PsychWorld

Sometimes looking at a work of art from the right angle can make all the difference. In the art installations shown here, building interiors and exteriors have been painted in various ways to make them look like patterns have been superimposed on top of them. However, this effect is only seen when looking at the space from the correct angle.

What can piles of junk be used for? Apparently, some pretty neat sculptures.

From pieces of scrap metal, to piles of household trash, to mummified animals, British artists Tim Noble and Sue Webster have taken many pounds of nondescript rubbish and shined light on them, literally, to create what’s known as “shadow art.”

If you enjoy optical illusions, it’s likely you’ve seen M.C. Escher’s famous drawings of impossible buildings, with stairs that go upward without end and channels of water that continuously flow downward. But have you ever seen these impossible scenarios in three dimensions?

Below are a set of four images rendered in only two colors—black and white. Superficially, the images look like a set of inkblots with no rhyme or reason, but they’re actually concrete images representing various things (scenes, people, etc.). See if you can figure out what each image depicts.

Do the dots in the image below look like they’re raised or depressed to you?

What about in this image?

Created by American wildlife artist Rusty Rust, this painting shows a Bengal tiger standing majestically in a bamboo forest. But there’s a reason why this week’s illusion is called “The Hidden Tiger.” See if you can find it in the painting.

In this short video, a paper diamond cutout is moved over a sheet of diamonds of seemingly different shades of gray but always ends up matching those diamonds in shade. Take a look:

This optical illusion, as you can see, is as much a magic trick as it is an illusion! How does it work?

This set of two images shows a man on the left who looks noticeably angry and a woman on the right who appears to be relatively calm. However, when you back yourself away from your computer screen (say, 8 feet or so), the two faces switch places, with Mr. Angry on the right this time and Mrs. Calm on the left!

This week’s illusion, named after Japanese discoverer Hajime Ōuchi, is a classic that is still not fully understood. Take a look at the central circular area of vertical black and white bars in relation to the surrounding area of horizontal bars. Do you notice any movement?

Last week, we showed you some “rotating” illusions created by Japanese psychologist Akiyoshi Kitaoka. This week, we have two additional illusions by Kitaoka, but they’re of an entirely different nature. And just in time for Valentine’s Day, they feature lots and lots of hearts.