Subscribe to My Newsletter
Subscribe to my weekly newsletter. I don’t send any spam email ever!
Little Artist Lesson: DaVinci One Point Perspective
Try this art lesson for kids to learn about the art of DaVinci. Teach them how to create their own one point perspective drawing.
About Leonardo DaVinci
Leonardo DaVinci was born on April 15 in 1452 and died on May 2 in 1519. He was born in Vinci which is a small town near Florence, Italy. DaVinci was a scientist, mathematician, engineer, inventor, anatomist, sculptor, architect, botanist, musician, and writer. He excelled at studying and designing. DaVinci was so talented at so many things that interested him. Most call him the greatest painter of all time.
DaVinci lived during the time of the Renaissance. The art of the Renaissance period was known for its realism and naturalism. Renaissance artists depict people and objects the way they appear in life. They use perspective, shadows, and light to create the illusion of depth.
Leonardo DaVinci's Well Known Works
DaVinci’s most famous paintings are the Mona Lisa and The Last Supper. The Mona Lisa is the most famous portrait ever painted. The unusual thing about the painting is the smile on the subject’s face. Her face is painted in such a way that it hides her true expression. The Last Supper depicts the last meal shared by Jesus with his disciples. The painting is a great example of linear perspective or one point perspective. The vanishing point is just above Jesus’ head.
Linear Perspective
Linear perspective is a technique that artists use to create the illusion of depth using relative size and position of objects. There are imaginary lines that all converge at a point on the horizon, the vanishing point. One Point perspective is a type of linear perspective where only one vanishing point exists.
The Lesson
In this lesson, the kids learn about the one point perspective technique used by DaVinci by creating their own drawing. They will use a ruler to create the “imaginary lines.” Once they learn the technique, the little artists should be able to apply the concepts to their own drawings without the use of a ruler.
You Will Need ...
- White Drawing Paper
- Ruler
- Pencil
- Eraser
- Black Pen
- Coloring Tools (markers, colored pencils, crayons, etc).
Step One
Use the ruler to draw a horizon line. It does not need to be in the middle of the paper. In fact, some say it should either be in the top third or bottom third of the paper to make it more interesting to look at.
Step Two
Make a tiny but detectable dot in the middle of the horizon line. This is the vanishing point.
Step Three
Next, make two dots on the bottom of the page. I instructed the kids to place the ruler up and down against the vanishing point. Then, make a dot about 3-4 fingers to the left and right of the ruler. Then, use the ruler to make a line connecting the bottom left dot to the vanishing point. Repeat on the right side with the bottom right dot.
Step Four
The triangle in on the paper is the road. Using the ruler, place one edge on the vanishing point and draw the lines down the middle of the road. This is when the kids learn about drawing perspective. Show them that when we look at things in a picture, the closer objects are larger and the distant objects are smaller. Thus, when we look at this road, the lines down the middle will get smaller as they get further away.
Step Five
Next, have the kids place two fingers on the bottom of the page with the side of the left finger touching the edge of the paper. On the side of the right finger, place a tiny dot. Then, take the ruler and line it up with the new dot and the vanishing point. Advise the kids to make a very light line connecting the two dots. This line will be erased later so make sure it is not dark.
Step Six
Now we need to repeat this process but above the horizon line. Have the kids place one finger with the side touching the horizon line. Then, make a dot on the other side of the finger. Next, use the ruler to draw a light line connecting the new dot to the vanishing point. The line will also be erased later.
Step Seven
Then, using the two new lines as a guide, begin drawing trees. The instruction is that the bottom of the tree must not go beyond the bottom line, and the top of the tree must not go beyond the top line.
Step Eight
On the right side of the road, draw a river. Remind the kids that just like the road, the river should appear larger on the bottom of the page and smaller at the horizon.
Step Ten
Then, erase the guide lines. These would be the lines above and below the trees, as well as any parts of the horizon line that are peeking through the trees. Once that is done, trace over the remaining lines with a black pen. Some kids wanted to go back and erase again once their black pen lines dried. Just to clean up the drawing a little more.
Step Eleven
Finally, color in the drawing.
The kids loved this lesson because it was challenging and they learned something about technique. They also got really creative with the details they added to their drawings. I could tell that they understood the technique when I saw the tiny cars at the end of the road, or the tiny plane in the sky.