Optical Art

design motifs of ancient Mexico are optical art as are the Roman mosaic floors at Antioch. All of which proves the obvious, namely, that man has always been in possession of a magnificent scanning device (the eyeball), a fabulous selective light detector (the retina), and a fantastic interconnected digital computer (the brain). If optical art has an immediate appeal to the untutored eye so much the better. An innocent approaching a battle scene by Uccello, or first entering Chartres Cathedral or the Hall of Bulls at Lascaux (circa 15,000 B.c.,) cannot help but be overwhelmed. This does not exclude, however, the possibility of deriving much more from a work of art by careful study and analysis, but mere intellectualizing of a work of art is not sufficient to appreciate its beauty. Ill. Techniques of Optical Art To do justice to the multitude of techniques which optical artists consciously or unconsciously employ would fill a library. In order to render the discussion finite this cursory treatment has been confined to the problems of color and three-dimensionality and to the specific cases where optical components (other than those in the eye) are employed. Also considered are the artistic possibilities of the moire technique since this is the medium in which I work. Moir6 phenomena can help to explain many interesting visual effects and hence is of interest beyond that of a mere artistic medium.