Perception Paper: How Do Artists Do It?

Artist: Leonardo da Vinci

Title: The Last Supper

The Last Supper by Leonardo da Vinci is one of the worlds most famous
paintings of all times. According to some historians, it is believed for it to have been
created between the years of 1495 and 1498 (University of Montreal, 2013). The
painting illustrates what is described now as the last meal that Jesus Christ had with his
apostles before his crucifixion. The painting is located in the Santa Maria delle Grazia

church in Milan, Italy. The painting depicts three important monocular cues such as
linear perspective, interposition, and relative size.

The first monocular cue that is illustrated in this painting is the principle of linear
perspective. The Encyclopedia Britannica defines linear perspective as the method of
graphically depicting three-dimensional objects and spatial relationships on a twodimensional plane or on a plane that is shallower than the original (for example, in flat
relief) (Perspective, 2016). In other words, linear perspective is a monocular cue where
two or more parallel lines come into sight as converging in distance, which gives a
sense of depth and distance to the eye. In the Last Supper by Leonardo da Vinci, the
principle of linear perspective could be perceived by the way the artist set up the
structure of the room. The lines that represent the walls in the painting are parallel,
however, at some point, they start to come close towards one another and give the
sense of depth in the room. When looking at the painting the eye can resort to process
that this is a three-dimensional image.

The second monocular cue represented in this painting is the interposition or

overlap. This principle is defined as the instances in which an object partially overlaps
another object (Williams, n.d). The principle of interposition also provides a sense of
depth to the human eye by illustrating the object that is being partially covered as the
one being further away in distance and the object on the front to simulate that is closest
in distance. In the painting by da Vinci, the principle of interposition is presented in the

overlapping of bodies. Personally, I consider this is the most noticeable monocular cue
represented in this painting. Several disciples are depicted in this way, where one body
overlaps the other, making it seem as there are several characters in the painting that
are closer to the person looking at the painting.

The third monocular cue displayed in da Vincis painting is the principle of relative
size. When two objects appear to be the same size, the object that is depicted as the
largest one will be considered to be closer to the viewer (Cherry, 2015). Explained
differently, when looking at a painting, size difference is what is going to determine
which object will be considered to be closer or farther to the person looking at the
painting. When drawing or painting, anything that is embodied in paper will have the
same distance in between them, nevertheless, size of the objects can dictate which
object is considered to be closer or farther away. In the Last Supper by Leonardo da
Vinci, relative size is displayed through the size of the windows in the back of the
painting. The windows were painted smaller than the main characters in the table to
give a sense of depth to the room. The windows being smaller will let the viewer
interpret that they are in the far back of the room and Jesus Christ and the disciples are
closer than the windows. Additionally, the plates on the table can also be considered
part of the relative size principle. The plates are painted in different sizes throughout the
table; the plates that are in the front of the table are bigger than the ones on the far side.
Even though the plates are all the same size, the position of them in the painting gives
the illusion of which ones are closer and which ones are farther.

As a way to conclude, perceptual principles like the ones discussed in this paper
help artist to make their art as realistic as possible by tricking the human eye into
processing the image as three-dimensional. Characteristics like depth, form, line color,
texture and lighting can change a painting completely in the way they strike the eye and
how is processed by our brain.

Works Cited

Cherry, K. (2015, December 26). What Are Monocular Cues and How Do They Impact
Depth Perception? Retrieved June 12, 2016, from https://www.verywell.com/what-aremonocular-cues-2795829

Da Vinci, L. (1495). The Last Supper [Painting]. Santa Maria Del Grazia Church, Milan,
Italy.

Perspective. (2016). In Encyclopdia Britannica. Retrieved from

http://www.britannica.com/art/perspective-art

University of Montreal. (2010, April 1). Leonardo da Vinci's 'The Last Supper' reveals
more secrets. ScienceDaily. Retrieved June 11, 2016 from
www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/03/100331091143.htm

Williams, Y. (n.d.). Depth Perception. Retrieved June 12, 2016, from

http://study.com/academy/lesson/interposition-in-psychology-definition-lesson-quiz.html