Introduction

The object of this exercise is to practice seeing (and drawing) how light and shadow define volume and focus composition, by copying drawings and photographs with simple dramatic light sources and strong contrasts between light and dark.

Exercise:

Find photographs of scenes onstage lit with strong directional light, or reproductions of paintings with strong directional lighting (such as the paintings of Caravaggio or Rembrandt).

Copy these photos or paintings using a soft pencil and few lines: try to define the shapes using only areas of white paper and areas of pencil shading. One good way to do this is to start by completely covering your paper with medium-dark pencil shading, use an eraser to remove the areas that are lighter, and then continue shading the darker areas. You might also try conte crayon or charcoal. Upside-down copying can help you see the shapes as pure shapes, rather than as "things - with - names." It's ok to set out a few rough guidelines to start, if that helps you get going.

Remember to credit the original artist on your copy of a drawing or a painting.

 

Caitlin Pencarrick

 

Caitlin Pencarrick

 

Gerrardine Keane

 

Gerrardine Keane

 

Lindsey Baillie

 

Morgan Carrier

 

Morgan Carrier

 

Julie Martens

Most Theatrical space is defined and composed by light and its opposite. It's simplest to indicate the shape of objects by using lines, as in contour drawing. But in the theatre (and in life), we are most likely to experience those objects as volumes of space defined by light and darkness.

Compare a painting by Giotto to a painting by Rembrandt. In the Giotto the light is everywhere, and everywhere even. Although the artist uses light and shade to model forms - there is no real darkness. Line is an essential element of the picture's composition. In the Rembrandt, on the other hand, half the painting is probably of darkness. Light comes from a single source, or a very few sources. Line is nearly irrelevant - form is defined by light and darkness, by contrast. The characteristics of either picture may be called for in a theatre event.

So it's essential that the set and costume designer, as well as the lighting designer, think and see in the way of Rembrandt as well as Giotto.