Perspective Based on a New Optics

The author discusses in a general way a new optics that is based not only on physics but also on physiological–psychological considerations. While an image of an object is formed on a retina in much the same way as an image is formed on a film in a camera, it is not the final product of human vision. The retinal image is processed by the brain and the final product is a mental image or ‘ghost’ that is fixed in space. For an object close to the eyes of a viewer, the ‘ghost’ tends to be located precisely at the position of the object and the viewer can be said to ‘see the object’. But in the case of a more distant object, the brain fixes the ‘ghost’ at a position closer to the viewer than that occupied by the object viewed. The important consequences of this conception are discussed in the case of perspective, particularly as it applies to representational art work.