Art is deception! -- The Ancient Romans, too... -- Concealed messages -- Like a dream -- Deceive the eye! -- Tricks with contrasts -- Upside-down pictures -- Atmospheric perspective -- Pictures with depth -- Built illusions -- Mock architecture -- Colors do the trick -- Moving pictures

Children love to be fooled--and artists are some of the greatest tricksters around. This collection features artworks that incorporate a variety of methods for tricking our eyes: including trompe l'oeil, clever uses of color and perspective, Surrealism, and Photo-Realism. Arranged thematically, each work is presented in a two-page spread. Lively texts explain the methods the artists employed to shape their illusions. Reproduced in vibrant color, these pieces of ripe fruit, blooming flowers, a half-opened curtain, flickering lines, and impossible worlds come alive on the page, providing hours of absorbing fun as readers are drawn into the stories behind their creation. Playful, intriguing, and educational, these great illusions are a terrific way to introduce children to the world of art