When paintings gained depth
Suddenly, around 1400, painters figured out perspective and their flat saints stepped into believable rooms with real depth. The Renaissance was that rebirth of realism — art learning to mirror the three-dimensional world.
Depth on a flat surface
Renaissance artists revived classical realism and developed linear perspective — a technique using a vanishing point so parallel lines appear to converge, creating convincing depth.
The masters
Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo exemplified the era's blend of art, anatomy, and science.