austin, Michael G. Owen, Allie Victoria Tennant and Octavio Medellin. Source: http://www.tsha.utexas.edu/handbook/online/articles/print/DD/kjd1.html

Dango Sculpture

The name given by Nebraskan Jun Kaneko to his Zen-like ceramic sculptures whose shapes are tall and oval, sometimes as big as seven feet in height. Source: Patrick Sheehan,'ArtTalk', ARTnews, March 2006, p. 37

Danube School

A name given to sixteenth-century landscape painters working in the Danube Valley in Europe, it described a movement especially significant because of the introduction of figures as integral parts of the landscape. Albrecht Altdorfer, Lucas Cranach and Wolf Huber are names associated with the Danube School. Sources: Ralph Mayer, "A Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques"; Kimberley Reynolds and Richard Seddon, "Illustrated Dictionary of Art Terms"

Darby School of Painting

Founded as a summer art school in Darby, Pennsylvania in 1898 by painters Hugh Breckenridge and Thomas Anshutz, professors at the Pennsylvania Academy, it emphasized plein-air landscape painting and individuality of expression and self reliance. In 1900, the school was moved to Fort Washington, Pennsylvania. The school's founding was at the height of "America's enthusiasm for summer art schools situated within idyllic settings". Source: Traditional Fine Arts Online, http://www.tfaoi.com/aa/5aa/5aa363.htm

Daum Glassworks, Nancy Daum

One of the most famous glass works in Europe known for its richly colored Art Nouveau vases, it is located in Nancy, France. Combining location and name of founding family, it is also known by the name Nancy Daum. It's heydey was 1890 to 1930, but the company remains in operation led by the heirs of the founder, Jean Daum (1825-1885) of Alsace. In 1875, he co- financed "Verrerie Sainte Catherine", which produced glass for watches and mirrors. It failed financially, so Daum took over the operation and changed the name to "Verrierie the Nancy". His sons Jean Auguste (1853-1909) and Antonin (1864-1931) joined the business, which expanded with electricity to stunning color-illuminating tablelamps. These won much attention at the 1900 Paris World's Fair. During World War I, the company made medical glass and post-war manufactured the glass for the steam ship, Le Normandie.

David C Driskell Prize

Established in 2005, at the High Museum in Atlanta, Georgia, the Prize is "the first national award to honor and celebrate contributions to the field of African-American art and art history. The award of $25,000.00 is intended for an individual in the beginning or middle of their career whose work is considered an important contribution to African-American art or history." Source: Lyndsey Walker, 'Black Art is Alive and Well', "Art Business News", 2/2005, p. 16.

Day Glo Color

See Fluorescent Paint

Dayton Art Institute/Dayton Museum of Arts

Founded in 1919 as the Dayton Museum of Arts, it began as a traditional art school. Founding patrons included Orville Wright, and the Patterson brothers, and the original site was a downtown mansion, which was outgrown after the first decade. Julia Shaw Carnell, a community leader, pledged 2 million dollars to construct a new building with the understanding that the community would then support it---which it has done. The building in Italian Renaissance style was completed in 1930, and with 60,000 square feet was modeled after two Italian Villas, Villa d'Este near Rome, and Villa Farnese at Caprarola. It overlooks the Miami River, and in 1994 had a 22 million dollar renovation. Source: http://www.daytonartinstitute.org/info/history.html;

Dazzle Painting

One of the most appealing and successful devices of camouflage painting, the method, whose name is a play on words of 'razzle dazzle', pertains to the manipulating of brightly colored, high contrast disruptive shapes." It was a method first applied to ships during World War I, and painter Norman Wilkinson is credited with naming and activating the method by proposing it to the British Admiralty in 1917. The purpose was to guard against torpedo attacks by creating deceitful visual information about directions in which vessels were headed. Source: Roy H. Behrens, "Camoupedia: A Compendium of Research on Art, Architecture and Camouflage"

De Stijl/Neo Plasticism

Descriptive of a group of Dutch painters, architects, sculptors and writers under the leadership of Theo van Doesburg, the term De Stijl is a Dutch word meaning Style in English. The group, founded in 1917, was totally committed to abstraction. Members asserted they could achieve a pure, universal art by using only primary colors, and black and white, and rectangular lines. Between 1917 and 1928, they published a journal, "De Stijl", whose purpose was to make 'modern man receptive to what is new in the visual arts'. Founding members of De Stijl included painters Piet Mondrian, Bart van der Leck and Wilmos Huszar, and sculptor Georges Vantongerloo. De Stijl has become synonymous with Neo-Plasticism, the name of their Manifesto published in 1920 and the descriptive term preferred by Mondrian. The influence of the group in promoting minimal elements was long lasting on architecture, commercial and industrial designs, graphics and painting. De Stijl was promoted by the Bauhaus School of Design. Sources: Ralph Mayer, "A Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques"; Kimberley Reynolds and Richard Seddon, "Illustrated Dictionary of Art Terms"; Julia M Ehresmann, "The Pocket Dictionary of Art Terms".


A term often related to private and public art collections, it means removal of artwork either by exchange or sale. Museum Directors often use de-accession as a method of maintaining the focus of the museum

Dead Color

Any color used to underpaint an oil painting on canvas, it usually is a dull brown, gray or green. Source: Kimberley Reynolds and Richard Seddon, "Illustrated Dictionary of Art Terms"

Death Mask

A cast made from the face of a deceased person, it is achieved by oiling the skin, applying plaster, and then removing the plaster when it is hardened. Ancient Egyptians made these masks of thin plates of gold. Before photography, the method was used as a way to record the likeness of a person, and sometimes sculptors used Death Masks to create a posthumous portrait of the person, especially ones well known. Among painters and sculptors who created likenesses from death masks are Raphael Beck, Karl Gerhardt, John Browere and Nellie Verne Walker. Sources: Ralph Mayer, "A Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques; AskART database

Decadent Art

A derogatory term for expressions of artists and writers of the Aesthetic Movement in England in the last two decades of the 19th Century, it was directed against people who were judged to be more concerned about form and beauty than subject and moral uplift. Aubrey Beardsley and his drawings, associated with Art Nouveau, were often criticized for his Decadent Art. Source: Ralph Mayer, "A Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques"


A painting process for making fractal or branching patterns, it is accomplished by putting viscous paint on a piece of stiff paper fastened to a table. The paper is covered with another piece of paper. Then applied pressure, which spreads the paint, and the sheets pulled apart, will result in branching patterns on both sheets. Those patterns can be changed with repeats of this process. The term was coined in 18th century France when it was done with gouache and ink, and became a childrens' game of blotting. For many, it is appealing because of its liberating unpredictability. Sources: Yale University, http://classes.yale.edu/fractals/panorama/art/decalcomania/DecEx/DecEx.html; ARTtalk.com; http://www.arttalk.com/archives/vol-15/artv1502-1.htm

Deckle Edge

The ragged edge of hand-made paper, it sometimes is simulated on machine made paper. Sources: Kimberley Reynolds and Richard Seddon, "Illustrated Dictionary of Art Terms"


From the French word decoller, which means unstick, it is the opposite of collage, which is building up of layers. Decollage is the tearing away of layers of paper or other fine art materials to expose under layers to create an effect. It is associated with New Realism, especially Poster Art based on the temporary and the principal of intentional and spontaneous destruction. Poster artist Wolf Vostell edited a magazine he named "Decollage". Source: "Phaidon Dictionary of Twentieth Century Art"; Julia M Ehresmann, "The Pocket Dictionary of Art Terms"

Decorative Art

A term for applied art, meaning it is created with the purpose of embellishing a useful object such as a vase or architectural column. Decorative Art can also exist by itself as pure ornamentation. Decorative artists include ceramist R. Guy Cowan; architectural decorator Rene Paul Chambellan, and ornamental painter John Ritto Penniman. Sources: Ralph Mayer, "A Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques"; Kimberley Reynolds and Richard Seddon, "Illustrated Dictionary of Art Terms"; AskART database


One who applies his or her craftsmanship to adorning an art object, it often is not the person who did the design.


A French word meaning to decorate a surface by covering it completely with cut-out paper designs. The finished object is also called a Decoupage. Source: Ralph Mayer, "A Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques"


Originally created to lure game birds to their death, hand carved working (e.g. made for hunting) wildfowl decoys have been considered folk art and collected as such for almost 100 years. Most working decoys are made of wood (cedar, pine, balsa, etc.), however, they can also be made of cork or mixed mediums, and they can be solid or hollowed out. Working decoys are carved and painted to be highly visible lifelike models (at least from a distance) of the ducks, geese, shorebirds and other game species they were designed to lure. Unlike most folk art, working decoys were not created or decorated for the aesthetic appreciation of the user; beautiful as many working decoys are, fundamentally they are unembellished utilitarian objects – hunting equipment designed only to attract birds. Since no part of them was decorated or enhanced to appeal to a human viewer, working decoys would not naturally be classed as Fine Art or Applied Art. Consequently, the discussion of working decoys as an art form conceptually expands the definition of art in a modern and quite Duchampian way. A North American invention, decoys were first fashioned with reeds and feathers by Native Americans over 1000 years ago. Since then, decoys made of various things like rocks, mud and stuffed dead birds have been used in North America. The modern wood decoy originated in the early 19th century. Its development coincided with the mass slaughter of migratory birds and the ultimate extinction of several bird species. Collecting decoys as art began in the early 20th century after the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918 put professional hunters (aka: market hunters), the primary users of decoys, out of business and thus made most of the decoys and decoy carvers redundant. Joel Barber (1877 – 1952), a New York architect, was one of the most prominent early collectors and promoters (author of “Wild Fowl Decoys”) of decoys as art, he bought his first decoy in 1918 (Engers p.301). Important early decoy carvers were almost always avid pre-Act of 1918 hunters such as Lothrop Holmes, Anthony Elmer Crowell, Thomas Gelston and Thomas Chambers. Please note: the above discussion refers only to purpose built hunting decoys; hand carved decorative and miniature decoys were, on the other hand, created solely for aesthetic appreciation, not for hunting, and as such were always considered fine art sculptures. Since 1913 there have been organized competitions amongst carvers of these highly detailed decorative decoys. Sources: “Collecting Antique Bird Decoys and Duck Calls: An Identification and Price Guide” (2003), by Carl Luckey and Russell E. Lewis; “The Great Book of Wildfowl Decoys” (2000), edited by Joe Engers; and “Wild Fowl Decoys” (1934), by Joel Barber. Prepared and contributed by M.D. Silverbrooke.

Degenerate Art

A term applied to artwork in Germany during the Hitler era, it was considered a threat to the Nazis because it was counter to their political message. Many artists, later well known, fell under that label including some after their death such as Paul Gaughin, and Vincent Van Gogh. Other artists whose work was regarded as Degenerate and were publicly threatened and labeled are Marc Chagall, Wassily Kandinsky, Max Beckmann, George Grosz and Theodore Fried. Beginning 1937, Hitler and other members of the Third Reich put together a list of what they classified as "degenerate" art, and toured Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Austria, etc. parading the art and names of the artists they considered anathema to their principles. The living artists, many of whom were scattered throughout Europe, lived in danger of their lives, and many of the collectors of their art throughout Europe, hid or destroyed the art for fear of reprisals. The artists had no control over who was chosen or for what reason. Conversely, Hitler put forward what he considered art reflective of the superhuman race dealing with "modernism" and fair skinned blonds indicative of the "purity" of race. After the war, the artists whose art was chosen for these exhibits were considered celebrities. However, much of their artwork as well as the 'degenerate' art had been damaged or completely destroyed in temporary storage areas such as caves, chimneys, etc. Sources: Milton J. Ellenbogen, Trustee of the Theodore Fried Estate; AskART Biographies

Del Monte Art Gallery

Exhibition space opened in 1907 at the Del Monte Hotel, famous as a resort in Monterey, California, and built by the Southern Pacific Railroad, this was the first gallery dedicated exclusively to California artists. The venue was established by artists who had fled the fire and earthquake of San Francisco. With 40 artists exhibiting annually, it was a key factor in establishing the area of Monterey and Carmel as an art center. Prominent among exhibiting artists were Armin Hansen, Euphemia Fortune, William Keith, Will Sparks and Gottardo Piazzoni. Sources: William Gerdts, 'American Tonalism, Essay in "Poetic Vision: American Tonalism", Spanierman Galleries, LLC exhibition catalogue, 2005; AskART database

Del., Delin

Latin derivative from "delineavit", translated in English in means "he drew it". The term is used in printmaking following the name of an artist to signify that the artist was responsible for the original design, as distinct from being simply the engraver. "Inc" and "Sculp" refer to the person who engraved the plate, often different from the artist who did the original design. Source: Ralph Mayer, "A Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques"


See Academie Delacluse

Delaware School of Art

See Clawson S. Hammitt's School of Art

Delft, Delftware

Earthenware, it is named for its place of origin in the Netherlands in the 17th Century. Opaque enamel is the covering and cobalt blue the decoration. Source: Ralph Mayer, "A Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques

Den Frie Udstilling/The Free Exhibition

Denmark's oldest artist group, The Free Exhibition was founded in 1891 by a group of avant-garde artists who were having their paintings regularly refused at the Charlottenborg Spring Exhibition. Founding members and exhibitors included Johan Rohde, Agnes Slott-Moller, Harald Slott-Moller, Theodor Philipsen, Jens Ferdinand Willumsen, Vilhelm Hammershoi, Joakim Skovgaard, Neils Skovgaard, Kristian Zahrtmann Julius Paulsen and Peder Severin Kroyer. The first exhibition opened on March 26, 1891 at the Art Gallery Kleis in Copenhagen. It was a great success, viewed by more than 20,000 paying guests. In 1893 Paul Gauguin exhibited with them and subsequently Edvard Munch, Carl-Henning Pedersen, Richard Mortensen, Robert Jacobsen, Soren Georg Jensen, Ole Schwalbe and Sonja Ferlov Mancoba have exhibited at Den Frie Udstilling. The association and organization are still dedicated to artistic freedom and avant-garde art and put on about eight exhibitions a year in The Free Exhibition Building at East Gate Station in Copenhagen (see all artists mentioned in AskART). Sources: The Free Exhibition Building/ The Free Center for Contemporary Art (http://denfrie.dk/) and KunstAuktionOnline.dk. Prepared and contributed by M.D.Silverbrooke

Denver Art Club

Formed in 1893 in Denver, Colorado as an exhibition venue for local artists, the Club was the forerunner of the Denver Art Museum. At the time of its origin, DAC was supported by the family of artist and founding member Anne Evans (1871-1941), who lived in a home where meetings were held. The structure is now the Byers-Evans House Museum. Among early artist members were Charles Partridge Adams, Frank Sauerwein, Richard Tallant and George Platt. Source: Traditional Fine Arts Online, http://www.tfaoi.com/newsm1/n1m270.htm; AskART database

Denver Artists Guild/Colorado Artists Guild

In 1928-29 a group of 52 Colorado artists banded together to form the Denver Artists Guild with goals “to encourage the practice and appreciation of the fine arts and to promote the highest professional standards in original art.” These founders were a diverse group geographically and stylistically with influences of Impressionism, Cubism, Expressionism and later Abstraction. Some of the better known founders include Vance Kirkland, Arnold Ronnebeck, Gladys Caldwell Fisher and John Edward Thompson. Source: Deborah Wadsworth, curator of “Denver Artists Guild Founders – Fifty-Two Originals” show at Denver Public Library, 2009

Des Moines Academy of Art

See Cumming School of Art

Deseret Academy of Fine Arts

Founded in Salt Lake City in 1863 by John Tullidge, George Ottinger, and Dan Weggeland, it was a short-lived school for teaching art. Source: Anthony Fine Art, Salt Lake City; J. Willard Marriott Library, U. of Utah.

Desert Art Center

The oldest and largest non-profit art association in Cochella Valley, California, it was founded in 1950 on Highway 111 in Cathedral City by artists and friends of the arts. Three years later, the DAC was moved to 444 South Indian Avenue in Palm Springs, and the organization continues into the 21st Century. It is a place for exhibitions and artist demonstrations and also an "Art Mart" for artwork sales on weekends. Active artist members have been Jimmy Swinnerton, William Darling, Agnes Pelton and Carl Bray. Source: "Treasury of Living Art", DAC publication, 1970.


The plan of elements of a composition as pre-planned by architects, painters and sculptors, it involves line, shapes, symmetry, spatial relationships and rhythm. Color and texture and emotional expression are not a part of Design. Source: Ralph Mayer, "A Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques"


The mixing of postwar and contemporary art with design objects, it blurs the lines between the traditional definitions of fine art and design. The Movement is dated from the mid-1990s when Christie's London began design sales and to a spring 2000 sale at Christie's New York when Philippe Segálot, worldwide head of contemporary art, interspersed design objects by Marc Newson and Shiro Kuramata with paintings and sculpture by Damien Hirst and Jeff Koons. The buying response was very moderate, but since then the combination has caught on and seems a pairing "well suited to the newest wave of collectors and their eclectic decorating style." (126) A major player in promoting Design-As-Art is Chicagoan Richard Wright and his Wright auctions, begun in 2000 shortly after the Christie's sale. He offered design objects in eye-catching catalogues. About the same time, Phillips, de Pury & Company, began 20-21st Century Design Art sales. In 2003, Sotheby's changed the name of the 20th-Century Decorative Arts to 20th Century Design. Source: Jeannie Rosenfeld, ‘Turning the Tables’, “ARTnews”, March 2006, p. 126-127


One who creates the plan to produce an object, the term usually implies that the person was not the executor of the work but is the arranger of the formal elements such as line, shape, angles, color dynamics, etc. Designer is a term used for persons who apply these principles to art and utilitarian objects, and interior and exterior architecture. Source: Ralph Mayer, "A Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques"

Dessus de Porte

Popular in the 18th Century, the term describes a horizontal painting created to be hung over a doorway. Source: Ralph Mayer, "A Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques"

Detroit Society of Arts and Crafts

Influenced by the late 19th Century Arts and Crafts begun in England, which was a reaction against mass production, this entity was patterned after the Arts and Crafts Society in Boston. The DSAC was founded in 1906 with George Booth, managing editor of the "Detroit News". as President. In 1916, the Society became the first Arts and Crafts organization in America to construct its own building, located at 47 Watson Street. In 1926, the Society had a school, The Society of Arts and Crafts School of Art, now the Center for Creative Studies. In 1929, work by Alexander Calder was introduced by the Society in Detroit, as well as other modernist American artists. By the early 21st Century, the Society was not functioning, but the School remains. The Society's legacy is that it thrived as a counter influence in Detroit at the time the city became the world's leading center of industrial production, and it also melded aspects of industry into aesthetics. A defining moment had been the Society's introduction of the automobile as an art form. The Ford family subsequently gave much money to the School, which expanded into a four year college with a degree given in industrial design. Source: Internet: detroit1701.org/Det Society of Arts and Crafts.html; apps.detnews.com/apps/history/index.php?id=75

Dia Art Foundation

A non-profit organization founded in 1974 by Houston arts patron Philippa Menil, it initiates, supports, exhibits and preserves contemporary art objects. By 2007, its endowment was $57 million dollars. Support is given to special projects whose nature and/or size would not attract other funding sources. The name "Dia" is from the Greek word for "through", meaning enabling. The Foundation also maintains long-term site specific sites including work by Walter De Maria, Dan Flavin and Donald Judd. Source: Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dia_Art_Foundation

Die Brucke (The Bridge)

A German Expressionist movement of violent colours, a sense of doom figural distorion and emotional humanism, it was organized in Dresden in 1905 by architecture students, who were also painters. The intent was to create a style to "bridge" the prevalent Romantic painting with the encroaching modernist Expressionism. In doing this, they looked back to early German artists such as Albrecht Durer and Matthias Grunewald, and forward to their own ideas that focused on expressing inner emotions and stark social realism. The four original members were Fritz Bleyl (1880-1966); Erich Heckel (1883-1970); Ernst Kirchner (1880-1938); and Karl Schmidt-Rottluff (1884-1976). "Die Brucke", along with "Der Blaue Reiter" group (The Blue Rider) were the two groups fundamental to the success of the Expressionist movement. Source: Wikipedia referencing of Peter Selz, "German Expressionist Painting", p. 78; Johans Borman Fine Art biography of Adolph Jentsch.


Creating objects from sheet metal, it is a process that involves making the outline on the metal, cutting it out with tools, filing the rough edges, and then if wanted, applying images or words onto the metal. Engraving and die-sinker artists include Segastian Genot, Elijah Dickens, Moritz Furst, and Emil Sigel. Sources: Peter Hastings Falk, "Who Was Who in American Art"; http://chestofbooks.com/home-improvement/woodworking

Diesinker, Diesinking

An engravier of dies, these are shapes on hard-blocks materials such as wood or steel whose openings serve as shape molds for stamping designs on coins or medals. The process dates to the early 1800s in America. Charles Cushing Wright was one of the first engravers who also did die sinking and other early engravers involved in the process were William Barber, Salathiel Ellis and Moritz Furst. Sources: AskART biographies, www.wiseGEEK.com

Digital Art

See Computer Art


A term originally applied to three-dimensional appearing scenes, often with a painted background, and lit and viewed through a peephole, it gives a three-dimensional effect. The term, Diorama, also applies to the viewing light box, which was invented in 1822 by L.J.M. Daguerre. In the 20 and 21st centuries, dioramas refer to three-dimensional backgrounds for exhibitions such as for realistic wildlife exhibits in natural history museums. Often the lighting is adjusted to create atmospheric effects. Unlike expansive, eye-catching dioramas of the 19th Century such as those by Albert Bierstadt and Frederic Church, modern dioramas usually function as backdrops to exhibits such as stuffed mammals and birds or commercial business exhibits. These later American dioramists include Joseph Cerveau, J. Perry Wilson, Frank MacKenzie, William Leigh, Francis Lee Jacques, Clarence Rosenkrantz, Hobart Nichols, Peter George, Earle Heika, Joe Halko, Dudley Blakely and D. Alanson Spencer. Sources: Kimberley Reynolds and Richard Seddon, "Illustrated Dictionary of Art Terms"; http://www.amnh.org/exhibitions/dioramas/artists/painters.php; AskART database


A British term for a container for oils and mediums, it clips to the side of the palette. Source: Kimberley Reynolds, Richard Seddon, "Illustrated Dictionary of Art Terms"


A painting or relief carving on two hinged panels so it can be opened and closed like a book, it is usually an altarpiece but is also a technique used by modernist artists. Source: Ralph Mayer, "A Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques"

Direct Carving (Also See Carver, Carving)

Beginning in France in the 1890s with sculptor Joseph Bernard, direct carving was a method of creating a single sculpture and was a departure from traditional processes of bronze sculpture that led to multiple copies and employment of studio assistants. Direct carving involves only the carver, his/her tools, and the medium, which traditionally is stone, marble, or wood. A shared commitment of direct carvers is remaining true to the inherent properties of the medium, meaning to respect the integrity of the lines and texture and to let those entities guide the creative hand. Direct Carving received international attention when work by sculptors such as Constantin Brancusi and Ossip Zadkine used that method in their entries that appeared at the 1913 New York Armory Show. In America, Chaim Gross, Jose de Creeft, and Seymour Lipton were pioneers of the method in the early 20th century, and direct carving has continued among succeeding generations including Elfriede Abbe in the 1960s. Sources: Donald Martin Reynolds, "Masters of American Sculpture"; AskART Database

Direct Painting

See Alla Prima


An Italian word meaning 'design' or 'drawing', in Italian art the term has been applied "to all the visual arts as well as to the specific elements that the word denotes." The assertion of the superiority of "disegno" over color has led to conflicts among academic artists. Source: Ralph Mayer, A Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques"


A term for bulk or wall paints and not to be confused with fresco, 'distemper' is prepared from water, powder colors, and simple glue or casein binders and is often used for stage scenery or decoration when permanence is not important. The term is not used in the United States where equivalents are Calcimine and Scenic colours. Sources: Kimberley Reynolds and Richard Seddon, "Illustrated Dictionary of Art Terms"; Ralph Mayer, "A Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques"


Any change of visual perception made by an artist, it alters what is normally regarded as realistic. Often affected are size, position, or general character. Distortion is a term also used for any degree of personal or subjective interpretation of natural forms. Artists throughout history have consciously used Distortian including Gothic sculptors and painters,Mannerists such as El Greco; and Cubists, Surrealists and Expressionists including Pablo Picasso, Max Ernst and Vincent Van Gogh. Source: Ralph Mayer, "A Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques"

Divisionism, Divisioniste, Chromoluminarism

A Neo-Impressionist style of painting, it was founded with the name Chromoluminarism by Georges Seurat in the mid 1880s in France. It is closely related to Pointillism and is distinctive from Impressionism for its separation of colors into individual dots, which are intended to interact optically on the viewer. This approach of juxtaposing pigments and manipulating light allowed the artist to avoid pre-mixing colors on a palette. Seurat's masterpiece, "La Grande Jatte" is the most famous example of the style. Other artists associated or influenced by Divisionism were Maximilien Luce, Camile and Lucien Pissaro, Georges Lemmen and Yvonne Canu. Source: Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Divisionism

Dixie Art Colony, Alabama Gulf Coast Colony

First located in Mobile County, Alabama from the early 1930s to the late 1940s and then in the fishing villages of Bayou La Batre and Coden on Alabama's western Gulf Coast between 1946 and 1953, the Dixie Art Colony evolved into the Alabama Gulf Coast Colony. Artists gathered at the latter colony from spring to fall and lived communally and painted the local scenery "en plein aire". The Dixie Art Colony was part of a more widespread post-United States Civil-War movement that continued into the 20th century. It was composed of a group of women artists working together to promote their art and that of women generally in Alabama during the first half of the 20th century. Kelly Fitzpatrick, a popular male artist, was the key leader and taught at the Colony school at Deatsville, Alabama. Women artists included Doris Thompson, Arrie Plummer, Anne Goldthwaite and Sallie Carmichael. In those days in the South, women artists were not taken seriously, and art was something condoned from them as long as they did not try to elevate their art to a professional level. As part of their activities, they organized painting excursions to the Gulf Coast, and in May 1946, a second colony formed as a result of these excursions and the effort of Genevieve Southerland. Called the Alabama Gulf Coast Colony, added members included Frances Elizabeth Harris, William Bush, George Bryant and Carlos Alpha "Shiney" Moon. Southerland served as Director, and Fitzpatrick and Moon were art instructors. The Colony dissolved in 1953 with the death of three key members (Fitzpatrick, Southerland and Moon) within a hundred days of each other. Sources: Lynn Barstis Williams, 'South Alabama's Art Colony 1946-1953, "American Art Review", February 2006, pp. 158-165; James R. Nelson, "Birmingham News", 10/31/2004.


From the French word "docere", meaning to guide, the word docent means guide and refers to a museum volunteer who has been trained to give educational tours.

Documenta Kassel

An exhibition of modern and contemporary art held every five years for 100 days in Kassel, Germany, it was founded by artist and teacher Arnold Bode in 1955. Originally it was part of Kassel's hosting of the Federal Horticultural Show. The first "documenta" featured artists highly influential on modern art such as Picasso and Kandinsky, but recently most of the entries are site specific. June 2012 is the beginning date of the next "documenta", an invented word intended to mean a documentation of modern art. Source: Wikipedia; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Documenta

Documentation, Documentary Art

In fine art, the word with two meanings. Traditionally it has referred to mediums that record events or people such as photographs, videos or written materials. However, with the advent of Conceptual Art, especially Earth Art and Performance Art, Documentation is the recording of quickly passing moments such as "The Gates" of Jean-Claude Christo and Javacheff Christo in Central Park in New York City in 2005, or out-of-the way earthworks such as those by Michael Heiser in Nevada. Source: Robert Atkins, "Art Speak"

Doll & Richards Gallery

Established 1866, and incorporated in 1902 in Boston, Massachusetts, it was a highly prominent gallery with artists of enduring reputation such as Winslow Homer, Frank Vining Smith, Edward Redfield, and William Stanley Haseltine. After the original owners, it sold in 1941 to Arthur McKean, to 1962 to Maurice Goldberg, and to Jeanne and Paul Sylva in 1973. Archives are in the Frick Colledtion in New York City. Source: http://research.frick.org/directoryweb/

Dolphin Fellowship; Dolphin Medal

Established as non-monetary recognitions by the American Water Color Society, both awards are set up for the promotion of watercolor. The Fellowship is given only to painters as an incentive to create award-winning paintings that advance the medium of watercolor. Criteria is the accumulation of five points derived from a system established at AWS exhibitions. The Dolphin Medal is not an award for painting but an award to persons promoting watercolor including philanthropists and other volunteers as well as artists. Among Dolphin Medal Winners are Robert Hale, Ogden Pleissner, Millard Sheets, Andrew Wyeth, Betty Lou Schlemm, and Dong Kingman. Source: The American Watercolor Society


A principle of visual organization, it suggests that certain elements should assume more importance than others in the same composition. It contributes to the organic unity by emphasizing the fact that there is one main feature and that other elements are subordinate to it.

Dominion Gallery of Fine Art, Montreal

The Dominion Gallery of Fine Art, first located in the Keefer Building on St. Catherine Street West in Montreal, was founded by Rose Millman in December 1941. Max Stern, a recent émigré from Germany, joined the Gallery as managing director in October 1942. He became Millman's business partner in 1944 and purchased the Gallery outright in 1947. In 1950, Stern moved the business to 1438 Sherbrooke Street. From the outset, the Dominion Gallery mainly promoted art by living Canadian artists. The inaugural exhibition at the gallery, held in March 1943, featured paintings by Goodridge Roberts (1904-1974). The Roberts exhibition was the first in a series at the Dominion Gallery during the 1940s devoted to contemporary Canadian artists, Jacques Godefroy de Tonnancour (1917-2005), Paul-Emile Borduas (1905-1960), John Lyman (1886-1967), Emily Carr (1871-1945), and Stanley Cosgrove (1911-2002) among them. The Dominion Gallery was the first gallery in Canada to provide artists with a guaranteed annual income, allowing them to devote time to their art without the necessity of having to earn a livelihood by other means. In all, the Dominion supported thirty-two Canadian artists with contracts. Having exhibited and sold mostly contemporary Canadian works during the 1940s and early 1950s, the Dominion Gallery changed course in the mid 1950s, when it became more actively involved in selling international art. Especially important was Stern's focus on international sculpture, an interest aided by the lifting of Canada's import duty on sculpture in 1956. Over the next few years the Dominion Gallery developed the largest private collection of international sculpture in Canada, selling works by such artists as Henry Moore (1898-1986), Hans Arp (1886-1966), Aristide Maillol (1861-1944), Emilio Greco (1913-1995), and Marino Marini (1901-1980). The Gallery also promoted the work of Auguste Rodin (1840-1917), becoming the agent for the sale of Rodin sculptures from the Musée Rodin in the early 1960s. In 1967, on the fiftieth anniversary of Rodin's death, the Gallery paid tribute to the artist with a major exhibition of his work. Following Max Stern's death in 1987, the Dominion Gallery continued to organize important exhibitions of Canadian and international art under the direction of Michel Moreault, an employee of the gallery since October 1968. The Gallery was closed in December 2000. The Dominion Gallery building and name was purchased by Robert Landau in 2001 and reopened in 2005. Source: http://www.gallery.ca/english/library/biblio/ngc029.html#aseries10

Don Pittman Wildlife Art Prize

A cash award of $3,000, it is for Exceptional Artistic Merit for a Wildlife Painting or Sculpture exhibited at the annual Prix de West show at the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City. It is sponsored by Major General and Mrs. Don D. Pittman and carries a cash award of three-thousand dollars. Recipients include Greg Beecham, Dave Wade, Bob Kuhn and Ken Carlson. Sources: National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum; AskART database

Double Image

In painting and drawing, a figure or object that appears in more than one place such as a human figure that also appears as part of the geography such as in a hillside. Pavel Tchelitchew, 1898-1957, was particularly noted for his double images. Source: Ralph Mayer, "A Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques"


A sculpture term, it refers to the depiction of a lone figure on a battlefield or one charging with a bayonet to represent the bravery of many soldiers. These sculpted figures originated with the Civil War, and the name came from the British, who said that the gold-colored buttons on American uniforms looked like dumplings or doughboys. Many small communities had doughboy monuments, but three nationally known sculptors made the genre a fine art: Martin Milmore, John Quincy Adams Ward, and Randolph Rogers. Also creating doughboys were Avard Fairbanks, Ernest Viquesney, Joseph Mora and Humberto Pedretti. Sources: Donald Martin Reynolds, "Masters of American Sculpture"; AskART database

Downtown Gallery/Edith Halpert

Founded in Greenwich Village, New York City at 113 West 13th Street in 1926 by Edith Gregor Halpert, it stayed in the gallery business for forty-four years. The Gallery was unique because it was one of the earliest in America devoted to American art, the earliest to sell and promote modern art, the first in America to be operated by a woman, and the first gallery to promote folk art and work by black artists such as Jacob Lawrence. Halpert was also the first American dealer "to print on every sales receipt that the copyright was held by the artist and gallery---not the purchaser. Abby Rockefeller and Stanley Marcus were some of her biggest clients, and other collectors were Eleanor Roosevelt, Paul Mellon and Marshall Field III. Among her artists were Stuart Davis, Georgia O'Keeffe, and Charles Sheeler. In 1940, Halpert moved her gallery out of Greenwich Village to a six-story mansion at 43 East 51st Street. Source: Lindsay Pollock, "The Girl with the Gallery", 2006.

Draftsman, Draughtsman

A person who specializes in drawing, it has traditionally has been one of the basics of art education. For architecture and mechanical drawing, a draftsman is a person who converts concepts into drawings that meet professional standards. Source: Ralph Mayer, "A Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques"


The technique of applying paint over a rough surface, the goal is to create uneven appearance and untouched depressions. It results in broken areas of color with irregularities so that under color shows through. In the Intaglio printmaking process, dragging or scruffing is leaving a film of ink on the surface of the plate, resulting in a less stark contrast between the printed lines and the background. Source: Ralph Mayer, "A Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques"

Drapery Painter, Draperyman

Employed by other artists, usually portraitists, to finish their work, they were specialists in paintings clothing and other accessories. Defined as subcontractors rather than studio assistants they seem to have emerged in the Netherlands in the late 17th century, and by the mid 18th century, most of the leading British portraitists employed them excepting Gainsborough and Hogarth. Joseph Van Aken was known as "doyen of the draperyman's profession. Source: Oxford Dictionary of Art online, http://www.enotes.com/oxford-art-encyclopedia/drapery-painter


Lines on a surface, usually paper, of shapes and forms, it creates distinguishing linearity. Drawing techniques vary widely with sharp delineation achieved with pencil and or pen/ink. Watercolor generally gives a more delicate effect, and more painterly effects can be created with wax crayon, chalk, pastel, and charcoal. Some drawings are the finished product, and others are sketches for a grander piece of work. It is said that one of the foundations of every civilization is drawing. In our modern world, “every building, every car, every cardboard coffee cup was likely first a drawing on a piece of paper as a set of lines that would eventually form the architecture of our lives.” (Maynard) On the seal of the Art Students League in Manhattan is the Latin motto "Nulla Dies Sine Linea", meaning "No Day Without a Line." (Rubenstein) American artists known for drawing include Chuck Close, Alexander Calder, Robert Cottingham, and Cy Twombly. Sources: Ralph Mayer, "A Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques"; Edith Zimmerman, ‘Sketchbook’, “Drawing” magazine, Spring 2006, p. 8; Ephraim Rubenstein, “Drawing” magazine, Spring 2006, p. 61; AskART database.

Drawing Board

Also known as Illustration Board, it is traditonally a squared and smoothed wood panel that an artist can use for attaching drawing paper. Source: Ralph Mayer, "A Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques"

Drawing Center, New York City

Founded in 1977 in a warehouse at 137 Greene Street in SoHo by Martha Beck, an art curator, it is now located at 35 Wooster Street. The Center is an alternative museum to showcase both emerging artists and the art of drawing, which Beck valued because it so often was the first 'creative flash' that led to the more polished and finished artwork. Among artists featured early in their careers were Antonio Gaudi, Terry Winters, Nancy Dwyer, Carroll Dunham and Richard Bosman. The first year of operation 125,000 visitors attended, and strong support of the Center has continued with architectural drawings often being exhibited such as those by Andrea Palladio, Inigo Jones and Christopher Wren. Source: Obituary of Martha Beck by Paul Vitello, January 22, 2014 in "The New York Times".

Drawing from Nature

Sketching outdoors and then finishing in the studio, it has tradionally been part of the academic training of artists. Source: Ralph Mayer, "A Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques"

Drawing from the Antique

Making a copy with charcoal, chalk or pen and ink of classical sculpture, it is precise and accurate and from either the original or a white plaster copy. Making skillful, exact copies has traditionally been required for entry into life-drawing classes, especially in the traditional art classrooms in America in the late 18th and 19th-century. In the 1870s, Cecilia Beaux, then a teen-age art student, was required to "draw from the antique", something she found tedious and boring but eventually credited as critical to her professional development. She wrote: "I had been taught by this exercise, if I chose to apply it, every rule of linear and aerial perspective." (Carter 37). Sources: Ralph Mayer, "A Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques"; Alice Carter, "Cecilia Beaux".

Drawing Paper

A smooth, hard-surfaced paper with dull finish and water resistance, it is used by artists for sketching or finished drawings. Source: Ralph Mayer, "A Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques"

Drawing Society of Canada

Devoted to artists who specialize in pen and pencil work, it places more emphasis on advocacy of those mediums than activities. Its mission is to educate the public about drawing, to collect Canadian drawings, and to encourage artists to draw, especially the figure. The Society was established in 1998 by Peter Leclerc and Gerrit Verstraete. Source: www.drawingsociety.com

Drawing Table

A table with adjustable top, it allows slanting at various angles and often adjustable in height. Many Drawing Tables have built-in measuring tools, grids and special lighting. Usually the tables are lightweight and sometimes can be folded up for storage and portabilility. Sources: Kimberley Reynolds and Richard Seddon, "Illustrated Dictionary of Art Terms"; Ralph Mayer, "A Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques"

Dream Catchers Artists Guild

Founded in 1983 in Aberdeen, South Dakota by Sioux Indian artists, their goal was setting of standards, establishing of markets and educating of artists and the general public about Indian art related to the Lakota culture. Among original organizers were Richard Red Owl, Don Ruleaux and Vic Runnels. Source: Patrick D. Lester, "The Biographical Directory of Native American Painters"

Drier, Siccative

A compound obtained from several metals including lead, iron, mangonese and cobalt it accelerates the drying process when added to oil paint. However, pigments affect the drying process so some colors with driers added respond more quickly than others. Cobalt drier is regarded as the most effective. Siccative is another word for Drier, and Retardent is the opposite of Drier. Source: Ralph Mayer, "A Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques"

Drip Painting, Gestural Painting

Applying paint to a ground such as canvas by dripping or pouring the paint, it is a method used early in the 20th Century by experimental artists including Max Ernst. The goal of Drip Painters was to explore and enjoy the physical process of applying paint. It came to international attention beginning the 1940s with Action Painters in New York City, especially Jackson Pollock, who began Drip Painting in 1947. His method was to lay the canvas on the floor and drip the paint with energetic arm-swinging motions. Source: "Phaidon Dictionary of Twentieth-Century Art" (Also see Gestural Painting, Gesturalism)


French for humorous and often fantastic pen drawings, it often shows animals behaving as humans. Droleries are found in the margins of Medieval manuscripts. Source: Julia M Ehresmann, "The Pocket Dictionary of Art Terms"


A humorous picture, especially one that has animals dressed as human beings or engaged in human activites. Source: Ralph Mayer, "A Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques"

Drummond Light

A dissolving lantern light method, it was a 19th century method which enabled the operator to blend one picture into the next without interruption. Sometimes the effects could be quite disconcerting. Of a Drummond Light show arranged in 1851 in New Bedford, Massachusetts by Albert Bierstadt, a newspaper reporter wrote: "The dissolving of one picture into another sometimes develops the most grotesque conjunction of objects. A lady daintily tripping over dry ground is suddenly plunged to the ankles in a brawling stream; or a man sitting securely upon a prostrate log is transferred to the back of an ox." (17) Source: Gordon Henricks, "Albert Bierstadt"

Dry Mount

A two-dimensional work such as a photograph or print, it is attached to cardboard backing with a thin sheet of tissue placed between the paper and the mount. The Dry Mount is secured by being touched quickly with an electronically heated Tacking Iron, which makes it thoroughly bound with the application of heat and pressure called a Dry Mount Press. Dry Mounting is used more for commercial purposes than fine art. Source: Ralph Mayer, "A Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques"


A technique used with watercolors, acrylics and inks, the brush, only slightly moist with water, is held almost flat against the paper to achieve a broken or mottled effect. In oil painting, the equivalent process is called Dragging. Drybrush artists include John Marin, Andrew Wyeth, Charles McIlhenney, and Doug Higgins. Sources: Ralph Mayer, "A Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques"; Kimberley Reynolds and Richard Seddon, "Illustrated Dictionary of Art Terms.


An intaglio printmaking technique, similar to engraving, the result is lines with slightly ragged edges because the burr or raised area created with the incising remains, unlike engraving where it is polished away. The first intaglio proofs that are pulled are of the best quality and most collectible because the burr wears away in the printing process. American artists noted for drypoint include James Smillie, Chauncey Ryder, Edward Hopper and Gertrude Albright. Source: Ralph Mayer, "A Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques"; AskART biographies

Dublin Metropolitan School of Art

See National College of Art and Design, Dublin


A type of textile used for canvas. Source: Kimberley Reynolds and Richard Seddon, "Illustrated Dictionary of Art Terms"

Duck Stamps and Prints

Limited-edition wildlife works available in federal and state issues, the federal duck-stamp print is the most collectible wildlife art in the United States. The duck stamp itself is a hunting license stamp dating from 1934 and issued by the federal government. From that time, the series has been uninterrupted, and each stamp is accompanied by a limited edition print series. After three years, all remaining stamps and prints are destroyed, which controls the numbers for collectors. Jay Norwood Darling, a cartoonist and conservationalist, created the first federal duck stamp design in 1934 when the U.S. Congress enacted the Migratory Bird Hunting Stamp Act. From that time, possession of that stamp was a requirement for holding a hunting license, and revenues were directed towards wildlife conservation. Other Duck Stamp designers are Frank Benson, Robert Bateman, Guy Coheleach, Lynn Bogue Hunt, Aiden Ripley and David Maass. Source: Joe McCaddin, "Duck Stamps and Prints"; AskART database

Ducks Unlimited

Because it is an organization dedicated to conserving, restoring, and managing wetlands for North American waterfowl, many artists have committed their talents to boosting the cause including design of an official Ducks Unlimited Stamp. Ducks Unlimited artists include Robert K. Abbett, Henry Curieux Adamson, Lee Cable, Ken Carlson, Guy Coheleach, Robert Deurloo, Lynn Bogue Hunt, Carl Knuth, David Maass, Dan Ostermiller, Terry Redlin, John Seerye-Lester, and Paco Young. Sources: website of Ducks Unlimited; AskART biographies.


Referring to something which is pliant or flexible, the word in fine art is often used to describe metal, which is easily shaped and capable of being thinned into wire. Source: Ralph Mayer, "A Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques"


An Italian word for the Thirteenth Century, especially for Italian art of that period. Source: Ralph Mayer, "A Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques"

Durand-Ruel Gallery/Galleries

Operated in Paris and London by Paul Durand-Ruel (1831-1922), a French art dealer, his galleries became known for the early exhibitions of Impressionism. "During the final three decades of the 19th century Paul Durand-Ruel became the best known art dealer and most important commercial advocate of French Impressionism in the world. He succeeded in establishing the market for Impressionism in the United States as well as in Europe. Edgar Degas, Édouard Manet, Claude Monet, Berthe Morisot, Camille Pissarro, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Alfred Sisley, are among the important Impressionist artists that Durand-Ruel helped to establish." Source: Wikipedia, Paul Durand-Ruel.

Dusseldorf Academy/School

An art academy founded in Dusseldorf, Germany in 1767, it is best known for the emotion infused genre landscape style of painting taught there in the 1830s and 1840s. Many American artists studied in Dusseldorf including Albert Bierstadt who was much influenced by the Romanticism of the genre landscapes, a style known as the Dusseldorf School. Other noted American artists at the Dusseldorf School were Emanuel Leutze, Edward Beyer, Worthington Whittredge and William Morris Hunt. Source: Ralph Mayer, "A Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques"; AskART database

Dusseldorf School of Painting

See Dusseldorf Academy

Dutch Golden Age

Spanning the 17th century in Holland, it was a time when this area was among the most famous in the world for its wide-ranging trade, scientific and military ascendancy and excellence in the arts. Dutch Golden Age Painters included Johannes Vermeer, Jan Van Steen, Frans Hals, Jacob van Ruisdael, and Rembrandt Van Rijn. Source: Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dutch_Golden_Age

Duveneck's Boys

Students of Frank Duveneck, they studied with him in the late 19th century, both in Munich at the Munich Academy and then in Florence, Italy. Among the "boys" were William Merritt Chase and John Henry Twachtman. Source: Traditional Fine Arts Online, www.tfaoi.com/newsm1/n1m235.htm


Giving an effect of movement, vitality, or energy, the term is often used in art criticism to describe a work of art that conveys excitement or power. See Dynamic Symmetry. Source: Kimberley Reynolds and Richard Seddon, "Illustrated Dictionary of Art Terms"

Dynamic Symmetry

A theory linked to ancient Egyptian and Greek art, it is linked to the 5th Century BC by Jay Hambidge, 1867-1924, who introduced the existence of such a theory in his 1917 treatise, "Dynamic Symmetry". Subsequently he did much more writing and promotion of the subject, which held that works of art could be considered symmetrical if they held to the kinetic symmetry or balanced lines of nature such as that found in pine cones and sunflowers. This theory did not apply to the static geometric symmetry of inanimate forms. In other words, a composition could be symmetrical if there is a sense of symmetry between various areas around the object regardless of the correspondences of the length of the lines. Artists associated with Dynamic Symmetry in addition to Jay Hambidge are Ralph Johonnot, Irving Manoir, Julian Bowes, David Carter, Elanor Colburn, Emil Bisttram and Howard Giles. Source: Ralph Mayer, "A Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques"; Peter Hastings Falk, "Who Was Who in American Art"

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