Trompe-l'œil
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- This article is about the art technique. For the 2006 album by Canadian indie rock band Malajube, see Trompe-l'oeil (album).
Trompe-l'œil is an art technique involving extremely realistic imagery in order to create the optical illusion that the depicted objects really exist, instead of being just two-dimensional paintings. The name is derived from French for "trick the eye", from tromper - to deceive and l'œil - the eye; IPA pronunciation [tʁɔ̃plœj].
[edit] Sotto in su
Sotto in su, meaning Seen from below in Italian, (also called di sotto in su) is an alternative term for a type of trompe l'œil illusionistic painting technique used for ceilings to provide perspective. The elements above the viewer are rendered as if viewed in true vanishing point perspective. This is used commonly in Italian Baroque fresco cycles in a style called Quadratura. Probably its first use was by Andrea Mantegna in the Camera degli Sposi in Mantua. Other notable uses are by Antonio da Correggio in the Duomo of Parma, Pietro da Cortona's Allegory of Divine Providence and Barberini Power in the Palazzo Barberini, and Andrea Pozzo's Apotheosis of St Ignatius [4] at the Roman church of Sant'Ignazio.
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.
[edit] History in painting
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.
A version of an often-told ancient Greek story tells of a contest between two renowned painters. Zeuxis produced a still life painting so convincing that birds flew down from the sky to peck at the painted grapes. He then asked his opponent, Parrhasius, to pull back a pair of very tattered curtains, claiming the painting was behind them. Parrhasius won the contest, as his painting was the curtains themselves.
With the superior understanding of perspective drawing achieved in the Renaissance, painters, beginning with Jacopo de' Barbari, 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.
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. A particularly impressive example can be seen at Chatsworth House in Derbyshire, where one of the internal doors appears to have a violin and bow suspended from it, in a trompe l'œil painted around 1723 by Jan van der Vaart [1].
[edit] Modern revival
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.
[edit] In other artforms
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 (for example) paints a tunnel on a rock wall, and the road runner then races through the fake tunnel. This is usually followed by the coyote's foolishly trying to run through the tunnel after the road runner, only to smash into the hard rock-face.
[edit] Trivia
George Washington was once fooled by a trompe-l'œil painting when he visited someone else's home. Upon entering a room containing on its far wall such a painting of someone descending a stair (apparently into the room), he is said to have bowed to the figure before he realized it was a painting.
[edit] Examples of trompe-l'œil paintings
 Portrait of a Carthusian by Petrus Christus (1446). Note the fly near the bottom. |
 Jacopo de' Barbari, 1504. The first still-life trompe l'oeil since antiquity |
 Painter with a Pipe and Book by Gerard Dou (c.1654) |
 Trompe l'œil by Henry Fuseli (1750) |
 Escaping Criticism by Pere Borrell del Caso (1874) |
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[edit] Examples of trompe-l'œil murals
 Oculus on the ceiling of the Spouses Chamber, castle of San Giorgio in Mantua, Italy, by Andrea Mantegna |
 Ceiling of Church of St Ignatius, Rome |
 Complete anamorphosis of the frontage of the Saint-Georges Theatre |
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 A trompe-l'œil of a pigeon on a window sill, façade mural, rue Emile Lepeu in Paris, France |
 Mural in Schwetzingen, Germany (the view "through" the wall at the end) |
 Architectural trompe-l'œil in the Palazzo Spada, Rome, by Francesco Borromini |
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 Trompe-l'œil mural Tunnelvision by Blue Sky located in Columbia, South Carolina |
 A trompe l'oeil depicting an Italian lanscape, designed by Pascal Amblard and completed by understudy Patricia Buzo. |
[edit] Trompe-l'œil artists
19th Century and Modern Masters
Contemporary
- Pascal Amblard
- Julian Beever who creates Trompe-l'œil chalk drawings on pavement
- István Orosz (Utisz)
- Susan Powers
- Anthony Waichulis
- Carolina von Humboldt
- Richard Shaw
[edit] Usage in movies
- Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
- Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
- Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971)
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Deceptions and Illusions, National Gallery of Art exhibition on Trompe-l'œil paintings
- Trompe l'œil Tricks: Borges' Baroque Illusionism, essay by Lois Parkinson Zamora comparing trompe-l'œil to the literature of Borges
- murals.trompe-l-oeil.info, More than 10 000 pictures and 1200 Outdoor murals of France and Europe
- Discover the art of trompe, A short history of trompe l'oeil painting including a list of links.
- Monkey in a Fire Place by Andrew Regan A good example of trompe l'oeil.
- Fooling the eye Fooling The Eye: A history of trompe l'oeil.
- A fake cabinet using Trompe L'Oeil by Filipa Athaide
