The perspective of objects receding into the distance..
The perspective of a miniature painting as seen from the top of a minaret.
The perspective of Chinese painting, implying almost endless verticality or horizontality.
Linear perspective.
Depth perspective.
3D perspective.
Vertical perspective.
Isometric perspective.
The perspective of a bird, or bird's eye view and aerial perspective.
The perspective of an ant.
The perspective of a fish, even - fisheye views or what insects see.
The perspective of a tree or a coin (My Name is Red, Orhan Pamuk).
Atmospheric perspective.
My perspective.
Your perspective.
My point of view and your point of view.
All the above are equally important. Increasingly, I am drawn to multiple perspectives and how classical miniature painting gives everything an equal value and there is no privileged viewpoint or hierarchy in terms of the place value of things.
And yet, I was taught that all good paintings need a centre...
It seems like a both/and situation for miniature paintings. As in, there is indeed a relative lack of privileged viewpoint for miniature painting in spirit, and yet, many miniatures do seem to have a clear point of focus in form. (For example, in 'The Throne of Gayumarth': Gayumarth does seem to be a central and more important figure than, say, one of the deer in the bottom left.)
Perhaps I state the obvious! I do so because I relish any opportunity to flex/stretch my capacity to hold seemingly opposing views at once. It's my attempt to "see" more with the heart rather than the head. (I've been so deeply conditioned to operate from the latter that what seems to be a drastic swerve away from Cartesian thinking only has a net effect of gently nudging me towards more of a head-heart balance. Or so I like to think!)
All this said, I love the spirit of having "no privileged perspective" and giving all things equal importance. What a way to live! In the quiet of our hearts, washing dishes as mindfully as we dress our newborn baby; understanding that hating a politician is, in essence, the same as feeling hateful towards a loved one; comprehending the pain of an enemy expressing rage as the same pain that we feel with a mild spilt-milk irritation; knowing that the anonymous simpleton has as much value as the celebrated artistic genius.
In other news, I think I've forgotten how to properly use a semicolon. :)
The Angle of Totality (Floating Perspective) - Guo Xi