Filippo Brunelleschi pioneered this mathematical system, using a central vanishing point to make flat surfaces look like realistic three-dimensional spaces.

Derived from the Italian word for smoke, sfumato allowed da Vinci to blur sharp edges and create the extraordinarily lifelike, soft skin tones of his subject.

Earlier sculptors usually showed the hero standing over Goliath's severed head, but Michelangelo chose to capture his subject's tense focus before the fight.

As the plaster dries, a chemical reaction permanently binds the pigment to the wall itself, which is why masterpieces like the Sistine Chapel ceiling endure.