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Chiaroscuro for the Figure

During the Italian Renaissance, artists used this convention or formula for applying light and shadow to objects. This practice made it possible for artists to create an illusion of depth by simply following a standard set of rules for applying light and shadow to a form.

some divisions of light/shadow:

highlight

The point closest to the light source where light is most concentrated. Highlights are easiest to see on reflective or glossy surfaces.

light

Half of a hemisphere is lit when a light source is present. We see more of the light side than we do shadow in the illustration at the top right.

shadow

The half hemisphere that is darker (not necessarily dark) which is opposite the lit hemisphere.

core shadow

This is the center of the darkened area. From our vantage point it is a thin crescent.

reflected light

Use this as often as you can. It can help to define the back edge of an object. It occurs in a shadowed area and is caused by light being reflected from another area or created by a secondary light source.

cast shadow

This gives an object a nice sense of space

Changes in planes cause these amounts of light and shadow to be altered. This link to a Leonardo da Vinci drawing shows how chiaroscuro is applied to the face. If you look closely at the chin, you can see the highlight with reflected light on the underside.

[chiaroscuro]		[applied chiaroscuro]		[texture]

Questions or comments can be forwarded to Ralph Larmann at the University of Evansville.

The diagram above shows a way of simplifying shading so that it can be applied to any surface. Like any convention, good observation from life helps to get better results.

Another good page on chiaroscuro is at the Art Studio Chalkboard web site.

created 6/15/98 by R. M. Larmann
updated 7/3/04