Course Highlights


Understanding the Fundamentals of Perspective

For the majority of students and amateur artists, perspective is a complicated subject and it will take time to digest. There is no rush, however it is fundamental we first understand its underlying concepts and then gradually work towards mastering its many technical applications. That being said, review the previous lessons and exercises as many times as it takes to become comfortable with drawing basic geometric shapes in perspective. In later chapters, we will apply these fundamental skills as well as additional theory on perspective to more advanced drawing subjects.

Other Forms of Perspective
Perspective usually refers to linear perspective which uses converging lines to give an illusion of depth. Linear perspective is indispensable for drawing buildings, streets, villages, and urban scenes. However, understand that although perspective is an extraordinary tool, it is a convention; if we were to project the perspective lines over photographic images, we would notice that the geometric measurements do not always align with the real model. That being said, it is important to be aware of geometric methods without overusing them. Unless it is an architectural project of some kind, putting too much emphasis on technical rules will over complicate a drawing and result in a drawing that lacks creativity and spontaneity. Many artists, once they have gained a certain amount of experience use what is known as intuitive perspective, representing depth in a drawing without the use of mathematical parameters. Artists also tend to rely on compositional methods to construct perspective in a drawing.

Other pages of interest

Sketching Cylindrical Objects
Sketching Conical Objects
Combining Basic Forms
Understanding the Fundamentals of Perspective
Compositional Perspective


 

 

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