Chart V from Munsell's 1915 Atlas: a column of nine gray steps, N1 near black to N9 near white, between black (0) and white (10), with lines tying a yellow disk to step 8, green to 5, blue and red to 4, and purple to 3.

Concept · Relationships

Seeing Light and Dark

A painting's value pattern is the arrangement of its lights and darks, and it does more than hue to show form, light and depth.

Every hue has its own value at full strength: on Munsell's 1915 chart, yellow sits at 8 of 10, red and blue at 4, purple at 3. The brain reads depth and form largely from differences in lightness, so a well-built picture still holds together in a black-and-white photograph.

  • Squint: it blurs detail and mutes hue, so the main lights and darks stand out.
  • Many painters plan a picture in three to five values before they choose any colors.
  • Strong hues mislead the eye; a vivid red can look lighter than a gray of the same value.

See

Image: Smithsonian Libraries via Internet Archive · Public domain

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