''The Artist's Handbook of Materials and Techniques'' is a reference book by Ralph Mayer (1895–1979).
Intended by the author for use by professional artists, it deals mostly with the chemical and physical properties of traditional painterly materials such as oil paint, oil, tempera, and encaustic painting, encaustic, as well as solvents, varnishes, and painting mediums. It also has extensive coverage of ancillary activities such as stretching and preparing canvas, care and maintenance of tools, and conservation of older paintings.
Originally published in 1940, the ''Handbook'' was referred to as "the painter's bible" at the time, and still remains on the reading list in American universities.
It underwent three extensive revisions during Mayer's lifetime, and the fifth posthumous edition is still in print.
Ralph Mayer's archives of writing and research on materials and techniques are now at the Ralph Mayer Learning Center, Yale University School of Art.
[Yale University Bulletin, School of Art 2011-2012](_blank)
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References
Encyclopedias of art
Books about visual art
1940 non-fiction books
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