Light and shadow from Altamira to contemporary art

In this study, which aims to examine the importance and effects of light and shadow on the art of painting, which has played an important role in the art creation processes of societies since the early ages, the socio-cultural similarities experienced by artists and the first people who have been producing art from the early ages to the present day, despite their geographical distance, in their search for art and creation; It has been examined how important events such as war, drought, natural disaster, which form a common memory, are handled with the effect of light and shadow. In this context, by examining the selected works in terms of reference periods, artists and differences in the use of light and shadow; The transformation of the use of light and shadow over the ages in terms of technique and composition rules has been discussed and contemporary art practices have been made in this context. In the study, in which the Altamira cave was chosen as the reference point, the importance of light and shadow in different disciplines and in the history of painting was emphasized. The points where the cave paintings in Altamira were chosen as the zero point of the art of painting and the points where art was affected by light and shadow from these early ages to the present were discussed. From Altamira to Contemporary Art, the effects of light and shadow on art creation have been examined. In terms of the physiology of vision, light is the energy that allows things to be seen, other than the ability to see, and gives identity to everything. Shadow is the image of lack of light that enhances the effect of light, complements and emphasizes it. Shadow; existence is the object of absence that is revealed in relation to the existence of a light source. As a result of the impact of technological innovations in the history of art, great developments have been experienced, and light and shadow have transformed from being a tool used to create a work of art to being the art element itself. It has been observed that the artists can study different lights in parallel with the country they live in, that there are differences in the way they work on light-shadow and that they develop new techniques. While light and shadow was only a technical method tool for art, it first entered the canvas as an image and effect, but today it is also used as art itself, with installation applications. In this study, this transformation process of light and shadow in the field of art is discussed.