This mind-bending optical illusion will transform how you see colour

Optical illusion
(Image credit: Akiyoshi Kitaoka on Twitter)

We've seen innumerable optical illusions here at Creative Bloq, and the best examples demonstrate just how easily our minds – and eyes – can be tricked. Here's one fascinating example that shows how we can even see something change colour, even though it remains the same hue throughout.

Created by Japanese psychologist and artist Akiyoshi Kitaoka, the animated image shows a square moving across a pink/blue gradient. As it swaps between the colours, the square appears to move from pink to blue itself – but as Kitaoka reveals, it actually does no such thing. Like all the best optical illusions, it's pretty unbelievable.

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Daniel John
Senior News Editor

Daniel John is Senior News Editor at Creative Bloq. He reports on the worlds of art, design, branding and lifestyle tech (which often translates to tech made by Apple). He joined in 2020 after working in copywriting and digital marketing with brands including ITV, NBC, Channel 4 and more.