Café wall illusion

First described by Richard Gregory in 1973


This optical illusion makes the parallel straight horizontal lines appear to be bent.


It is essential for the illusion that each "brick" is surrounded by a layer of "mortar" (the grey in the image). This should ideally be of a color in between the dark and light color of the "bricks".


Usage: Architecture inspired by the café wall illusion, at Melbourne Docklands