The Oil Painter's Bible - chapter 5
virtuoso performance in an artistic endeavor by a Master of the discipline employed. Whereas the focus of
the performance itself is to make the audience feel whatever the artist wants it to feel, it must be stressed
that the objective can only be successfully attained through a thorough understanding of every aspect of
the art form involved, including the psychological effects produced by each possibility. There is a
language to be learned, and mastered, before any great performance is remotely possible. In literature, the
language is verbal; in music, it is music theory. In visual art, it is a thorough understanding of the
Principles of Visual Reality, coupled with heightened aesthetic sensibility and mastery of drawing and
painting techniques. Why the Principles of Visual Reality? Because we live in a world of realistic images.
We relate to realistic imagery. We even dream in realistic imagery. Of all the visual possibilities available
to a painter, the only way to move our viewers to the utmost is to employ realistic imagery in our work.
We may depict things which are not real, but if we render them in accordance with the Principles of
Visual Reality, they will read as if they were real, and thus will be able to exert maximum impact on the
viewer. It is the language by which we express whatever it is we wish to express, and which our viewers
will be able to read and comprehend on the receiving end. Our messages cannot communicate if we speak
in a language comprehensible only to ourselves. Thus we must use a language common to everyone who
can see. Realistic imagery is that language.
The Principles of Visual Reality are established by the way our vision works. The further one
deviates from these principles, the less the work in question will resemble visual reality. In creating the
illusion of reality, the artist depends heavily on the indication of the third dimension, which is depth, or
spatial recession. Spatial recession is indicated by observing the principles of Geometric Perspective,
Atmospheric Perspective and Selective Focus.
GEOMETRIC PERSPECTIVE
Geometric perspective, often referred to as simply perspective, may be defined as the natural law
which says the further something is from our eyes, the smaller its image will be. Since there are two types
of perspective, the other being atmospheric perspective, it is necessary to distinguish between them by
referring to what is normally called perspective as geometric perspective, in reference to the fact that it is
a geometric breakdown of a natural optical phenomenon. It is sometimes referred to as linear perspective,
as it involves the use of lines in its construction. As simple as it sounds, the problem of how to
convincingly render this visual phenomenon had baffled painters for centuries, until a mathematical
approach was discovered in the early Renaissance. The painters Masaccio and Uccello, as well as the
architect Bruneleschi have each been credited with its discovery. The Roman architect Vitruvius may
actually have preceded all of the others named, and may in turn have been influenced in it by someone
still earlier, but the discovery does not seem to have reached painters until the early Renaissance.
Whichever of these attributions is correct is less important than the fact that the discovery was made, and
that it constituted a major breakthrough in illusionistic painting. Once artists learned the system, they
could indicate spatial recession more realistically than had previously been possible. The system involves
the use of vanishing points; points at which lines intended to depict parallel lines converge. These
vanishing points are on the horizon if the lines are level. It is important to note that the horizon is always
at the viewer's eye level. When two or more vanishing points are necessary, as in all but the simplest
perspective problems, their placement may be worked out following the mathematical system, or, if we
are working from life, by simply copying the angles we see and extending them to the horizon. The points
at which the extended lines cross the horizon are the Vanishing Points. All lines parallel to the one used to
establish the Vanishing Point will converge at that Vanishing Point. If there is any question as to their
accuracy, the mathematical system may then be employed to double-check. The mathematical approach
must be learned first, and practiced until a point is reached whereby the artist is able to visualize the scene
in correct perspective automatically, without the need of actually drawing in the vanishing points and
guide lines. The subject is taught to students of architecture, but is not part of the curriculum of fine arts
programs in most universities at the time of this writing. It may be that a Fine Arts major could take it as
an elective. There are several books on the subject, the best of which are listed in the bibliography.
However one chooses to study, whether alone, in an institution, or with a private instructor, the
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