fresco
Synonym discussion
Sense: noun/1
For noun/1, fresco is more specific than mural. A mural is any large picture painted on a wall, whether it is made on brick, concrete, wood, or plaster. A fresco is painted directly onto wet plaster, so the colour dries into the surface itself. Painting is the broad everyday word and can describe pictures on canvas, paper, or walls. Mosaic is different again: it builds an image from small pieces of stone, glass, or tile instead of paint. Use fresco when the method matters, especially in art history or museum talk. You can say 'We saw a mural at the station,' but 'We saw a Renaissance fresco in the chapel' tells the listener both the place and the technique.
Common collocations
Nouns
- ceiling fresco
- church fresco
- Renaissance fresco
Phrases
- paint a fresco
- restore a fresco
Prepositions
- fresco on
- fresco above
Etymology
English borrowed fresco from Italian art vocabulary. In Italian, fresco meant 'fresh', and the word was linked to painting on fresh wet plaster before it dried. Because the colour sinks into the plaster as it dries, the finished image becomes part of the wall rather than sitting on top of it like ordinary paint. English now uses fresco both for the technique and for the picture made by that technique.