The material that provides a surface on which an artist applies color, collage, or other media is called a support. In art terminology, the support is the physical base that holds the work, such as canvas, paper, wood, plaster, or a wall.
A support is different from the medium. The medium is the substance used to make marks or images—such as oil paint, watercolor, charcoal, or ink—while the support is what receives or carries that substance. In a collage, for example, paper, canvas, or board may serve as the support while the artist adds photographs, fabric, paint, and found materials.
The choice of support can affect an artwork’s texture, durability, appearance, and meaning. Canvas became strongly associated with Western easel painting, while murals use architectural surfaces and watercolor traditionally relies on specially prepared paper. Some modern artists deliberately expose or manipulate the support rather than treating it as an invisible background. The French Supports/Surfaces movement made this physical structure a central subject of painting.