OP ART Discussant: ELIZA A. VILLANUEVA

OP ART

• Op art, also known as optical art, is a style of visual art that makes use of optical illusions.

• Op art works are abstract, with many of the better known pieces made in black and white. When the viewer looks at them, the impression is given of movement, hidden images, flashing and vibrations, patterns, or alternatively, of swelling or warping.

• Optical Art is a mathematically-themed form of Abstract art, which uses repetition of simple forms and colors to create vibrating effects, moiré patterns, foreground-background confusion, an exaggerated sense of depth, and other visual effects.

• In the mid-20th century, artists such as Victor Vasarely, Josef Albers and M.C. Escher experimented with Optical Art. Escher's work, although not abstract, deals extensively with various forms of visual tricks and paradoxes.

Characteristics of OP ART

• Op compositions create a sort of visual tension, in the viewer's mind, that gives works the illusion of movement.

• Because of its geometrically-based nature, Op Art is, almost without exception, non-representational.

• The elements employed (color, line and shape) are carefully chosen to achieve maximum effect.

• The critical techniques used in Op Art are perspective and careful juxtaposition of color (whether chromatic [identifiable hues] or achromatic [black, white or gray]).

How OP ART works?

• Black-and-white and the figure-ground relationship

• Color• Color interaction