"Like watching paint dry" is an English-language idiom describing an activity as being particularly boring or tedious. It is believed to have originated in the United States. A similar phrase is "watching the grass grow".

Media

In 1959, Geoffrey Warren of the ''Los Angeles Times'' wrote that a theatrical presentation of '' The Shrike'' was "as exciting as watching paint dry". In 1969, sports announcer

Red Barber Walter Lanier "Red" Barber (February 17, 1908 – October 22, 1992) was an American sports announcer and author. Nicknamed "The Ol' Redhead", he was primarily identified with broadcasts of Major League Baseball, calling play-by-play across four ...

warned that, due to the dominance of

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("Pitch (baseball), pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, ...

s over batters,

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

at that time was "as exciting as watching paint dry." The expression was well known by the late 20th century and has led to real-life activities. In 2012, the World Watching Paint Dry championships were held by online trade merchants localtraders.com to promote various brands of paint. Entries were received from all over the world. In 2016, director Charlie Shackleton released a 10-hour-and-7-minute-long film of paint drying titled '' Paint Drying'' as a protest against the requirement for the

British Board of Film Classification The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) is a non-governmental organization, non-governmental organisation founded by the British film industry in 1912 and responsible for the national classification and censorship of films exhibited ...

to approve films, and charge per minute for their obligatory service. The board had to watch all of it to be able to classify it (it was given a U certificate, "suitable for all"), charging £5,936. In 2018, the artist Arvid Boecker exhibited his work ''Watching Paint Dry'' at the Kunstverein Brackenheim, Brackenheim, Germany. The television station

HGTV HGTV (an initialism for Home & Garden Television) is an American basic cable channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The network primarily broadcasts reality programming related to home improvement and real estate. HGTV Dream Home is an ...

was criticised in 2020 for featuring coverage of people watching paint dry as interludes between segments on renovation shows such as '' Home Town'' and '' Fixer Upper''.

Science

Observing the process of paint drying has been found to be important in the development of modern environmentally friendly water-based paint, replacing earlier

solvent A solvent (from the Latin language, Latin ''wikt:solvo#Latin, solvō'', "loosen, untie, solve") is a substance that dissolves a solute, resulting in a Solution (chemistry), solution. A solvent is usually a liquid but can also be a solid, a gas ...

-derived paints and coatings. The drying process is observed in order to better understand how aqueous material dries on the surface being painted, and forms a protective layer. This is particularly important for the marine and shipbuilding industry, to develop eco-friendly coatings that comply with increasingly strict regulations. Charles Tomlinson delivered a lecture on the "Drying Properties of Various Kinds of House Paint" to the

Royal Society of Arts The Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce, commonly known as the Royal Society of Arts (RSA), is a learned society that champions innovation and progress across a multitude of sectors by fostering creativity, s ...

in 1869, concluding that paint dries due to the absorption of oxygen and thus solidifies as a result. In 2008, a lecture titled "Why Watching Paint Dry Is Interesting" published by the

Royal Society of Chemistry The Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) is a learned society and professional association in the United Kingdom with the goal of "advancing the chemistry, chemical sciences". It was formed in 1980 from the amalgamation of the Chemical Society, the ...

presented the chemistry and technology used in various marine paints. In 2016, scientists at the

University of Surrey The University of Surrey is a public research university in Guildford, Surrey, England. The university received its Royal Charter, royal charter in 1966, along with a Plate glass university, number of other institutions following recommendations ...

and the Université Claude Bernard set up a computer simulation of paint drying, showing that it forms into two layers spontaneously as small particles in the paint combine and push away larger ones. This could lead to improved performance of future coatings.

References

{{reflist English-language idioms Paints

Media

Science

See also

References