Abstract
Reverspectives are paintings created by the English artist Patrick Hughes. They are 3D structures, for example, pyramids or prisms, which elicit an illusory depth perception that corresponds to the reverse of the physical depth layout. Rogers and Gyani state that “the perspective information provided by a simple grid of vertical and horizontal lines on a slanting surface can be just as powerful as the information provided by a rich, naturalistic scene”. The present experiment was aimed to further investigate this perspective reversal. Three independent variables were manipulated: (1) texture components (i.e., vertical, horizontal, and oblique lines components), (2) texture spatial arrangement (i.e., Hughes-type “perspective” grid vs. equidistant “no perspective” grid), and (3) illumination direction (i.e., homogeneous illumination, light from above, and light from below). The dependent variable was the “critical distance”, namely, the distance between an approaching observer and the stimulus at which the illusory depth perception of concavity/convexity switched to the actual perception of convexity/concavity. The results showed that a stronger illusion is elicited by: (a) a Hughes-type texture spatial arrangement; (b) a complete grid texture composition, having both vertical and horizontal, and oblique components; and (c) illumination from below, as opposed to the condition in which light is coming from above.
Highlights
IntroductionReverspectives are painted on 3D structures, consisting of protruding solid geometric elements shaped as partially overlapping prisms or pyramids, and represent perspective spaces that give the impression of reverse depth
Starting in 1990, the English artist Patrick Hughes decided to devote himself entirely to one particular type of artwork that he invented, which he named, using a peculiar neologism, reverspective.Reverspectives are painted on 3D structures, consisting of protruding solid geometric elements shaped as partially overlapping prisms or pyramids, and represent perspective spaces that give the impression of reverse depth
Rogers and Gyani [4] demonstrated that a reverspective depicted with a geometrically correct perspective made by pebbles is ineffective, and that one made by a perspective photograph is slightly less effective than a grid
Summary
Reverspectives are painted on 3D structures, consisting of protruding solid geometric elements shaped as partially overlapping prisms or pyramids, and represent perspective spaces that give the impression of reverse depth. The reverspectives arouse in the observer a very strong illusion: the volume of the protruding solids is phenomenally inverted, creating a completely fictitious new space, in which what is physically closer is perceived as more distant and vice versa. Hughes’ reverspectives do not strictly follow the rules of geometrical perspective, but loosely: the distribution of the objects in depth is somewhat disproportionate, and the vanishing points multiply. The reverspectives create a situation of conflict between different depth cues, before the switch-off occurs, the pictorial cues that suggest to the observer the reversal of the actual 3D structure clearly prevail; the other cues—such as the motion parallax and the retinal disparity-remain in the background
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