Fantastic colourful kaleidoscope celebrating optical illusions and their creators
The multitude of original pictures are not only a source of fascination for artists, who produce them, but also for scientists, who analyze the perceptual effects they produce
Includes a variety of new pictures and "perceptual portraits" created by the author
"Art and Illusionists" is a celebration of pictures and the multiple modes of manipulating them to produce illusory worlds on flat surfaces
The book is also a celebration of the ways we see pictures, and of our ability to distil meaning from arrays of contours and colours
Includes hands-on-material such as a single grating transparencies, moving patterns or a red/cyan spectacle
Unlike other books on the topic the book also concentrates on the illusionists - that is, the artists and scientists who produced paradoxical pictures, who are celebrated in new 'perceptual portraits'
A wonderful combination of science, arts - and joy
Includes a variety of new pictures and "perceptual portraits" created by the author, who is a leading scientists and artist in the field
Nicholas J. Wade is Emeritus Professor of Psychology at the University of Dundee in Scotland. He received his degree in psychology from the University of Edinburgh and his Ph.D. from Monash University, Australia, followed by a postdoctoral fellowship from the Alexander von Humboldt Stiftung, at Max-Planck-Institute for Behavioural Physiology, Germany. His research is concerned with the representation of space and motion in human vision, the history of vision research, binocular and motion perception, and the interplay between visual science and art. He has carried out psychophysical research on many visual phenomena and has written extensively on the history of the vision and perception. Nick Wade is the author of more than 20 successful books as well as multitudinous influential papers in the field. He is a long time consulting editor of the journal "Perception" and Section editor on Sensory and Behavioral Sciences of the Journal of the History of the Neurosciences.
"Wade draws on his many years of research and teaching to weave a winding narrative that is both informative and engaging. The science is clear without being patronising and gives an excellent overview for a nonspecialist audience. The ample bibliography and thorough indices encourage the reader to pursue the ideas that catch their eye and make this a valuable reference for a reader with more knowledge of the field." (Shelley James, Perception, November, 2016)
"This book provides a comprehensive overview of illusions as art as well as of the artist and scientists who developed them, it is perhaps most useful as a text or supplement in an advanced undergraduate or graduate-level course on vision, art, or design. However, given the comprehensive collection of visual illusions, it may also be useful for visual perception researchers who have appreciation for art or artists who have an appreciation for visual perception." (Jeffrey B. Wagman, PsycCRITIQUES, Vol. 61 (25), 2016)