When adding light and dark to a painting, start with the darker shades and gradually work toward the lighter shades. Begin by painting the entire background of your painting, then add in the basic shapes of the objects with the darkest color you want to use. Next, add layer upon layer of lighter colors. When your objects are almost finished, add pure white or a very light shade of your chosen color only to the areas that would be touched by a light or the sun.
When adding light and dark shades to a drawing, start with the lightest shades and gradually darken the picture. Start by drawing out the basic shapes and lines of your drawing very lightly with a pencil. Add depth by shading in the areas next to the lines so that they appear three-dimensional. Gradually add darker and darker pencil strokes to the areas of shadow until there are areas that appear deep. Leave the areas that are supposed to be touched by a light or the sun as white or as light as you can.
When adding light and dark to sculptures, glaze the sculptures so that the creases and concave areas are darker, and areas that stick out are lighter. This causes the sculpture to have more depth and dimension and helps create texture in areas that are not as varied.