Grisaille: The Illusion of Carved Stone
Giotto di Bondone (1267–1337), The Seven Virtues - Hope
Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, and carved stone was such a coveted material that artists developed the grisaille painting technique to give the illusion of masonry architectural details and sculpture. The word comes from the French gris or gray, and Europeans started using it in the Middle Ages with painters layering translucent oil colors over a monotone underpainting. Giotto di Bondone's grisaille personifications of Vices and Virtues in Padua's Scrovegni Chapel were an early example. The Tuscan artist completed the single figures along the bottom side walls in 1305: seven heavenly virtues facing seven deadly sins.
Louis Gabriel Blanchet (1705-1772), Simulated Relief of the Three Graces
Giotto's grisaille trompe-l’oeil frescoes influenced other artists in Italy, France and the Low Countries. In Flanders, during the 15th century, painters created folding altarpieces, depicting stone sculpture and architecture on the outer panels to give the illusion of standing outside the entrance of a Gothic church. On holidays, the grisaille doors opened to reveal a brilliant interior, something impossible if carved of stone. In addition to religious themes, artists chose classical subjects. Eighteenth-century French painter Louis Gabriel Blanchet produced "Grisaille Paintings of Classical Statuary." A patron commissioned the series of eight paintings as a souvenir of his Grand Tour.
The monochromatic grisaille palette in shades of gray, greige, taupe, and sepia is perfect for contemporary interiors. It plays with light and shadow, creating a restrained and enigmatic aesthetic. Many top high-end wallpaper companies sell grisaille wall coverings, and gifted artisans still practice the art. For the Bel Air traditional ranch house designed by Wallace Neff for Judy Garland, The Wiseman Group installed a 19th-century Zuber grisaille panel in the breakfast nook. The neutral shades complement the pearl-gray walls and classic furnishing in the historic 1938 home. QuarryHouse hopes that you incorporate real carved stone with your grisaille!
