A book about eye-catching imagery cannot be complete without high contrast. Our eyes are naturally attracted to darks and lights. Like the gleam in someone’s eye, rich blacks next to sparkling whites get attention. The Op Art Movement in the 1960s produced art with optical illusions and vibrating visuals. This was accomplished two ways: with strong graphic black-and-white patterns and with pairs of complementary colors (Technique 49). Here are some ideas using darks and lights to add focus and interest to a painting.
Paint
One or more acrylic paint colors, Carbon Black, Titanium White
Substrate
Any painting surface
Tools
Paintbrush or other application tool
For Cleanup
Water, water container, paper towels or rags
Here Carbon Black and Titanium White touch edges on a gray background. An optical visual vibration occurs as the eye moves back and forth between them at the edge. When separated the eye movement still exists but with less optical vibration as they are spread farther apart. The big visual step at the edge between the two makes this a high-contrast pair.
Color, not just black and white, can translate into dark and light. This pair of dark red (Alizarin Crimson Hue with a small amount of Anthraquinone Blue) and light blue (a small amount of Ultramarine Blue with Titanium White) are high contrast.
Add black and white (a mixed gray) into most colors and they become muted in color, with lower chroma, or intensity. This pair of colors has a small visual step at the edge between the two colors, making it a low-contrast pair. The color on the left consists of the same red mixture used in the previous example, mixed with Carbon Black and Titanium White. The color on the right is the same light blue color from the previous example with Carbon Black added (it already contained white).
Apply both high-contrast and low-contrast pairs of colors in a painting to magnify the push and pull of forms to suggest depth. Here a low contrast background emphasizes the forward movement or attention-getting high contrast image of an eye and geometric cross.
A full tonal range is presented here including rich blacks and bright highlights.
LETTING GO (DETAIL)
Pamela Frankel Fiedler
Pastel and acrylic ground on paper
24" × 28" (61cm × 46cm)
Bleach on black linen creates this striking contrasting imagery. The linen’s natural texture creates an appealing dialogue with the visual texture of the wrinkled dress.
SHROUD SERIES NO. 1
Mary Morrison
Bleach on linen
40" × 22" (102cm × 56cm)