True or false?
The artist uses repoussoir to push back the vanishing point behind Christ's head (in his temple to be precise), which you can see in the rectangular tapestries that hang on the walls and the squares in the ceiling that seem to become smaller as they go back in space.

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Question: True or false?
The artist uses repoussoir to push back the vanishing point behind Christ's head (in his temple to be precise), which you can see in the rectangular tapestries that hang on the walls and the squares in the ceiling that seem to become smaller as they go back in space.

Option 1: True
This statement asserts that repoussoir is used to push the vanishing point behind Christ's head, and that this effect is visible through the rectangular tapestries and the diminishing squares in the ceiling. A repoussoir is a foreground element or device intended to frame the composition and intensify depth by guiding the viewer’s eye toward the vanishing point. However, in this scene, the evidence of depth comes from the overall perspective geometry (orthogonals and receding ceiling coffers) rather than a deliberate repoussoir pushing the vanishing point behind Christ’s head. The wording overstates the role of repoussoir for locating the vanishing point and misattributes the primary mechanism for the depth cue here.

Option 2: False
This option states that the claim is not true. Indeed, while the painting demonstrates depth through linear perspective—the diminishing squares in the ceiling and the receding tapestries—there is no clear, intentional repoussoir device used to place the vanishing point specifically behind Christ’s head. The vanishing point in many classic compositions is centralized on or near Christ’s head, but the description given (push back the vanishing point behind Christ's head via repoussoir with those architectural cues) does not accurately describe the work’s technique. The depth cues align with general perspective practice rather than a dedicated repoussoir strategy aimed at shifting the vanishing point behind Christ’s temple.

Option 3: (Not applicable since only True/False provided, but if considered) This would require a nuanced interpretation of whether any foreground elements function as repoussoir; whether or not such elements exist here, the explicit claim connecting repoussoir to moving the vanishing point behind Christ’s head is not supported by the described features.

Option 4: (Not applicable for True/False structure) Any further elaboration would reiterate that the described mechanism—repoussoir actively pushing the vanishing point behind Christ’s head using tapestries and ceiling squares—is not the established interpretation of the work’s depth construction.

Summary: The statement overstates the use of repoussoir as a device to push the vanishing point behind Christ’s head and misattributes the primary depth cues to that mechanism. The true interpretation relies on standard perspective cues in the composition rather than a deliberate repoussoir strategy to reposition the vanishing point.

ART H 200 A First Exam

True or false? The artist uses repoussoir to push back the vanishing point behind Christ's head (in his temple to be precise), which you can see in the rectangular tapestries that hang on the walls and the squares in the ceiling that seem to become smaller as they go back in space.

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