Art Explorer 8: Do you see what I see?

It may be a car's dashboard OR it may be a face... What do you see??

Correct, this is a picture of a car's dashboard, but can't you see the face? Look closer. The eyes, nose, mouth, cheeks, even dimples are ALL there! Here, I'll show you...

• The vents = The eyes
• The knobs in the middle of the vents = The pupils
• The hazard light button + hour/minute buttons = The nose
• The CD slot = The mouth (which is smiling)
• The eject button + audio control button = The dimples
• The power/volume knob + tune/file knob = The cheeks

Can you see it now??

Well, its an illusion.  I classify it as an illusion, because its something that does not realistically exist. Instead, its a vision or picture projected in my brain that I associate with the concrete features.  The way I came across this illusion may seem peculiar, but it had to do with its shape.  Shape can refer to the outside form of an object, or it can be defined by a line or outline in the surrounding area (Schirrmacher & F0x, 2009).  Shapes also hold various personalities and qualities and can be characterized by: simple/complex, symmetrical/asymmetrical, clearly defined/vaguely defined, proportional/non-proportional or abstract/realistic (Schirrmacher & Fox, 2009).  

The three sets of characteristics that represent this illusion, are proportional/non-proportional, symmetrical/asymmetrical and abstract/realistic.  The proportion and symmetry of the picture is spot on, as the eyes, cheeks and dimples are parallel to one another, which is similarly seen in people's face structure. The abstract/realistic characteristic is in the illusion itself.  Realistically, the picture is made of shapes, such as circles, squares and rectangles.  However, in an abstract way, this picture is made of shapes that resemble a nose, mouth, eyes, cheeks and dimples.  As you can see, this illusion comes from a simple object that surrounds most of us everyday and with a little imagination, I transformed it into something completely different.

**Note to Future Educators**
There are many things in our everyday surroundings that can come to life.  And, this could be a fun activity to try in a classroom with young children, as their imagination and creativity is never-ending!  Try and see the fascinating creations that they come up with!