ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

De pictura

De pictura is a book written by Italian artist and architect Leon Battista Alberti in the 15th century. It talks about how to create a good painting and everything an artist might need to know.

Imagine you are drawing a picture with crayons. You might start by drawing the outlines of what you want to create. Then you might fill in the colors and details. The book talks about how to do this but in a more complicated way.

One important thing in de pictura is that it talks about perspective. That means making things look like they are far away or close up. Think about how things look smaller when they are far away from you. The book tells you how to do this in a painting so it looks real and like things really are farther away.

Another thing it talks about is the use of light and shadow. If you shine a flashlight on an object, you might notice that one side is brighter and the other side is darker. This is because of how the light is hitting the object. The book teaches artists how to make this look realistic in their paintings.

Overall, de pictura is a very detailed and helpful book for artists who want to create amazing paintings. It teaches them how to make things look real and helps them improve their skills.