The Flatness of Painting and its Technique for Projecting the Sensations of Material Used on its Surface : An Empirical Investigation through the Act of Creation

The purpose of this paper is to discuss the flatness (two-dimensionality) of painting or the creation of such a pictorial dimension by the Japanese painters. The paper examines the material used for painting its physical surface in order to form a certain pictorial world that is in accordance with the Japanese aesthetic sensibility. It also attempts to investigate the process by which such a painting could create and project such sensations of material used on its surface. The paintings after Impressionism eliminated the traditional concept of linear perspective. This new concept of pictorial dimension, or flatness in painting, derived from historical interactions between movements in arts, science, physics, psychology, and philosophy. I think it would be significant to examine the new expressive style displayed in the paintings of the contemporary Japanese artists by looking at Japonism in particular: the artistic movement which played the role of a forerunner in establishing this new concept of artistic dimension. At the same time, I would like to introduce the technique used for casein painting (one of the techniques used for tempera painting by emulsifying casein) which I regard as the best medium for both achieving and expressing flatness. This principal technique connects the Eastern and the Western approach to flatness. Furthermore, its original creation of color effects delivers the aesthetics common to Japanese paintings. The paper consists of the following five sections to examine the theme mentioned above.1) Introduction 2) The flatness of painting and the formation of pictorial dimension. 3) The concept of pictorial dimension by the Japanese artists. 4) The technique used for casein and tempera painting. Conclusio