L3-41: ANAMORPHIC ART

ID Code: L3-41
Purpose: To demonstrate a type of anamorphic art.
Description: Anamorphic art is art which has been drawn in a highly distorted fashion, but which is seen as normal or undistorted when viewed from a certain point or with the aid of some (normally distorting) optical device, such as a cylindrical or a conical mirror. The above picture, drawn by Larry Geusz, a former student in our introductory optics course for non-science students, is viewed using a conical mirror placed at the center of the drawing. The distorted larger drawing is seen in a "normal" view in the small central circle. Notice that the picture is drawn "inside out," so the entire outer circle corresponds to the center point in the reflected image. It is best viewed with one eye on the axis of the cone and the other eye closed.
Availability: Available