Perspective
Research Centre
The World’s Premier Institute for the Study of Perspective
Explore Perspective →a gateway to this vast and fascinating field.
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 Categories
Perspective Category Theory provides a systematic framework for organising the many kinds and relationships of perspective. It distinguishes 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
The Perspective Research Centre (PRC) brings together the study of perspective across art, optics, geometry, architecture, visual perception, photography, cinema, computer graphics, artificial intelligence and other technologies of vision. Its aim is to organise this widely dispersed subject into a coherent interdisciplinary field.
TERMINOLOGY PROBLEM
Perspective terminology has developed independently across many disciplines and periods. The same concept may have several names, while the same term can describe different or opposing ideas. PRC addresses this problem through definitions, classification and its Perspective Category Theory, supported by the Dictionary of Perspective.
COMPLEXITY PROBLEM
Perspective views and images can contain many interacting optical phenomena, perspective types and forms, visual layers and spatial relationships operating simultaneously. This makes their causes and effects difficult to identify and compare. Perspective Category Theory provides a framework for separating, classifying and relating these elements, making complex perspective images easier to understand, analyse and use.
HOW MANY KINDS PROBLEM
Perspective extends far beyond the familiar graphical or linear perspective taught in art and drawing. It includes natural, artificial and synthetic perspective, together with visual, graphical, mathematical/geometrical, instrument, simulated, curvilinear, spherical, anamorphic, augmented and many other forms. PRC research identifies and organises approximately 1,200 named types and forms of perspective, providing a systematic map of a field whose true 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. Its purpose is to connect the many branches of the subject within a unified framework for research, teaching and application across art, science and technology.
Establishing perspective as a distinct field.
Dr Alan Stuart Radley FRSA — Founder and Research Director
Learn more about PRC →
Salvator Mundi (Latin for ‘Savior of the World’) is a painting attributed in whole or part to the Italian High Renaissance artist Leonardo da Vinci, dated c. 1499–1510.
In Salvator Mundi, perspective is combined with Leonardo’s investigations of vision, light, optics and mineral materials. Professor Martin Kemp identifies the transparent orb as rock crystal, noting its characteristic inclusions and Leonardo’s knowledge of such materials, while arguing that Leonardo selectively controlled refraction so it did not disrupt the devotional image — a matter of what Kemp calls “pictorial good manners.” The orb therefore illustrates how Leonardo incorporated optical knowledge into painting while subordinating it to pictorial purpose.
Leonardo da Vinci (1452–1519) expanded perspective beyond drawing into a study of vision and spatial representation, connecting optics, geometry, light and visual perception with how spatial reality becomes visual appearance.
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 →Perspective Talks & Courses
Explore talks, lectures and courses on perspective, its history, theory and applications.
Explore Talks & Courses →Hubs, Indexes & Catalogues
Theory Hubs
Catalogues
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, varying terminology and methods. As founder of the Perspective Research Centre, he has brought these strands together into an interconnected research programme spanning terminology, classification, theory, history, visual phenomena, applications, specialist collections and new systems for organising and searching 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 many 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 being added for direct 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 an 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 international Bibliography of Perspective, and developed his eight-volume Encyclopedia of Perspective. Today, the Perspective Research Centre preserves and develops this research 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 in all, 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 across perspective, Leonardo da Vinci, visual knowledge, new media and cultural history. 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
Leonardo da Vinci Studies
Kim H. Veltman’s multi-decade research on Leonardo’s perspective, optics, vision and astronomy, including extensive unpublished manuscripts.
View Project →
Alphabets of Life
A major interdisciplinary project exploring alphabets, signs, symbols, knowledge systems and the structures of cultural information.
Read Book in Digital Viewer →
Encyclopaedia of Perspective
Kim H. Veltman’s eight-volume, approximately three-million-word Encyclopaedia of Perspective is a major interdisciplinary reference bringing together sources and bibliography across art, science, technology and visual knowledge.
Explore the Encyclopaedia →History of Perspective
Explore the development of perspective from antiquity and the Renaissance through optics, image-making and modern visual technologies, with connected resources on origins, Leonardo da Vinci, etymology and the timeline of perspective.
Explore the History →Professional Practice
Explore perspective in fine art and visual design, photography, cinema and visual effects, architecture, computer graphics and XR, cartography and GIS, science, engineering and AI-generated imaging.
Explore Professional Practice →Bibliography of Perspective
Search a specialist bibliography of more than 15,000 titles across art, optics, geometry, architecture, imaging, science and technology, developed over 80 years by architect Luigi Vagnetti and Kim H. Veltman.
Search the Bibliography →Recent Research & Updates
Tutorials, guides and learning resources for students, educators and professionals.
The Dictionary of Perspective is a comprehensive encyclopaedic reference and theoretical map of the field, defining more than 4,000 terms and approximately 1,200 types and forms.
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.
Perspective Through History
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 major multi-volume series that traces, re-examines and extends the field of visual and optical perspective from antiquity to the digital age. It explores perspective as both an art of representation and a science concerned with vision, light, space and the transmission of visual information, showing how perspective shapes human vision, spatial understanding, image-making and the representation of reality.
Together, the volumes provide an interdisciplinary framework for understanding what perspective is, how it operates and why it matters. The series examines both natural perspective—how spatial reality appears to vision—and artificial perspective—how that reality is captured, projected, constructed, transformed and reproduced through images, instruments and media. Its scope extends across art, optics, geometry, architecture, photography, cinema, cartography, scientific imaging, computer graphics, virtual and augmented reality, artificial intelligence, GIS, photogrammetry and related technologies.
Perspective terminology is unusually complex: one concept may have several names, while the same term can refer to different or opposing ideas. Perspective Category Theory provides a framework across categories, classes, types, forms, phenomena, functions and products, while the Dictionary of Perspective documents more than 4,000 terms and approximately 1,200 types and forms. The series brings together historical knowledge, technical principles, visual phenomena, theoretical concepts, classification systems and modern applications within a coherent interdisciplinary framework.
Perspective Today
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 stands between geometry and physical reality. 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 to observe, measure, model and interpret what we see. Across Western and non-Western traditions, this broader view points towards a perspective science concerned with how the world is seen, represented and transformed.
Historically, perspective has developed in a fragmented way across art, optics, geometry, vision, architecture, photography, cinema, cartography, computer graphics and scientific imaging. As a result, it has often appeared as a scattered collection of specialised methods, theories and terms rather than as a unified subject. Its complexity is not incidental: perspective has a deeply interconnected structure in which principles, phenomena and applications continually reveal further relationships. What has long been missing is an overarching framework capable of relating its many principles, phenomena, categories, forms, methods and systems across disciplines.
The Perspective Research Centre addresses this problem by bringing these scattered strands together within a common framework. Through Perspective Category Theory, the Dictionary of Perspective, specialist collections, original research and digital knowledge systems, PRC seeks to make perspective more coherent, navigable and intelligible as a distinct field of knowledge. Its breadth and interdisciplinary importance also make a case for perspective to be studied and taught as a distinct field 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 in observation, drawing, photography, cinema and scientific imaging, as well as simulation, illusion, immersive environments, virtual and augmented reality, computer graphics and artificial intelligence. In this sense, perspective has a double role: it helps us interpret the world as it appears, and to create new visual worlds. Perspective is therefore the very definition of an interdisciplinary or cross-disciplinary subject, with countless sources, links and fundamental relations connecting visual theory, discovery and practical methods.
For this reason, perspective is not an obsolete historical topic. It remains central to many of the most important 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 been foundational to major developments across art, science, engineering and technology, and to the visual culture of modern civilisation.
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 and meeting point for researchers, students, teachers and professionals working in Human–Computer Interaction and qualitative communication. It brings together knowledge from formal and factual sciences to improve the relationship between people and new technologies, promoting clearer, easier and more effective interaction and helping improve the usability and communicability of products and services.
ALAIPO Conferences → Latin Association of HCI AINCI Conferences → International Association of Interactive Communication
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