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FIND OUT MORE. Artists 324 • Drawing 322 • First Modern Humans 362–363 • Renaissance 398

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WHAT IS ILLUSIONISM?

Since paintings are two-dimensional (flat) and the real

world is three-dimensional, artists use methods such as

perspective to create the illusion that painted objects

are real. One form of illusionism is sotto in sù, Italian

for “from below upwards”. Used on ceilings, it shows

objects from below so that they appear to exist in

a three-dimensional space, above the ceiling.

SCHOOL CENTURY KEY WORKS

Gothic 13th–15th The Annunciation, Simone Martini

Renaissance 14th–16th The Arnolfini Marriage, van Eyck

School of Athens, Raphael

Baroque 17th–18th The Descent from the Cross, Rubens

Rococo 17th–18th The Swing, Fragonard

Neoclassicism 18th–19th The Oath of the Horatii, David

Romanticism 18th–19th The Raft of the Medusa, Géricault

Impressionism & Late 19th Dance at the Moulin de la Galette,

Post-Impressionism Renoir; Mont Ste Victoire, Cezanne

Cubism 20th Les Demoiselles d’Avignon, Picasso

KEY SCHOOLS OF PAINTING

1 SELF-PORTRAIT, 1889

One of many self-portraits by Vincent van Gogh

(1853–1890), this powerful image was painted while

he was living at a mental asylum. The acid colours,

thick swirling brushstrokes, and intense, staring eyes

express the artist’s inner suffering.

1 MRS RICHARD BRINSLEY SHERIDAN, C. 1785
This lovely full-length portrait was painted by
Thomas Gainsborough (1727–1788), who excelled at
both portraiture and landscape painting. The beauty
of the sitter is enhanced by the delicately painted
woodland setting. Mrs Sheridan was a famous singer.

PERSPECTIVE

In painting, perspective is a system for

representing three-dimensional space on a

flat surface. In the real world, objects seem

to be smaller the further away they are

from the viewer, and parallel lines appear

to converge (meet). Perspective mimics this.

WHO INVENTED PERSPECTIVE?

Perspective was developed in the Italian Renaissance

by two painters, Leon Battista Alberti (1404–1472)

and Filippo Brunelleschi (1377–1446). They created

a mathematical system and experimented with it.

Before the invention of perspective, artists could not

accurately represent how objects looked in space.

Now they could paint a consistent, convincing illusion.

WHAT IS THE VANISHING POINT?

The vanishing point is the spot where lines that would

be parallel in reality appear to converge in the

distance on the painting’s horizon line (where the

sky meets the land). As the converging lines move

inwards towards the vanishing point, they lead the

viewer’s eye into the picture’s imaginary depth. By

focusing on the tiny figure on the road, just beneath

the vanishing point, the viewer feels it is almost

possible to step into the painted landscape.

1 THE AVENUE, MIDDELHARNIS, MEINDERT HOBBEMA,1689

This Dutch landscape is famous for its use of a deep, central perspective

scheme. The parallel lines of the straight avenue and the trees converge

towards the vanishing point on the horizon. The lines superimposed

show the mathematical framework used to create perspective.

Overhanging foliage

frames the sitter’s head

Relaxed hands and

outstretched legs create

an informal pose

Colours are not

realistic, but

express emotion

Red of beard

contrasts with

dominant greens

and blues

Leaves are painted

with feathery

brushstrokes

Oil paint is diluted

with turpentine for

luminous effect

Canvas texture

shows through

beneath the paint

Swirls are thickly

applied paint that is

not fully blended

A cherub leans over

and looks at other

cherubs peeping out

Stone parapet

creates the

illusion of 3-D

architecture

Horizon line

WATERCOLOUR 3

Before photography, watercolour

painting was the most common way to

record images of plants and animals. The

great illustrator Pierre-Joseph Redouté

(1759–1814) produced many exquisitely detailed

watercolour studies such as this wild rose.

Vanishing

point

painting