Thursday, May 15, 2014

Linear Perspective









Linear perspective is a mathematical technique applied to works of art that create the illusion of distance and space by applying rules of geometry and placement of objects in space.


  • Horizon line: A point of perspective/eye level that the drawing/painting’s depth is focused around.
  • Vanishing point: The point in a piece where all parallel lines drawing the viewer’s eye meet at the horizon.
  • Orthogonal lines: Lines that connect objects in a piece to the vanishing point, creating the depth.
  • Transversal lines: Lines that establish distances and lengths of objects connected by orthogonal lines.
  • One-point perspective: Perspective using only one single vanishing point to create depth.
  • Two-point perspective: Perspective using two vanishing points to create depth, often with one point positioned off the page.


Depth perspective can be shown by multiple factors. You can observe and create the change in color objects experience as the get further away from you. Objects in different depths within a piece will also be different shapes and sizes. Changing size and placement along the horizon can affect the depth of a piece as well.

Aerial perspective is the principle of how distance and atmosphere change an object’s appearance. The further away something such as mountain gets, the bluer it gets. Da Vinci observed this in how the mountains seemed to blend with their surroundings the further from him they were. He noted that each object back got proportionally “bluer” as it blended with its background.

Circular perspective is called an ellipse. This form of perspective is controlled by rectangular perspective, and the laws that it follows. A rectangle can be drawn to the laws of its perspective and a circle would then be drawn in proportionally, creating the correct depth.

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