A Beginner’s Guide to Fresco Art: History, Methods, and Famous Examples

What is Fresco Painting?

Fresco painting is one of the most enduring and iconic methods of mural creation, celebrated for its vibrant colours, durability, and historical significance. This article will explain how you can make a fresco, show you some famous examples, and you'll learn about some of the history of the fresco. Let's go!

A fresco is a technique that involves painting on freshly laid wet lime plaster, allowing pigments to merge chemically with the plaster as it dries. This integration makes the painting an inseparable part of the wall, ensuring longevity and brilliance over centuries. The name fresco derives from the Italian word for "fresh," aptly describing the wet plaster base central to the technique.

'Bull Leaping' Fresco found in Knossos palace, Crete, Greece, 1450 BC

How Do You Make A Traditional Fresco?

Buon fresco, meaning "true fresco," is a method of painting on freshly applied wet plaster. Here's how it works:

1. Preparing the Wall:

A rough base layer of plaster, called the arriccio, is applied to the wall and left to dry. Artists sketch their designs on this layer using a red pigment called sinopia.

2. Adding the Intonaco:

On the day of painting, a thin, smooth layer of fresh plaster, called the intonaco, is applied to the area the artist plans to work on. This section is called a giornata, meaning "day's work," as the artist must finish painting on it before the plaster dries at the end of the day. If they don't, the unpainted plaster will be removed and reapplied later.

3. Painting with Pigments:

Pigments are mixed with water (no binder is needed) and applied directly to the wet intonaco. As the plaster dries, a chemical reaction fixes the pigments into the wall, making the painting durable and vibrant.

4. Drying Process:

The plaster dries within 10–12 hours, so artists have a limited time to complete their section. Once dry, corrections require scraping off the plaster and starting over or amending using the fresco-secco process.

5. Details and Depth:

Artists sometimes scratched indentations into the wet plaster to add depth and highlights. Michelangelo used this technique to emphasise the outlines of his figures, and Raphael employed it to highlight the eyes of his subjects in his work, School of Athens.

Section of 'The School of Athens' by Raphael, Vatican City, 1509-1511

What is the Fresco-Secco Technique?

A secco, or fresco-secco, is a method of painting on dry, textured plaster. Although the rough plaster texture gives the pigment some grip, a fresco-secco method requires a binding agent such as egg, glue, or oil to help the pigments adhere to the wall. Artists used this technique to adjust elements or add detail and colour to buon fresco works. Fresco-secco could also be the sole painting method by working directly onto a keyed plaster substrate.

There are several benefits to the fresco-secco method. Some colours, like blue, were challenging to create in buon fresco because pigments like azurite or lapis lazuli didn't react well with wet lime plaster. These were often applied fresco-secco to achieve the desired effect. Another consideration was that pigments applied by buon fresco were liable to change when dried, and the colour application during the fresco secco process was more stable.

A disadvantage of the fresco-secco method is that it is less durable than buon fresco because the paint sits on the surface rather than being integrated into the plaster. Over time, damp conditions can cause fresco-secco layers to flake or fade.

Section of 'Sala dei Giganti (Fall of the Giants)' by Giulio Romano, Mantua, Italy, 1532-1534

How Can I Make A Mezzo-Fresco?

Mezzo-fresco, meaning "half-fresh," is a mural painting technique that offers a middle ground between buon fresco and fresco-secco. This method involves applying pigments to plaster that is nearly dry but still slightly damp—firm enough that it no longer leaves a thumbprint when pressed, as described by 16th-century author Ignazio Pozzo.

Mezzo-fresco allows the paint to bond superficially with the surface. This gives artists more flexibility, as they have additional time to refine details and use a broader range of colours, including pigments unsuitable for wet plaster. While not as durable as buon fresco, it retains some permanence, providing a balanced alternative.

By the late 16th century, mezzo-fresco had largely replaced buon fresco as the preferred technique for mural painting. Artists like Michelangelo and Giovanni Battista Tiepolo utilised mezzo-fresco to create intricate, vibrant works with remarkable detail. This technique reflects the evolution of fresco painting, adapting to the artistic demands of the Renaissance while preserving the tradition of large-scale mural art.

Woman with wax tablets and stylus (so-called "Sappho"), from Pompeii, Italy, 50 CE

Where Do the Oldest Frescos in the World Come From?

Some of the oldest known frescos date back to the Bronze Age. These works were created by the Ancient Egyptians and the Minoans of Crete, whose vibrant frescos in the Palace of Knossos can still be visited today. Ancient fresco paintings have been found worldwide, including sites in Morocco, Syria, India, Pakistan, Turkey, Jordan, Sri Lanka, Greece, and Italy. The buon fresco technique preserves pigments exceptionally well, allowing contemporary audiences to admire frescos that have endured for thousands of years.

Interior Mosque of Mariyam Zamani Begum, in Punjab, Pakistan, 1611-1614

During the Renaissance, frescos reached their golden age, embellishing European churches, palaces, and civic buildings with scenes of grandeur and spiritual significance. In the early 20th century, the Mexican muralism movement breathed new life into this timeless art form, reintroducing it to public spaces. Visionary artists like Diego Rivera, José Clemente Orozco, and David Alfaro Siqueiros carried on the tradition, transforming ordinary walls into powerful canvases of artistic and cultural expression.