The Little Art School’s Joanne Robinson guides you through tone definition in art and how to develop an eye which searches out tone as an artist.
When I started learning to draw and paint, I was bemused by the constant references to ‘tone’ and, to be honest, had no idea what it meant.
A couple of decades later, I would put tone ahead of everything when planning a painting or even choosing a subject. One of the 20th century’s leading artists, Gwen John (Gwendolen Mary John), said, “It’s tone that matters”. I agree 100%!
Tone in painting refers to the relative lightness or darkness of a colour. It started to make sense to me when I began thinking of it in monochrome. We teach our students at the Little Art School about tone by initially thinking just in terms of Black, Grey and White.
Below, we have a simple set of those three tones, from white to black, with a grey in the middle:
When we consider the definition of tone in art, we look for a distinction between darks and lights. We can make this more complex by adding two greys, a mid-dark and a mid-light, as in the image below.
By adding in two more, we are starting to build a good choice of tones.
Look at the photo below of the seedbeds and half-close your eyes.
Can you see the darkest darks?
Now look again and find the very lightest lights. When we search for tonal contrast, we generally look for light and shadow.
Look at the photo of the seedbeds again. This time, can you work out where the light is coming from?
The Concept of Tone in Art
I remember the first time I understood the concept of tone in art – I could see how it was applied to drawing and painting. When I looked out of my window at a tree in all its summer-leafed glory, I could see the darkness of shadows and the light hitting the leaves.
It was a ‘penny drop’ moment, and the sudden elation at finally understanding this element of art was visceral. After reading this blog post or watching our video Tone Definition in Art, I want you to feel that way.
The realisation felt like wearing glasses for the first time; I could actually see the tonal contrasts of the tree in front of me.
Now, take a look at this photo of a tree below.
Can you see what I’m talking about? Can you spot the dark and light elements here?
It always helps to half close your eyes when looking for tone.
Tone in Black and White
If you’re struggling to find the tone of a subject, it can help to look at the object through a black-and-white filter.
When I’m planning a painting, I often paint a monochrome underpainting in shades of grey to make sure that my tones are spot on before I start.
This focuses my mind on tone rather than getting carried away with colour.
Look between the colour photo of the tree and the monochrome. Does that help you to really spot the areas with the darkest shadows and the lightest lights?
At the Little Art School, the structured syllabus of our drawing and painting course focuses early on tone.
In Term 2 of our first level, we start by looking at the tone with a simple ‘Black, Grey, White’ and then move to look at the tone with a single colour (hue) and gradually add more colours.
Tone in Colour
Look at the band below, which shows a tonal journey from the darkest to the lightest tones in red; we go from a red-black to palest pink.
You could paint a black-and-white image using these tones or try something really simple, like the mountain ranges below.
A rule of thumb with tone is that tones tend to get lighter as they get further away and darker and bolder as they move closer.
Shapes and Tone in Art
Look at the photo of a rose below; can you see how you could paint this?
Always start with the SHAPES, get in the shapes of the petals and then, with your tones mixed from white to darker pink, simply move between tones for each of the petals.
Value and Tone are Interchangeable
Some books, videos and art teachers use the word ‘value’ instead of ‘tone’.
The terms are interchangeable, and both mean the same thing: the degree of light and dark in a painting, which ranges from white to black.
The greys in between are called middle values or middle tones.
Our course at the Little Art School teaches starting with looking for shape. After shape, we think about tone (or value!) and move on to colour.
We practise this in all media, from watercolour to oil, with gouache, acrylic, pen, coloured pencil, graphic, and pastel also being tackled.
Try Drawing with Tone in Mind
Have a go at drawing the hammer below. Get in the shapes, half-close your eyes, and start to get in the tones, from the darkest shadows to the lightest highlights.
Keep sitting back and take your time to really observe the way the light values and how many shades of grey there are.
Leaves are another great thing to draw or paint to get a feel for tone in art.
Take a look at the chestnut leaf. If you look hard at the black-and-white photo, you can see how the darkest darks are at various points of the leaf.
Then, look for the lightest parts and start to pick out four or five shades of grey in between.
Now look straight over at the colour photo of the leaf; because you’ve already done the exercise in monochrome, it’s much easier to spot the variations in tone on the colour leaf.
Our Online Art Course
If you’d like to learn to draw and paint following a structured and progressive art course, look at our Drawing and Painting Course at the Little Art School.
Our online art course allows you to work independently and at your own pace.
Unlike other online courses, we send you all the art materials you need to complete the course.
The Little Art School provides a nurturing environment and a thriving online community that comes together in a spirit of kindness and help.
Also, watch our YouTube video, Tone Definition in Art.