Painting vs Drawing: Difference and Comparison

Everyone needs to express themselves – whether they are humans, animals, birds, or some other organisms.

However, due to the reason that humans are more developed than other beings, their methods of expression are unique and versatile.

The several methods by which humans express themselves are talking, writing, painting, drawing, etc.

Key Takeaways

1. Painting involves the application of pigments to a surface using various tools while drawing focuses on creating marks with graphite, charcoal, or other dry media.
2. Paintings can depict complex color variations and textures, whereas drawings primarily explore lines, shapes, and shading.
3. Painting requires longer drying times and can be more challenging to correct mistakes while drawing offers more immediate results and easier corrections.

Painting vs Drawing

Drawing is the process of creating art by drawing lines on a surface with pencils, pens, or other tools. Painting is the application of paint to a surface with brushes, sponges, or other tools to create art, it employs richer color and a broader range of techniques.

Painting is the art of creating something by using colors or paints. The paint is applied to a solid surface using suitable “objects”.

These “objects” can be anything that allows an artist to paint as per their desire. Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci is one of the popular paintings.

Drawing refers to the art created using lines and shapes. The artist who draws uses pencils, pens, markers, or other objects.

A drawing doesn’t involve paint, but, a colored pen or other colored materials can be used to create a colorful drawing. Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo are two of many great Draftsmen.

Comparison Table

Parameters of Comparison	Painting	Drawing
Definition	To create art using paints	To create art using lines
Equipment needed	Paint, color, brush, sponge, etc.	Graphite pencil, pens, markers, etc.
The person performing the art	Painter	Draftsman
First made	40,000 – 52,000 Years Ago	73,000 Years Ago
Types	Oil painting, matte painting, acrylic painting, etc.	Life drawing, Illustration drawing, Geometric drawing, etc.
Famous artwork	Mona Lisa, The Starry Night, The Birth of Venus, etc.	Knight, Death, and Devil; Pollard Birches, The Zouave, etc.

What is Painting?

Painting is the process of applying paint or color on canvas, walls, caves, or other hard surfaces.

The artist can use a brush, sponge, knife, airbrush, fingers, or any other object that is suitable according to the needs of the artwork or the artist.

Some of the famous paintings are the Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci, Girl with a Pearl Earring by Johannes Vermeer, and The Birth of Venus by Sandro Botticelli.

With the help of newer technologies, archaeologists are now discovering new places which remain hidden for thousands of years.

Due to this reason, there isn’t a specific time as to when the first painting was made. One report says that the cave paintings on an Indonesian island are 45,500 years old.

Another report says that the first painting was made in northern Australia about 60,000 years ago.

It is quite controversial as to when humans created the first painting, but it is believed to be somewhere between 40,000 – 52,000 years ago.

There are various styles of Painting as every artist created something new which was different than the other arts.

But, some of the common Painting styles are Impressionism, Realism, Surrealism, Expressionism, and Abstract Art.

What is Drawing?

Drawing is a form of art where the artist uses certain objects to create lines and shades.

The objects used to create a Drawing can be pencil, charcoal, chalk, markers, brush, color pen, crayons, pastels, and other things that can be used to create an impression on the surface.

Generally, Drawing is done on paper, but now it can also be done on a computer. The computer form of Drawing is called Digital Drawing.

The first instance of a Drawing goes back to 73,000 years ago. Researchers found a stone piece that had abstract crayon art over it. But, as archaeologists and researchers discover new places, this date can shift backward.

There are different styles like Pencil Drawing, Ink Drawing, and Charcoal Drawing, but, it depends on the artist on how he blends and creates his/her work.

There are various techniques like hatching, stippling, and shading that artists use. Ultimately, the finished artwork depends upon the choices of the Draftsman and the usage of techniques and the blend between them.

Some of the most popular Drawings are the Vitruvian Man by Leonardo da Vinci, Knight, Death, and Devil by Albrecht Durer, Pollard Birches by Vincent van Gogh and Fighter by Egon Schiele.

Main Differences Between Painting and Drawing

1. Painting refers to the process of applying paint on a surface whereas Drawing is the process of engraving lines on a surface.
2. The equipment needed for Painting is paint, brush, knife, etc. On the other hand, the equipment needed for Drawing is a pencil, charcoal, pen, etc.
3. A person who makes a Painting is known as Painter whereas a person who makes a Drawing is known as a Draftsman.
4. The first Painting was made 40,000 – 52,000 Years Ago as compared to the first Drawing which was made about 73,000 years ago.
5. Painting types are oil painting, acrylic painting, texture painting, etc. On the other hand, Drawing types are Geometric Drawing, Life Drawing, Illustration Drawing, etc.
6. Famous Paintings are Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci and The Starry Night by Vincent van Gogh. Famous Drawings are Fighter by Egon Schiele and Pollard Birches by Vincent van Gogh.

References

1. https://www.jstor.org/stable/41209804
2. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/00043249.2011.10791065

Last Updated : 13 July, 2023