Waving Dunes in the Center of Montreal. An Optical Illusion That Bends the Reality

Optical illusions can easily deceive our brains. In such case the saying ‘to see means to believe’ loses its meaning completely. Illusions freely play with our minds and make our eyes see things that are completely irrational.

In the very center of Montreal (Canada) at Avenue de Musée you can see… sand dunes. This is an artistic installation created by four designers working for the NÓS architecture studio. Looking at a long dune you can see it is waving and carrying loads of sand along. Immediately it makes you think of a desert or the holidays you had at the sea. The designers placed two chrome spheres on the stripy dunes which, just like mirrors, reflect the people passing by and the buildings around it. The artwork is a combination of something real with a completely imaginary virtual reality.

The installation was created in 2008 as part of the exhibition held by the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts. The artists were inspired by cubists and wanted to create a hypnotizing flat piece with a three-dimensional depth. And they succeeded. Strolling along the sidewalk you get the impression that the dunes are just about to suck in everyone around.

What do you think about the dunes?