ELI5: What Is Impasto?

Impasto is a style of painting where the paint is put on so thick that it stands up off the canvas like 3D frosting on a cake.

Normally, when you draw or paint, the paper feels flat and smooth. But with impasto, the artist uses big globs of paint and doesn't spread them thin. When the paint dries, it stays bumpy and chunky. You can actually see the marks left behind by the brush, or even a special knife, sticking out toward you.

You can easily understand impasto by thinking about things you see in everyday life:

• Frosting a Cupcake: Imagine spreading a tiny drop of frosting so flat that you can see the cake underneath. That is normal painting. Now, imagine taking a giant spoonful of thick, creamy frosting and swirling it on top so it makes peaks and valleys. That thick swirl is just like impasto.
• Spreading Peanut Butter: If you scrape peanut butter super thin across bread, it is flat. If you scoop a giant glob of crunchy peanut butter and leave thick ridges on the toast, that texture is impasto.
• Walking in Thick Mud: When you step in wet mud, your boots leave deep shapes and ridges that stay in place. Impasto paint is so thick that it holds its shape the exact same way.