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Illusion of the Week: The World Illusion

This article was published in Scientific American’s former blog network and reflects the views of the author, not necessarily those of Scientific American


Ed.note: This blog originally appeared atSleights of Mind blog.

"The world is but an illusion" -- Buddha

Wednesday is Illusion Day. Every Wednesday, we feature a contemporary illusion, or a variation on a classic illusion.


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This week's pick is a wonderful example of anamorphic art, by French artist François Abélanet.

Anamorphic illusions only work from a particular vantage point. Check out our Scientific American Mind slide show on impossible sculptures, for 3D renditions of impossible figures and other illusions that depend on a specific viewing angle.

 

Susana Martinez-Conde is a professor of ophthalmology, neurology, and physiology and pharmacology at SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University in Brooklyn, N.Y. She is author of the Prisma Prize–winning Sleights of Mind, along with Stephen Macknik and Sandra Blakeslee, and of Champions of Illusion, along with Stephen Macknik.

More by Susana Martinez-Conde