Browse Items (55 total)

This treatise discusses the physiology of vision. The work was first presented to the Royal Society in 1681. Briggs' discoveries on the anatomy of the eye are presented

The title transaltes to A Physico-mathematical Treatment of Light, Colors, and the Rainbow. Grimaldi challenged the principle that the propogation of light occurs in a linear fashion. The text discusses his findings based on experiments he did with…

It has been a debate for centuries whether or not Vermeer used optics to help create more realistic paintings. This work has clear signs of using a camera obscura. Using this device helps him to figure out the size of the people in relation to one…

Galileo's Starry Messenger discusses his discoveries in the field of astronomy. These discoveries made it critical to correctly analyze geometrical optics that observations with a telescope were based on.

Scheiner was a Jesuit mathematician working in Rome. This treatise describes how the eye sees an inverted image that it somehow is able to flip. Scheiner's descriptions played a large role in the success of Johannes Kepler's theory of vision.

Leonardo da Vinci had many notes on painting which were turned into a treatise after he passed away. The treatise discusses da Vinci's theories relating to optics, color, perspective and other elements of painting.

Raphael uses color, light and shadow in a way that shows he had a clear understanding of optical theories. The fresco shows a shift toward naturalism within art as more artists were beginning to understand optics and the role they play within art.

This painting shows da Vinci's theories of optics being put to use. He was one of the first painters to use optics in order to trick the viewer's eye.

Zaccolini's treatise has four parts that discuss different theories of painting. The treatise is most noted for Zaccolini's theories on optics and vision and there how they relate to painting.

This text is a meticulous representation of the phases of insects and metamorphosis