Blog # 3: Ch. 4: Realism and Perspective

Realism is basically the opposite of abstract. Realism is supposed to depict something as it "would be seen by the eye." The artist is trying to put 3D images on a medium which is only 2 dimensional. That is unless it is sculpture such as the life size clay soldiers from China's Chin dynasty. They were "substitutes for real, live soldiers." One thing that I didn't know is that realism is "a style of art that is understood at a given historical moment to accurately represent nature or the real or to convey and interpret accurate or universal meanings about people." You wouldn't think that realism would change over time. I thought people would just draw what they see. Kind of like a picture. This is known as linear perspective, but there are other styles or realism. Different styles of realism show how the culture of a particular time viewed the world, gave value, and distinguished truth.
Alberti used linear perspective mathematical and optical rules that he said came from nature. By doing this artists were able to create depth in a painting. Such as the landscape in The Cestello Annunciation by Sandro Botticelli. "Perspective forms have tried to remain objective instead of subjective." The problem is that human vision is very complex, "our eyes are constantly in motion," so we are taking many pictures and putting them together all the time.
A modern form of perspective is seen in video games. "Video games rely on point-of-view shots to situate the player" as though he is moving in 3D. Video games are virtual images that are both digital and analog. Video games contine to look more 3 dimensional and it's hard to imagine what they will look like 10 years from now. I remember 15 years ago they didn't look nearly as real as they do now. We've gone from super mario bros to real life sports games. I'm sure that they are using more advanced geometry along with better technology.