ABSTRACT
Tinted drawing is a form of manuscript painting characterized by thin applications of paint that allow light to pass through the vellum surface. This chapter addresses how in tinted drawings, the translucency of the vellum itself contributes to the desired visual effects and how medieval artists utilised this feature to convey both aesthetic and philosophical ideas related to luminosity, especially those expressed by Roger Bacon and Hugh of St. Victor. The schools of illumination most closely associated with tinted drawings are Reims, Canterbury, Ramsey, Winchester, and, in the 13th century, St. Albans and London, and possibly even a court school at Westminster. Tenth-century tinted drawings borrowed several features from the designs of brooches and buckles, for instance. Philosophical concerns may have affected the look of books used in monasteries or universities, but it is more likely that among lay patrons, the use of tinted drawing related to fashion.
