Casein Paint
Casein paint is a water-based paint that uses casein, a milk protein, as its binder. It dries quickly to a matte film and becomes increasingly water-resistant as it cures.
Painter
Mark Tobey
Mark Tobey was an American painter known for abstract compositions built from dense networks of gestural marks and for working in casein, tempera, gouache, watercolor, and other media.
Mark Tobey quick facts
Review key details about Mark Tobey's life, career, abstract practice, white-writing style, major periods, and the casein, tempera, gouache, watercolor, and gestural methods shaping his work.
| Born | 1890 · Centerville, Wisconsin, U.S. |
|---|---|
| Died | 1976 · Basel, Switzerland |
| Nationality | American |
| Paint media | Casein paint · Tempera · Gouache · Watercolor · Oil paint |
| Documented supports | Paper · Painting board · Canvas · Cardboard · Wood |
| Documented example | Composition Circulaire (1960), tempera on wood |
| Common subjects | Abstract fields, calligraphic marks, light, natural rhythms, spiritual themes, and urban energy |
| Known for | Allover compositions whose layered marks spread attention across the entire painted field rather than a single focal point |
Sources: Museum of Modern Art, MoMA: Edge of August, MoMA: Wild Field, MoMA: Space Wall, MoMA: Untitled (1960), Seattle Art Museum: Untitled Calligraphy, Seattle Art Museum: Appearances in Time, Cleveland Museum of Art: Composition Circulaire, and Whitney Museum of American Art: Universal Field.
Paint types used
See the paint types documented in Tobey's work, with links to PaintZeal references explaining each medium's properties, uses, and working characteristics.
Traditional Tempera
Traditional tempera is an artist paint made by combining pigment with an emulsion binder. Egg yolk is the best-known traditional binder, but the broader tempera category can include other emulsion recipes, so a museum record that says only “tempera” does not always identify the exact binder.
Gouache Paint
Gouache paint is an opaque, water-based art medium made with pigment and a water-soluble binder. Traditional formulas dry to a matte finish and can be reactivated with water.
Watercolor Paint
Watercolor paint is a water-based art medium made with pigment and a water-soluble binder. It is known for transparent color that settles into absorbent paper.
Oil Paint
Oil paint is a slow-drying paint made with pigment and a drying oil binder. It is widely used for artwork because it blends smoothly and develops rich color.
Surface types used
See the surface types documented in Tobey's work, with links to PaintZeal references explaining how each support behaves and is prepared for painting.
Paper
Paper is an absorbent sheet material made primarily from cellulose fibers. Its weight, sizing, surface texture, and wet strength determine how much paint it can accept before buckling, pilling, bleeding, or warping.
Painting Board
Painting board is a rigid artist support made from hardboard, wood, or another stable panel material. It may be sold raw or prepared with a medium-specific ground layer.
Canvas
Canvas is a woven fabric used as a flexible support for painting. Artist canvas is commonly made from cotton or linen and sold either raw or coated with a ground layer.
Cardboard
Cardboard is a paper-based sheet material made from compressed fibers, often with corrugated fluting between liner sheets. It is lightweight and absorbent, so heavy wet coats can soften or warp it.
Wood
Wood is a natural, porous material with grain patterns and absorbency that vary by species and cut. Its surface may also contain knots, resin, or an existing finish.
Painters similar to Mark Tobey
Explore painters similar to Mark Tobey through dense gestural fields, repeated marks, calligraphic abstraction, all-over composition, and experimental modern painting.
Paul Klee
Paul Klee was a Swiss-born German artist and Bauhaus teacher whose highly experimental work combined color, geometry, symbols, humor, music, and observations of nature.
Jackson Pollock
Jackson Pollock was an American Abstract Expressionist known for pouring, dripping, and flinging fluid paint across canvases laid on the floor.