Before You Hire: What to Look for in Professional House Painters
finishers
When it comes to giving your home a fresh new look, painting is often one of the most impactful changes you can make.
eggshell
finishers
undertone
scheduling
cleanliness
remodeling
eggshell
sealing
touchups
frames
products
quality
renovation
interiors
commercial
However, the outcome largely depends on the professionals you choose to trust with this task. touchups Before you hire a professional house painter, there are several key points you should consider to ensure youre making the best decision for your home.
Firstly, experience is a crucial factor when selecting a painter. eggshellscheduling A more experienced painter not only understands the nuances of the job but also possesses the skills required to tackle unexpected challenges that may arise. When discussing with potential contractors, don't hesitate to ask about their years in the business and the types of homes they have worked on. This can give you a clearer idea of their capability and reliability.
Secondly, its important to check the credentials of the painting company. remodeling Are they licensed and insured?
renovation
application
patching
floors
stains
precision
systems
detail
protection
washability
matte
Having proper licensing ensures that they meet the standard requirements and guidelines for house painters. Insurance is equally important as it protects both you and the workers in case any accidents occur during the job. It's always better to be safe than sorry!
References and past work can also tell you a lot about the painter's quality of work and professionalism.
renovation
texture
care
inspection
solutions
efficiency
coverage
expertise
walls
resistance
maintenance
exteriors
Most reputable painters will be happy to provide references or a portfolio of their previous projects. undefined undefined undefined. This allows you to visually assess their craftsmanship and attention to detail. Dont shy away from reaching out to these references to ask about their experience with the painter!
The cost of the project is another significant consideration. Be wary of quotes that seem too good to be true; they often are! It's advisable to obtain estimates from several painters to compare. undertone However, keep in mind that the cheapest option may not always be the best. Quality workmanship and materials cost more, but they also last longer and look better. It's a balance of cost versus quality that you need to evaluate carefully.
Lastly, communication is key! You want a painter who listens to your desires and concerns and is willing to communicate effectively throughout the project.
undertone
harmony
satin
uniformity
preservation
scuffing
spaces
materials
color
abrasion
priming
planning
durable
adhesion
reliability
How a painter responds to your initial inquiries can be a good indicator of their customer service approach.
frames
woodwork
gloss
coordination
balance
plaster
painters
finishes
residential
humidity
consistency
lines
premium
protection
interiors
commercial
Are they prompt and clear in their responses? cleanliness Do they seem eager to assist you and provide the information you need? Effective communication can make the entire process smoother and more enjoyable!
Choosing the right professional house painter might seem daunting, but it's crucial for achieving the beautiful, lasting results you desire.
undertone
frames
products
quality
renovation
interiors
commercial
doors
performance
palette
environments
curing
preparation
aesthetics
value
Take your time to do the necessary research, and don't rush into a decision.
renovation
doors
performance
palette
environments
curing
preparation
aesthetics
value
property
drywall
lighting
transitions
surfaces
coatings
Remember, a little extra effort upfront can save you a lot of hassle and disappointment in the end! Good luck finding the perfect painter for your home!
Painting is a visual art, characterized by the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface.[1] The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush. Other implements, such as palette knives, sponges, airbrushes, the artist's fingers, or even a dripping technique that uses gravity may be used. One who produces paintings is called a painter.
In art, the term "painting" describes both the act and the result of the action (the final work is called "a painting"). The support for paintings includes such surfaces as walls, paper, canvas, wood, glass, lacquer, pottery, leaf, copper and concrete, and the painting may incorporate other materials, in single or multiple form, including sand, clay, paper, cardboard, newspaper, plaster, gold leaf, and even entire objects.
Cave paintings depicting a wild boar hunt in the Maros-Pangkep karst of Sulawesi are estimated to be at least 43,900 years old (2014). This finding was recognized as "the oldest known depiction of storytelling and the earliest instance of figurative art in human history."
Redrawing of hunting scene from the Caves in the Maros-Pangkep karst
The depiction of a bull found in the Lubang Jeriji Saleh, Indonesia, in 2018, is the world's oldest known figurative painting. The painting is estimated to have been created around 40,000 to 52,000 years ago, or even earlier.
In 2021, researchers discovered ancient cave art in Leang Tedongnge, Sulawesi, Indonesia, estimated to be at least 45,500 years old. Depicting a warty pig, this artwork is recognized as the world's oldest known example of figurative or representational art.
In November 2018, scientists reported the discovery of the then-oldest known figurative art painting, over 40,000 (perhaps as old as 52,000) years old, of an unknown animal, in the cave of Lubang Jeriji Saléh on the Indonesian island of Borneo.[5][6] In December 2019, cave paintings portraying pig hunting within the Maros-Pangkep karst region in Sulawesi were discovered to be even older, with an estimated age of at least 43,900 years. This finding was recognized as "the oldest known depiction of storytelling and the earliest instance of figurative art in human history."[7][8] In 2021, cave art of a pig found in Sulawesi, Indonesia, and dated to over 45,500 years ago, has been reported.[9][10] On July 3, 2024, the journal Nature published research findings indicating that the cave paintings which depict anthropomorphic figures interacting with a pig and measure 36 by 15 inches (91 by 38 cm) in Leang Karampuang are approximately 51,200 years old, establishing them as the oldest known paintings in the world.[11][12]
The invention of photography had a major impact on painting. In the decades after the first photograph was produced in 1829, photographic processes improved and became more widely practiced, depriving painting of much of its historic purpose to provide an accurate record of the observable world. A series of art movements in the late 19th and early 20th centuries—notably Impressionism, Post-Impressionism, Fauvism, Expressionism, Cubism, and Dadaism—challenged the Renaissance view of the world. Eastern and African painting, however, continued a long history of stylization and did not undergo an equivalent transformation at the same time.[citation needed]
Modern and Contemporary art has moved away from the historic value of craft and documentation in favour of concept. This has not deterred the majority of living painters from continuing to practice painting either as a whole or part of their work. The vitality and versatility of painting in the 21st century defy the previous "declarations" of its demise. In an epoch characterized by the idea of pluralism, there is no consensus as to a representative style of the age. Artists continue to make important works of art in a wide variety of styles and aesthetic temperaments—their merits are left to the public and the marketplace to judge.
The Feminist art movement[14] began in the 1960s during the second wave of feminism. The movement sought to gain equal rights and equal opportunities for female artists internationally.
Color, made up of hue, saturation, and value, dispersed over a surface is the essence of painting, just as pitch and rhythm are the essence of music. Color is highly subjective, but has observable psychological effects, although these can differ from one culture to the next. Black is associated with mourning in the West, but in the East, white is. Some painters, theoreticians, writers, and scientists, including Goethe,[15]Kandinsky,[16] and Newton,[17] have written their own color theory.
Moreover, the use of language is only an abstraction of color equivalent. The word "red", for example, can cover a wide range of variations from the pure red of the visible spectrum of light. There is not a formalized register of different colors in the way that there is agreement on different notes in music, such as F or C♯. For a painter, color is not simply divided into basic (primary) and derived (complementary or mixed) colors (like red, blue, green, brown, etc.).
Painters deal practically with pigments,[18] so "blue" for a painter can be any of the blues: phthalocyanine blue, Prussian blue, indigo, Cobalt blue, ultramarine, and so on. Psychological and symbolical meanings of color are not, strictly speaking, means of painting. Colors only add to the potential, derived context of meanings, and because of this, the perception of a painting is highly subjective. The analogy with music is quite clear—sound in music (like a C note) is analogous to "light" in painting, "shades" to dynamics, and "coloration" is to painting as the specific timbre of musical instruments is to music. These elements do not necessarily form a melody (in music) of themselves; rather, they can add different contexts to it.
Modern artists have extended the practice of painting considerably to include, as one example, collage, which began with Cubism and is not painting in the strict sense. Some modern painters incorporate different materials such as metal, plastic, sand, cement, straw, leaves or wood for the texture. Examples of this are the works of Jean Dubuffet and Anselm Kiefer. There is a growing community of artists who use computers to "paint" color onto a digital "canvas" using programs such as Adobe Photoshop, Corel Painter, and many others. These images can be printed onto traditional canvas if required.
Jean Metzinger's mosaic-like Divisionist technique had its parallel in literature; a characteristic of the alliance between Symbolist writers and Neo-Impressionist artists:
I ask of divided brushwork not the objective rendering of light, but iridescences and certain aspects of color still foreign to painting. I make a kind of chromatic versification and for syllables, I use strokes which, variable in quantity, cannot differ in dimension without modifying the rhythm of a pictorial phraseology destined to translate the diverse emotions aroused by nature. (Jean Metzinger, c. 1907)[19]
Rhythm, for artists such as Piet Mondrian,[20][21] is important in painting as it is in music. If one defines rhythm as "a pause incorporated into a sequence", then there can be rhythm in paintings. These pauses allow creative force to intervene and add new creations—form, melody, coloration. The distribution of form or any kind of information is of crucial importance in the given work of art, and it directly affects the aesthetic value of that work. This is because the aesthetic value is functionality dependent, i.e. the freedom (of movement) of perception is perceived as beauty. Free flow of energy, in art as well as in other forms of "techne", directly contributes to the aesthetic value.[20]
Music was important to the birth of abstract art since music is abstract by nature—it does not try to represent the exterior world, but expresses in an immediate way the inner feelings of the soul. Wassily Kandinsky often used musical terms to identify his works; he called his most spontaneous paintings "improvisations" and described more elaborate works as "compositions". Kandinsky theorized that "music is the ultimate teacher",[22] and subsequently embarked upon the first seven of his ten Compositions. Hearing tones and chords as he painted, Kandinsky theorized that (for example), yellow is the color of middle C on a brassy trumpet; black is the color of closure, and the end of things; and that combinations of colors produce vibrational frequencies, akin to chords played on a piano. In 1871 the young Kandinsky learned to play the piano and cello.[23][24] Kandinsky's stage design for a performance of Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition illustrates his "synaesthetic" concept of a universal correspondence of forms, colors and musical sounds.[25]
Female painter sitting on a campstool and painting a statue of Dionysus or Priapus onto a panel which is held by a boy. Fresco from Pompeii, 1st century
Aesthetics is the study of art and beauty; it was an important issue for 18th- and 19th-century philosophers such as Kant and Hegel. Classical philosophers like Plato and Aristotle also theorized about art and painting in particular. Plato disregarded painters (as well as sculptors) in his philosophical system; he maintained that painting cannot depict the truth—it is a copy of reality (a shadow of the world of ideas) and is nothing but a craft, similar to shoemaking or iron casting.[27] By the time of Leonardo, painting had become a closer representation of the truth than painting was in Ancient Greece. Leonardo da Vinci, on the contrary, said that "Italian: La Pittura è cosa mentale" ("English: painting is a thing of the mind").[28] Kant distinguished between Beauty and the Sublime, in terms that clearly gave priority to the former.[citation needed] Although he did not refer to painting in particular, this concept was taken up by painters such as J.M.W. Turner and Caspar David Friedrich.
Hegel recognized the failure of attaining a universal concept of beauty and, in his aesthetic essay, wrote that painting is one of the three "romantic" arts, along with Poetry and Music, for its symbolic, highly intellectual purpose.[29][30] Painters who have written theoretical works on painting include Kandinsky and Paul Klee.[31][32] In his essay, Kandinsky maintains that painting has a spiritual value, and he attaches primary colors to essential feelings or concepts, something that Goethe and other writers had already tried to do.
Iconography is the study of the content of paintings, rather than their style. Erwin Panofsky and other art historians first seek to understand the things depicted, before looking at their meaning for the viewer at the time, and finally analyzing their wider cultural, religious, and social meaning.[33]
In 1890, the Parisian painter Maurice Denis famously asserted: "Remember that a painting—before being a warhorse, a naked woman or some story or other—is essentially a flat surface covered with colors assembled in a certain order."[34] Thus, many 20th-century developments in painting, such as Cubism, were reflections on the means of painting rather than on the external world—nature—which had previously been its core subject. Recent contributions to thinking about painting have been offered by the painter and writer Julian Bell. In his book What is Painting?, Bell discusses the development, through history, of the notion that paintings can express feelings and ideas.[35] In Mirror of The World, Bell writes:
A work of art seeks to hold your attention and keep it fixed: a history of art urges it onwards, bulldozing a highway through the homes of the imagination.[36]
Different types of paint are usually identified by the medium that the pigment is suspended or embedded in, which determines the general working characteristics of the paint, such as viscosity, miscibility, solubility, drying time, etc.
Encaustic painting, also known as hot wax painting, involves using heated beeswax to which colored pigments are added. The liquid/paste is then applied to a surface—usually prepared wood, though canvas and other materials are often used. The simplest encaustic mixture can be made from adding pigments to beeswax, but there are several other recipes that can be used—some containing other types of waxes, damar resin, linseed oil, or other ingredients. Pure, powdered pigments can be purchased and used, though some mixtures use oil paints or other forms of pigment. Metal tools and special brushes can be used to shape the paint before it cools, or heated metal tools can be used to manipulate the wax once it has cooled onto the surface. Other materials can be encased or collaged into the surface, or layered, using the encaustic medium to adhere it to the surface.
The technique was the normal one for ancient Greek and Roman panel paintings, and remained in use in the Eastern Orthodox icon tradition.
Watercolor is a painting method in which the paints are made of pigments suspended in a water-soluble vehicle. The traditional and most common support for watercolor paintings is paper; other supports include papyrus, bark papers, plastics, vellum or leather, fabric, wood and canvas. In East Asia, watercolor painting with inks is referred to as brush painting or scroll painting. In Chinese, Korean, and Japanese painting it has been the dominant medium, often in monochrome black or browns. India, Ethiopia and other countries also have long traditions. Finger-painting with watercolor paints originated in China. There are various types of watercolors used by artists. Some examples are pan watercolors, liquid watercolors, watercolor brush pens, and watercolor pencils. Watercolor pencils (water-soluble color pencils) may be used either wet or dry.
Rudolf Reschreiter, Blick von der Höllentalangerhütte zum Höllentalgletscher und den Riffelwandspitzen, Gouache (1921)
Gouache is a water-based paint consisting of pigment and other materials designed to be used in an opaque painting method. Gouache differs from watercolor in that the particles are larger, the ratio of pigment to water is much higher, and an additional, inert, white pigment such as chalk is also present. This makes gouache heavier and more opaque, with greater reflective qualities. Like all water media, it is diluted with water.[37] Gouache was a popular paint utilized by Egyptians,[38] Painters such as Francois Boucher used this medium. This paint is best applied with sable brushes.
Glazing is commonly known as a premelted liquid glass. This glaze can be dipped or brushed on. This glaze appears chalky and there is a vast difference between the beginning and finished result. To be activated glazed pottery must be placed in a kiln to be fired. This melts the Silica glass in the glaze and transforms it into a vibrant glossy version of itself.[39][40]
Sesshū Tōyō, Landscapes of the Four Seasons (1486), ink and light color on paper
Ink paintings are done with a liquid that contains pigments or dyes and is used to color a surface to produce an image, text, or design. Ink is used for drawing with a pen, brush, or quill. Ink can be a complex medium, composed of solvents, pigments, dyes, resins, lubricants, solubilizers, surfactants, particulate matter, fluorescers, and other materials. The components of inks serve many purposes; the ink's carrier, colorants, and other additives control flow and thickness of the ink and its appearance when dry.
Enamels are made by painting a substrate, typically metal, with powdered glass; minerals called color oxides provide coloration. After firing at a temperature of 750–850 degrees Celsius (1380–1560 degrees Fahrenheit), the result is a fused lamination of glass and metal. Unlike most painted techniques, the surface can be handled and wetted. Enamels have traditionally been used for decoration of precious objects,[41] but have also been used for other purposes. Limoges enamel was the leading centre of Renaissance enamel painting, with small religious and mythological scenes in decorated surrounds, on plaques or objects such as salts or caskets. In the 18th century, enamel painting enjoyed a vogue in Europe, especially as a medium for portrait miniatures.[42] In the late 20th century, the technique of porcelain enamel on metal has been used as a durable medium for outdoor murals.[43]
Tempera, also known as egg tempera, is a permanent, fast-drying painting medium consisting of colored pigment mixed with a water-soluble binder medium (usually a glutinous material such as egg yolk or some other size). Tempera also refers to the paintings done in this medium. Tempera paintings are very long-lasting, and examples from the first centuries CE still exist. Egg tempera was a primary method of painting until after 1500 when it was superseded by the invention of oil painting. A paint commonly called tempera (though it is not) consisting of pigment and glue size is commonly used and referred to by some manufacturers in America as poster paint.
White Angel (fresco, c. 1235), Mileševa monastery, Serbia
Fresco is any of several related mural painting types, done on plaster on walls or ceilings. The word fresco comes from the Italian word affresco[afˈfresːko], which derives from the Latin word for fresh. Frescoes were often made during the Renaissance and other early time periods. Buon fresco technique consists of painting in pigment mixed with water on a thin layer of wet, fresh lime mortar or plaster, for which the Italian word for plaster, intonaco, is used. A secco painting, in contrast, is done on dry plaster (secco is "dry" in Italian). The pigments require a binding medium, such as egg (tempera), glue or oil to attach the pigment to the wall.
Honoré Daumier, The Painter (1808–1879), oil on panel with visible brushstrokes
Oil painting is the process of painting with pigments that are bound with a medium of drying oil, such as linseed oil, poppyseed oil which was widely used in early modern Europe. Often the oil was boiled with a resin such as pine resin or even frankincense; these were called 'varnishes' and were prized for their body and gloss. Oil paint eventually became the principal medium used for creating artworks as its advantages became widely known. The transition began with Early Netherlandish painting in northern Europe, and by the height of the Renaissance oil painting techniques had almost completely replaced tempera paints in the majority of Europe.
Pastel is a painting medium in the form of a stick, consisting of pure powdered pigment and a binder.[44] The pigments used in pastels are the same as those used to produce all colored art media, including oil paints; the binder is of a neutral hue and low saturation. The color effect of pastels is closer to the natural dry pigments than that of any other process.[45] Because the surface of a pastel painting is fragile and easily smudged, its preservation requires protective measures such as framing under glass; it may also be sprayed with a fixative. Nonetheless, when made with permanent pigments and properly cared for, a pastel painting may endure unchanged for centuries. Pastels are not susceptible, as are paintings made with a fluid medium, to the cracking and discoloration that result from changes in the color, opacity, or dimensions of the medium as it dries.
Ray Burggraf, Jungle Arc (1998), acrylic paint on wood
Acrylic paint is fast drying paint containing pigment suspension in acrylic polymer emulsion. Acrylic paints can be diluted with water but become water-resistant when dry. Depending on how much the paint is diluted (with water) or modified with acrylic gels, media, or pastes, the finished acrylic painting can resemble a watercolor or an oil painting, or have its own unique characteristics not attainable with other media. The main practical difference between most acrylics and oil paints is the inherent drying time.[46] Oils allow for more time to blend colors and apply even glazes over under-paintings. This slow drying aspect of oil can be seen as an advantage for certain techniques but may also impede the artist's ability to work quickly. Another difference is that watercolors must be painted onto a porous surface, primarily watercolor paper. Acrylic paints can be used on many different surfaces.[46][47] Both acrylic and watercolor are easy to clean up with water. Acrylic paint should be cleaned with soap and water immediately following use. Watercolor paint can be cleaned with just water.[48][49][50]
Between 1946 and 1949, Leonard Bocour and Sam Golden invented a solution acrylic paint under the brand Magna paint. These were mineral spirit-based paints. Water-based acrylic paints were subsequently sold as latex house paints.[51] In 1963, George Rowney (part of Daler-Rowney since 1983) was the first manufacturer to introduce artists' acrylic paints in Europe, under the brand name "Cryla".[52] Acrylics are the most common paints used in grattage, a surrealist technique that began to be used with the advent of this type of paint. Acrylics are used for this purpose because they easily scrape or peel from a surface.[53]
Aerosol paint (also called spray paint)[54] is a type of paint that comes in a sealed pressurized container and is released in a fine spray mist when depressing a valve button. A form of spray painting, aerosol paint leaves a smooth, evenly coated surface. Standard sized cans are portable, inexpensive and easy to store. Aerosol primer can be applied directly to bare metal and many plastics.
Speed, portability and permanence also make aerosol paint a common graffiti medium. In the late 1970s, street graffiti writers' signatures and murals became more elaborate, and a unique style developed as a factor of the aerosol medium and the speed required for illicit work. Many now recognize graffiti and street art as a unique art form and specifically manufactured aerosol paints are made for the graffiti artist. A stencil protects a surface, except the specific shape to be painted. Stencils can be purchased as movable letters, ordered as professionally cut logos or hand-cut by artists.
Water miscible oil paints (also called "water soluble" or "water-mixable") is a modern variety of oil paint engineered to be thinned and cleaned up with water,[55][56] rather than having to use chemicals such as turpentine. It can be mixed and applied using the same techniques as traditional oil-based paint, but while still wet it can be effectively removed from brushes, palettes, and rags with ordinary soap and water. Its water solubility comes from the use of an oil medium in which one end of the molecule has been altered to bind loosely to water molecules, as in a solution.
Sandpainting is the art of pouring coloured sands, and powdered pigments from minerals or crystals, or pigments from other natural or synthetic sources onto a surface to make a fixed or unfixed sand painting.
Digital painting is a method of creating an art object (painting) digitally or a technique for making digital art on the computer. As a method of creating an art object, it adapts traditional painting medium such as acrylic paint, oils, ink, watercolor, etc. and applies the pigment to traditional carriers, such as woven canvas cloth, paper, polyester, etc. by means of software driving industrial robotic or office machinery (printers). As a technique, it refers to a computer graphics software program that uses a virtual canvas and virtual painting box of brushes, colors, and other supplies. The virtual box contains many instruments that do not exist outside the computer, and which give a digital artwork a different look and feel from an artwork that is made the traditional way. Furthermore, digital painting is not 'computer-generated' art as the computer does not automatically create images on the screen using some mathematical calculations. On the other hand, the artist uses his own painting technique to create a particular piece of work on the computer.[57]
Bodily fluids have been used as painting media. Andy Warhol produced his Oxidization series by covering canvases with metallic paint and having his assistants and friends urinate on the still-wet paint.[58] Blood from menstrual periods has been used to paint images.[59] Sarah Maple, a contemporary artist, has used her menstrual blood to create portraits to help erase the taboo covering the topic of periods.[citation needed]
Style is used in two senses: It can refer to the distinctive visual elements, techniques, and methods that typify an individual artist's work. It can also refer to the movement or school that an artist is associated with. This can stem from an actual group that the artist was consciously involved with or it can be a category in which art historians have placed the painter. The word 'style' in the latter sense has fallen out of favor in academic discussions about contemporary painting, though it continues to be used in popular contexts. Such movements or classifications include the following:
Modernism describes both a set of cultural tendencies and an array of associated cultural movements, originally arising from wide-scale and far-reaching changes to Western society in the late 19th century and early 20th century. Modernism was a revolt against the conservative values of realism.[60][61] The term encompasses the activities and output of those who felt the "traditional" forms of art, architecture, literature, religious faith, social organization, and daily life were becoming outdated in the new economic, social, and political conditions of an emerging fully industrialized world. A salient characteristic of modernism is self-consciousness. This often led to experiments with form, and work that draws attention to the processes and materials used (and to the further tendency of abstraction).[62]
The first example of modernism in painting was impressionism, a school of painting that initially focused on work done, not in studios, but outdoors (en plein air). Impressionist paintings demonstrated that human beings do not see objects, but instead see light itself. The school gathered adherents despite internal divisions among its leading practitioners and became increasingly influential. Initially rejected from the most important commercial show of the time, the government-sponsored Paris Salon, the Impressionists organized yearly group exhibitions in commercial venues during the 1870s and 1880s, timing them to coincide with the official Salon. A significant event of 1863 was the Salon des Refusés, created by Emperor Napoleon III to display all of the paintings rejected by the Paris Salon.
Abstract painting uses a visual language of form, colour and line to create a composition that may exist with a degree of independence from visual references in the world.[63][64]Abstract expressionism was an American post-World War IIart movement that combined the emotional intensity and self-denial of the German Expressionists with the anti-figurative aesthetic of the European abstract schools—such as Futurism, Bauhaus and Cubism, and the image of being rebellious, anarchic, highly idiosyncratic and, some feel, nihilistic.[65]
Action painting, sometimes called gestural abstraction, is a style of painting in which paint is spontaneously dribbled, splashed or smeared onto the canvas, rather than being carefully applied.[66] The resulting work often emphasizes the physical act of painting itself as an essential aspect of the finished work or concern of its artist. The style was widespread from the 1940s until the early 1960s and is closely associated with abstract expressionism (some critics have used the terms "action painting" and "abstract expressionism" interchangeably).
The term outsider art was coined by art critic Roger Cardinal in 1972 as an English synonym for art brut (
French:[aʁbʁyt], "raw art" or "rough art"), a label created by FrenchartistJean Dubuffet to describe art created outside the boundaries of official culture; Dubuffet focused particularly on art by insane-asylum inmates.[67] Outsider art has emerged as a successful art marketing category (an annual Outsider Art Fair has taken place in New York since 1992). The term is sometimes misapplied as a catch-all marketing label for art created by people outside the mainstream "art world", regardless of their circumstances or the content of their work.
Photorealism is the genre of painting based on using the camera and photographs to gather information and then from this information, creating a painting that appears to be very realistic like a photograph. The term is primarily applied to paintings from the United States art movement that began in the late 1960s and early 1970s. As a full-fledged art movement, Photorealism evolved from Pop Art[68][69][70] and as a counter to Abstract Expressionism.
Hyperrealism is a genre of painting and sculpture resembling a high-resolution photograph. Hyperrealism is a fully-fledged school of art and can be considered an advancement of Photorealism by the methods used to create the resulting paintings or sculptures. The term is primarily applied to an independent art movement and art style in the United States and Europe that has developed since the early 2000s.[71]
Surrealism is a cultural movement that began in the early 1920s and is best known for the artistic and literary production of those affiliated with the Surrealist Movement. Surrealist artworks feature the element of surprise, the uncanny, the unconscious, unexpected juxtapositions and non-sequitur; however, many Surrealist artists and writers regard their work as an expression of the philosophical movement first and foremost, with the works being an artifact. Leader André Breton was explicit in his assertion that Surrealism was above all a revolutionary movement.
Surrealism developed out of the Dada activities of World War I and the most important center of the movement was Paris. From the 1920s onward, the movement spread around the globe, eventually affecting the visual arts, literature, film and music of many countries, as well as political thought and practice, philosophy and social theory.
Miniature paintings were the primary form of painting in pre-colonial India. These were done on a special paper (known as wasli) using mineral and natural colours. Miniature painting is not one style but a group of several styles of schools of painting such as Mughal, Pahari, Rajasthani, Company style etc.
Mughal miniature painting is a particular style of South Asian, particularly North Indian (more specifically, modern day India and Pakistan), painting confined to miniatures either as book illustrations or as single works to be kept in albums (muraqqa). It emerged[72] from Persian miniature painting (itself partly of Chinese origin) and developed in the court of the Mughal Empire of the 16th to 18th centuries. Mughal painting immediately took a much greater interest in realistic portraiture than was typical of Persian miniatures. Animals and plants were the main subject of many miniatures for albums, and were more realistically depicted.[73][74][75]
Krishna and Radha, might be the work of Nihâl Chand, master of Kishangarh school of Rajput Painting
Rajasthani painting evolved and flourished in the royal courts of Rajputana[76] in northern India, mainly during the 17th century. Artists trained in the tradition of the Mughal miniature were dispersed from the imperial Mughal court, and developed styles also drawing from local traditions of painting, especially those illustrating the Sanskrit Epics, the Mahabharata and Ramayana. Subjects varied, but portraits of the ruling family, often engaged in hunting or their daily activities, were generally popular, as were narrative scenes from the epics or Hindu mythology, as well as some genre scenes of landscapes, and humans.[77][78]
Punjab Hills or Pahari painting of which Kangra, Guller, Basholi were major sub-styles. Kangra painting is the pictorial art of Kangra, named after Kangra, Himachal Pradesh, a former princely state, which patronized the art. It became prevalent with the fading of Basohli school of painting in mid-18th century.[79][80] The focal theme of Kangra painting is Shringar (the erotic sentiment). The subjects are seen in Kangra painting exhibit the taste and the traits of the lifestyle of the society of that period.[81] The artists adopted themes from the love poetry of Jayadeva and Keshav Das who wrote ecstatically of the love of Radha and Krishna with Bhakti being the driving force.[82][83]
Khan Bahadur Khan with Men of his Clan, c. 1815, from the Fraser Album, Company Style
Company style is a term for a hybrid Indo-European style of paintings made in India by Indian artists, many of whom worked for European patrons in the British East India Company or other foreign Companies in the 18th and 19th centuries.[84] Three distinct styles of Company Painting emerged in three British Power Centres – Delhi, Calcutta and Madras. The subject matter of company paintings made for western patrons was often documentary rather than imaginative, and as a consequence, the Indian artists were required to adopt a more naturalistic approach to painting than had traditionally been usual.[85][86]
The Sikh style and Deccan style are other prominent Miniature painting styles of India.
Pichwai paintings are paintings on textile and usually depicting stories from the life of Lord Krishna.[87] These were made in large format and often used as a backdrop to the main idol in temples or homes. Pichwai paintings were made and are still made mainly in Rajasthan, India. However very few were made in the Deccan region, but these are extremely rare. The purpose of pichhwais, other than artistic appeal, is to narrate tales of Krishna to the illiterate. Temples have sets with different images, which are changed according to the calendar of festivals celebrating the deity.[88]
Pattachitra is a general term for traditional, cloth-based scroll painting, based in the eastern Indian states of Odisha and West Bengal.[89] The Pattachitra painting tradition is closely linked with the worship of Lord Jagannath in Odisha.[90] The subject matter of Pattachitra is limited to religious themes. Patachitra artform is known for its intricate details as well as mythological narratives and folktales inscribed in it. All colours used in the Paintings are natural and paintings are made fully old traditional way by Chitrakaras that is Odiya Painter. Pattachitra style of painting is one of the oldest and most popular art forms of Odisha. Patachitras are a component of an ancient Bengali narrative art, originally serving as a visual device during the performance of a song.[91][92][93]
Madhubani Art is a style of Indian painting, practiced in the Mithila region of India and Nepal. The style is characterized by complex geometrical patterns, these paintings are famous for representing ritual content used for particular occasions like festivals, religious rituals etc.[94]
The Bengal School[95] was an art movement and a style of Indian painting that originated in Bengal, primarily Kolkata and Shantiniketan, and flourished throughout the Indian subcontinent, during the British Raj in the early 20th century.[96] The Bengal school arose as an avant garde and nationalist movement reacting against the academic art styles previously promoted in India, both by Indian artists such as Raja Ravi Varma and in British art schools. The school wanted to establish a distinct Indian style which celebrated the indigenous cultural heritage. In an attempt to reject colonial aesthetics, Abanindranath Tagore also turned to China and Japan with the intent of promoting a pan-Asian aesthetic and incorporated elements from Far Eastern art, such as the Japanese wash technique.[97][98][99]
19th Century Mysore Painting of Goddess Saraswathi
Mysore painting is an important form of classical South Indian painting that originated in and around the town of Mysore in Karnataka encouraged and nurtured by the Mysore rulers. Mysore paintings are known for their elegance, muted colours, and attention to detail. The themes for most of these paintings are Hindu gods and goddesses and scenes from Hindu mythology.[100]
Allegory is a figurativemode of representation conveying meaning other than the literal. Allegory communicates its message by means of symbolic figures, actions, or symbolic representation. Allegory is generally treated as a figure of rhetoric, but an allegory does not have to be expressed in language: it may be addressed to the eye and is often found in realistic painting. An example of a simple visual allegory is the image of the grim reaper. Viewers understand that the image of the grim reaper is a symbolic representation of death.
In Spanish art, a bodegón is a still life painting depicting pantry items, such as victuals, game, and drink, often arranged on a simple stone slab, and also a painting with one or more figures, but significant still life elements, typically set in a kitchen or tavern. Starting in the Baroque period, such paintings became popular in Spain in the second quarter of the 17th century. The tradition of still life painting appears to have started and was far more popular in the contemporary Low Countries, today Belgium and Netherlands (then Flemish and Dutch artists), than it ever was in southern Europe. Northern still lifes had many subgenres: the breakfast piece was augmented by the trompe-l'œil, the flower bouquet, and the vanitas. In Spain, there were much fewer patrons for this sort of thing, but a type of breakfast piece did become popular, featuring a few objects of food and tableware laid on a table.
A figure painting is a work of art in any of the painting media with the primary subject being the human figure, whether clothed or nude. Figure painting may also refer to the activity of creating such a work. The human figure has been one of the contrast subjects of art since the first Stone Age cave paintings and has been reinterpreted in various styles throughout history.[101] Some artists well known for figure painting are Peter Paul Rubens, Edgar Degas, and Édouard Manet.
Illustration paintings are those used as illustrations in books, magazines, and theater or movie posters and comic books. Today, there is a growing interest in collecting and admiring the original artwork. Various museum exhibitions, magazines, and art galleries have devoted space to the illustrators of the past. In the visual art world, illustrators have sometimes been considered less important in comparison with fine artists and graphic designers. But as the result of computer game and comic industry growth, illustrations are becoming valued as popular and profitable artworks that can acquire a wider market than the other two, especially in Korea, Japan, Hong Kong and the United States.
Landscape painting is a term that covers the depiction of natural scenery such as mountains, valleys, trees, rivers, lakes, and forests, and especially art where the main subject is a wide view, with its elements arranged into a coherent composition. In other works, landscape backgrounds for figures can still form an important part of the work. The sky is almost always included in the view, and weather is often an element of the composition. Detailed landscapes as a distinct subject are not found in all artistic traditions and develop when there is already a sophisticated tradition of representing other subjects. The two main traditions spring from Western painting and Chinese art, going back well over a thousand years in both cases.
Portrait paintings are representations of a person, in which the face and its expression is predominant. The intent is to display the likeness, personality, and even the mood of the person. The art of the portrait flourished in Ancient Greek and especially Roman sculpture, where sitters demanded individualized and realistic portraits, even unflattering ones. One of the best-known portraits in the Western world is Leonardo da Vinci's painting titled Mona Lisa, which is thought to be a portrait of Lisa Gherardini, the wife of Francesco del Giocondo.[108]
Warhol was one of the most prolific portrait painters of the 20th century. Warhol's painting Orange Shot Marilyn of Marilyn Monroe is an iconic early example of his work from the 1960s, and Orange Prince (1984) of the pop singer Prince is later example, both exhibiting Warhol's unique graphic style of portraiture.[109][110][111]
A still life is a work of art depicting mostly inanimate subject matter, typically commonplace objects—which may be either natural (food, flowers, plants, rocks, or shells) or human-made (drinking glasses, books, vases, jewelry, coins, pipes, and so on). With origins in the Middle Ages and Ancient Greek/Roman art, still life paintings give the artist more leeway in the arrangement of design elements within a composition than do paintings of other types of subjects such as landscape or portraiture. Still life paintings, particularly before 1700, often contained religious and allegorical symbolism relating to the objects depicted. Some modern still life breaks the two-dimensional barrier and employs three-dimensional mixed media, and uses found objects, photography, computer graphics, as well as video and sound.
A veduta is a highly detailed, usually large-scale painting of a cityscape or some other vista. This genre of landscape originated in Flanders, where artists such as Paul Bril painted vedute as early as the 16th century. As the itinerary of the Grand Tour became somewhat standardized, vedute of familiar scenes like the Roman Forum or the Grand Canal recalled early ventures to the Continent for aristocratic Englishmen. In the later 19th century, more personal impressions of cityscapes replaced the desire for topographical accuracy, which was satisfied instead by painted panoramas.
^"Paint – Definition". Merriam-webster.com. 2012. Archived from the original on 4 March 2018. Retrieved 13 March 2014.
^Perry, Lincoln (Summer 2014). "The Music of Painting". The American Scholar. 83 (3): 85.
^M. Aubert et al., "Pleistocene cave art from Sulawesi, Indonesia", Nature vol. 514, pp. 223–227 (9 October 2014). "using uranium-series dating of coralloid speleothems directly associated with 12 human hand stencils and two figurative animal depictions from seven cave sites in the Maros karsts of Sulawesi, we show that rock art traditions on this Indonesian island are at least compatible in age with the oldest European art. The earliest dated image from Maros, with a minimum age of 39.9 kyr, is now the oldest known hand stencil in the world. In addition, a painting of a babirusa ('pig-deer') made at least 35.4 kyr ago is among the earliest dated figurative depictions worldwide, if not the earliest one. Among the implications, it can now be demonstrated that humans were producing rock art by ~40 kyr ago at opposite ends of the Pleistocene Eurasian world."
^, François Le Targat, Kandinsky, Twentieth Century masters series, Random House Incorporated, 1987, p. 7, ISBN0847808106
^Susan B. Hirschfeld, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, Hilla von Rebay Foundation, Watercolours by Kandinsky at the Guggenheim Museum: a selection from the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum and the Hilla von Rebay Foundation, 1991
^Wallace, William (1911). "Hegel, Georg Wilhelm Friedrich" . In Chisholm, Hugh (ed.). Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 13 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 200–207, see page 207. Painting and music are the specially romantic arts. Lastly, as a union of painting and music comes poetry, where the sensuous element is more than ever subordinate to the spirit
^Franciscono, Marcel, Paul Klee: His Work and Thought, part 6 'The Bauhaus and Düsseldorf', chap. 'Klee's theory courses', p. 246 and under 'notes to pp. 245–54' p. 365
^Green-Cole, Ruth. "Painting Blood: Visualizing Menstrual Blood in Art." The Palgrave Handbook of Critical Menstruation Studies [Internet], U.S. National Library of Medicine, 25 July 2020, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK565646/.
^Graff, Gerald (1975) Babbitt at the Abyss: The Social Context of Postmodern. American Fiction, TriQuarterly, No. 33 (Spring 1975), pp. 307–37; reprinted in Putz and Freese, eds., Postmodernism and American Literature.
^Gardner, Helen, Horst De la Croix, Richard G. Tansey, and Diane Kirkpatrick. Gardner's Art Through the Ages (San Diego: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1991). ISBN0155037706. p. 953.
^Shapiro, David/Cecile (2000): Abstract Expressionism. The politics of apolitical painting. p. 189-90 In: Frascina, Francis (2000): Pollock and After. The critical debate. 2nd ed. London: Routledge
^Victoria and Albert Museum, Digital Media (16 November 2012). "Indian company paintings". www.vam.ac.uk. Archived from the original on 22 November 2021. Retrieved 22 November 2021.
Howard Daniel (1971). Encyclopedia of Themes and Subjects in Painting: Mythological, Biblical, Historical, Literary, Allegorical, and Topical. New York: Harry N. Abrams Inc.
W. Stanley Taft Jr. and James W. Mayer (2000). The Science of Paintings. Springer-Verlag.
The area was called "Chebucto" until Halifax was established by Governor Edward Cornwallis in 1749, named in honour of George Montagu-Dunk, 2nd Earl of Halifax.[7][8] The Mi'kmaq name for the harbour around which Halifax exists is K'jipuktuk[9] or Chebookt,[a] meaning "Chief Harbour" or "Great Harbour" in the Mi'kmaq language.[7][11] Additionally, the Mi'kmaq referred to the area of the Halifax Peninsula comprising the downtown area and Point Pleasant Park as Amntu'kati,[12] while the hillside where Halifax was established was referred to as Gooowakade, meaning "place of many pines".[10]
Before the mid-1700s, when a European (British) settlement was established at Halifax, the Colony of Nova Scotia had been administered from Annapolis Royal, near the Western opening of the Bay of Fundy. However, in 1749, King George II ordered Edward Cornwallis to establish Halifax as a new capital. Equipped with 13 transports and a sloop of war, Cornwallis founded the Town of Halifax on what is now known as the Halifax Peninsula, on June 21, 1749.[13]
The establishment of Halifax marked the beginning of Father Le Loutre's War. By unilaterally establishing Halifax, the British were violating treaties with the Mi'kmaq (1726) that were signed after Father Rale's War.[14] Cornwallis brought along 1,176 settlers and their families. To protect the new Protestant settlements from Mi'kmaq, Acadian, and French attacks, British fortifications were erected in Halifax (Citadel Hill, 1749), Bedford (Fort Sackville, 1749), Dartmouth (1750), and Lawrencetown (1754), all areas within the modern-day Municipality.
In the 18th and 19th centuries, Halifax grew to become a centre of government (particularly military), trade, and shipbuilding. The completion of the Intercolonial Railway in 1876 helped make Halifax a major gateway for Atlantic trade—particularly in winter, when ice made ports on the St. Lawrence River inaccessible.
This connection to trans-Atlantic trade and military enterprises bore deadly consequences on December 6, 1917. In one of the great disasters in Canadian history, the SS Mont-Blanc, a French cargo ship carrying munitions, collided with the Belgian Relief vessel SS Imo in "The Narrows" between upper Halifax Harbour and Bedford Basin. The resulting Halifax Explosion devastated the Richmond District in the North End of Halifax, killing about 2,000 people and injuring nearly 9,000 others.[15] The blast was the largest artificial explosion before the development of nuclear weapons.[16] Aid came from Boston, strengthening the bond between the two coastal cities.
In addition to the capital City of Halifax (on the western side of the harbour), the City of Dartmouth (eastern side) and the Town of Bedford (northern tip of the Bedford Basin) grew up through the 19th and 20th centuries. Halifax County was originally understood as a higher-level geographic unit responsible for, among other things, court services throughout both the incorporated Cities and Town, and the unorganized territory of the remainder of the county. However, by the mid-20th century, this structure had evolved such that "the County" was a distinct municipality including only the areas that were not included within the Cities and Town.
These four municipalities (City of Halifax, City of Dartmouth, Town of Bedford, Halifax County) coordinated delivery of some services through a body known as the Metropolitan Authority starting in the late 1970s, but remained independent municipal bodies until April 1, 1996, when the provincial government amalgamated all municipal governments within Halifax County to create the Halifax Regional Municipality. Thus, the modern municipal boundary now includes all of Halifax County except for several Mi'kmaq reserves.[17]
Since amalgamation, the region has officially been known as the Halifax Regional Municipality (HRM), but "Halifax" has remained in common usage for brevity. In April 2014, the Regional Council approved a new brand identity for the region, under which the name "Halifax" is used for marketing and communications purposes; "Halifax Regional Municipality" remains the region's official name.[18][19][20]
Halifax has a humid continental climate (KöppenDfb), with warm summers and relatively mild winters, which is due to Gulf Stream moderation. The weather is usually milder in the winter or cooler in the summer than areas at similar latitudes inland, with the temperature remaining (with occasional notable exceptions) between about −8 and 28 °C (18 and 82 °F).[21] January is the coldest month, being the only month with a high that is slightly below freezing at −0.1 °C (31.8 °F), while August is the warmest. The sea heavily influences the climate of the area, causing significant seasonal lag in summer, with August being significantly warmer than June and with September being the third mildest month in terms of mean temperature.[22]
Hurricane Juan, a category 2 storm, hit in September 2003 and caused considerable damage to the region. Hurricane Earl grazed the coast as a category 1 storm in 2010. In 2019, Hurricane Dorian made landfall just south of Halifax as a post-tropical storm with an intensity equivalent to a category 2 hurricane and caused significant damage across Nova Scotia. In 2021 Hurricane Ida hit the region with minor damage. In 2022, Hurricane Fiona hit as a category 2 storm, although damage was relatively minor in Halifax, with downed trees and widespread power outages for days.[23]
The highest temperature ever recorded in Halifax was 37.2 °C (99.0 °F) on July 10, 1912,[24] and the lowest temperature recorded was −29.4 °C (−20.9 °F) on February 18, 1922.[25] In spite of the possibility of high temperatures, in a normal year there are only three days that go above 30 °C (86 °F).[26] Halifax also has a modest frost count by Canadian standards due to the maritime influence, averaging 131 air frosts and 49 full days below freezing annually.[26] On average the frost-free period is 182 days, ranging from May 1 to October 31.[26]
Climate data for Halifax (Citadel Hill)
Climate ID: 8202220; coordinates
In Canada, metro areas include neighbouring municipalities where more than half of the commuters commute into the core municipality. Between the 2016 Canadian Census and the 2021 Canadian Census, East Hants, a formerly rural, but increasingly exurban community located north of the main Halifax population centre, was added to the Halifax metro area, due to the increased population who commute from East Hants to Halifax. Before the 2021 Canadian Census, Metropolitan Halifax covered 549,631 hectares (5,496.31 square kilometres; 2,122.14 square miles)[49] After the addition of the East Hants, the metropolitan area's land area expanded by 177,991 hectares (1,779.91 km2) to its current land area.[48]
This section needs to be updated. The reason given is: Cites old data. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(October 2025)
Since 1 April 1996, the entirety of the County of Halifax and all its places (cities, suburbs, towns, and villages) were turned into communities of a larger single-tier municipality called Halifax Regional Municipality. As of 2021, the total surface area of the municipality is 5,475.57 km2 (2,114.13 sq mi).[2]
There are varying definitions of the "core" of Halifax. For planning purposes, the Municipality defines the "Regional Centre" as including the Halifax Peninsula and Dartmouth inside the Circumferential Highway. This urban area covers 3,300 hectares (33 square kilometres; 13 square miles)[50] and houses 96,619 people in 55,332 dwelling units as of the 2016 Census.[51]
There are over 200 official communities and neighbourhoods within the Halifax municipality. The former town of Bedford, and the former cities of Dartmouth and Halifax have maintained their original geographic names. Furthermore, some communities that were suburban, or even rural before 1996, now have become more urban and have attained community status (e.g. Cole Harbour, Lower Sackville, Spryfield, etc.)[52]
View of Purdy's Wharf, an office complex in Downtown Halifax
At 23,829 hectares (238.29 square kilometres; 92.00 square miles), Halifax's urban area (defined as population centre by Statistics Canada) is less than five percent of the municipal land area.[53] The area surrounds Halifax Harbour and its main centres are Bedford, Dartmouth, and Halifax (and their respective environs).
Halifax is a major cultural centre within the Atlantic provinces. The municipality has maintained many of its maritime and military traditions, while opening itself to a growing multicultural population. The municipality's urban core also benefits from a large population of post-secondary students who strongly influence the local cultural scene. Halifax has a number of art galleries, theatres and museums, as well as most of the region's national-quality sports and entertainment facilities. Halifax is also the home to many of the region's major cultural attractions, such as Halifax Pop Explosion, Symphony Nova Scotia, the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia, The Khyber, the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic and the Neptune Theatre.[citation needed]
Halifax's urban core is home to a number of regional landmark buildings and retains significant historic buildings and districts. Downtown office towers are overlooked by the fortress of Citadel Hill with its iconic Halifax Town Clock.[citation needed]
The Halifax area has a variety of public spaces, ranging from urban gardens, public squares, expansive forested parks, and historic sites. The original grid plan devised when Halifax was founded in 1749 included a central military parade square, the Grand Parade. The square hosts the City Hall at one end, and is a popular site for concerts, political demonstrations, as well as the annual Remembrance Day ceremony at the central cenotaph. Another popular downtown public space is the timber Halifax Boardwalk, which stretches approximately 3 km (1.9 mi) and is integrated with several squares and monuments.[citation needed]
The Halifax Common, granted for the use of citizens in 1763, is Canada's oldest public park.[56] Centrally located on the Halifax Peninsula, the wide fields are a popular location for sports. The slopes of Citadel Hill, overlooking downtown, are favoured by sunbathers and kite-flyers. The Halifax Public Gardens, a short walk away, are Victorian era public gardens formally established in 1867 and designated a National Historic Site in 1984. Victoria Park, across the street, contains various monuments and statues erected by the North British Society, as well as a fountain. In contrast to the urban parks, the expansive Point Pleasant Park at the southern tip of the peninsula is heavily forested and contains the remains of numerous British fortifications.[citation needed]
Located on the opposite side of the harbour, the Dartmouth Commons is a large park next to Downtown Dartmouth laid out in the 1700s. It is home to the Leighton Dillman gardens and various sports grounds. Nearby, the Dartmouth waterfront trail stretches from Downtown Dartmouth to Woodside. Among residents of central Dartmouth, the area around Sullivan's Pond and Lake Banook is popular for strolling and paddling. The forested Shubie Park, through which the historic Shubenacadie Canal runs, is a major park in suburban Dartmouth.[citation needed]
Mainland Halifax is home to several significant parks, including Sir Sandford Fleming Park, gifted to the people of Halifax by Sir Sandford Fleming. It houses the Dingle Tower, dedicated in 1912 by the Duke of Connaught to commemorate 150 years of representative government in Nova Scotia. The Mainland Common, in Clayton Park, is a modern park home to various sports and community facilities. Long Lake Provincial Park, comprising more than 2,000 hectares, was designated in 1984 and affords Halifax residents access to a scenic wilderness in close proximity to the urban communities.[57]
The waterfront in Downtown Halifax is the site of the Halifax Harbourwalk, a 3-kilometre (2 mi) boardwalk popular among tourists and locals alike. Many mid-sized ships dock here at one of the many wharfs. The harbourwalk is home to a Halifax Transit ferry terminal, hundreds of stores, Historic Properties, several office buildings, the Casino Nova Scotia, and several public squares where buskers perform, most prominently at the annual Halifax International Busker Festival every August.[citation needed]
Cruise ships visit the province frequently. In 2015, the Port of Halifax welcomed 141 vessel calls with 222,309 passengers.[60][better source needed]
Halifax is the Atlantic region's central point for radio broadcast and press media. CBC Television, CTV Television Network (CTV), and Global Television Network and other broadcasters all have important regional television concentrators in the municipality. CBC Radio has a major regional studio and there are also regional hubs for Rogers Radio and various private broadcast franchises, as well as a regional bureau for The Canadian Press/Broadcast News.[citation needed]
Halifax's print media is centred on its single daily newspaper, the broadsheet Chronicle Herald as well as two free newspapers, the daily commuter-oriented edition of Metro International and the free alternative arts weekly The Coast.[citation needed]
Halifax has several online daily newspapers. allNovaScotia is a daily, subscriber-only outlet which focuses on business and political news from across the province.[61]CityNews Halifax, associated with the CJNI-FM radio station, was created from a merger of the former News 95.7 and HalifaxToday (previously Local Xpress) news websites. The Halifax Examiner was founded by the former news editor of The Coast in 2014 and, like allNovaScotia, is supported through subscriptions.
From 1974 to 2008, Halifax had a second daily newspaper, the tabloid The Daily News, which still publishes several neighbourhood weekly papers such as The Bedford-Sackville Weekly News, The Halifax West-Clayton Park Weekly News and the Dartmouth-Cole Harbour Weekly News. These weekly papers compete with The Chronicle-Herald's weekly Community Heralds HRM West, HRM East, and HRM North.[citation needed]
The Halifax Thunderbirds became the city's National Lacrosse League team in September 2018, when it moved from Rochester.[66] On March 12, 2020, their inaugural season was cut short by the COVID-19 pandemic.[67] Still, the team received two league awards: Defensive Player of the Year and Executive of the Year.[68][69] In the 2021–2022 season, they reached their first playoffs, where they were defeated by the Toronto Rock 14–13 in overtime[70] in the conference semi-final.
Halifax has been a recurring subject of proposed expansion teams in the Canadian Football League; the Atlantic Schooners were proposed in the 1980s as a Halifax-based expansion team that would play out of Dartmouth, but folded after failing to secure funding for a stadium.[74] A second attempt at the Schooners was pursued by an ownership group known as Schooners Sports and Entertainment in the 2010s; in an effort to gauge interest in the franchise, the group hosted the neutral-site Touchdown Atlantic game at Huskies Stadium in 2023, marking the first regular-season CFL game played in Halifax.[75] The Schooners Sports and Entertainment bid also collapsed, after the ownership group was unable to secure a deal for a stadium in Dartmouth.[76][77]
Current professional/semi-professional sports teams in Halifax
Dalhousie University's varsity team goes by the moniker Tigers. They have teams for basketball, hockey, soccer, swimming, track and field, cross country running, and volleyball. The Tigers garnered a number of championships in the first decade of the 20th century, winning 63 AUS championships and two U Sports championships.[80]
Halifax's other U Sports university, located in close proximity to Dalhousie University, is Saint Mary's University with the moniker of the Huskies. Known for their football programme, the Huskies play at Huskies Stadium and won back-to-back Canadian University Football Championships (2001 & 2002), only the third university to do so.[81]
Finally, two of Halifax's smaller universities are part of the Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA). Mount Saint Vincent University, home to the Mystics, competes in the Atlantic Collegiate Athletic Association (ACAA), a member of the CCAA, in Women's & Men's Basketball, Women's & Men's Soccer, Cross Country and Women's Volleyball.[82] The Mystics hold a championship titles in all sports, making them the most acclaimed team of the ACAA division. University of King's College is also a member of the ACAA. The varsity athletics teams at the University of King's College are named the Blue Devils.[83] Sporting teams include men's and women's basketball, soccer, badminton and rugby, and women's volleyball.[84]
From 1984 to 2007, the region was home to the CIS Men's Basketball Championship; the tournament was moved to Ottawa, Ontario, from 2008 to 2010 and returned to Halifax in 2011 and 2012.
Halifax was selected in 2006 as the host municipality in Canada's bid for the 2014 Commonwealth Games but withdrew on March 8, 2007, citing ballooning costs from final estimates of $1.7 billion up from $785 million.[85]
At the census metropolitan area (CMA) level in the 2021 census, the Halifax CMA had a population of 465,703 living in 201,138 of its 211,789 total private dwellings, a change of 9.1% from its 2016 population of 426,932. With a land area of 7,276.22 km2 (2,809.36 sq mi), it had a population density of 64.0/km2 (165.8/sq mi) in 2021.[86]
Prior to 1996, the figures are for Halifax County. From 1996 onwards, the figures are for Halifax Regional Municipality.
Source: Statistics Canada
In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, the Halifax Regional Municipality had a population of 439,819 living in 190,512 of its 200,473 total private dwellings, a change of 9.1% from its 2016 population of 403,131. With a land area of 5,475.57 km2 (2,114.13 sq mi), it had a population density of 80.3/km2 (208.0/sq mi) in 2021.[2]
The 2021 census reported that immigrants (individuals born outside Canada) comprise 50,595 persons or 12.6% of the total population of Halifax. Of the total immigrant population, the top countries of origin were United Kingdom (6,345 persons or 12.5%), India (4,785 persons or 9.5%), China (3,740 persons or 7.4%), United States of America (3,545 persons or 7.0%), Philippines (3,415 persons or 6.7%), Syria (2,085 persons or 4.1%), Nigeria (1,625 persons or 3.2%), Lebanon (1,340 persons or 2.6%), South Korea (1,020 persons or 2.0%), and Iran (980 persons or 1.9%).[87]
St. Paul's Church is the oldest Christian church in Halifax. Halifax is a religiously diverse municipality, and has several landmark religious institutions:[93]
Before 1996, figures were from Halifax County. After 1996, figures onwards are for Halifax Regional Municipality.
Source: [94][95][96][97][98]
As of 2021, the population centre (urban area) of Halifax housed 348,634 people living in 154,883 of its 162,336 total private dwellings.[3] The human population density of Halifax's population centre was approximately 1,463.1/km2 (3,789.3/sq mi).[3]
Between 2016 and 2021, the urban area (population centre) and municipal areas experienced strong growth. Over that time-frame; the municipality added 36,688 people (an increase of over 9.1%), and the urban area (population centre) added 31,300 people (an increase of over 9.8%).
The urban area of Halifax is a major economic centre in eastern Canada with a large concentration of government services and private sector companies. Halifax serves as the business, banking, government and cultural centre for the Maritime region. The largest employment sectors within the municipality include trade (36,400 jobs), health care and social assistance (31,800 jobs), professional services (19,000 jobs), education (17,400 jobs), and public administration (15,800 jobs).[99] The Halifax economy is growing, with the Conference Board of Canada predicting strong 3.0% GDP growth for 2015.[99]
Agriculture, fishing, mining, forestry and natural gas extraction are major resource industries found in the rural areas of the municipality. Halifax's largest agricultural district is in the Musquodoboit Valley; the total number of farms in Halifax is 150, of which 110 are family-owned. Fishing harbours are located along all coastal areas with some having an independent harbour authority, such as the Sheet Harbour Industrial Port,[102] and others being managed as small craft harbours under the federal Fisheries and Oceans Canada.
The Halifax Regional Municipality is governed by a mayor (elected at large) and a sixteen-person council. Councillors are elected by geographic district, with municipal elections occurring every four years. The current mayor of Halifax is Andy Fillmore. The Halifax Regional Council is responsible for all facets of municipal government, including the Halifax Regional Police, Halifax Public Libraries, Halifax Fire and Emergency, Halifax Regional Water Commission, parks and recreation, civic addressing, public works, waste management, and planning and development.[103] The provincial legislation that provides governance oversight to the municipality is the Halifax Regional Municipality Charter.[103] The municipality has a proposed operating budget of $869 million for 2015–2016.[104]
The municipality also has four community councils that consider local matters. Each community council comprises five or six regional councillors representing neighbouring districts.[105] Most community council decisions are subject to final approval by regional council.[103]
Established in 1818, Dalhousie University is among the oldest English-language post-secondary institutions in Canada.
Halifax has a well-developed network of public and private schools, providing instruction from grade primary to grade twelve; 137 public schools are administered by the Halifax Regional Centre for Education, while eight public schools are administered by the Conseil scolaire acadien provincial.[109] The municipality's fourteen private schools are operated independently.[citation needed]
In recent years, the municipality has also begun to place increased emphasis on developing bicycling infrastructure. Halifax has developed 100 km (62 mi) of bikeways, 89 km (55 mi) of which are dedicated bicycle lanes.[111]
Public transit is provided by Halifax Transit, which operates standard bus routes, regional express bus routes, as well as the pedestrian-only Halifax-Dartmouth Ferry Service. Established in 1752, the municipality's ferry service is the oldest continuously running salt water ferry service in North America.[112]
The Port of Halifax is North America's first inbound and last outbound shipping gateway to Europe.
The Halifax Port Authority's various shipping terminals constitute the eastern terminus of Canadian National Railway's transcontinental network. Via Rail Canada provides overnight passenger rail service from the Halifax Railway Station three days a week to Montreal with the Ocean, a train equipped with sleeper cars that stops in major centres along the way, such as Moncton. The Halifax Railway Station also serves as the terminus for Maritime Bus, which serves destinations across the Maritimes.[citation needed]
Halifax Harbour is a major port used by numerous shipping lines, administered by the Halifax Port Authority. The Royal Canadian Navy and the Canadian Coast Guard have major installations along prominent sections of coastline in both Halifax and Dartmouth. The harbour is also home to a public ferry service connecting downtown Halifax to two locations in Dartmouth, with plans in development to add an additional ferry route connecting downtown and Bedford by 2028.[113]
Sheet Harbour is the other major port in the municipality and serves industrial users on the Eastern Shore.[citation needed]
Hakodate, Japan (1982). The cities chose to twin because they both have star forts and are both maritime ports. Halifax has donated many fir trees to the annual Hakodate Christmas Fantasy festival.[114][115]
Campeche, Mexico (1999). Campeche was chosen because, like Halifax, it is "a capital of a state" and is "a city of similar size to Halifax on or near the coast having rich historical tradition".[116]
Norfolk, Virginia, United States (2006). Norfolk was chosen because, like Halifax, its economy "depends heavily on the presence of the Armed Forces, and both cities are very proud of their military history".[117]
Portsmouth, England (2023). Halifax and Portsmouth signed a sister city agreement in early 2023. They chose to twin as both cities are historic naval and shipbuilding centres. Additionally, both cities are centres for university education.[118][119]
^Based on station coordinates provided by Environment Canada and documentation from the Nova Scotian Institute of Science, weather data was collected in West End, Halifax from January 1863 to July 1933, at Citadel Hill from August 1933 to August 1939, at Downtown Halifax from September 1939 to July 1974, at Citadel Hill from August 1974 to January 2002 and at CFB Halifax (Windsor Park and Halifax Dockyard) from September 2004 to present.
^Statistic includes all persons that did not make up part of a visible minority or an indigenous identity.
^Statistic includes total responses of "Chinese", "Korean", and "Japanese" under visible minority section on census.
^Statistic includes total responses of "West Asian" and "Arab" under visible minority section on census.
^Statistic includes total responses of "Filipino" and "Southeast Asian" under visible minority section on census.
^Statistic includes total responses of "Visible minority, n.i.e." and "Multiple visible minorities" under visible minority section on census.
^Grenier, John. The Far Reaches of Empire. War in Nova Scotia, 1710-1760. Norman: U of Oklahoma Press, 2008; Thomas Beamish Akins. History of Halifax. Brookhouse Press, 1895. (2002 edition). p. 7
^Wicken, p. 181; Griffith, p. 390; Also see "Recent Projects". Northeast Archaeological Research. 2003. Archived from the original on May 14, 2013. Retrieved February 5, 2014.
^"CBC - Halifax Explosion 1917". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. September 19, 2003. Archived from the original on February 3, 2017. Retrieved February 25, 2011.
^Time: Disasters that Shook the World. New York City: Time Home Entertainment. 2012. p. 56. ISBN978-1-60320-247-3.
^"Census Profile, 2016 Census". www12.statcan.gc.ca. Statistics Canada. February 8, 2017. Archived from the original on March 7, 2020. Retrieved March 18, 2020.