Perspective
Research Centre
A Vast Field. A New Understanding.
How We See, Represent and Transform Space
its mysteries and unanswered questions.
Perspective
Discover what perspective is—its history, principles, phenomena and applications.
Explore Perspective →
Research
Research programmes in perspective and the work of Kim H. Veltman.
Our Research →
Library & Archives
A 5,000-book specialist library, including the rare 700-volume Leonardo da Vinci Library.
Explore the Archive →
Knowledge Systems
Digital tools for research: UKS, Dictionary, Bibliography, Encyclopaedia and more.
Digital Systems →
Publications
Books and major research publications by Alan S. Radley and Kim H. Veltman.
View Publications →
Learn
Tutorials, guides and learning resources for students, educators and professionals.
Start Learning →Navigation Map of Perspective
Perspective Category Theory organises the many kinds and relationships of perspective using seven analytical levels—Category, Class, Type, Form, Phenomenon, Function and Product—and classifies c. 1,200 named types and forms across art, science and technology.
Explore perspective —
click any box →
Who This Site Is For — and Why
For anyone seeking to understand, teach, research or apply perspective — from students and educators to artists, architects, designers, photographers, filmmakers and scientists, practitioners and researchers in related fields.
Perspective is fundamental to human vision and to photographic, digital and computational imaging. It is present across every class of image and view—real or represented, moving or still, 2-D or 3-D—from natural scenes and architecture to photography, cinema, computer graphics, virtual environments and AI-generated imagery. Perspective underpins art, science, technology and the modern technologies of vision.
Perspective links art, science, technology, vision and visual culture through a single field of knowledge.
— Kim H. Veltman
Perspective Category Theory provides a systematic framework for organising and comparing the many kinds and relationships of perspective across art, science and technology. PRC research identifies approximately 1,200 named types and forms across seven analytical levels: Category, Class, Type, Form, Phenomenon, Function and Product.
Who This Site Is For — and Why
For anyone seeking to understand, teach, research or apply perspective — from students and educators to artists, architects, designers, photographers, filmmakers and scientists, practitioners and researchers in related fields.
Perspective is fundamental to human vision and to photographic, digital and computational imaging. It is present across every class of image and view—real or represented, moving or still, 2-D or 3-D—from natural scenes and architecture to photography, cinema, computer graphics, virtual environments and AI-generated imagery. Perspective underpins art, science, technology and the modern technologies of vision.
Explore the map below by selecting any box →
PRC Mission Statement
Establishing perspective as a distinct field
The Perspective Research Centre (PRC) collates and connects work on perspective across art, optics, geometry, architecture, visual perception, photography, cinema, computer graphics and artificial intelligence.
TERMINOLOGY PROBLEM
Perspective terminology has developed independently across disciplines and periods. The same concept may have several names, while the same term may describe different ideas. PRC addresses this through definitions, classification, Perspective Category Theory and the Dictionary of Perspective.
COMPLEXITY PROBLEM
Perspective images contain interacting optical phenomena, perspective types and forms, visual layers and spatial relationships. This complexity makes their causes and effects difficult to identify and compare. Perspective Category Theory provides a framework for separating, classifying and relating these elements.
HOW MANY KINDS PROBLEM
Perspective extends far beyond the graphical or linear perspective taught in art and drawing. It includes natural, artificial and synthetic perspective, together with visual, mathematical, instrumental, simulated, curvilinear, spherical, anamorphic and augmented forms. PRC research identifies and organises approximately 1,200 named types and forms, providing a systematic map of a field whose scale has rarely been recognised.
SUMMARY
PRC brings together original research, specialist collections, terminology, classification, bibliography and digital knowledge systems, including the Universal Knowledge System (UKS), to make perspective easier to define, search, compare and understand — connecting its many branches across art, science and technology.
Dr Alan Stuart Radley FRSA — Founder and Research Director
Learn more about PRC →
Salvator Mundi (“Savior of the World”) is a painting attributed in whole or part to Leonardo da Vinci, dated c. 1499–1510.
In the painting, perspective is combined with Leonardo’s investigations of vision, light and optics.
Professor Martin Kemp identifies the transparent orb as rock crystal, arguing that Leonardo selectively controlled refraction so it did not disrupt the devotional image — what Kemp calls “pictorial good manners.”
Leonardo da Vinci (1452–1519) extended perspective beyond drawing into the study of vision and spatial representation, connecting optics, geometry, light and visual perception.
research across more than 180
libraries and major
historical collections.
Questions & Answers
Investigate focused questions about perspective, its concepts, history, methods and spatial representation.
Explore Q & A →Perspective Images & Views
Explore perspective through visual examples, diagrams, constructions and image collections.
Explore Images & Views →Hubs, Indexes & Catalogues
Theory Hubs
Catalogues
share a vanishing system: Combined Perspective.
The Dictionary of Perspective: A New Theory of Visual Knowledge
Behold the epic story of perspective. The Dictionary of Perspective is more than a reference work: it provides a framework for understanding how humans see, represent and transform spatial reality. Perspective spans art, optics, geometry, architecture, photography, cinema, science and technology. The Dictionary unifies these traditions from natural vision through optical systems, images, instruments and digital environments.
With more than 4,000 terms and approximately 1,200 types and forms of perspective, it maps perspective’s vocabulary, concepts and relationships beyond drawing technique, across viewing, imaging, projecting, representing and transforming reality. Designed not merely to define terms, it reveals connections across vision, optics, geometry, imaging and spatial representation, helping readers pursue new lines of enquiry.
The Dictionary covers:
- Natural and visual perception — viewpoint, depth, scale, form and appearance.
- Optics and imaging — light, lenses, cameras, mirrors, projection, reflection, refraction and image formation.
- Geometry and representation — linear perspective, parallel projection, mathematical systems and graphical construction.
- Architecture, art and design — drawing, painting, built environments and visual communication.
- Photography, cinema and visual effects — camera perspective, cinematography, animation and constructed realities.
- Computer graphics and digital worlds — CGI, computer vision, AI imagery, VR, AR and immersive environments.
- Scientific and technical imaging — measurement, modelling, mapping, visualisation and instruments.
Combining established terminology with new theoretical structures and classifications, it connects traditional scholarship with perspective as a unified field of visual knowledge. The result is not simply a dictionary of terms, but a conceptual map of perspective as a major interdisciplinary field of knowledge spanning art, science and technology — a uniquely comprehensive synthesis of the field, bringing its terminology, concepts and relationships into a single coherent structure.
An essential resource for those seeking enlightenment on the vast,
intricate, and fascinating subject of perspective.
Perspective Today
About Our Perspective Research
Dr Alan Stuart Radley FRSA — Founder and Director
Alan Radley is a physicist, author, inventor and visual-technology researcher seeking to establish perspective as a coherent interdisciplinary field rather than a collection of separate theories, terminology and methods.
As founder of the Perspective Research Centre, he has brought these strands together in a research programme spanning terminology, classification, theory, history, visual phenomena, applications, specialist collections and systems for organising knowledge, including the Universal Knowledge System (UKS).
Library of Perspective
The Library of Perspective combines a physical specialist library of approximately 5,000 books, assembled over decades, with a growing Digital Library of Perspective delivered through the PRC Universal Knowledge System (UKS).
The Digital Library contains more than 800 searchable publications, including 600+ from the Kim Veltman Archive, with further material added for reading, comparison and Multi-Context research.
Professor Kim H. Veltman
Kim H. Veltman (1948–2020) was a Dutch-Canadian historian of art and science and internationally recognised interdisciplinary scholar whose work connected perspective, Leonardo da Vinci, visual knowledge, new media and the organisation of knowledge.
His research ranged from Renaissance perspective and optics to the digital age. He directed the Perspective Unit of the McLuhan Program at the University of Toronto, produced major studies of Leonardo and perspective, assembled the 15,000-title Bibliography of Perspective, and developed his eight-volume Encyclopedia of Perspective. PRC preserves and develops this legacy.
Kim Veltman Archive
The Kim Veltman Archive preserves Veltman’s extensive research legacy, including more than 400 published works, hundreds of unpublished documents and over 500 PowerPoint presentations — well over 1,000 documents comprising approximately 7 million words. The collection spans perspective, Leonardo da Vinci, visual knowledge, new media, cultural history and the organisation of knowledge.
The Archive brings together Veltman’s published and unpublished research, books, papers, presentations and working materials. Together they document the development of his ideas, projects and systems of knowledge over several decades.
The Many Worlds of Perspective
Explore Perspective
New to Perspective?
Start with the basic definitions, history and core concepts of perspective.
Start with the Basics →Perspective Theory & Concepts Catalogue
Explore the theories, concepts, principles and classifications that structure the field of perspective.
Browse Theory & Concepts →Applications of Perspective Catalogue
See how perspective is used across art, architecture, science, technology and other fields.
Browse Applications →Common Errors & Misconceptions
Explore recurring historical and technical errors in teaching, textbooks and explanations of perspective.
Errors & Misconceptions →People in Perspective Catalogue
Discover key figures, researchers, artists and thinkers in the history and development of perspective.
Browse People →Timeline of Perspective Developments
Follow key developments, people and milestones across the history and development of perspective.
View the Timeline →Films & Lectures
Explore selected films, documentaries and recorded lectures on perspective and related subjects.
View Films & Lectures →Tutorials & Guides
Practical guides and tutorials for learning and applying perspective.
Explore Tutorials & Guides →Featured Projects & Resources
Explore All Projects & Resources →
Leonardo da Vinci Studies
Kim H. Veltman’s multi-decade research on Leonardo’s perspective, optics, vision and astronomy, including extensive unpublished and archival material.
His studies examine how Leonardo connected drawing, geometry, visual perception and light within Renaissance knowledge. PRC preserves this research through the Kim Veltman Archive and its Leonardo collections.
View Project →
Alphabets of Life
A major interdisciplinary project by Kim H. Veltman exploring alphabets, signs, symbols, knowledge systems and cultural information across periods and cultures.
It examines how notation, language, image and symbolic representation have shaped the organisation and transmission of knowledge, from historical writing systems and visual symbolism to modern digital culture.
Read Book in Digital Viewer →
Encyclopaedia of Perspective
Kim H. Veltman’s eight-volume, approximately three-million-word Encyclopaedia of Perspective brings together sources, bibliography and research across art, science and technology.
It traces perspective through optics, geometry, architecture, visual representation, instruments and imaging technologies, revealing a field extending far beyond conventional linear perspective.
Explore the Encyclopaedia →Recent Research & Updates
Tutorials, guides and learning resources for students, educators and professionals.
New archival scans clarify how Veltman’s Leonardo studies changed from one large optics project into multiple substantive volumes.
Reader interaction, Digital Library search and multi-context research continue to be integrated across PRC.
Wide-Field Perspective Panorama
A new understanding of what perspective is, how it operates,
and why it matters across the visual arts, sciences and technologies.
The Art and Science of Perspective
The Art and Science of Perspective is a multi-volume series tracing and extending visual and optical perspective from antiquity to the digital age. It examines perspective as an art of representation and a science of vision, light, space and visual information, showing how it shapes human vision, spatial understanding, image-making and the representation of reality.
The volumes provide an interdisciplinary framework for understanding perspective. The series examines both natural perspective—how spatial reality appears to vision—and artificial perspective—how reality is captured, projected, constructed, transformed and reproduced through images, instruments and media. Its scope spans art, optics, geometry, architecture, photography, cinema, cartography, scientific imaging, computer graphics, virtual and augmented reality, artificial intelligence, GIS and photogrammetry.
Together, the series integrates historical knowledge, technical principles, visual phenomena, theoretical concepts, classification systems and modern applications within a coherent framework.
The Past, Present and Future of Visual and Optical Perspective
Second Edition
A wide-ranging introduction to the history, theory, applications and future possibilities of visual and optical perspective.
Large-format 8.5 × 11-inch paperback
US$27.99
Dictionary of Perspective
Second Edition
The first comprehensive dictionary and taxonomy devoted specifically to visual and optical perspective.
Approximately 1,200 types and forms
More than 350,000 words · 590 pages
Large-format 8.5 × 11-inch paperback
US$34.99
Natural and Visual Perspective
Forthcoming First Edition
A new account of how spatial reality gives rise to natural appearance—and how natural appearance becomes human visual experience.
Large-format 8.5 × 11-inch paperback
Expected Price: US$27.99
Featured Perspective Researchers
Tomás García-Salgado
Architect · perspective researcherExplore Modular Perspective, reverse outlining and methods for reconstructing spatial relationships from perspective images.
Modular Perspective → Perspective Geometry →
Dick Termes
Artist · spherical perspectiveArtist and creator of the Termesphere, using six-point spherical perspective to represent complete surrounding environments.
Explore Termespheres →
David Chelsea
Artist · author · perspective teacherArtist, author and teacher known for practical, curvilinear and experimental approaches to perspective.
Explore David Chelsea →Conclusion: Perspective as Visual Knowledge
Perspective is a halfway station where geometry and physical reality meet. It links the ideal with the actual, and the world around us with its visual appearance and representation. At its broadest, its purpose is visual knowledge: helping us observe, measure, model and interpret what we see. Across Western and non-Western traditions, this points towards a perspective science of how the world is seen, represented and transformed.
Perspective extends far beyond the familiar rules of drawing. Historically, it developed in a fragmented way across art, optics, geometry, vision, architecture, photography, cinema, cartography, computer graphics and scientific imaging. It has therefore often appeared as a collection of specialised methods and theories rather than a unified subject. Yet its complexity reflects a deeply interconnected structure of principles, phenomena and applications. Many of its relationships and visual phenomena remain only partly understood. What has long been missing is an overarching framework capable of relating these across disciplines.
The Perspective Research Centre addresses this by bringing these strands together through Perspective Category Theory, the Dictionary of Perspective, specialist collections, original research and digital knowledge systems. Its work explores their complexities and unanswered questions while developing clearer explanations and a connected framework for their study. PRC seeks to make perspective coherent, navigable and intelligible as a distinct field of knowledge, and to establish a case for its study and teaching in its own right.
Perspective is concerned not only with recording and understanding reality, but also with constructing new appearances, physical structures and spatial experiences. It operates across observation, drawing, photography, cinema, scientific imaging, simulation, illusion, immersive environments, virtual and augmented reality, computer graphics and artificial intelligence. It therefore has a double role: helping us interpret the world as it appears and enabling us to create new visual worlds.
Perspective is not an obsolete historical topic. It remains central to many of the visual technologies of the modern world, and its relevance continues to grow as images, simulations, spatial data and immersive environments become more important in research, communication and everyday life. Its principles have helped shape major developments across art, science, engineering and technology.
Perspective has a rich past, an active present and a powerful future: a keystone of human progress and a continuing foundation for innovation.
— Alan S. Radley, Director, Perspective Research Centre
Natural + Artificial Image Content
Conferences, Symposia & Workshops
ALAIPO is an international non-profit association for researchers, students, teachers and professionals in Human–Computer Interaction and qualitative communication.
ALAIPO Conferences → AINCI Conferences →
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