The amazing versatility of the talents and creative interests of academician Boris Viktorovich Rauschenbach, accustomed to reaching heights in everything he does, brings to mind the names of Renaissance thinkers. He is cramped on the paths of science, he is constantly attracted by new horizons. Turning to art criticism, to the history of icon painting, B.V. Rauschenbach introduced into his research the methodology of the exact sciences, opening up new possibilities for interpreting material that has already been studied many times, fundamental studies "Spatial constructions in Old Russian painting" (1975), "Spatial constructions in painting" (1980), "Systems of perspective in fine art. General theory of perspective" (1986) and many others are the professional contribution of mathematics to the theory of artistic creativity. In the book "Geometry of the picture and visual perception" (first publication - 1994), the results of many years of work by B. V. Rauschenbach are formulated, opening up new opportunities for art history.