Workshop 1: Curved Perspectives – Sketching 360° Panoramas

Instructor: Arno Hartmann

Workshop description 

The linear perspectives with one, two or three vanishing points do have their limitations: At the edges of the drawing, the rules of the perspective don’t seem to match the way we actually see the objects: Suddenly proportions look different and lines that used to converge to a vanishing point now appear to be rather horizontal. The reasons for these observations are quite theoretical – our cone of vision is limited and once we turn our head, our image plane starts to bend. But once we find out what happens in panoramic pictures, exploring the possibilities of a 360° perspective sketch is great fun, too. This workshop will show you how to sketch cylindrical perspectives like the ones we know from panorama photographies or interactive virtual realities.

Learning goals

This workshop is intended to expand the participants’ knowledge of perspective drawing and to enable them to sketch complete panoramic views of their surroundings. An important milestone during the workshop will be how to recognize the vanishing points of buildings and walls.

Workshop Schedule

We’ll start with 4 quick central perspective sketches in all four directions. Then, we’ll draw the remaining corners as overlapping 2-point perspectives. Now we’ll discover the connection between our viewing direction and the way horizontal lines become vanishing lines, finding out how we have to bend the straight lines.

Equipped with this knowledge, we take the challenge of sketching our surrounding as a 360° cylindrical panorama …

Supply list

· A pencil and eraser

· A sketchbook with a solid cover (not too small, landscape format helps but isn’t necessary) or a drawing board with papers on it

· A portable stool to sit on

· Watercolours or markers according to your preference