Eastlake's Methods and Materials of Painting of the Great Schools and Masters
Eastlake, Sir Charles Lock [One-time President of the Royal Academy], Methods and Materials of Painting of the Great Schools and Masters [Formerly titled: Materials for a History of Oil Painting]. Vol. One. New York; Dover Publications, Inc. 1960 [Originally published by Longman, Brown, Green and Longmans in 1847]
The contrast between the delicacy of scumbling--a delicacy consisting in extreme fineness of tint [by means of semi-transparency] as well as in extreme softness-- the contrast between this, and the crisp roughness of lights, against which it stops--is of a most agreeable kind. Suddenness of form, texture, or colour in nature, is best imitated by such means. A rough [roughly painted] isolated small cloud, [light or dark] in the midst of a formless space--formless, but full of gradation of light and tint, and without apparent substance--expresses this peculiar contrast; like a rock in smooth water. The same effect may be sometimes seen in Titian's flesh; smooth, or apparently smooth depths of half-light lie round a rugged crisp substance. The roughness and brokenness of such points and touches may be [p. 364] assisted by ground glass used as a pigment--it is always short , even when used [not too liquid] with an oil varnish, or wax medium. The roughness may also be assisted, where required, by the pulverized colour itself, [dry on an adhesive surface] or by ground glass, or ground resin, or even by ashes, so applied. [pp. 364-365]
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