CHIAROSCURO

noun (plural -ros) Etymology: Italian, from chiaro clear, light + oscuro obscure, dark Date: 1686 pictorial representation in terms of light and shade without regard to color, 2. the arrangement or treatment of light and dark parts in a pictorial work of art, the interplay or contrast of dissimilar qualities (as of mood or character), a 16th century woodcut technique involving the use of several blocks to print different tones of the same color, the interplay of light and shadow on or as if on a surface, the quality of being veiled or partly in shadow