We seem not to be able to leave things be. It's as if we speak to a object and say "look as you are? we'll see about that!" I have noticed that humans seem to have the following obsessions: smoothness, right-angles and managing. We manage the world and strive to square things off and smothafie them.

I bet wherever you are now you can see many right angles and smooth surfaces. Compare this to a woodland.

I often get asked how do you paint x, such as a stone statue and often I reply with the recommendation not to paint it. I know, this may seem like a silly reply for a painter & decorator to make but it's what I believe.

The main reason we paint is to protect or decorate a surface but some surfaces don't need protecting or don't need to be decorated, though this could be a matter of taste.

Renders and plasters can both be coloured with pigments and don't need the protection of a paint. Stone looks great as it. Some stones decay quicker than others and if it does needs protecting, a paint made of it's self is often the best solution, such as stone powder and lime. Natural woods can look fantastic but generally need protecting in one form or another. The best protection for wood is a natural oil, such as linseed oil.

What most natural materials have in common is that they need to breath. Conventional paint over a natural surface is like wearing plastic shoes over your feet. They stop air and moisture passing through and the underlying surface will rot. Eco and natural paints are breathable so don't create this problem. We could say that eco paints are like Gortex® of the fabric world and conventional paint like PVC. Though this article isn't meant to be eco vs non-eco paint but rather paint vs no paint but what I'm saying is that if a protective coat is needed eco paint is best.

Once you paint something you'll need to give it maintenance coats. The funny thing is that the maintenance coats are often used to protect the underlying paint not the surface it covers. Painting should be a solution to a problem but often it becomes the problem.

While some surfaces don't need a protective coat or a decorative finish, many do. It's not just the surface with should be taken into consideration but it's surroundings and exposure to the elements, as well as our relationship to it.