Kinetic art

Moonlight Reflections on the Waters

Gianni Sarcone

A memory from Japan, where I lived briefly in the 1980s. This piece recalls earthy colors, organic shapes, and fragments of that time. A circle emerges from a flowing field of triangles—like ripples of moonlight dancing on the sea near Kamakura.

Moonlight Reflections on the Waters of Kamakura (1998, collage)
Moonlight Reflections on the Waters of Kamakura (1998, collage)

Immersing yourself in my op art is an invitation into a world where opposing forces meet, attract, and interlock, creating a balance both precise and hypnotic. It is a silent yet unending dialogue between art, form, line, color, mathematical concepts, the science of perception, and, above all, symbols. The symbolic depth of my work reaches beyond surface appearance, engaging with archetypes and forgotten rites that still pulse within the collective unconscious.

Moonlight Reflections on the Waters of Kamakura (1998, collage) II
Moonlight Reflections on the Waters of Kamakura (1998, collage)

This unique op art piece is available as fine art prints and canvases in my online gallery.

Rediscovering Flutex: Simple Glass, Complex Illusions

Gianni Sarcone

I’ve been toying with the idea of revisiting an old, low-key material for my art: Flutex.

If you haven’t heard of it, Flutex is a patterned industrial glass from the 1930s and ’40s, mostly used to give a bit of privacy in bathrooms and office partitions.

In the ’70s, Op artist Sydney Cash started playing with this glass and found that its ribbed surface works like a lenticular screen—showing different images depending on how you look at it. The effect? Hypnotic, shifting artworks that change as you move around them.

It’s just simple glass, but it tricks perception in a really cool way.

I’m seriously considering giving it a try myself—there’s something about that mix of humble material and complex visual play that feels worth exploring again.

Julio Le Parc – Nihil novi sub sole…

Gianni Sarcone

Although I’ve been working in the field of Op Art since the mid-1980s, it’s important to recognize that the movement itself has a deeper history. It began to take shape in the 1960s, led by pioneering figures such as Victor Vasarely and Bridget Riley.

However, the artists who truly captivate me—the ones who expanded the language of perception—are often the outsiders. One such figure is Julio Le Parc (b. September 23, 1928), an Argentine-born artist whose practice bridges Op Art and kinetic art. Le Parc studied at the School of Fine Arts in Argentina and went on to co-found the Groupe de Recherche d’Art Visuel (GRAV). His work, honored with numerous awards, holds a prominent place in Latin American modernism.

Le Parc’s recurring themes—color, light, and movement—have always resonated with me. During the ’60s and ’70s, he explored light not just as a visual element but as a living, dynamic material. Yet by the late ’70s, his presence in the art world had faded; his output became sporadic, and for decades his work slipped quietly out of the international spotlight.

 Fortunately, recent years have witnessed a renewed appreciation of his explorations in light and movement, bringing his contributions once again to the attention of a wider public.

Artist’s Website: http://www.julioleparc.org

Book: Catalog of the artist’s first solo exhibition, Paris, November–December 1966. Text in French by Frank Popper.

Hypnotic Disc

Gianni Sarcone

Take a moment to focus on the circular pattern. How many spirals do you see? The surprising answer is none. There are no spirals here—just alternating black and yellow discs, slightly off-center and layered to create a striking illusion of swirling depth and motion.

© G. Sarcone, 1990

I began crafting pieces like this in the early ’90s, drawing inspiration from Duchamp’s Rotoreliefs. I was captivated by how simple rotation could deceive the eye, inviting the viewer into a world of optical illusions. It’s a unique experience—seeing motion and depth in something entirely flat, both puzzling and mesmerizing.

This op art pattern comes to life across various mediums and transforms into artistic expressions on different objects. In my online gallery, you’ll find art prints and everyday items featuring this work, all available for purchase.

Gliding Patterns: The Anomalous Motion Illusion

Gianni Sarcone

Let your gaze wander across the image below. Do the shapes in the first and third rows seem to subtly shift leftward, while the second and fourth rows appear to glide rightward?

© Gianni A. Sarcone, Gliding Patterns, 1999

Now, let your gaze wander across the image below. Do the concentric circles appear to subtly counter-rotate?

© Gianni A. Sarcone, Counter-Rotating Circles, 1999

Why do these static images appear to move? This perceptual phenomenon, known as “anomalous motion” or “peripheral drift illusion”, results from the interplay of color contrast, luminance, and eye movements. It occurs due to a sawtooth luminance grating in the visual periphery, where a sequence of contrasting colors transitions from light to dark. The speed of the perceived motion is influenced by the frequency of microsaccadic eye movements.

In the 1990s, I began creating many of these fascinating images, experimenting with patterns and contrasts to bring this mesmerizing effect to life.

Fine art prints and merchandise of these mesmerizing pieces are available in my online gallery—a perfect addition to any space!

Perspective Optical Illusions: The art of circling the square

Gianni Sarcone

When bending the sides of a square structure forward, each edge forming a sine wave shape, the structure reveals a circle when viewed from the reverse angle. This illusion plays with perspective, specifically utilizing an effect known as “anamorphosis“.

Anamorphosis refers to a artistic technique that uses perspective to create distorted images that can only be viewed correctly from a specific angle.

Duality in Motion

Gianni Sarcone

Explore a fascinating figure/ground effect in this op art piece, where 4 black illusive bangles appear to overlap with 4 white ones. The rotating patterns create a calming and hypnotic visual experience.

This design is now available as t-shirts and posters in my online gallery.

If you’re interested in creating your own op art, I also have a tutorial available on Behance.

I hope you enjoy this design, and I’d love to hear your thoughts on it!