Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun The technique of using light and shade in pictorial representation.
- noun The arrangement of light and dark elements in a pictorial work of art.
- noun A woodcut technique in which several blocks are used to print different shades of a color.
- noun A woodcut print made by this technique.
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun Light and shade; specifically, the general distribution of light and shade in a picture, whether painted, drawn, or engraved— that is, the combined effect of all its lights, shadows, and reflections. Strictly speaking, however, every object on which light strikes has its own chiaroscuro.
- noun A drawing in black and white.
- noun A method of printing engravings from several blocks representing lighter and darker shades, used especially in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries; also, an engraving so printed.
- Of or pertaining to light and shade in painting, drawing, or engraving.
- Also clair-obscure, clare-obscure.
- noun A style of painting on enameled pottery practised by the Italian potters.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- noun The arrangement of light and dark parts in a work of art, such as a drawing or painting, whether in monochrome or in color.
- noun The art or practice of so arranging the light and dark parts as to produce a harmonious effect. Cf.
clair-obscur .
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun art An artistic technique developed during the Renaissance, referring to the use of exaggerated light contrasts in order to create the illusion of volume.
- noun art A
monochrome picture made by using several different shades of the same color. - noun art The use of blocks of wood of different colors in a
woodcut . - noun photography A
photographic technique in which one side of a face (for example) is well lit and the other is in shadow.
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- noun a monochrome picture made by using several different shades of the same color
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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Caravaggio's trademark "chiaroscuro" - dramatic dark-light contrasts - and revolutionary use of realism are explored at the Scuderie del Quirinale, an exhibition space created from former stables of Italy's presidential palace.
Homepage 2010
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"Self-Portrait In Barbecue Heaven" Dutch artist Pieter Johannes van Harmenszoon used the technique known as chiaroscuro, which features subtle gradations of light and shade for dramatic effect.
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This was written when I was still figuring out that whole linearity thing, and it's rather chiaroscuro, which is to say what's here is pretty good, but a great deal is left unstated.
there is a crack in everything. that's how the light gets in. ashacat 2008
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"Self-Portrait In Barbecue Heaven" Dutch artist Pieter Johannes van Harmenszoon used the technique known as chiaroscuro, which features subtle gradations of light and shade for dramatic effect.
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Gautier does not seem to mean this in any Cartesian sense but rather uses a literal form of the artistic term chiaroscuro as the basis of his explanation.
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Here he also met Count Antonio Maria Zanetti, who was well-known as a chiaroscuro woodcutter besides being a collector and patron of the arts.
John Baptist Jackson 18th-Century Master of the Color Woodcut Jacob Kainen
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This is the way in which the light and shadow are arranged, or what a critic would call the chiaroscuro of the picture.
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Neuwirth is drawn to people who at best can be described as chiaroscuro.
The Full Feed from HuffingtonPost.com David Finkle 2011
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Caravaggio pioneered the Baroque painting technique of contrasting light and dark known as chiaroscuro but was famous for his wild lifestyle - he is said to have killed a man in a brawl and fled Rome.
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Caravaggio pioneered the Baroque painting technique known as chiaroscuro, in which light and shadow are sharply contrasted and the discovery of his remains comes just days after a six month exhibition marking his death ended in Rome.
Home | Mail Online 2010
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Artists modulated their compositions with intense transitions of color values, a practice called clairobscur in French, or chiaroscuro in Italian.
The Art and Chemistry of Replicating Oil Paintings into Woven Textiles Delanie Linden 2024
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Artists modulated their compositions with intense transitions of color values, a practice called clairobscur in French, or chiaroscuro in Italian.
The Art and Chemistry of Replicating Oil Paintings into Woven Textiles Delanie Linden 2024
abraxaszugzwang commented on the word chiaroscuro
"In all senses also called claire-obscure."
February 25, 2007
chained_bear commented on the word chiaroscuro
I cannot help confusing this word with churrascuria--a type of South American restaurant specializing in churrasco (like a barbecue kind of place).
February 25, 2007
WanderlustDreamer commented on the word chiaroscuro
Chiaroscuro is well used in Chapter XXII of "The Return of Dr Fu-Manchu" by Sax Rohmer.
March 3, 2015