A Treatise on Painting/Chapter 281

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A Treatise on Painting
by Leonardo da Vinci, translated by John Francis Rigaud

Of the Nature of Comparison

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4014768A Treatise on Painting — Of the Nature of ComparisonJohn Francis RigaudLeonardo da Vinci

Chap. CCLXXXI.—Of the Nature of Comparison.

Black draperies will make the flesh of the human figure appear whiter than in reality it is^[1]; and white draperies, on the contrary, will make it appear darker. Yellow will render it higher coloured, while red will make it pale.

↑ This is evident in many of Vandyke’s portraits, particularly of ladies, many of whom are dressed in black velvet; and this remark will in some measure account for the delicate fairness which he frequently gives to the female complexion.

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[1] This is evident in many of Vandyke’s portraits, particularly of ladies, many of whom are dressed in black velvet; and this remark will in some measure account for the delicate fairness which he frequently gives to the female complexion.

[1]