Drawing the Cartoon 259 convincing method of plotting lines in a drawing that created the effect of objects and shapes receding, both in distance and size. This method, called linear perspective, has been refined and used to great effect by artists throughout the world. Linear perspective has been an integral part of scenic design and scenic painting since Filippo Brunelleschi (1377­1446) first demonstrated the method in Florence, Italy, in the early 1400s and changed the expectations of form and content in the visual arts. In cartooning scenery, linear perspective, along with the grid method and architectural layout, provides a useful way to reproduce and enlarge a line drawing. In many ways, linear perspective is the most accurate method of plotting lines because it replicates the manner in which a perspective drawing is created. Linear perspective does not take into account the curvature of the earth. A nuance of the vistas we see in reality is that planes in the distance subtly curve away from us, like the observation that Columbus reportedly made of ships on the ocean. Only very rarely are we aware of this slight curve, as forms in the foreground, the atmosphere, or the terrain occlude this subtle occurrence from us. The Method of Perspective Gaining a working knowledge of the application of linear perspective is a skill that every scenic artist must have. You can interpret and reproduce a linear perspective drawing only if you understand it. Once you have a working knowledge of linear perspective, you will find that it all fits together and has a logic governing its methodology. The picture plane represents a stationary point of view, which generally relates to a human viewer based on an average height of 56 and a 60° range of human sight (Figure 9-29). From this stationary point of view, there is a fixed horizon, which The Principles of Linear Perspective Linear perspective creates an illusion of depth in cases where the image represented spans about 60° or less of the field of the viewer's vision, which corresponds approximately to the field of clear sight of the human eye. Beyond this, one has to rotate one's head to view a larger expanse, which changes the point of view. Believable perspective depends on a stationary