Anamorpho...what?
The best art is really just beautiful science!
Neil’s One Cookie a Day by David Zinn
Zinn discovered sidewalk art later in his artistic journey, and it completely changed how he saw things. Before, he was used to working within the limits of a frame or canvas. But with sidewalk art, he realized he could break free from those boundaries and embrace the real-world context surrounding the viewer.
See
Due to Anamorphosis, Zinn’s art is best viewed in pictures, as a photo captures the image at the exact correct position. The camera has one eye and distills the image to achieve the greatest effect. Humans have a very specific way of perceiving the world, as our two eyes are a few inches apart. Each eye takes in slightly different information and our brain merges them together to give us a complete view of what we are seeing, creating depth perception and helping us to accurately understand the world we are seeing.
This specific point of view is called anamorphosis. It has been used as far back as the 15th century. One of my favorite examples is Hans Holbein the Younger’s skull in ‘The Ambassadors’. The skull is a memento mori commonly used at the time to remind the viewer that no one escapes eventual death.
Anamorphosis and the Eccentric Observer by Dan Collins, Associate Professor of Art, Arizona State University shows how 'The Ambassadors' by Hans Holbein the Younger (1497/8-1543), is intended to be viewed from a very specific perspective.
The figure floating in the foreground of the main painting is an anamorphic projection of a skull. The "corrected" image of the skull (image above) can be seen by positioning yourself at an oblique angle relative to the right side of the picture plane.
The intended placement of this painting was on the wall of a staircase, so when you approached it coming up the stairs, the skull was perfectly clear to see.
At the time, artists began installing a peephole at the perfect viewing spot so frustrated viewers could enjoy the magic!
Ames Room is another version of the concept of Anamorphosis
An Ames room is a distorted room that creates an optical illusion. Likely influenced by the writings of Hermann Helmholtz, it was invented by American scientist Adelbert Ames Jr. in 1946, and constructed in the following year.
Say
How do you think the anamorphosis technique was discovered?
Consider the challenges of working with chalk on uneven surfaces like sidewalks. How might understanding perspective help artists overcome these challenges?
Compare and contrast the use of perspective in traditional two-dimensional art versus sidewalk chalk art. What unique opportunities or limitations does chalk art present?
Do
Get out some sidewalk chalk and give it a try. Look for inspiration in tufts of weeds, cracks and manhole covers!
Visit a sidewalk chalk event and/or an Ames Room!
For a very clear demonstration of how anamorphosis works, watch Viral Chalk interview with David Zinn starting at 4:12 and learn more by watching his TedX talk.
About the Artist
David Zinn has been creating original artwork in and around Ann Arbor, Michigan since 1987. For more than twenty years, he freelanced for a wide variety of commercial clients while simultaneously sneaking “pointless” art into the world at large.
His professional commissions included theatrical posters, business logos, educational cartoons, landfill murals, environmental superheroes, corporate allegories and hand-painted dump trucks. Meanwhile, he indulged his personal creativity using bar coasters, restaurant placemats, cake icing, and snow.
Now, thanks to the temptations of a box of sidewalk chalk on an unusually sunny day, Mr. Zinn is known all over the world for the art he creates under his feet. David’s temporary street drawings are composed entirely of chalk, charcoal and found objects, and are always improvised on location through a process known (to almost no one) as "ephemeral pareidolic anamorphosis."
Most of his creatures appear on sidewalks in Michigan, but many have surfaced as far away as beaches in California, village squares in Sweden and street corners in Taiwan. He has achieved global notoriety and millions of followers through sharing of his images on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, CBS Mornings and BBC News, and his TEDx Talk (Avoiding Blank Canvases: Street Art and the Earless Mickey) has received more than 37,000 views as of 2023. Zinnart.com
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