Illusion 5 -- Anamorphosis

One of the most popular entries for this blog has been  "Optical Illusion 2 -- Street Art". The key to the optical illusionary factor of this street art is based on perspective: The artwork can be properly viewed from only one specific spot. There's a real name for this process: Anamorphosis.

While the street art version is a relatively new way of presenting the process, it actually has been around for a long time in other formats. For instance, one the earliest known examples of the technique is by none other than Leonardo da Vinci. In his drawing "Leonardo's Eye" (1485), one can get the true sense of the drawing by viewing it only at a very acute angle [see video below].

In "The Ambassadors" (1533), by Hans Holbein the Younger [see below], the painting seems normal enough, except for some very odd shape across the bottom. If the viewer moves to a very acute angle, the odd shape suddenly is clearly observed as a skull.

"The Ambassadors" by Hans Holbein the Younger

Detail

A related technique is called trompe l'oeil. On a very different, and much larger canvas, Andrea Pozzo was given the task of using only paint to "create" a huge vaulted dome ceiling inside Rome's Church of St. Ignazio. The problem was that the church had no dome. Therefore, Pozzo painted an anamorphic illusion of a vaulted ceiling and an enormous dome (1685-94). As you can see in the video below, if the viewer stands on one specific spot in the church, it appears that the vault above goes very high indeed, perhaps to the heavens. However, keep in mind that you are looking at a perfectly flat ceiling. At the 1-minute mark of the video, you will notice the inside of a huge dome. Fake. It's another flat ceiling.

Pozzo created a similar "domed" ceiling in the Jesuit Church in Vienna (1703).

Jesuit Church, Vienna -- by Andrea Pozzo

Similar anamorphic trompe l'oeil techniques are used by modern artists on even larger scales. Felice Varini incorporates entire buildings or even parts of cities to achieve effects that are viewable only from one specific vantage point. In the photo below, you can see purple squares that appear to float in the air in front of a long arched walkway. However, move a few feet to the left (as seen in the next photo), and you can see that reality is much different.

All of the works mentioned above are examples of "perspective" anamorphosis. Another type is "mirror" or "catoptric" anamorphosis. In this method, the artwork is not meant to be viewed from one specific point, but rather by reflection off a cylindrical mirror. Below is an example. The incomprehensible shape is actually an ornate column.

 

Here is a collection of other anamorphosis techniques used in modern art: 

Cube


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"Qui croire?" by François Abélanet, Paris