Perspective Drawing
Here is another view of the multilink structure discussed in 3D Drawing.
Draw it in two-point linear perspective.
Which properties of the original structure are preserved in your drawings, which are not? You should think about:
- the relationship between the lengths of the edges of the cubes
- the angles between them
- parallel and perpendicular lines
What do you think the advantages of linear perspective drawing are? What disadvantages are there with this method of representing 3D objects in 2D?
All vertical lines remain vertical, other lines are oblique - you are trying to construct what you actually see in the photo.
Start by drawing a horizontal line and putting the two vanishing points on it, one near each end of the line.
Draw a vertical line representing the central vertical edge of the front green cube.
Draw construction lines from both vanishing points to both ends of this vertical line.
Considering the relative apparent proportions of the vertical edge and the bottom left and right hand edges of the green cube, and draw in the left and right hand vertical edges of the front green cube, and then the extreme right and left hand edges of the rear green and blue cubes.
Continue adding construction lines from both vanishing points to all cube vertices, using intersections of the construction lines to locate further vertices.
When you have constructed the bottom layer of cubes, think about where you want the right hand edge of the yellow cube to appear to meet the vertical/right hand edge of the red cube, and what the apparent height of the red cube should be relative to the green cubes.
Why do this problem?
Representing 3D objects in two dimensions on paper is a vital skill in the Design Technology curriculum, as well as an aspect of Shape and Space in the Maths curriculum. This problem is part of a set of problems which will help students to understand why there are different ways to represent a 3D object in two dimensions, and what maths lies behind each method.
The article 3D Drawing was written to support these problems.
Key questions
What are the advantages of this method of 3D drawing? What are the disadvantages?
What features of the object are retained in the drawing, which are not?
Possible extension
Challenge students to do a perspective drawing of the structure from a different perspective! (They should do a sketch first to ensure they know which cubes will be visible).