What Is Perspective in Art?
Perspective is an art technique for creating an illusion of three-dimensions (depth and space) on a two-dimensional (flat) surface. Perspective is what makes a painting seem to have form, distance, and look "real." The same rules of perspective apply to all subjects, whether it's a landscape, seascape, still life, interior scene, portrait, or figure painting. Perspective in Western art is often called linear perspective and was developed in the early 15th century. Viewpoint is the spot (point) from which you, the artist, is looking at the scene. Linear perspective is worked out according to this viewpoint. Vanishing lines are imaginary lines used to create accurate perspective in a painting. They are drawn on the top and bottom horizontal edges of an object, along the object and then extended to the horizon line. For instance, on a building, there would be a vanishing line along the top of the roof and the bottom of the wall(s). For a window, the top and bottom of