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.jpg) House painters working in Capri, Italy | |
| Occupation | |
|---|---|
Occupation type | Vocational |
Activity sectors | Construction |
| Description | |
| Competencies | Patience, steady hand, physically strong |
Education required | Apprenticeship |
Fields of employment | Construction |
Related jobs | Plasterer |
Ahouse painter and decorator is atradesperson responsible for the painting and decorating of buildings, and is also known as adecorator, orhouse painter.[1][2] The purpose of painting is to improve the appearance of a building and to protect it from damage by water, corrosion, insects and mould. House painting can also be a form of artistic and/or cultural expression such asNdebele house painting.
In England, little is known of the trade and its structures before the late 13th century, at which pointguilds began to form, amongst them the Painters Company and the Stainers Company. These two guilds eventually merged with the consent of theLord Mayor of the City of London in 1502, forming theWorshipful Company of Painter-Stainers. The guild standardised the craft and acted as a protector of thetrade secrets. In 1599, the guild asked Parliament for protection, which was eventually granted in a bill of 1606, which granted the trade protection from outside competition such asplasterers.[2]
The Act legislated for a seven-yearapprenticeship, and also barred plasterers from painting, unless apprenticed to a painter, with the penalty for such painting being a fine of £5. The Act also enshrined a maximum daily fee of 16old pence for their labour.[2]
Enforcement of this Act by the Painter-Stainers Company was sought up until the early 19th century, withmaster painters gathering irregularly to decide the fees that ajourneyman could charge, and also instigating an early version of ajob centre in 1769, advertising in theLondonnewspapers a "house of call" system to advertise for journeymen and also for journeymen to advertise for work. The guild's power in setting the fee a journeyman could charge was eventually overturned by law in 1827, and the period after this saw the guild's power diminish, along with that of the other guilds; the guilds were superseded bytrade unions, with the Operative United Painters' Union forming sometime around 1831.[2]
In 1894, a national association formed, recreating itself in 1918 as the National Federation of Master Painters and Decorators of England and Wales, then changing its name once again to the British Decorators Association before merging, in 2002, with the Painting & Decorating Federation to form the Painting & Decorating Association. The Construction Industry Joint Council, a body formed of both unions and business organizations, today has responsibility for the setting of pay levels.[2]
Historically, thepainter was responsible for the mixing of thepaint; keeping a ready supply ofpigments,oils,thinners anddriers. The painter would use their experience to determine a suitable mixture depending on the nature of the job. In modern times, the painter is primarily responsible for preparation of the surface to be painted, such as patching holes indrywall, using masking tape and other protection on surfaces not to be painted, applying the paint and then cleaning up.[2]
Larger firms operating within the trade were generally capable of performing many painting or decoration services, from creating anaccent wall tosign writing, to thegilding of objects or thefinishing or refinishing offurniture.[2]
Painter-work is described in the 1911Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition where the relevant skills include preparing surfaces, mixing paint,gilding,distemper, and faux-finishes includingmarbleizing andgraining.[3]
More recently, professional painters are responsible for all preparation prior to painting. All stucco or popcorn or texture scraping,sanding,wallpaper removal,caulking, drywall orwood repair, patching,stain removal, fillingnail holes or any defects with plaster orputty, cleaning,taping, preparation and priming are considered to be done by the professionalcontracted painter.
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