Foreshortening

Foreshortening is the word used to describe the method of drawing or painting an object or figure so that it diminishes in size to create the illusion of depth and to achieve the correct spatial relationship within the artwork. Parts of a figure that would be closest to the viewer in the scene are shown larger whilst parts that are meant to be further away are shown relatively smaller depending on the perspective or angle of vision. This distortion makes the subject look 3-dimensional on 2-dimensionsional surface.