What Is Sfumato?

A LOOK AT

Sfumato is a method applied in oil painting whereby the artist blends the colors of the paintings subtly to achieve a smooth transition or gradation between different colors.

A SFUMATO DEFINITION

It is speculated that the sfumato method was first discovered at an early Flemish school, which housed artists such as Rogier Van Der Weyden and Jan Van Eyck.

SFUMATO HISTORY

Leonardo da Vinci used sfumato by applying numerous thin layers of paint that he gradually built upon to produce smooth and subtle transitions.

LEONARDO DA VINCI INFLUENCE

SFUMATO EXAMPLES IN RENAISSANCE ART

Portrait of a Man (1508 – 1510)  by Titian

Sleeping Venus (1508 – 1510)  by Giorgione and Titian

Transfiguration (1516 – 1520)  by Raphael

Virgin and Child between St Francis of Assisi and St John the Evangelist (1517)  by Andrea del Sarto

Assumption of the Virgin (1526 – 1530)  by Antonio da Correggio