With days getting shorter, I am more attuned to the impact of light on my psyche. Classic and contemporary artists are attuned to gradations of light and shadow to create power, energy, and drama in their works. In fact, there’s an art form called chiaroscuro, from the Italian words – chiaro, “light” or “clear,” and scuro, “dark” or “obscure,”. While you may not be aware of this approach, you likely have seen two dimensions transform into three, highlighting a subject’s depth and turning up intensity.
Chiaroscuro is not just a technique, it’s more like a narrator. The light and dark contrast can represent duality, manipulate mood, and create a sense of mystery. It can tell a story of good and evil, knowledge and ignorance, or hope and despair. Artists often say it brings a soul into their piece. Let’s look at three giants of this style and some newer artists speaking the language of chiaroscuro.
Dramatic Use of Chiaroscuro
One of the earliest and most iconic examples of chiaroscuro is Caravaggio’s The Calling of St. Matthew. Here, light directs viewers’ attention to St. Matthew while surrounding figures recede into darkness, symbolizing ignorance or sin. Notice how your eye follows the light coming into the room from the right side. We are shown what the artist wants us to see through contrast. It creates anticipation and tension, emphasizing the gravity of the moment.
Jesse Lane is a modern artist whose images take inspiration from Caravaggio. Lane’s use of colored pencils instead of paint makes his images even more compelling because the hard pencil doesn’t blend like paint. His images fade into a dark background while hyper focusing on pockets of light playing off skin. The effect is dramatic.
Light as a Symbol of Restless Energy
In The Starry Night, Vincent van Gogh uses light to create a hypnotic, swirling energy that mirrors the beauty and chaos of nature. Again, like Caravaggio, the stark contrast between the spiraling stars and the darkened landscape below seem to move and intensify, capturing restless energy. This piece resonates deeply with many people, which may be why it replicated on so many items.
Shonto Begay is a contemporary artist from Arizona. His first name means “light reflecting off water” in his native Navajo (Dine), so it’s no wonder his art captures the restlessness of light. His use of small brush strokes is similar to Van Gogh but embraces the contrasting beauty of his southwestern home. Begay’s pieces pull out colors that dance with each other and highlight subjects with the energy of light. Check out the light shimmering around the donkey.
The Power of Shadows
Georgia O’Keeffe explored the interplay of light and shadow in many of her New Mexican desert-inspired pieces, particularly Black Place II. Through shades of black, gray, and brown, O’Keeffe captures the mysterious beauty of the desert. The contrasts highlight the rugged landscape. At first glance, the image looks like a dark floral print, but once your eyes begin to see the harshness, the shadows add depth to the image. For O’Keeffe, darkness represented nature’s strength, while subtle light accents brought out its beauty.
Don Insindu uses light and shadows to intentionally direct you toward ordinary modern subjects. His interplay of light and dark conveys a mood, creating meaning and depth in everyday items. Much like O’Keefe, Insindu uses dramatic lighting and shadows to capture emotion.
The Psychological Impact of Chiaroscuro
Just as colors connect us with different emotions, light and dark hold meaning. Light is associated with optimism, clarity, and activity, while darkness evokes introspection, mystery, or even fear. By consciously manipulating light and dark, artists can create tension, reveal hidden layers of meaning, and provoke specific emotional responses. The interplay of light and shadow is central to the way we experience and interpret art, reminding us that what we see is often just the beginning of what we feel.
Did any of these pieces bring up feelings in you? Leave a comment below!
Super interesting Gian, thanks so much for sharing. As usual, beautiful images supported with insightful writing 😀
I envy languages that have words that English lacks. So the Dine language had Shonto Begay growing up thinking about light on water, which is marvelous. Thanks for the mix of old and new artists here. I know about the painterly fights for landscape supremacy in the late 1800s and early 1900s, so I liked seeing the technique in decidedly non-landscape subjects, such as Don Insindu’s “Passport Bro.”