Geometric Abstraction and Optical Illusion
I am attracted to geometric shapes because they are simple and true, easily understood in a world that is not. They create STRUCTURE. Patterns are important because they create CONNECTIONS. Then, disrupting patterns or shapes create CHANGE.
Structure, connections, change,
This is what I paint.
Geometric Abstraction is geometric shapes, (squares, circles, triangles, hexagons, lines) and patterns arranged in a non representational manner. I like to start with fluid shapes and then layer with contrasting hard edge shapes and patterns. For a bold impact I use high contrast/complementary colors.
Optical Art is a style of visual art that uses optical illusions of lines, geometric shapes and color/value to create illusions of depth, dimension, and movement. The techniques usedeffects challenge or shift one’s perception. It is a participatory art because it requires a viewer to experience the illusion
My favorite illusion is the Isometric effect. It is an ambiguous illusion, which means it can be interpreted in more than one way. For example, the corners of a cube drawing can be perceived as an inside corner, or an outside corner
The Irregular Hexagon-triangle tessellation, is also an ambiguous illusion, six irregular triangles make a hexagon, where inside, two connecting triangles of similar value, appear as one side of a cube shape. See “Back to School.” Shifting from hexagon to cube to triangle.
The Bezold Effect is a color/contrast illusion where a color can seem to change in appearance depending on the colors that surround it. In my painting, “Windows, the gray rectangle frames appear to change in color/value as the color/values that surround are different. However, the gray in all three rectangles are the same! The darkest appearing rectangle appears darkest because it is surrounded by the lightest color/value. And the lightest appearing gray rectangle appears lightest because it is surrounded by the darkest color value.
The Hermann Grid is a high contrast illusion. The illusion is characterized by ghostlike gray blobs perceived at the intersections of a white grid against a darker background. The gray blobs disappear when looking directly at an intersection.