LEARN ABOUT LINEAR PERSPECTIVE. To make something appear THREE-DIMENSIONAL on a flat TWO-DIMENSIONAL SURFACE, it’s time to……. LEARN ABOUT LINEAR PERSPECTIVE.

ONE POINT PERSPECTIVE…… How do we make a BASIC SQUARE into a CUBE? It’s really simple….. If you follow the basic rules. Please make sure you have a pencil, erase and MOST importantly a RULER!!!!

In the MIDDLE of your page, DRAW with a RULER a nice LONG HORIZONTAL LINE. LABEL it as a HORIZON LINE. This is your HORIZON LINE

Now, in the MIDDLE of your HORIZON LINE, place a SMALL DOT. Everything we draw today, will “appear” to go towards this dot and will visually look smaller and smaller the closer we get to it. This is your VANISHING POINT!

Now, draw a SQUARE on the bottom left corner. Use a RULER where necessary.

Now, from ALL VISIVLE CORNERS, draw ORTHOGONAL LINES TOWARDS the VANISHING POINT, LIGHTLY draw these lines because Eventually you will need to erase extra length. Start with the farthest corner, and draw a n ORTHOGONAL line to the VANISHING POINT.

Add the second ORTHOGONAL LINE.

Now, add the final ORTHOGONAL line. Remember, this is a SOLID form we are making. We will NOT see through the 4th corner. Notice how the box appears to get “smaller” and “thinner”?

Now, give the CUBE DEPTH. You will draw PARELLEL LINES on the sides you have created your ORTHOGONAL LINE.

Finally, ERASE the “extra” ORTHOGONAL LINES that are past the parallel lines you have just created. And you are DONE! Which sides of the CUBE do you see?

Now, try to draw a FROM ABOVE and ON the Horizon Line, Which sides of the FORM do you see now?

Do your drawings look close to these? How did you do?

Regardless of what shape it is, LINEAR PERSPECTIVE can be applied to anything.

Look at these examples. If a geometric shape has a corner, then you can use LINEAR PERSPECTIVE and make it THREE-DIMENSIONAL.

You can also do a THREE DIMENSIONAL circle, but it does not become a SPHERE. It becomes a CYLINDER, (Like a Soda Can.) ALL the same rules apply. Give it a try! Using VALUE will allow you to create a SPHERE.

TWO POINT PESPECTIVE……. Sometimes you do not look at the top, bottom or side of an object. You may want to draw it from the CORNER. When you do, you see TWO SIDES. With TWO SIDES, you have TWO VANISHING POINTS. This way, you see the top or bottom and TWO SIDES of the object.

Draw yourself a HORIZON LINE, And put TWO VANISHING POINTS FAR FROM ONE ANOTHER. Then, in the lower left corner, draw a short VERTICAL LINE.

Draw ORTHOGONAL LINES from the top and bottom of the vertical line you made. Have it go to Point One (LEFT.) Remember, please use a ruler!

Now, do the same thing, but do to Point Two On the RIGHT side.

Then, like with One Point, draw PARRELL lines from the original Vertical. The distance from the original can very. If one side is longer than the other, you make more of a rectangle. If they are equal on both sides, you make a Cube.

You should now have a shape that looks like a FOLDER. But WAIT……. There is more to do! We are missing the TOP of the Cube. Remember, whatever is BELOW the HORIZON LINE< you will ALWAYS see the TOP of the Form.

Listen carefully…. This can get tricky . Now, you will CRISS CROSS an ORHTHOGONAL LINE from the newly made corners to the OPPOSITE VANISHINPOINT. Start with one point of the Left side and go to the Vanishing Point to the RIGHT.

Now go to the next point of the Right side and go to the Vanishing Point to the Left.

Lastly, ERASE the “extra” ORTHOGONAL LINES. Erase until you reach the area the last two lines Intersected. Do you see the FORM? Notice how we see TWO SIDES, and the TOP with a BACK CORNER?

Now, do it on your own with a vertical line ON and ABOVE the Horizon Line, like in the set-up above.

Do your drawings look similar to the ones here? Do you see TWO SIDES and the BELOW of the FROMS?

There is also THREE POINT PERSPECTIVE. This shows you the BIRDS EYE VIEW or ANTS VIEW. For EXTRA CREDIT, can you figure out how tp draw a CUBE BELOW, ON and ABOVE the HORIZON LINE?