a. How was painting invented?
Painting initially emerged in prehistoric times, when nomadic people would use it to make symbols on the rocky walls of caves and mountains. The earliest signs of paintings were found in Spanish Caves which dated more than 42,000 years ago.

Painting in a cave, Malaga – Spain

b. Who made the first painting?
Paintings of the olden times are believed to be made by primitive people, mostly cave dwellers or people in the prehistoric era.
These people would sculpt and paint on the walls, making symbols that were used to represent the language of those times and this is how they would communicate with each other.
Some researchers choose to believe that Neanderthals did most of the earliest paintings.
Therefore, the question “Who invented painting?” is considered impossible as we can never narrow it down to a singular person. However, it is considered that the earliest cave paintings that we can find, are from the African subcontinent.

The History of Cave Painting

c. How did humans begin painting?
It is believed that our early African ancestors began painting to communicate among themselves and leave a sign for the future generations. Painting is considered one of the greatest innovation among humans.
The first humans would put charcoal dust on their own hands, that were then placed on the cave walls to create impressions. This created a revelation among the early humans which ignited the abilities of painting, due to which they began to paint even more complicated variations of animals and human activities.
Among these paintings, the most common was the painting of huge animals like mammoths and bison, or activities like
farming and hunting of these animals.

Cave Painting of The Bison