Trompe l'oeil

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Image:Trompe l'oeil Narbonne.jpg Trompe-l'œil (French for "trick the eye" from tromper - to deceive and l'œil - the eye; IPA pronunciation [[[Template:IPA]]]) is an art technique involving extremely realistic imagery in order to create the optical illusion that the depicted objects really exist.

Although the phrase has its origin in the Baroque period, use of trompe-l'œil dates back much further. It was (and is) often employed in murals, and instances from Greek and Roman times are known, for instance from Pompeii. A typical trompe-l'œil mural might depict a window, door or hallway to optically enlarge a room.

With the superior understanding of perspective drawing achieved in the Renaissance, painters often added trompe-l'œil features to their paintings, playfully exploring the boundary between image and reality. For example, a fly might appear to be sitting on the painting's frame, a curtain might appear to partly conceal the painting, a piece of paper might appear to be attached to a board, or a person might appear to be climbing out of the painting altogether:

Image:HaberleABachelorsDrawer.jpg

The interior of Jesuit churches in the mannerist style often show trompe-l'œil paintings on the ceiling, optically opening by anamorphosis the church to heaven with a depiction of Jesus' or Mary's ascension.

Trompe-l'œil can also be found painted on tables and other items of furniture, where for example a deck of playing cards might appear to be sitting on the table.

The art form was revived by the American 19th century still-life painter William Harnett. In the 20th century, Richard Haas painted large trompe-l'œil murals in American cities.

Trompe-l'œil is employed in Donald O'Connor's famous 'Running up the wall' scene in the film Singin' in the Rain. During the finale of his "Make 'em Laugh" number he first runs up a real wall. Then he runs towards what appears to be a hallway but when he runs up this as well we realize that it is a large trompe-l'œil mural.

Another variant of trompe-l'œil is matte painting, a technique used in filmmaking where parts of a complicated scenery are painted on glass panels which are mounted in front of the camera during shooting of the scene. This was for instance used in early Star Wars movies.

Fictional trompe-l'œil is featured in many Looney Tunes, such as the Road Runner cartoons, where Wile E. Coyote paints a tunnel on a rock wall and the road runner races through the fake tunnel. This is usually followed by the coyote foolishly trying to run through the tunnel after the road runner, only to smash into the hard rock.

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Examples of trompe-l'œil paintings

Portrait of a Carthusian by Petrus Christus (1446)

Painter with a Pipe and Book by Gerard Dou (c.1654)

Trompe l'oeil by Henry Fuseli (1750)

Escaping Criticism by Pere Borrell del Caso (1874)

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Examples of trompe-l'œil murals

Oculus on the ceiling of the Spouses Chamber, castle of San Giorgio in Mantua, Italy, by Andrea Mantegna	The original façade of the Saint-George Theatre, Paris, France, before mural painting	Complete anamorphosis of the frontage of the Saint-George Theatre	A trompe-l'œil of a pigeon on a window sill, façade mural, rue Emile Lepeu in Paris, France
Mural in Schwetzingen, Germany	Architectural trompe-l'oeil in the Palazzo Spada, Rome, by Francesco Borromini	A trompe-l'oeil in Lyon, France