Texture is one of the elements of art that is used to represent how an object appears or feels to the touch or looks as it may feel if it were touched. An artist can convey the illusion of texture in a two-dimensional artwork to represent how an object might feel if it was really touched. Texture can also be employed by an artist to express the underlying idea that he seeks convey in the work. This therefore means that texture can be used to depict a season, portray a mood, reveal hidden truths, communicate concepts, ideologies, belief systems and ideologies. In figurative paintings, an artist can also use texture to reveal a person’s identity or depict the state of a society.

Materials that can be used to create texture include: wood, cloth, sand, sandpaper, canvas, rocks, glass, granite, metal or found objects, etc. Even the brush strokes used in a painting can create a textured surface that can be felt, seen and aid in revealing the subject matter or communicate the theme in the work. The building up of paint on the surface of a canvas or board to make actual texture is called impasto. There are generally four types of texture in art: actual, simulated, abstract, and invented texture.