The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 11 letter word CHIAROSCURO
I've seen this crossword clue in The Guardian
C
H
I
A
R
O
S
C
U
R
O
More clues leading to the result CHIAROSCURO
- Painting Caruso performing with choir
- Shady image, representation of Horus and Cairo with minimum of colour
- Choir worked with Caruso in contrasting work
- Short course a choir developed in painting technique
- Like artwork in Fifty Shades of Grey?
- Painting Dog & Duck after a choir’s rampage
- With temperature dropping, hot air occurs unexpectedly in light and shade
- Black and white Greek character with a run out, to scour badly
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Painting" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case painting = chiaroscuro.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.
What does CHIAROSCURO mean?
CHIAROSCURO noun- An artistic technique developed during the Renaissance, referring to the use of exaggerated light contrasts in order to create the illusion of volume.
- A monochrome picture made by using several different shades of the same color.
- The use of blocks of wood of different colors in a woodcut.
- A photographic technique in which one side of, for example, a face is well lit and the other is in shadow.
- Possessing the qualities of a work of chiaroscuro.