Striving for Luminosity...


7.5 x 5.5 inches
Acrylic on collage paper

I was reading "Color and Light for the Watercolor Painter" by Christopher Schink this morning. He has devoted a few pages on achieving luminosity that were inspiring to re-read.

Schink suggests that; "To create the illusion of glowing areas, paint your subject using light to mid-range values only --no pure whites and no darks." There are a lot of inspiring illustrations to motivate you in this wonderful book.

So here's my attempt, but in acrylic..... It was so very hard not to reach for the darks!!! This was really a stretch for me. I included the black and white photo to show that I really didn't go past mid range...



When might you use luminosity? When trying to paint lanterns, glowing windows at dusk, maybe candlelight... When the light is emanating from something, not shining on something. It would be a great skill to have in your arsenal... I'm going to keep practicing. :)