Optical Art

Terms We Need to Know Elements Space: There are two types of space; positive (filled-in) and negative (empty) Space deals with how open some areas are and how filled-in others are

Terms We Need to Know Principles Movement Can be real (like in mobiles) or created How the piece is arranged to make our eyes move Do our eyes move quickly? Slowly?

Perceived Movement Actual Movement

Terms We Need to Know Principles Contrast The difference between different elements in a piece of art The difference in how light and dark the colors or values in a piece are Black and white is the greatest contrast you can have in terms of value

Why did Op-Art come about?

Optical Art comes about… Because of psychological and technological advances during the 1940s-1960s To continue the art tradition of “fooling the eye” Artists wanted to engage the viewer and make them part of the piece

Victor Vasarely Hungarian-French artist who was concerned with making flat canvases appear to have volume and roundness

Bridget Riley British artist concerned with creating movement in black and white and disorientation

Important Characteristics Op-Art exists to fool the eye Op-Art is abstract and non-objective The elements (shape, color, line) are carefully chosen to fit the design High contrast Positive and negative space are equally important

Optical Illusions

Ideas for Your Project

Student Examples