Paolo Uccello | Obsessed With Perspective

Niccolò da Tolentino Leads the Florentine Troops (Battle of San Romano) by Paolo Uccello 1450s, tempera on wood, 182 x 320 cm National Gallery, London

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Paolo Uccello had a keen interest in applied geometry and perspective. 

A very talented artist, Paolo Uccello was reportedly obsessed with applied geometry and the new perspective, spending many hours rendering various object in foreshortening. Uccello's depiction of a fallen figure on the ground is impressive and the first of its kind, probably causing quite a sensation among artists at the time. Paolo's use of perspective is further demonstrated by his depiction of broken lances on the ground all pointing toward a common vanishing point on the stage-like battlefield.

Brenda Harness, Art Historian