Sfumato in painting is a unique technique invented by the genius of Leonardo da Vinci. Until now, it causes delight among the audience and professional admiration of the artists. We will tell you about the features of this style of writing, who used it and where today you can look at the masterpieces of sfumato.
Meaning of the word
The Italian word "sphumato" literally means "disappearing like smoke." During the Renaissance, this term was used by painters, meaning a special shaded image. Later, this term began to be used to refer to a special technique for transmitting halftones.
Technical features
It is believed that Leonardo da Vinci, who is considered the ancestor of the sfumato, summarized and improved the methods of transmitting halftones that existed during the Italian Renaissance. The technique consists in applying the thinnest, translucent layers that do not overlap, but only darken or brighten the fragments of the canvas. Thin glazes of minimal color difference allow you to create a feeling of haze, fog. Sfumato in the painting of Leonardo da Vinci was brought to perfection. Modern research shows that he could apply layers only 3-4 microns thick. Sfumato techniques are used to highlight the compositional center. Blurred contours allow you to more clearly and effectively emphasize the most important object on the canvas. Halftones gradually turn into a dense shadow, without creating the borders of transitions visible with the eye.
The classic sphumato is created using special translucent paints, glazes. For work, artists use light brushes from sable, which allow you to make almost invisible strokes. Later, the “dry brush” technique appeared, when the artist walked along the main fine canvas with the lightest strokes with a small amount of a dry coloring mixture. And after the image had completely dried, he still cleaned up the excess to leave a literally microscopic layer.
Distinctive features of sphumato
You can see all the charm of sfumato in painting on the canvases of Leonardo da Vinci. The background on his canvases lacks clarity, pronounced lines and strokes. The smokiness and blurring of the background allows you to focus the viewer's attention on the main object of the picture. At the same time, a soft background gives the product atmospheric and depth.
There is a misconception that sphumato is an exceptionally picturesque technique. This is not true. The same Leonardo perfectly used the technique in pencil drawing. Achieving hatching and shading of the finest transitions. Also, this technique effectively works in the pastel technique. By changing the degree of pressure on the pastel brush, the artist reaches a different degree of color intensity, and the use of wet chalk allows you to get a different degree of image depth. In pastels, shading and tinting are used to create the sphumato effect. This allows you to erase the border between color and tonal transitions and get the desired effect of fog and haze.
Masterpieces of Leonardo
There are only a few geniuses who were able to come up with something exclusively new in painting, and one of them is Leonardo da Vinci. The technique in sfumato painting, as well as the spatial perspective, is the most important find of the artist. When we talk about sfumato, then, naturally, the main masterpiece of da Vinci - "Gioconda" is recalled. The background of this work is an example of the classic "smoky" painting. The figure of Mona Lisa becomes more prominent and expressive precisely thanks to the blurry, dim and such atmospheric background. The mystery of her smile is largely manifested precisely due to the transparency of the background. Also, the sfumato technique in painting is presented in several other works of the master, including “Madonna in the Rocks”, “Madonna and Child”, “John the Baptist”, “Madonna and the Carnation”.
Union
The sfumato in painting was developed using the union technique. It is characteristic primarily of Raphael. Compared to the classic sfumato, the union uses brighter colors, and the contours of the figures remain more pronounced. However, the basic principle of invisibility of tonal transitions and transparency is also preserved here, which creates a feeling of air on the canvas. This new technique, incorporating the best features of the sfumato, as well as other Italian painting techniques, is presented in such works by Raphael as “The Three Graces” and several “Madonnas” of the Florentine period.
Kangiante
The appearance of sphumato in painting led to the fact that there are several of its variations. So, Michelangelo creates his own version of the multi-layered manner of writing - kanjiante. The technique is based on the transmission of light and shadow, but, unlike the sphumato, where the transitions were smoothed as much as possible, color contrast is used here. The task of the reception is the same - giving the image depth and perspective. A vivid example of this technique is the work of Michelangelo's “Madonna Doni”.
Chiaroscuro
The appearance of sfumato in painting provoked artists to look for such opportunities in graphics. This led to the advent of the multi-layer chiaroscuro technique. It consists in sequential imprinting of the image from several boards, which allows you to convey the play of light and shadow and create a three-dimensional composition. The ancestor of this technique was the Italian artist Hugo da Carly. The most famous master who owned this technique was the French graphic artist Georges de Latour.
Followers of da vinci
Since the time of Leonardo, the sfumato in painting, examples of which can be found in different countries, has become a classic technique for creating deep, atmospheric works. Many artists have applied and are applying this technique. The most notable followers of da Vinci are Titian, Johan Abeling, Omar Galliani.