Palette knife painting for Sale

The painting knife, or palette knife, as it is often called, has been a part of painters' tools for many centuries. Originally, it wasn't used to apply paint or to produce impastos but to mix pigments, to superimpose one layer of paint over another to modify it appearance or to remove excess paint from the canvas. Consisting of a curved handle and a flexible steel blade, its shape is comparable to that of a small trowel. It was during the Renaissance that the palette knife began to be used for something other than its original purpose and that artists started to use it to paint. Before that, painters sought to create a realistic and therefore smooth result. But artists such as Rembrandt, Titian or Fragonard noticed that scraping paint to create impasto helped to create eye-catching texture, relief and light.

Gustave Courbet is well-known for having brought palette knives back into fashion in the 19th century, a pivotal period when the art of painting, and art in general, underwent many changes and transformations. He was followed by the Impressionists and the modern painters (Monet, Van Gogh, Turner, etc) who used it to create thick impastos. Impressionists were particularly keen on this tool which was well-suited to the way in which they sought to represent light realistically, as our eyes see it. The invention of the easel and paint tubes allowed them to leave their workshops and to paint outside, enabling them to depict the shimmering reflections of water and the ever changing nature. They applied paint quickly in small thin strokes on the canvas and created texture using the knife. To create this effect, they used oil paint and acrylic, working them as little as possible so as to ensure their thick, dense appearance.

On Artsper, find works by Richard Dubure, Martta Weg and Ryan Hewett who all use the palette knife in unique ways in their practice!

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Painting, La femme libre, ShuJie Wang

ShuJie Wang

Painting . 20 x 20 x 2 cm Painting . 7.9 x 7.9 x 0.8 inch

€160

Painting, Ocean Motion, Olga Nikitina

Olga Nikitina

Painting . 40 x 50 x 1.8 cm Painting . 15.7 x 19.7 x 0.7 inch

€550

Painting, Le nil, Jean-Charles Gautier

Jean-Charles Gautier

Painting . 116 x 81 x 2 cm Painting . 45.7 x 31.9 x 0.8 inch

€1,300

Painting, Illusion, Toussaint

Toussaint

Painting . 92 x 73 x 2 cm Painting . 36.2 x 28.7 x 0.8 inch

€1,700

Painting, Lagune, Gilbert Morales

Gilbert Morales

Painting . 50 x 70 x 3 cm Painting . 19.7 x 27.6 x 1.2 inch

€840

Painting, The curve, Juliana Haggoo

Juliana Haggoo

Painting . 100 x 100 x 4 cm Painting . 39.4 x 39.4 x 1.6 inch

€2,300

Painting, Pazzia, Davide Angelillo

Davide Angelillo

Painting . 42 x 29.7 x 0.2 cm Painting . 16.5 x 11.7 x 0.1 inch

€145

Painting, Autrefois, Claudine Janel

Claudine Janel

Painting . 55.5 x 46.5 x 2 cm Painting . 21.9 x 18.3 x 0.8 inch

€360

Painting, Chay la lou, Herriot Duplan

Herriot Duplan

Painting . 55 x 40 x 5 cm Painting . 21.7 x 15.7 x 2 inch

€767

Painting, Winter Dawn, Chelsea Davine

Chelsea Davine

Painting . 160 x 140 x 3.5 cm Painting . 63 x 55.1 x 1.4 inch

€6,535

Painting, Osmose, Gilbert Morales

Gilbert Morales

Painting . 50 x 70 x 3 cm Painting . 19.7 x 27.6 x 1.2 inch

€870

Painting, Energy of love, Vik Schroeder

Vik Schroeder

Painting . 50 x 40 x 2 cm Painting . 19.7 x 15.7 x 0.8 inch

€1,500