Tonal Studies – why?

I know, I know! I do tend to bash on about the importance of tone like a scratched record…

If you’ve checked out this month’s video demonstration, you’ll know that I’m sounding more like a scratched record than usual; I managed to croak my way through the video despite suffering from a very rusty larynx – such is the price to pay for 6 weeks cruise work (I hope it doesn’t spoil the demonstration too much, and I’m also hoping that my voice will be back by next month…)

So, what’s the deal with Tonal Studies?

Painting a picture using only a single colour is by far the best way to get to grips with understanding tone. I always use Paynes Grey, since it has what we call a broad Tonal Range, meaning you can produce a whole range of tones, from light and delicate, to dark and heavy, with a whole shedload of varying tones in -between, all from the same tube (Cadmium yellow, on the other hand, has a very narrow Tonal Range – even taking it straight from the tube and using very little water will not produce anything you might remotely describe as ‘dark’.

Armed only with a single colour means that you don’t have to think about colour-mixing. The success or failure of the whole composition will depend upon careful use of contrasting tones. Tones of equal of similar value placed alongside each other can weaken a composition considerably, so it is imperative that you get those tones right. Where those clashing of tones does occur, it is necessary to alter the situation, and engineer the tones accordingly. This often means excessive intensification of a dark tone, or enhancing a light tone by diluting it even further.

Remember: Exaggeration is more than acceptable – it’s all part and parcel of the art of interpretation. After all, isn’t one of the purposes of art to create a mood and an impression? In the same way that lighting and music (and dramatic quiet bits) enhance and exaggerate those expressions in movies and the theatre, so the same applies to two-dimensional art.

Quite aside from their educational qualities, tonal studies are fun, and quite cathartic, to do. They provide a holiday from colour-mixing and the often problematic thought-processes that accompany it, and allow us to concentrate solely on form and composition (many professional photographers prefer to work in monochrome for that very same reason).

Go on… paint yourself a tonal study today!