Hyperrealism with Tom Mulliner

Op Art, Bridget Riley, and Illusion as Artistic Language Inline SVG demonstration: In Riley’s Movement in Squares (1961), systematically varying the width of black squares against a white ground generates strong illusory motion effects. The overlaid red line indicates perceived path distortion, not explicit physical curvature. For comparison, see Riley (1965) in the Tate Archives. Expert Objective This masterclass interrogates the artistic deployment of visual illusion in Op Art—particularly via the works of Bridget Riley and those influenced by the movement—through the lens of current vision science literature. Our objective: to rigorously analyze (1) how Op Art characterizes and destabilizes perceptual norms, (2) the neural and psychophysical mechanisms underlying these effects, and (3) the open scientific and artistic questions prompted by this complex interaction. The focus is advanced, prioritizing...

Checkpoint: Design a Multi-Mechanism Illusion The Constructed Eye: Visual Illusion, Perception Science, and the Work of Akiyoshi Kitaoka and Beau Lotto — Day 24 Simultaneous Contrast + Surface Edge Multi-Mechanism Illusion Panel: Two identical central bars appear differently due to both gradient surround (simultaneous contrast) and edge placement (Mach bands). Designed for this masterclass. Expert Objective Design, justify, and critically analyze an original visual illusion that combines at least two separable perceptual mechanisms, explicitly aiming to create a multi-mechanism conflict or enhancement. The artist’s ambition is to use rigorous vision science—not just optical trickery—to explore and expose layered processing in human visual perception, instructing advanced viewers in the interplay between contextual, edge-based, and higher-order grouping ef...

Afterimages, Adaptation, and Temporal Effects Day 23 • The Constructed Eye: Visual Illusion, Perception Science, and the Work of Akiyoshi Kitaoka and Beau Lotto Red (stare here) Cyan (afterimage) Afterimage demonstration: Fixating on the red square for 20 seconds, then moving gaze to a white area, produces a cyan afterimage—the complementary color. This effect is foundational for understanding visual adaptation. See Zaidi et al., 2012 . Expert Objective Today’s objective is to dissect the temporal dynamics of afterimages and adaptation responses, distinguishing the phenomenology from underlying neural mechanisms, and to clarify why afterimages—central to contemporary illusionists like Akiyoshi Kitaoka—remain a battleground for perceptual science. Unlike static contrast effects, temporal dependencies in visual signals unmask adaptive filtering processes and intercellular communication governing color, lumina...

Day 22: Depth, Perspective, Shadow, and Impossible-Object Illusions Masterclass Series: The Constructed Eye: Visual Illusion, Perception Science, and the Work of Akiyoshi Kitaoka and Beau Lotto Ground-shadow Projected-shadow Box on Ground Floating Plate Illustration: Ambiguous shadow placement alters perceived spatial relation and depth, a key factor in shadow-based depth illusions (adapted for educational use). Expert Objective Today’s objective is to dissect the perceptual mechanisms underlying depth, perspective, and shadow illusions—including the rigorous construction of impossible objects—through the lenses of contemporary psychophysics and neuroimaging. Artists will critically examine the neural and perceptual basis for false depth cues, the psychophysical signatures of real versus illusory perspective, and the architecture of paradoxical figures as designed by K...

The Constructed Eye Masterclass: Day 21 Figure-Ground, Gestalt Grouping, and Visual Segmentation Intensive daily masterclass in perception science, with focus on the art and vision science of Akiyoshi Kitaoka and Beau Lotto. Ambiguous figure-ground Competing regions Original SVG: Ambiguity in figure-ground assignments. Notice how grouping and enclosure affect which region is perceived as figure versus background, echoing Gestalt principles and influencing subsequent visual segmentation. Visual artists and perceptual scientists alike confront the foundational problem of figure-ground organization —how surfaces are dynamically assigned as 'objects' (figures) or backgrounds (grounds). Both Akiyoshi Kitaoka and Beau Lotto exploit this ambiguity in their works, pushing the viewer’s visual system to oscillate between possible interpretations. Figure-ground segregation, Gestalt grouping, and ...

Brightness Illusions, Pupil Responses, and the Asahi Effect Asahi effect area SVG depiction of the Asahi brightness illusion. Despite identical luminance profiles, the center appears to glow. (Adapted from Komban et al., 2017 .) Expert Objective As a practicing artist with a focus on advanced visual phenomena, your aim with Day 20 is to master the technical and perceptual underpinnings of brightness illusions—focusing on automatic pupil responses and their physiologically-relevant cues, with special attention to the Asahi effect as explored by Akiyoshi Kitaoka and Beau Lotto. You should be able to discriminate between illusions rooted in photometric ambiguity, high-level inference, and direct neural coupling, and to apply this knowledge to both studio phenomena and the interpretation of scientific demonstrations. Uniform surro...

The Constructed Eye: Day 19 Geometric, Tilt, Spiral, Bulge, and Orientation Illusions Exploring Illusory Space: How Control over Context, Geometry, and Orientation Distorts What Artists and Brains See Comparative analysis: A simple ellipse (left) vs. local tilt cues (right) disrupting orientation judgments as demonstrated in the Zöllner and Orbison illusions. Note controlled geometry and local tilt emphasis. Expert Objective Today’s masterclass unpacks the neural and perceptual architecture underlying geometric illusions—specifically tilt, spiral, bulge, and orientation effects—with direct analysis of their psychophysical signatures and relevance to advanced artistic practice. Artists gain not only empirical understanding but also informed strategies to manipulate or avoid unwanted distortions in composition, perspective, and illusion. Obs...

Checkpoint: Build a Parameterized Peripheral-Drift Generator Customizable digital rendering of the classic peripheral drift pattern. When fixating just above or below the bands, lateral motion appears, particularly in the periphery, despite total image stillness. Day 18 of The Constructed Eye masterclass challenges you to construct a digital peripheral-drift generator, modeling the illusions pioneered by Akiyoshi Kitaoka and neurobiological work by Beau Lotto. We step beyond replication: you’ll parameterize luminance, contrast, and edge geometry to test theoretical models and inform new studio interventions. Expert Objective Develop a parameterized graphics tool to system...

Competing Neural Explanations and Current Evidence Course: The Constructed Eye: Visual Illusion, Perception Science, and the Work of Akiyoshi Kitaoka and Beau Lotto Day 17 Apparent color shift Same local intensity Demonstration: Two identical ellipses appear differently colored when placed on contrasting backgrounds—a canonical test for neural explanations of contrast illusions. Expert Objective Today’s aim is to scrutinize the competing neural models—lateral inhibition, normalization, top-down prediction, and recurrent integration—that underpin our current understanding of complex visual illusions. Advanced artists working with visual phenomena like those in the work of Akiyoshi Kitaoka and Beau Lotto must appreciate how these conceptual frameworks contest and explain psychophysical data, and which explanatory gaps remain unresolved. Evidence and Competing Explanatio...

The Constructed Eye: Saccades, Microsaccades, Blinks, and Illusory Motion Fixation 1 Fixation 2 Stylized saccade (red arrow) and return saccade (green) connecting two fixation targets. Blurring of intermediate path mirrors transient visual suppression. Not a simulacrum of actual eye trace, but a schematic for artists. Expert Objective By the end of this lesson, advanced artists will be able to: - Analyze how saccades, microsaccades, and eye blinks shape the integrity of visual experience and perceptual stability. - Distinguish different motion illusions (e.g., Kitaoka's Rotating Snakes) by their reliance on ocular micro-movements. - Critically appraise neural and psychophysical accounts of why illusory motion persists across saccades and after blinks. ...

The Constructed Eye Masterclass, Day 15 Luminance Sequences and Motion-Detector Models This sequence of steps and ramps in luminance is used experimentally to probe the responses of motion-detecting circuitry in human and animal visual systems. Opening Perspective: Artists such as Akiyoshi Kitaoka and perceptual scientists like Beau Lotto have consistently demonstrated and interrogated the fascinating interplay between luminance patterns and our dynamic experience of motion. Day 15 of this masterclass delves into the scientific principles underpinning these effects, focusing on how spatial luminance sequences drive apparent motion and modulate perceptual experience, integrating canonical research models with contemporary art practice. Expert Objective Today’s goal is to provide you with a research-level understanding of how luminance sequen...

Kitaoka's Rotating Snakes: Pattern Anatomy Course: The Constructed Eye — Visual Illusion, Perception Science, and the Work of Akiyoshi Kitaoka and Beau Lotto Day 14 Topic: Kitaoka's Rotating Snakes: Pattern Anatomy Prototype of Kitaoka's Rotating Snakes pattern: the sequence and contrast of color arcs are critical. The effect depends on precise spatial ordering of luminance transitions. (SVG visualization for didactic use; see Kitaoka, 2003; Conway et al., 2005) Expert Objective To anatomize the Rotating Snakes ill...