James Elkins: A Short Course in Forgetting Chemistry

When Elkin says that 'painting is alchemy' he is saying that no knowledge is needed about the materials and how to use them, that a painter will know naturally just how to use them. I don't believe that this is truly correct I think that there has to be some teaching otherwise how would anyone know how to use any materials. My understanding is that each painter becomes a master to their own style and so the skill and perfection needed to blend or mix a certain colour can only be mixed by the painter themselves as it is their touch and what they see that makes a certain colour the right colour that they need to use. It comes back to the question of 'when is a painting finished' it is only the painter who knows the answer to this question and so it is only the painter who has the natural ability to create a piece of work to the way they want it and to the quality that they want to achieve.