This building optical illusion has broken my brain

Optical illusions come in all forms, from classic illustrations to minimalist modern art, but one category that continues to impress me is optical illusion photography. Often a result of confused perspective, these real-life optical illusions can range from the silly to the astounding, proving that op art is all around us.

The latest image making the rounds on the r/opticalillusions subreddit is a fairly innocuous snap of two high-rise buildings. Upon first glance, it can be difficult to decipher which is closest to the camera, leading many to question whether they can truly believe their eyes.

Which is the foreground and which is in the background? from r/opticalillusions

"Which is the foreground and which is in the background?" u/abhbhbls commented on the subreddit, challenging other optical illusion fans with the perplexing picture. "I couldn't resolve it and ended up merging the two buildings like a scene from Inception," one muddled fan responded.

The photo was also posted to the r/woahdude subreddit where user u/missesmistery explained: "The confusing perspective occurs because our brains are programmed, to understand objects in nature that are cooler in tone, to be background objects. This is due to the effect of atmospheric scattering or Rayleigh scattering, which makes the shorter wavelengths of light (blue) more dominant over distance, while warmer tones dissipate (short wavelengths like red and orange)."

In reality, the building on the left is in the foreground – the telltale signs being the light emitting from between the buildings and the left side's larger windows. For more mind-bending visuals check out how this artist creates a trippy optical illusion and learn how to paint one yourself or take a look at why AI finds optical illusions just as mind-boggling as we do.