New Treacheries of the Eye

Internationally acclaimed artist Craig Alan recently exhibited new works at the Porrentruy Optical Art Museum (POPA) in Porrentruy, Switzerland as a featured artist in “Art & Illusion: 10 Masters of Optical Art and Neo-Pointillism.” Indeed, through his highly sought-after Populus series, Craig Alan has mastered the “teachery of the eye” described by René Magritte in his immortal work La trahison des images (Ceci n’est pas une pipe). Somewhat innocuously, Craig was inspired to create these images after having his own eye tricked by the appearance of a crowd of people below as he observed a wedding party from a high-up balcony. From this elevated vantage point, the supposedly random crowd of people seemed to appear as a single cohesive image of a human eye-- voilà! 

The illusory qualities of Craig’s work resonate throughout the artistic practice of other artists represented by Connect Contemporary, like highly decorated photographer Parish Kohanim. In his Stripe Study series, Parish initiated the human form into the realm of brain-bending optical illusions. It is irrelevant whether the work is viewed on a lighted screen or with one’s naked eyeballs in a gallery exhibition. The artist’s immaculate arrangement of line on the body and backdrop confuses the eye by creating the illusion of glitching movement, whether one’s gaze is restless or unmoving.