International studio (40.1910)

Blue Shadows in Nature and Art

The fact that the purple
of the Edison shadow per-
sisted in presence of the
first entering daylight, and
then, under gradually in-
creasing daylight and pro-
gressive bluings gradually
became a full blue, having
seemed to point to purple
being the matrix of that
color in shadows, at least,
naturally led to the inves-
tigation of the color of
those of other artificial
lights. The lights observed
being named below, it will
be sufficient to say that they
proved all to be practically
purple. The next step was
to ascertain what the color
of the shadows of any two
of these lights cast on a
field which both illumined
would be. It being essen-
tial that lights normal in
• ™ ^ , r- „ ■ color should be observed

Courtesy o] 1 he Uelime Galleries • :.t

only, highly illuminated

THE PRELUDE BY JOHN C. JOHANSEN , .

business centers were
avoided. The conjunction

of the blue color. Realizing, however, that the first selected, therefore, was that of a single arc light

blue on the white snow seemed to be so direct look- upward of fifty feet from a corner store, with only a

ing, so unrelated a color fact, that no clue could be few Edisons in the window facing the arc, shadows

obtained by "studying over it," I began a series of of both falling on the cement sidewalk. Those of

observations on the conditions attending the con- the Edison were, as in the above observation, blue,

junction of artificial lights, when first turned on, not purple; those of the arc a red purple, through

with the daylight, and after dark with one another, accession of light from the Edisons. The persist-

One morning, before daybreak, only one Edison ence of purple in the arc shadows, and the change to

being turned on, I noticed that the shadows on blue in those of the Edison, seemed to indicate a

dishes and of those on the white tablecloth were condition of color dominance, so to speak, of the

purple. The blind of a window behind me having light of the arc over that of the Edison A similar

been left fully up, at the first indications of daylight dominance—this term being now for brevity used,

from an overcast sky the purple, for a brief time, and only the name of the light exerting dominance,

remained unchanged. As daylight slowly ad- —both of the arc and the incandescent-arc over the

vanced, however, although not as yet sufficient to Welsbach, Lindsay and other mantle lights and the

read by, the purple of such shadows and portions of acetylene jet was observed; each of the latter domi-

others it touched began to be faintly tinged with nating a clear gas flame; the latter slightly domina-

blue. This bluing, once it started, seemed to keep ting a used Edison; the Edison, quite new, slightly

pace with the oncoming daylight, until, through dominating the ordinary gas flame; both domina-

bluish-purple, purplish-blue and dark blue (techni- ting an ordinary kerosene lamp; a small kerosene

cally "weak"), a pure blue was finally attained, and lamp dominating the yellow, not the red, flames of

that some time before full daylight. The Edison a stove fire; these, a candle; and it, a common

was then turned off, and when again turned on, this match. The moon when full and clear was seen to

pure blue instantly reappeared, tout .a coup, as it dominate such lights as were in use out of doors,

seemed, not a trace of purple having been visible. After a delay of some months, occasioned by the

LXXVI