Visual Arts Teacher Simone
Mar 08, 2016
Even though the world is 3 DIMENSIONAL, we represent it through FLAT images, like paintings, photographs, drawings, etc.
Artists use different methods to represent 3 DIMENSIONAL SPACE and VOLUME on a flat surface, like a paper or a canvas.
These “visual tricks” give the impression of space and volume.
Artists can use the following methods to create the illusion of volume and space:
1. PERSPECTIVE
2. SIZE
3. SUPERPOSITION
4. LIGHT AND SHADOW ▪ CHIAROSCURO
Conical perspective is a technique used by artists to represent 3 dimensional space.
There are 4 elements: The HORIZON LINE, PERPECTIVE LINES, the VANISHING POINT and the POINT OF VIEW.
The HORIZON LINE is an imaginary or real horizontal line, sometimes referred to as eye level, which divides your line of vision when you look straight ahead
2) PERSPECTIVE LINES are straight lines, drawn from the edges of objects, back into distant space, until they come together at the horizon.
4) The POINT OF VIEW is the position of the spectator with respect to the scene observed.
from above from below
Objects close to us appear big, and objects far from us appear small. This is a basic aspect of conical perspective.
The superposition is when one object covers part of another.
Our brain interpets that the object that is covered is FARTHER AWAY and the object that covers is CLOSER.
Cut out the objects, people, etc from magazine.
Use VARIATIONS IN SIZE and SUPERPOSITION to create the effect of 3D space. For example:
Light, which allows us to see objects, has a secondary effect– shadow.
An illuminated object will have zones of both light and shadow, which augments a three-dimensional effect.
There are two types of shadow:
Core shadow: is the shadow that an object casts on itself.
Cast shadow: is the shadow that an object casts on the floor or the objects around it.
Core shadow
Cast shadow
Chiaroscuro: is a technique to recreate the progression of light to shadow (light to dark) of an object.
This helps give an effect of three dimensions.
Project: Charcoal object studies. Explanation: We will use CHARCOAL to
create a drawing of a 3D object. We must focus on the shadows and highlights of the object.