Image Essay #3

DEPTH Depth is a term used to describe a three-dimensional quality on a two-dimensional surface. Giving your layout depth can help make your design more interesting and eye-catching. It can also make your design seem more solid, giving the elements dimension and space rather than a "floating" quality.
There are many way to give depth to your art work. Lets take M.C. Escher’s Hand with Sphere Ball for example. In Escher’s piece, he first creates depth simply by perspective. Everything is three-dimensional on the two-dimensional paper. His use of value in shading gives the illusion of a three-dimensional.
Secondly, Escher meets depth by shrinking sizes. Using our common knowledge of object sizes is another great way to trick the brain into sensing distance. Since we all know approximately how big a person is, for example, when you see the self-portrait of Escher sitting in the chair, we assume there is a great amount of space between the window and himself. We know the person is bigger than the window, therefore creating implied space.
Thirdly, one of the simplest and most direct ways to create a sense of distance in art is to include a leading line. Lines work best when they start near the front edge of the image and go to the far horizon and conclude at a single point. In this piece, there is not a direct line of perspective, but there are many implied lines that lead you from the “ front” of the piece to the “ back.” For example, the line on the top of the bookshelf begins in the front and leads your eye back towards the window. Or even the lines of the carpet on the bottom take your eye back, therefore creating perspective and depth.
Lastly, Escher uses overlapping. You can see in the sphere, the chairs are overlapping each other, and even the books on the shelving are overlapping. By juxtaposing images by each other, varying in size and value, it creates depth immediately.