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Chapter Five: Space
CHAPTER OVERVIEW
• Shape and Two-Dimensional Space
• Three-Dimensional Space
• Representing Two-Dimensional Space
• Linear Perspective
• Some Other Means of Representing Space
• Distortions of Space and Foreshortening
• Modern Experiments and New Dimensions
The Critical Process
Thinking about Space: Jeffery Shaw, The Legible City
CHAPTER OBJECTIVES
This Chapter Will:
• introduce the element of space
• define elementary concepts of relating to space
• describe the many techniques artists use to suggest the illusion of three-
dimensional space on a flat surface
• introduce necessary terms for understanding actual space and the space artists
address
• explain different types of perspective, their application, and function
KEY TERMS
reserve
scale
overlap
picture plane
vanishing point
vantage point
frontal
diagonal
axonometric projection
foreshortening
cyberspace
hyperspace
verisimilitude
virtual reality
one-point linear perspective
two-point linear perspective
wunkirkle
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MyArtsLab RESOURCES
Primary Source Document: Agnolo di Tura del Grasso
Primary Source Document: Albrecht Dürer (1471–1528) - Artists on Art
Primary Source Document: Karel van Mander Writes About Pieter Bruegel the Elder
LECTURE AND DISCUSSION TOPICS
1. What Is Space? Einstein’s Theory of Relativity
Question: What discovery affected our concept of space at the beginning of the 21st-
century? Answer: Albert Einstein’s theory of relativity. Einstein’s theory introduced to
science the concept of “relativity”—the notion that there is no absolute motion in the
universe, only relative motion. Einstein showed that we reside not in the flat, Euclidean
2. Making Space, Visually Speaking…
When an artist draws a simple shape on paper—a square, a circle, any shape—they create
two things: the shape, and the space that surrounds it. Usually, the space surrounding a
shape becomes the background and pushes the shape into the foreground When an artist
3. Three-Dimensional Space
Barbara Hepworth’s Two Figures (fig. 93) are two vertical masses, occupying three-
dimensional space like standing human forms. Hepworth has also carved out negative
spaces that acquire a sense of volume and form by means of the mass that surrounds
them. A characteristic of three-dimensional art is that we encounter it in a physical way
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4. Perspective
A complex method of creating the illusion of actual space on a flat picture plane is known as
perspective. Perspective was known to the Greeks and Romans but not mathematically
codified until the Renaissance. It allows the picture plane to function as a window to a scene.
5. Distorting Space for Reality
The stereoscope was invented in the 19th century. The device used two photographs side
by side to imitate the binocular vision of actual vision, or human eyesight. Man with Big
Shoes (fig. 108) is an example of a stereoscopic card that not only creates the illusion of
6. Verisimilitude?
In the modern era, artists have often intentionally violated the principles of perspective or
verisimilitude (apparent visual truth) in an effort to better equate the three-dimensional
image with the two-dimensional surface. In Henri Matisse’s Harmony in Red (The Red
Room) (fig. 113), the artist has eliminated almost any sense of three-dimensionality by
uniting the different spatial areas in one large field of unified color and design. The
wallpaper and the tablecloth are the same fabric, objects appear overly large, shapes are
repeated, and the tree trunks beyond the room repeat the wallpaper pattern in the room.
In fact, the window can be viewed either as a window or a painting on the wall. In
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7. Space Today
Show Terry Winters’ Color and Information (fig. 115) to discuss new dimensions of
space. Consider how multimedia technology, including video and computer technology,
has made it possible to create artificial environments that a viewer experiences as real
space. Cyberspace, hyperspace, and virtual reality are becoming increasingly viable
CRITICAL THINKING: More Opportunities to Think about Art
1. Thinking about Topological Slide
Chapter 6 ends with The Critical Process, a look at Jeffrey Shaw’s interactive
installation, The Legible City, and how the technology involved in the creation of this
WRITING ASSIGNMENTS
1. Writing about Space
Have students select an ancient and a modern work of art, and write an essay that
describes the similar and disparate uses of space, identifying the spatial strategies
employed by the artists.
2. Experiencing the Three-Dimensionality of Sculpture
Assign students to investigate a sculpture park, such as the renowned Storm King Art
Center in upstate New York (a link to Storm King and a listing of other parks is available
HANDS-ON PROJECTS
For additional project ideas, remember to investigate the Hands-On Projects found on
MyArtsLab.
1. Perspective Drawing
A good way to test an understanding of perspective is to take tracing paper and, with a
ruler, trace the perspective lines of several paintings in the text. Have students begin with
Olaf Eliasson’s Suney (fig. 95)Many of the perspective lines are already indicated in the
text, but see how many more they can add. Next, assign Childe Hassam’s Boston
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2. Architectural Design
Assign students to design an ideal airport or other public building that must manage a
heavy flow of traffic. Have them take into consideration the interior and exterior space;
Other Suggested Websites:
Linear perspective information is available at the following websites:
www.sanford-artedventures.com/study/g_perspective.html
www.mos.org/sln/Leonardo/ExploringLinearPerspective.html
Suggested Videos, DVDs, and Multimedia:
Elements of Design, 2001 (19 Minutes)
Matisse: Voyages, 1987 (58 minutes)
The Dutch Masters: Rubens, 2000 (50 minutes)
History Makers: Leonardo da Vinci - Renaissance Man to the World, 1996
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