7 dizzying art illusions that are hard not to believe in reality

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

Op-art's extraordinary movement has its roots in the Renaissance, when the discovery of linear perspective led artists to a greater level of depth and realism than ever before. But it was during the Mannerist period that optical effects were more advanced, as artists began to use them to dramatically and emotionally affect the viewer, thereby creating dizzying illusions that could literally drive you crazy.

In the early 20th century, Salvador Dali explored a supernatural, Freudian language, where ordinary objects are distorted or set amid strange lighting to challenge our perception of reality. His later paintings returned to the dramatic perspective and exaggerated perspective of the Mannerist period, with haunting scenes viewed from strange, disturbing angles, as seen in the 1951 work Christ of Saint John of the Cross.

The optical or op-art movement emerged as a full-fledged artistic phenomenon during the 1960s and 1970s. Artists associated with movement explored the pure, precise and mathematical arrangement of color, pattern, and light in both two and three dimensions. British artist Bridget Riley has played with dizzying zigzag, circular or wavy lines to create whimsical optical illusions that can suck in and drive you crazy. British artist Peter Sedgley went further by displaying his concentric circle paintings in a darkened room lit from behind by changing colors to disorient the viewer. Op art disappeared from view during the 1980s and 1990s, but recently there has been a resurgence of interest in the field.

1. Edgar Müller

The Crack (2008) by German street artist Edgar Müller impresses viewers from the very first seconds with its incredible realism. Throughout the week, he spent twelve hours a day doing his own thing, creating his masterpiece on a flat stretch of sidewalk. The artist used a Renaissance and Mannerist effect to create the illusion of deep space on a flat surface when viewed from a certain angle. When he finished, he invited the festival goers to pose as if they were balancing on the edge of a giant ice crevice and looking down into nothingness, capturing this moment in memory.

2. Regina Silveira

Abyssal by Brazilian artist Regina Silveira is one of the most technically impressive op-art installations of all time. Made for the contemporary art gallery Atlas Sztuki in Poland, this work uses the technique of anamorphosis, creating the illusion of the gallery's flat floor disappearing into a maze of windows, but only when viewed from an oblique angle.

says the artist.

The old-fashioned style of paneled windows and classic columns was designed to emphasize the traditional design of the building before it was modernized into a free gallery space.

3. Richard Wright

Op-art masterpiece by British artist Richard Wright, The Stairwell Project, may seem fragile enough, but upon closer inspection, it reveals a fascinating and dizzying effect. On the ceiling of the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art, Wright painted a frenzied whirling of black figures that resemble a swarm of insects or a flock of birds. And if you take a closer look, you get the impression that they are all floating in the air on the ceiling, along the walls and windows.

4. Peter Kogler

The dizzying, futuristic installation "Dimensions" by Austrian artist Peter Kogler fills the room with convex plexuses that resemble a pulsating network. Kogler's complex and repetitive designs are based on mesh networks of lines that are stretched and distorted on a computer before being printed into large format wall art. Like Bridget Riley, Kogler works with high contrast black and white designs for maximum visual impact, while clever linear distortions trick our eyes into believing that the patterns are actually three-dimensional shapes moving in and out of space.

5. Kurt Wenner

American street artist Kurt Wenner's painting "Wenner's Dies Irae" was taken on a stretch of sidewalk in Mantua, Italy, stunning passers-by with its realism. Like many op-art artists, Kurt explores the technique of anamorphosis to create an incredibly real sense of depth and space. Based on the 13th century Catholic poem Dies Irae, this work illustrates dead people crawling out of a huge hole in the earth on the last day of judgment to decide their fate. Wenner's astounding level of detailed realism, both in masonry and in figures, evokes admiration of the great masterpieces of the Renaissance and Mannerism.

6. Jim Lambi

Scottish artist Jim Lambi's iconic, rainbow-colored installations "Zobop" are prismatic displays of color. Like its op-art predecessors, Lambi's art combines geometric patterns with eye-popping colors to create the illusion of movement regardless of the direction of the rainbow lines.

7. Artist JR

"The Secret of the Great Pyramid" - an impressive creation of the French street artist JR, excites the mind from the very first seconds, allowing the imagination to run wild. It took him more than two thousand sheets of paper with fragments of the image to translate his plans into reality. Unfortunately, this incredible op-art was only installed in the Louvre for the weekend, because the images, like life, are ephemeral.

Contemporary art is so unique and multifaceted that it is sometimes so difficult to understand and appreciate. However, 10 extraordinary installations, around which heated debates and discussions are still going on - a clear example of this.