Teach Yourself Visually Drawing

chapter 6

The Ellipse in

Perspective Introduction to One-Point Perspective

The horizon line in this example is in line with the top of

the object. You draw this simply as a straight line.

In this drawing, you can see more of the tops of the

objects. You cannot see the ellipse of the back of the jug

because it is leaning slightly away from you.

Look at the array of ellipses in this drawing. Notice how

round and smooth the edges are. A common mistake is

to make the edges pointed. These edges become

rounder as the eye level moves up.

An ellipse is simply a circle in perspective. The cube examples show how the top surface becomes
more visible as the eye level or horizon line becomes higher. The same effect happens with the tops
of rounded objects.

Try creating a tonal drawing of a similar object from the

same eye level as shown here. You may have to practice

the shape a number of times, as it can be difficult to

draw curves. Pay attention to the shapes of the shadows

within the object, and draw the shadows first. In this

photo of the same still life setup as the first example,

notice how much rounder the ellipses become in the lip

of the small bottle and the bowl when the eye level

becomes higher.

Aidan with Vases,by Dean Fisher

by Roger Van Damme,

courtesy of the artist