Paper is flat, yet a good drawing can look deep, as if you could walk into it. You already built solid forms in Drawing a Box. Now we place those forms in space. Three simple cues do most of the work, and you can use them without any rulers.
- Overlap. A thing in front hides part of the thing behind it.
- Size. Things farther away look smaller, even when they are the same real size.
- Placement. Below your eye level, things farther away sit higher on the page. (Above eye level, like clouds or birds, farther things sit lower.)
Key idea
Overlap, smaller size and higher placement tell the eye that something is farther away. Use them together and the picture looks deep.
Why it works
Your eye judges distance from clues. A near tree covers part of a far one, so the far one must be behind it. Light from a far object reaches your eye at a smaller angle, so it takes up less room in your view, and the ground farther away rises toward the horizon in your view. A drawing that copies these clues fools the eye the same way.
Worked example: Three trees in a field
Three trees of the same real size stand at different distances. How do you draw the farthest one?
- Farther things look smaller, so draw it the smallest.
- The trees stand on the ground below eye level, so the farthest one sits highest on the page.
- If it is behind another tree, let the nearer tree overlap it.
Answer: Smallest, highest on the page, and partly hidden if something is in front.
Common mistake
A common beginner drawing puts a far house the same size as a near one, side by side on one bottom line, like stickers on a shelf. Nothing tells the eye which is farther. Check: is the far thing smaller, higher, and behind something?
Later in this unit you will meet two more depth tools: the lines of linear perspective, and the paler, softer look of atmospheric perspective.