Having just spent a vacation at Disney World, I was amazed at the extremes that Walt Disney went to make it the “Happiest Place on Earth.” I was manipulated into happiness without even knowing it and this was not the only time.
Take this photo for instance: one of the the most iconic views, 20th Century, small town America and a beautiful Castle in the distance. Do not let the architecture fool you, there is a forced perspective at play here.
Look close enough and you will see that the architecture on the first floor is ⅞ scale and the upper floors become progressively smaller resulting in the third floor being ½ scale. Without knowing it, one feel smaller (like a child) and this is the result that Walt was looking for.
The castle forces a perspective as well.The trick here is that the bricks get smaller in scale the higher up they are, giving the impression that the castle looks a little taller than it would if all the bricks were the same size.The same technique is practiced with the Spires, whereby the highest Spire is half the size of that of the lowest. Who doesn’t love a tall castle?
I was surprised to learn the popularity of this practice and after some research I found it to be true to one of the most iconic views in New York: The Statue of Liberty. Once again there is a forced perspective altering the view when viewed from its base.This allows for a more proportionate representation from this angle. When designed in the 19th century there was no easy “ flight view” therefore resulting in the base view as the most popular.
So in conclusion; Forced Perspectives lead to happiness.
