How Shade Tells a Story
What Is Chiaroscuro, and what does it tell us about art?
Christ Crowned with Thorns, about 1620, Gerrit van Honthorst. Oil on canvas, 87 1/2 × 68 1/4 in. Getty Museum, 90.PA.26
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How do you describe a work of art?
With art terms, of course! We’ve heard you, and we’re here to answer your Frequently Asked Art Questions (FAAQs).
Let’s take a look at Christ Crowned with Thorns, an ideal work of art to describe with the art term, chiaroscuro. Don’t worry, we’ve got you: it’s pronounced kee-AR-ə-SKOOR-oh.
Watch the video, or read on below!
What Is Chiaroscuro?
To put it very simply, chiaroscuro is the use of strong contrasts of light and dark to create a sense of dimension, often for dramatic effect.
Take a close look at Christ Crowned with Thorns and you’ll see that the shading helps tell the tale. Christ, the protagonist of most biblical stories, is “illuminated” with light from the torch. His antagonists—the jeering soldiers, one of whom mockingly places a crown of thorns on Christ’s head—are cast in shadow.
Astronomer by Candlelight, late 1650s, Gerrit Dou. Oil on panel, 12 5/8 × 8 3/8 in. Getty Museum, 86.PB.732
Who Invented Chiaroscuro?
Shading has existed for nearly as long as art itself. Shading to tell a story, or chiaroscuro, was popularized by Baroque painters like Gerrit Dou and Caravaggio (Gerrit van Honthorst, the painter of Christ Crowned with Thorns, was a follower of his) and is considered one of the signature styles of the period.
What Can I Call Chiaroscuro?
While Baroque painters made chiaroscuro famous, artists have used the technique in many types of mediums. You can find many examples of chiaroscuro in black-and-white photography, film, and even woodcuts.
What other art terms or artworks are you curious about? Email us (stories [at] getty.edu) to let us know.
