Chiaroscuro

Chiaroscuro is a dramatic lighting technique used in various art forms to create the illusion of depth through high contrast between dark backgrounds and starkly lit subjects. It is an Italian term derived from the root words chiaro, which means bright, and oscuro, which means dark.

History

Michelangelo-merisi-da-caravaggio-1571-1610-S 1 1753

Chiaroscuro was first used as a painting technique during the Renaissance period by famous artists such as Caravaggio and Leonardo DaVinci. It was later incorporated as a lighting technique that would define the look of German Expressionism films and Film Noir. Today this effect is used in genres such as thrillers, horror

Process and Effect

The Chiaroscuro effect in film is achieved by using a key light as the sole light source, illuminating the subject and leaving the background in shadow. The result is a 3-dimensional effect on a 2-dimensional medium, which greatly impact a film's mood and tone.

Renaissance Art

15th Century artists Leonardo DaVinci and Caravaggio famously used the Chiaroscuro technique in their paintings. Caravaggio's exaggerated version of the technique became known as tenebrism.

German Expressionism

After World War I, Germany entered the German Expressionist movement. In film, German Expressionism introduced a new style of filmmaking, that sought to showcase the turmoil in the inner world of human beings through unsettling imagery. The prevalence of chiaroscuro in German Expressionism served the narrative by using shadows as a metaphor for perception with philosophical and psychological significance. Early German film historians, such as Lotte Eisner and Siegfried Kracauer, interpreted the deep shadows cast by the Chiaroscuro technique as a representation of the darker side of the human soul.

Film Noir

The Film Noir genre, popular in the 1940's and 1950's, is easily identified by its stylistic use of chiaroscuro. The contrasting light and shadows in these black and white crime stories, evoke a sense of mystery and suspense and has even been compared to an x-ray in both visual appearance and metaphorical significance. The shadows hint towards secrets that lie hidden in plain sight.

Filmmakers

Orson Welles (1915-1985)

Orson Welles was an American actor, director, screenwriter, and producer with a background in art, radio, and theater. His directorial debut film, Citizen Kane (1941), is still at the top of most "Best Films of All Time " lists. The direct influence of Caravaggio is apparent as Welles' execution of the technique is better defined as tenebrism, except with the added use of deep focus. He makes and unexpected choice by using chiaroscuro to present the investigator in silhouette form, which intensifies the mysterious tone.

Ingmar Bergman (1918-2007)

Considered one of the greatest directors of al time, Ingmar Bergman's somber films explored the dark struggles of the psyche. Bergman placed a deep emphasis on lighting and used it as a tool to help tell his stories. During the first half of his career, he often incorporated the use of chiaroscuro. In his film The Seventh Seal the use of chiaroscuro enhances the dramatic effect of an overall visually captivating scene of Death and the Knight playing a final game of chess on a barren beach.

Carol Reed (1906-1976)

Carol Reed was an English film director and producer best known for his technically-advanced suspense-thrillers. Chiaroscuro, in particular, was very prominent in his films. In a very memorable scene of the The Third Man (1949), actor and filmmaker Orson Welles, hides in the blackened archway of a show-filled alley. The light from an apartment window suddenly illuminates his face. and reveals a sinister smile, while his body remains in darkness. Such chilling use of shadows inspired wider use of the technique in Hollywood films.

Alfred Hitchcock (1899-1980)

Alfred Hitchcock was a director with tremendous contributions to the suspense thriller genre. Early in his career, he spent a two year apprenticeship in Berlin from 1924 to 1926. This experience greatly influenced his aesthetic. It is evident in his incorporation of German Expressionism elements such as minimal dialogue, disorienting camera angles, and chiaroscuro. Chiaroscuro was used throughout the iconic thriller, "Psycho," including in the infamous shower scene where use of the high contrast effect conceals the identity of the attacker.

Francis Ford Coppola (1939- )

The chiaroscuro effect endured through the New Hollywood era where its use could be found in works like filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola's The Godfather(1972). Throughout the film Coppola often uses the technique to light only half of a subject's face, highlighting the characters' moral ambiguity.

Films

• The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920)
• Nosferatu (1922)
• Metropolis (1927)
• Citizen Kane (1941)
• Casablanca (1942)
• The Godfather (1972)
• Blade Runner (1982)
• Brick (2005)
• Sin City (2005)
• The Dark Knight (2008)
• US (2019)