A treatise on painting . nearer the dark body, whence they have theirfhadow, or the luminous body that gives themlight. The furface of every opake body partakesmore or lefs of the colour ot us objedl, as that• object is more or Icfs removed, or as it makesits imprcHion with a greater or lefs force. Thofe things which are ietvi between lightand darknefs, appear with a greater relievo^than thofe which are ittn entirely either inlight or darknefs. When, in reprefenting any difiant fcene, youpaint your figures bold and , thefe, in-ftead of appearing far removed, will be {e:ennear at hand.
A treatise on painting . nearer the dark body, whence they have theirfhadow, or the luminous body that gives themlight. The furface of every opake body partakesmore or lefs of the colour ot us objedl, as that• object is more or Icfs removed, or as it makesits imprcHion with a greater or lefs force. Thofe things which are ietvi between lightand darknefs, appear with a greater relievo^than thofe which are ittn entirely either inlight or darknefs. When, in reprefenting any difiant fcene, youpaint your figures bold and , thefe, in-ftead of appearing far removed, will be {e:ennear at hand. Ufe fo much conduct and dif-cretion, therefore, in your figures, as that theymay ihew their didances ; nor in imitating anyobjert, whofe bounds, on account of their dif-rance, appear dim and indiilindt, muft you fcru-pie to copy even that dimnefs and confulionin your figure. DillaiU objccls appear dim and confufed intheir contours for two reafons ;—the firft is, thatthey come to the eye under fo fmall an angle, that. * BY LEONARDO DA VINCI. 169 that their effed is like thofe of the fmallefl: ob-jccfts; as the nails ot the fingers, the bodies ofinfects, or the like minute bodies, whofe lit-tlenefs prevents the eye from difcerning theirfigure or parts : the fccond is, that remoteobjeds have fo much air interpofed betweenthem and the eye, that it has the effed of afog, or fome other denfe medium, tinging anddifcolouring the fhadows of objeds with itswhitenefs, and ftripping them of their naturalobfcurity, till they appear of a blueifh tindure;that being the middle between black andwhite. Though feveral objefls become invifible onaccount of their diftance, yet thofe illuminedby the fun can never fail of making fome im-prefllon on the eye; the reft, which are unillu-mined, remaining wrapped up in fhadow andobfcurity; and fince the air becomes moregrofs as it approaches nearer the earth, thofethings which are found the loueft will be thedarkefl and moll confufed ; thofe
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