The The Beauty of Perspective
Illusion and perspective in art represents the victory of art over reality. Many artists continue to follow the basis of these illusionistic principals that have been used for many years before, but have added their own individuality to their art which has challenged new heights in illusion and perspective. These artists want to trick the eye of the viewers to ultimately create a work of art greater than reality itself. Trompe l’oeil has been a style that has lived on for many years. For this reason, illusion and perspective in art surprises the viewer because artists use perspective to shock the viewers and change what and how they view a piece of art. It wasn’t until the Renaissance that perspective was discovered. This discovery created depth in art. Through the use of color and contrast, artists were able to create art with depth never seen before in art. During the 19th Century, Impressionists began to look deeper into color relationships. What they discovered, would be the basis for perspective and illusion in art. They discovered that the use of cool tones made objects appear farther away than objects in warm tones. Artist’s main purpose for this type of art is to depict reality, but to evoke surprise and pleasure. Artists have been implementing illusionistic components into their work since the early 15th century after the discovery of the trick of the eye. Through linear perspective and vanishing points as well as color and shadows, artists have been able to create amazing works of art. Trompe l’oeil which means trick of the eye has evolved over many centuries. Artists realized that they could manipulate reality by distorting perspective and depth to create art that defined perception.
“Trompe l'oeil paintings challenge our ability to distinguish what is real and what is not. Such illusions--sometimes playful, sometimes serious--make us question our perception of art and nature. Ultimately, however, the magic of this deception only lasts until the viewer discovers the trickery. But even then, one is still impressed, even in awe, of the painter's ability to fool us, if only momentarily.”
In John Ruskin’s, Modern Painters, he characterizes trompe l’oeil as “seeking to hide the fact that it is a flat canvas, covered with paint” Ruskin makes an interesting point arguing that the viewers of these works of art focus more of their attention on the differences between the reality and the image its portraying. Ruskin believes that by doing this we lose meaning in the subject of the painting. One may agree with this view, however, maybe the subject of the paintings do not need to be the primary focus. Ruskin points out that the pleasure that comes from trompe l’oeil relies less on our appreciation of the object depicted, but on the act of the deception. Many artists that practice Trompe l’oeil strive for this deception to the viewer and this is the exact reason they have passion for this style. John Ruskin criticized the brilliance in this genre and does not agree with the idea that this style of art, creates illusion, but also has great content and skill in its composition. Jay Ruby on the other hand, sees trompe l’oeil for the brilliance and complexity it really is. “The painter strives to produce a temporary illusion that the [painted] apples are so real that we could pick one up and eat it, while at the same time displaying his compositional skills.” It can be argued that perhaps practitioners of this style do not care that the subject matter is not the primary focus, but their main reason for painting these works are to produce the pleasure of deception for its viewers.
Today, artists have challenged new heights with the techniques and basis of trompe l’oeil from the 15th century. Artists like Debra Teare have used trompe l’oeil to create works of art with great passion. With a mix of her own modern techniques and traditional trompe l’oeil style, she has formed many masterpieces. Teare said:
"Trompe l'oeil is an art form that evolved over many thousands of years. Initially, it was simply a way of painting that 'fooled the eye,' but eventually many practitioners of the art found that certain conventions enhanced the illusionistic effect they were striving for. One convention is to keep the depth of field as shallow as possible. Effects such as taping or pinning flat objects to a board make a shallow depth of field possible. Another convention is to light the scene from the left, which increases the chance that the actual lighting of the painting will correspond to the illusionistic lighting in an exhibition. Another is not breaking the picture plane--that is, not running an object or shadow out of the canvas thus preserving the illusion that the objects exist entirely in the space within the frame. One way to enhance the three-dimensional effect is to maintain a shallow depth of field. I do this by keeping my boxes or shelves as shallow as possible. Any object or texture that has a sculptural or tactile quality is likely to end up in a trompe l'oeil painting. I enjoy working within these rules, yet I feel free to break these conventions to achieve a unique effect."
Though Teare enjoys the precise nature of this style, she strongly encourages risk to create new unique techniques which yield new advances in trompe l’oeil.
One of the most fascinating advances in the trompe l’oeil style has been created by Julian Beever, a pavement artist. Julian Beever, like many other artists have really brought perspective and illusion to a new level in their art. Through the use of anamorphosis technique, Beever has made some amazing sidewalk art. The anamorphosis technique is a distorted projection or perspective requiring the viewer to use special devices or occupy a specific vantage point to reconstitute the image. This technique allows Beever to create the illusion that forms or objects are going in, coming out, or standing on the ground. In many of his works of art you can clearly see how illusion and perspective can change the entire image being seen. When viewed from the right angle, his works create the effect of depth on a flat surface. When viewed from other angles, his drawings display little to no resemblance to his intended image. It’s amazing how the angle one views an image can change its entire structure. Beever prefers to work with chalk, which is not permanent. By creating these images on pavement, the pavement itself and the architectural surroundings become part of the illusion of the piece.

Beever was not the first to combine trompe l’oeil and anamorphosis to create magnificent illusion in art; in fact this combination has been used by many artists in history. One of the most popular works of this style is “The Ambassadors” which was created by Hans Holbein in 1533. More specifically, the skull in the painting was rendered in the anamorphic perspective. Many ideas and questions surround this painting forcing people who view it to wonder why Holbein made the skull the primary focus in this piece. In Susan Foister’s interpretation of “The Ambassadors”, she believes that the painting represents the heavens, the living world, and death. More specifically, the skull represents that of mortality. She believes that the reason why Holbein used anamophosis in this painting was to suggest a changing perspective. When a person views the painting from the front angle, you clearly see the beautiful details in the painting, but when viewed from the side, a shocking truth is revealed. This suggests that Holbein was trying to convey the idea that the hidden truth, in this case the skull representing death, is hidden behind the surface of appearance. Many people believe that this painting was intended to be hung in a stairwell or on a wall so that a person passing would be shocked by the illusion of the piece.

Many artists that practice this style truly believe that trompe l’oeil is advancing with the times, but also remaining deeply rooted to its past. Artists in history, like Hans Holbein, as well as new artists, like Julian Beever have broken down the walls of simplicity and reached new heights in creating works of art that unite illusion and reality. Two terms that have opposite meanings have come together through the use of trompe l’oeil techniques and perspective to create art that not only shocks its viewers, but changes the entire concept of the work itself to form an image greater than reality itself.

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Books:
Foister, Susan, Ashok Roy, and Martin Wyld, Holbein's Ambassadors, (London, National Gallery Publications, 1997)
Ruby, Jay "Ethnography as Trompe l'oeil: Film and Anthropology," A Crack in the Mirror: Reflexive Perspectives in Ethnography, (University of Pennsylvania Press, 1982)
Ruskin, John, Modern Painters, The Complete Works of John Ruskin III, (London, George Allen, 1903)

Articles:
Johnson, Mark M. "Trompe L'Oeil: The Art of Illusion." Arts & Activities 137, no. 3 (April 2005), 29-32. Academic Search Complete, EBSCOhost (accessed December 4, 2012).
Kelbie, Paul, “'Pavement Picasso' dazzles pedestrians with 3D masterpieces” The Independent, 31 Aug. 2006, http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/this-britain/pavement-picasso- dazzles-pedestrians-with-3d-masterpieces-414063.html (accessed 26 Nov. 2012).
Metcalfe, James A. 2008. "Updating Trompe l'Oeil For Today." American Artist 72, 46-53. Art Index (H.W. Wilson), EBSCOhost(accessed October 10, 2012).
Pelzer-Montada, Ruth. 2007. "Post-production or how pictures come to life or play dead." Journal Of Visual Art Practice 6, no. 3: 229-243. Art Index (H.W. Wilson), EBSCOhost (accessed October 10, 2012).

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[ 1 ]. Mark Johnson, "Trompe L'Oeil: The Art of Illusion." Arts & Activities 137, 29- 32. Academic Search Complete, EBSCOhost (accessed December 4, 2012).
[ 2 ]. John Ruskin, Modern Painters, (London, George Allen, 1903), 100.
[ 3 ]. Ruskin, Modern Painters, 100.
[ 4 ]. Jay Ruby, Ethnography as Trompe l’oeil: Film and Anthropology (University of Pennsylvania Press, 1982), 130.
[ 5 ]. James Metcalfe, “Updating Trompe l'Oeil For Today.” American Artist 72, 46-53. Art Index (H.W. Wilson), EBSCOhost (accessed December 4, 2012).
[ 6 ]. Metcalfe, “Updating Trompe l’Oeil For Today”, 46-53.
[ 7 ]. Paul Kelbie, http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/this-britain/pavement-picasso-dazzles-pedestrians-with-3d-masterpieces-414063.html
[ 8 ]. Susan Foister, Ashok Roy, and Martin Wyld, Holbein’s Ambassadors, (London, National Gallery Publications, 1997),103-104