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The Interplay of light and shade Who needs colour when we have the magic of monochrome. Black and white photography is about light …
The Interplay of light and shade Who needs colour when we have the magic of monochrome. Black and white photography is about light and shade, and shape and form. The subjects, the scenes, the studies, the scenarios we work from are to say the least simple, common, ordinary. How we see them depends on light, how we as an artist turn them from the ordinary into the extraordinary is simply that little bit extra. It is the connectivity, the translation, the interpretation that we make, sorry create! / Everpresent Everywhere It is light, first of all as enlightenment, it is as James Joyce put, beholding. Secondly it is light, i.e. using the light that comes from above, for we are indeed ‘painting with light’. Thirdly it is light, how we use that light to illuminate, i.e. to reveal, like the spotlight on a work of art, or a ‘super-trooper’ focusing on the artiste, dancer or musician on the stage. Fourthly and finally it is light. Light as a colour or tone on our palette to feature or as emphasis and it this we wish to address in this article. Since the beginning of time, humans have strived to discover and understand what light exactly is. Light has had a great impact on our culture, and as photographers painting with light, we need to stress it in our portrayal of our culture through images. / Bruges Lamplight It’s all Greek these postulations on photography In the fifth century BC, Empedocles postulated that everything was composed of four elements; / - fire, air, earth, and water. He believed that Aphrodite made the human eye out of the four elements and that she lit the fire in the eye which shone out from the eye making sight possible. However if this were true, then one could see during the night just as well as during the day, so Empedocles postulated an interaction between rays from the eyes and rays from a source such as the sun. Then in about 300 BC, Euclid wrote Optica, in which he studied the properties of light. Euclid postulated that light travelled in straight lines and he described the laws of reflection and studied them mathematically. He questioned as to whether indeed that sight is the result of a beam from the eye, for he asks how one sees the stars immediately, if one closes one’s eyes, then opens them at night. Of course if the beam from the eye travels infinitely fast this is not a problem. In 55 BC, Lucretius, a Roman who carried on the ideas of earlier Greek atomists, wrote: “The light and heat of the sun; these are composed of minute atoms which, when they are shoved off, lose no time in shooting right across the interspace of air in the direction imparted by the shove.” – On the nature of the Universe. / Despite being similar to later particle theories, Lucretius’s views were not generally accepted and light was still theorized as emanating from the eye. Ptolemy (c. 2nd century) wrote about the refraction of light, and developed a theory of vision that objects are seen by rays of light emanating from the eyes. / Le Corbusier’s creative approach of the architect In his 1923 famous book ‘Vers une Architecture’ (‘Towards an Architecture’) Le Corbusier pleads the case of the new language, when writing about the underlying structure of primitive shapes, concluding that the primary geometric forms should be used to embody the Architecture of the age of the machine. ~ “Architecture is the masterly, correct and magnificent play of volumes brought together in light”. Our eyes are made to see forms in light: and the interplay of light and shade reveal these forms: cubes, cones, spheres, and cylinders or pyramids as the great primary forms which light reveal to advantage. The image of these is distinct and tangible within us and without ambiguity. It is the reason that these are beautiful forms.” He establishes the relationship between the plan and its surroundings: ‘The plan proceeds from within to without; the exterior is the result of the interior, The elements of Architecture are light and shade, wall and space.’ Through this fusion, architecture focuses on space and volumes and their interaction rather than the two-dimensional cosmetic treatment of the ‘Façade’. To understand the spirit of the place and the atmospheric space contain it is thus important that we as photographers cause the connectivity through careful and appropriate application of the interplay of light and shade alongside the emphasis of shape and form. But to what purpose we will find in the next section. / Steps of Vitre Castle Diorama or Drama The painter Giorgio de Chirico once wrote: “There are more enigmas in the shadow of a man who walks in the sun than in all the religions of the past, present and future. “De Chirico, who coined the term “metaphysical painting” while working with Carlo Carrà in 1917, may here have been speaking both as a painter and a metaphysician. If not automatically an enigma, it is at least mildly paradoxical that shadows can enlighten: that seeing some parts of what we see less well than others can help us to understand the whole of what we see better. Not being able to make out one edge of what might otherwise look like a triangle can lead you to realise you’re looking at a cone, for example. Yet de Chirico was mainly referring to the mood or feeling which shadow can generate, in art as in life. Its eminent usefulness in helping us to see form and perceive distance has not prevented it from being freighted down with all sorts of symbolic baggage. In folk tales, In folk tales, Gothic novels and film noir, shadows are premonitions, harbingers of threat and death. Western painting and its literature has tended to set shadow seemingly contrasting tasks: to define yet blur form, but also the use of shadows also to create mood. Western painting, or the representational tradition which has so dominated it, has tended to set shadow two seemingly contrasting tasks: to clothe, locate and define form – to make the picture’s flat surface appear to contain solid objects in space, producing something which looks real – and to lend a gloss of mystery or drama to the illusion created. Often in art, though less so in ordinary acts of seeing, there is a difference between shadow in general and shadows in particular. A strong or precisely-directed light source casts shadows which closely resemble a cross section of an object placed in its path. The process is itself a kind of representation. Both Pliny the Elder and Quintilian cited the outlining of a shadow as a primal artistic act, but they disagreed about where this originating myth took place and the people involved in it. Pliny tells how the Corinthian Maid, daughter of the potter Butades, drew around her lover’s silhouette on a wall to remember him before he went abroad; for Quintilian it was a shepherd tracing his shadow on the ground with a stick. Both parables locate the origins of drawing in a kind of state of nature: domestic intimacy and romantic attachment in the former case, Arcadian pastoral in the latter. Both also feed off the transience of the shadow, its power to suggest absence as well as presence. Tomorrow his mapped shadow will be all the Maid has to remind her of. / Seat of Rene Magritte Eclectic Emphasis Conventional histories of Western painting begin not in antiquity – from which period inconveniently few examples have survived – but with the Renaissance. / Chiaroscuro is derived from the Italian, chiaro ~ light and oscuro ~ dark. Interplay, a variety or contrast of light and dark, is the use of marked light and shade contrasts for a dramatic effect in art. The earliest and best examples of this where to be found as a hallmark of baroque paintings, this dramatic interplay of light and dark to create tension, drama or excitement as a means of drawing attention. Shadow, or chiaroscuro, the interplay of light and shade, is mostly identified by Renaissance authors and later historians as a form-giving device, the handmaiden of perspective. But shadows are occasionally allocated a more pointed meaning. In the 1420s, Masaccio and Masolino organised their frescoes in the Carmelite church in Florence around clear and consistent depictions of light. Every scene in the cycle is lit as if by the chapel’s single high window. This consistency and clarity is most telling in Masaccio’s depiction of St Peter healing the sick with his shadow. The shadow falls in, as it were, the “right” place, as if Peter were being lit from the window to his left or our right. What looks like a straight reversal of the usual symbolism of menace and gloom may instead be a crafty reference to the death and resurrection of Christ – one flashes forward to the more obvious The Shadow of Death by Holman Hunt (1870-1873), in which a young Jesus seems to be doing some sort of yoga pose while his shadow organises itself into a crucifixion behind him. In the Masaccio, Peter’s shadow passes over each of four unfortunates in turn; it is their restoration to the light which allows them to rise to their feet. The revolutionary intensity of Masaccio’s desire to represent, to paint figures who look as though they’re there, can be seen in religious terms as a kind of incarnation. Peter casts a shadow because he exists – or he exists because he casts a shadow. Making a miracle seem plausible to the point of ordinariness was itself, at the time, a miraculous achievement. Nevertheless, the idea that Peter’s shadow is off doing good works on his behalf hints at a darker and more paradoxical tradition. Our shadows are our twins, our ghosts, our doppelgängers. Their relationship with us goes beyond the merely fraternal. The dramatic or even melodramatic properties of chiaroscuro have been exploited by artists for centuries, most effectively by the followers of Michelangelo da Caravaggio in seventeenth-century Rome, Naples, France and Holland. These so-called tenebristi or “shadowists” started from a dark ground, laying lighter colours over this to suggest the sparing and directed fall of light across the subject being depicted, picking out little details for the viewer and lending the whole scene a monumental, sombre presence. Light even corrals shadow into shadows here and there (as with the basket of fruit that throws a shadow in the shape of a fish’s tail in Caravaggio’s Supper at Emmaus (1601) at the National Gallery, an encrypted Christian symbol which subtly underpins the picture’s message of concealment and revelation). The artist’s touch can itself somehow be equated with light, and so with all the qualities light suggests. Weaving illuminated form out of inchoate darkness is a life-giving act with almost divine implications (“Let there be light!”). Yet the paintings are often set in what look very much like jail cells. You could call this ironic in that Caravaggio for one had first-hand experience of such interiors; you could also call it truthful, in that jail is where a lot of martyrdoms, for example, take place. But the abiding implication is that corporeal human life is a benighted state which even divine light often struggles to penetrate. Just as with Masaccio’s striving after objectivity, the apparent pessimism of the tenebristi allows modern viewers to disregard their work’s religious and allegorical content and see it as merely truthful. Since the mid-nineteenth century it has been photography – especially monochrome photography – rather than painting in which this long-standing dependence on shadow to elucidate form and create mood has flourished (another way in which Caravaggio’s paintings appear modern to us is that they look a little like photographs). Influence and Inspiration / Be afraid, be very afraid My own work has very much been inspired by two directions. One is the influence of Film directors and producers, and my predominance of this practice of dramatic black and white comes from first of all two people. Alfred Hitchcock of The Birds, Psycho, etc. left a legacy of suspense and intrigue and airs of mystery and twist. Secondly Carol Reed director of The Third Man, who I will always associate as the male director with a female name directing the leading character Holly Martins another strong impressive male with a female name. However what legacy is left with me is his dramatic lighting and film sets, which gave introduce the monochrome’s twin towers ~ light and shade, and shape and form in combination and fusion for intensity and impact, something which is not lost on my own work. The other direction was of Brassaï’s Paris nocturnes, Ansel Adams’s sublime landscapes, Cartier-Bresson’s decisive moments, Edward Weston’s nudes and still-life’s – all seem sketched in shadow rather than light. Even photographers who engaged more closely with the avant-garde and used the camera – or various camera-less photographic processes – to pursue the Modernist goal of abstraction, or to explore Modernist ideas of machine-made art, found themselves drawn to shadow as a resource, if not exactly a subject. I was reminded by Mark (Irish79) one of our own Redbubble photographers introduction of a home reversed image which brought to mind Man Ray’s famous Rayographs which are essentially negatives of shadows, luminous outlines of objects placed on a light-sensitive sheet which is then exposed (the process being oddly reminiscent of the Corinthian Maid). László Moholy-Nagy did something similar with his “photograms”; he also photographed layers of transparent material to create delicate, calligraphic patterns of diffracted shadow. In the 1970s Andy Warhol, an artist much exercised by the mechanical production and reproduction of images, made a series of “shadow pictures” which negated the old equation of shadow with formlessness (the let-there-be-light thing) by laying crisp silk-screened shadows over messily hand-painted backgrounds. Let me finish by encouraging you to look at my own abstract reality, and how these things I have spoken off have contributed in some shaded sentences or sentinels. / The Third Man I had Carol Reed’s direction and the two characters played by Orson Welles and Joseph Cotton in mind when I took this capture. The only odd thing about it was that I wasn’t in Vienna 1949, I was in Nice and it was 1999, fifty years later. Light Triangle This was captured in a medieval town Perouges, in the South of France where scenes from the Three Musketeers film where shot. Light Triangle is one of my favourites because it demonstrates the interplay of light and shade, and how light can be bent in direction to focus on other elements or components of the image / New Light through Old Windows Captured in a cottage in Cultra, chosen as a manifestation of the power of the path of light and how it illuminates the subject. It was my first ‘Chiaroscuro’ image (light on the dark obscure) and lead to my study of, and collection of images on the subject of the ‘Interplay of Light and Shade’ / Temple of the winds ~ Light on staircase Also close to my home is Mount Stewart National Trust property on the Ards Peninsula on the shores of Strangford Lough and a near-by peculiar building in the estate is the circular Temple of the Winds. The staircase is lit by just two windows as you ascend the stairs; and my eye saw the sweeping curving balustrade silhouetted against the light and also the light shadow patterns on the wall. It is another example of the Interplay of light and shade on a surface. / / Ragman
I had no idea this image had been featured until dingysailor1 pointed it out to me earl…
I had no idea this image had been featured until dingysailor1 pointed it out to me earlier. Thanks Maggie.
Another artist has gained notoriety by delivering a load of crap to an adoring public. This time, however, the excremental masterpiece ex…
Another artist has gained notoriety by delivering a load of crap to an adoring public. This time, however, the excremental masterpiece expressed a strong desire to travel. Many thanks to the delicious and demented April Mansilla for that link. In this story / the runaway product was something entirely different. But I suspect there’ll be a shitstorm nevertheless. And for those of you who haven’t heard of Piero Manzoni, look here – but not while you’re eating.
The sales fairy has been busy again. Venexian has made my day today by purchasing a card of …
The sales fairy has been busy again. Venexian has made my day today by purchasing a card of “Shades of Lilac”. Thank you. Please click on the link to view her beautiful work.
So what happens when coffee is required? Well once some of it begins to hit my system I realized that ” Shades of Liquid” was featured in…
So what happens when coffee is required? Well once some of it begins to hit my system I realized that ” Shades of Liquid” was featured in Angels Wings and Poems!! lol Opps It really does take coffee before i function lol. I got and scrolled through my new activity list while waiting for the coffee and I didn’t even see the feature lol. It wasn’t until after I had finished my first cup and was commenting on new works that I noticed. What a pleasant surprise to wake up to :) I am very humbled, and honored that Angels Wings and Poems has featured this piece. Thank you so much everyone :)
wow what a day! I just found out that Tender colors which I only posted a few hours ago has already been featured in Live Love and Dream….
wow what a day! I just found out that Tender colors which I only posted a few hours ago has already been featured in Live Love and Dream. Just before this shot was featured, I received a phone call. My new camera is in a day early!! Now i’ll have time to start learning it before i leave for the gallery :) its turning into a beautiful day! Thank you for the feature Live Love and Dream !!! thank you for all the wonderful comments and your support everyone! I believe this is about my 10th or 11 feature :)
Lol ok seriously I didn’t see that one coming at all. I woke to chilly weather again this morning / -9C currently, brrrrr. So i settled i…
Lol ok seriously I didn’t see that one coming at all. I woke to chilly weather again this morning / -9C currently, brrrrr. So i settled in with a steaming cup of coffee, a pup at my feet and a kitty at my elbow, and what do I discover??? ” FROSTY VISITOR” is featured in Bites and Bites. / A warm thank you to the moderators of the wonderful group :) I am honored and humbled. What a way to start my thanksGiving! Now for the turkey … yummmm lol Hey Jerame we are featured together :) Congrats my friend .
oops How’s that for being good lol. App…
oops How’s that for being good lol. Apparently Lost in the Jungle was featured two days a go in the wonderful group “BITS AND BITES” and I didn’t even know it. oops lol. Sorry guys. Webbie thank you for pointing it out to me. I’ll have to double check my list i must have missed the notification some how. Either way it was a wonderful suprise to wake up too! Thank you everyone for you wonderful comments, and thank you to the awesome moderators of “Bits and Bites” Hugs and kisses everyone you all the best. I”m still behind but working on catching up when i can grab a few moments. Love you all!
My Shades of Green is being featured in the “Reptiles and Amphibian…
My Shades of Green is being featured in the Reptiles and Amphibians Group My sincere thanks to the hosts for allowing me the honour. Kind regards Macky
For those of your who like my parasols or maybe a perhaps a loved one would like them, I’ve finally made them available to purchase onlin…
For those of your who like my parasols or maybe a perhaps a loved one would like them, I’ve finally made them available to purchase online. / I can ship overseas but I haven’t worked out shipping costs yet. PLEASE tell friends or family about my parasols I’m finding it hard to get exposure and would love to make some sales! http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5733332 enjoy!
What an amazing weekend!!!! / My first sale, and now Jigsaw: has been featu…
What an amazing weekend!!!! / My first sale, and now Jigsaw: has been featured in Shades Of Grey: Thank you so much xx
“A place to sit in the shade” was featured in the Snow! Glorious Snow! group!! !h…
“A place to sit in the shade” was featured in the Snow! Glorious Snow! group!! Thanks!
My Newest 2009 calendar… / A collection of my favorite black & white & sepia works. / / !http://images-2.redbubble.net/img/calendars/pa…
My Newest 2009 calendar… / A collection of my favorite black & white & sepia works. / /
White Linen has been featured in The Not So Fine Art of Photography and has placed #4 in the Shades of White Challenge in the same group….
White Linen has been featured in The Not So Fine Art of Photography and has placed #4 in the Shades of White Challenge in the same group. Thank you so much to Jeff and Caryn for making my day and to all who voted for this entry, many thanks to you all. Congratulations also to all the other fabulous entries.
/ / My new book, J A E D A shades of the soul is finally complete! HURRAY! / It is available in 3 different formats: / 1. soft cover, / 2. hard cover w/image wrap / 3. and hard cover w/dust jacket. The book is standard portrait size, 40 pages and is printed on premium paper with 8×10 full bleed images. ISBN: 978-1427639462 Detailed book information can be viewed here You can virtually preview the first 15 pages of the book here Please go here to learn how to acquire a signed copy of my book. Detailed book information can be viewed here You can virtually preview the first 15 pages of the book here Thank you to everyone who encouraged and supported me with this book project. I hope this book inspires and delights, makes you feel, connect and is able to transport you to soulful spaces. This was a labor of love and i worked very hard to make this book be the best reading experience it could possibly be! PEACE, LOVE and LIGHT / j a e d a :) / /
Thank you so much to the hosts of You light up my life for featuring Light & shade...
Thank you so much to the hosts of You light up my life for featuring Light & shade It’s very much appreciated!
Thanks BUNCHES to the members of the Shameless Self Promotion Group for votin…
Thanks BUNCHES to the members of the Shameless Self Promotion Group for voting on my image Duotone Beach to place it FIRST in the Black and White Beaches challenge!!!! My little point and shoot and I are so surprised and happy!!!!! :)
I want to thank the Group Trees for featuring my picture. I thank everyone that was involved in choosing my picture, (Shaded Area near T…
I want to thank the Group Trees for featuring my picture. I thank everyone that was involved in choosing my picture, (Shaded Area near The Lagoon) /
Thanks to all for helping my ‘Bad Seed (shaded’ caricature of Nick Cave get featured in the ‘Works On Paper’ Group: !http://images-3….
Thanks to all for helping my ‘Bad Seed (shaded’ caricature of Nick Cave get featured in the ‘Works On Paper’ Group: cheers :) Chris
Thank you all for featuring my ‘Bad Seed (shaded)’ caricature in the ‘Let’s Pay Homage’ Group :) !http://images-3.redbubble.net/img/ar…
Thank you all for featuring my ‘Bad Seed (shaded)’ caricature in the ‘Let’s Pay Homage’ Group :) regards Chris
Many thanks for featuring my caricature sketch of Nick Cave – Bad Seed (shaded), in the International Superheroes of Illustration group…
Many thanks for featuring my caricature sketch of Nick Cave – Bad Seed (shaded), in the International Superheroes of Illustration group :) cheers! Chris
Yet another person has purchased my green calenda…
Yet another person has purchased my green calendar today!
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