Chiaroscuro

Chiaroscuro

Chiaroscuro

  1. :  pictorial representation in terms of light and shade without regard to color
  2. a:   the arrangement or treatment of light and dark parts in a pictorial work of artb:   the interplay or contrast of dissimilar qualities (as of mood or character)
  3. :  a 16th century woodcut technique involving the use of several blocks to print different tones of the same color; also:  a print made by this technique
  4. :  the interplay of light and shadow on or as if on a surface
  5. :  the quality of being veiled or partly in shadow

Contrasting effects of light and shade in a work of art. Leonardo da Vinci brought the technique to its full potential, but it is usually associated with such 17th-century artists as Caravaggio and Rembrandt, who used it to outstanding effect. The chiaroscuro woodcut, produced by printing different tones of a colour from separate woodblocks on a single sheet of paper, was first produced in 16th-century Italy.

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