My First Egg Tempera Workshop 1 Feb 2025

I was delighted that my first egg tempera workshop at the Royal Cambrian Academy was fully booked, with a waiting list and an additional session scheduled for Saturday, May 10, 2025. The eight participants ranged from experienced artists to a complete beginner, forming a friendly and enthusiastic group eager to learn. Their efforts resulted in some impressive artwork.

I began with a brief history of egg tempera painting, explaining its origins in ancient civilizations and its predominant use during the Byzantine era (4th–15th century) for religious icons. The technique reached its peak during the Italian Renaissance (14th–16th century) and remains valued today for its quick-drying properties, cost-effectiveness, and intensely vibrant colours.

Each participant received a prepared gesso board and a small palette of 12 pigments, including natural earth tones, synthetic organic blues and reds, and titanium white. We had fun cracking eggs, extracting the yolks, and carefully piercing the sac membranes to release the fluid, which we mixed with water to create the emulsion binder for the paint.

Using an A4 reference image, participants traced their designs onto the boards before painting. They dipped their brushes first into the egg yolk, then into the pigment, applying the mixture directly onto the gesso surface. The final artworks showcased the group's ability to skillfully interpret their images in egg tempera, producing pieces of real quality.