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many painters to give the darks the full force of the palette. As a general character and the leading features of strong daylight are to be purchased at any sacrifice, critics who do not sufficiently investigate these matters, may complain of the want of air, but the student, by a close attention to the subject, will not easily be scared by the cry of "sans vapeur"

Birds in the air, boats on the water, figures on the sands, cornfields, or light roads, have all this characteristic feature of a high degree, from the middle tint being on so light a key.

Cuyp often accomplishes this by the general tone of the picture being warm, and his shadows brownish, thereby allowing his blue draperies and cool blacks to have greater point. P. Veroness [[Veronese]] and Rubens have many picture on the same principle.

Opposition of colour is of great important in the treatment of pictures on a light key, as it gives great relief and distinctness with out cutting up the breadth of light; such as blue upon a warm ground, or red upon a cool one, bright yellow upon a cool grey, et cetera. In No 18 Claude has made great use of such opposition. The general appearance of the pic is warm, the dark blue of the water is carried across the piece by the dark blue draperies of some of the figures, and is suffused upon the upper part of the sky. the red is interspersed upon the boats, and the draperies of the other figures; and warming the near part of the buildings, is repeated at the top by a figure looking over the balcony, and two red flags

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upon the blue of the sky. He has placed two blue flags upon the warm part of the sky to repeat the cool colour.

Pictures painted upon a dark key have already been noticed as possessing many advantages, which have led our greatest colourists to its adoption. But as low toned picts. are apt to look heavy and black, unless richness of shadows, or sharpness of lights be preserved; so pictures painted on a light key are apt to look flat and unfinished, unless the greatest circumspection be used. In nature, the intense light of the sky, and the atmosphere, which is filled with its innumerable refractions,  spread a luminous character over the whole scene; to represent which the artist can only employ a greater degree of whiteness, a very inadequate quality, and hence the great difficulty of imitating the splendid brightness of mid-day, or the brilliant effects of an evening sky. In treating the one, unless the delicate varieties of the half lights are attended to with the greatest care, the picture will look crude and unfinished; for the tints being so nearly allied to each other, the exact sharpness to define them of their exact tone, either by repeated scumbling, or, mixing them to the proper tint in the first instance, require an attention and study of the most refined quality; without which the shadows will be powdery instead of pearly, or the lights white instead of luminous. In the other arrangement the yellow tones may become solid and [[foggy?]], if deprived of the delicate cool tints so necessary to prevent their appearing too hot, and to give the whole, that tremulous unsteady appearance wh:light possesses in nature.-