Seeing red: hacking anaglyph 3D to manipulate visual perception

Seeing Red extends Lyons and Ullah’s exploration of colour perception in printmaking. Using the red/blue colours of the stereoscopic anaglyph 3D effect, Seeing Red investigates an approach that deconstructs and repurposes the functionality of this effect. The procedures and techniques are hijacked to communicate fundamentally different messages within the same image.

The core principle of anaglyph 3D is that two slightly different, overlapped 2D images, one shifted red and one shifted blue, when viewed with filtered glasses, create a 3D simulation. By knowing that the left eye sees a slightly different image than the right, a case is built that very different images can be created for each eye that combine to form a third image when viewed with both eyes.

Right eyes and left eyes are individually targeted to create unique visual experiences by using colour palettes that can be effectively filtered by the iconic 1950’s anaglyph 3D glasses (Figure 1). Within the prints, hidden images are revealed to the viewer by closing one or the other of their eyes.

The science and human physiology behind the 3D anaglyph effect are explained and its use in image manipulation is extrapolated. Desired results are outlined and the media tests and experiments are documented.

The development of prints and filtering approaches using this technique are outlined. The imagery used and its relevance to this developing approach are considered.

Lastly, findings are discussed and their relevance to the work are examined.