Tone in an artistic context refers to the light and dark values used to render a realistic object, or to create an abstract composition. When using

pastel A pastel () is an art medium in a variety of forms including a stick, a square a pebble or a pan of color; though other forms are possible; they consist of powdered pigment and a binder. The pigments used in pastels are similar to those us ...

, an artist may often use a colored paper support, using areas of

pigment A pigment is a colored material that is completely or nearly insoluble in water. In contrast, dyes are typically soluble, at least at some stage in their use. Generally dyes are often organic compounds whereas pigments are often inorganic comp ...

to define lights and darks, while leaving the bare support to show through as the mid-tone. When making a portrait for example heavy dark tones to represent a moody or dark side to a personality. Tone can also be used to make the face look

three-dimensional Three-dimensional space (also: 3D space, 3-space or, rarely, tri-dimensional space) is a geometric setting in which three values (called ''parameters'') are required to determine the position of an element (i.e., point). This is the informal ...

, for example darker tones around the chin, nose and eyes; lighter tones on forehead, nose and cheeks.

See also