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Asymmetry Through Light explores the use of light to create asymmetry in artworks and how it can be used to convey deeper meanings to the works.

Starting off with Claude Monet's Impression, Sunrise, this iconic and revered Impressionist work is a prime example of how light asymmetry can be used. This artwork captures the momentary scene of the harbor at Le Havre, France, during sunrise. The right side of the painitng is dominated by the rising sun which Monet depicts with warm, bright hues of yellow and orange that emit a soft glow through the clouds and water below. On the other hand, the left side of the painting exhibits darker and cooler tones which are created through shadows and distance from the sun. The contrast between the left and the right serves to create a sense of depth and perspective which helps to emphasize and keep the viewer's eye toward the sunrise.

Another work that is exemplary in showing how light asymmetry can be used is Edward Hopper's most celebrated work and one of the most recognizable paintings of the twentieth century, Nighthawks. Depicting the midnight scene of a New York City diner in 1942, Hopper's Nighthawks epitomizes the feelings of loneliness and alienation through his use of light. Similar to Impression, Sunrise, the primary light source emanates from the right, casting a warm glow that dissipates as it goes farther away. But Nighthawks's distinguishes itself through its heavy use of darkness on the left to create a sense of isolation and alientation in the diner by making the rest of the city seem desolate and cold.

The final work of the exhibit is a triptych painting from the Renaissance in Northern Europe, Hieronymus Bosch's Garden of Earthly Delights. While the most apparent and clear use of light asymmetry, Bosch's triptych painting strays aways from the other artworks through its unnaturalistic depiction of light. The painting takes a surreal and fantastical approach to its portrayal of dark and light elements through the stark contrast of light in the panels. Unlike the other panels, the right side has a much darker and sinister landscape. The figures and colors present in this panel suggest sin and chaos which further enhances the contrast between it and the other panels. Bosch uses light asymmetry in a clear and known way to emphasize the themes of salvation and punishment.

These three works function together to provide three different and exemplary examples of ways light asymmetry can be used in art.

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Hieronymus Bosch. The Garden of Earthly Delights. Triptych. c. 1490-1510. Oil on oak panels. Central panel: 220 x 195 cm; wings: 220 x 97.5 cm each. 

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Edward Hopper. Nighthawks. 1942. Oil on canvas. 84.1 x 152.4 cm. 

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Claude Monet. Impression, Sunrise. 1872. Oil on canvas. 48 cm × 63 cm. Musée Marmottan Monet, Paris.