African Face Illusion

Xavier found this rather interesting optical illusion. The illusion was created by Bernard Pras. Xavier explained: “There is a little shop in Burkina Faso. The owner is looking around for customers but there doesn’t seem to be much interesting about his plastic buckets and trinkets. Or is there ? Watch what happens when a picture is taken from another side of the shop“. You should see a man’s head (African) in profile. Inside the article there is another photo, same shop seen from another angle. To see the face in the first photo, you’ll probably need to step away few inches from your monitor. Great one!



46 Replies to “African Face Illusion”

  1. i think i see a mouth and wat looks like a colourfull face mask above mouth

    i dunno if i am right thou

  2. The color part is a hat like a colorful kufi. (in the top picture). Then if you follow the roof of the hut down to the right, it is his forehead. Just to the left of the roof is his eye. Underneath the roof edge is the bridge of his nose in a gray kind of color, then the nostril part of his nose is a brown jug or pot or something. Under that is some greenish stuff followed by to horizontal things that are his lips, then his the log is his chin, etc. Very very nice.

    1. wooh that is nice
      couldn’t see a face at all
      but your description suddenly made the face clear as day

  3. The man can be seen in the first picture.
    He is facing to the right of screen, and the colourful objects form a headband/bandana thing.

  4. It is excellent. No.10. The hair is formed by the roof of the shop. Then there are a lot of plastic trinkets forming a head band. The face is looking to the right of the picture. The forehead is sticking out beneath the headband. the nose is formed by a tin and two round objects. the area under the nose another roundish object.The lips 1 dark and one light stick. the chin by a tree trunk. I don’t know what the funny looking thing is which is used for the eye. I think you’ll see it now

  5. hate to be that guy but this one is definitely photoshop look at the colorful part and keep track of the objects in both pictures they move i thought it might be photoshopped at first glance but i give everything the benefit of the doubt on this site until i get some proof

  6. The colorful buckets are the african hat. The log is the back of head to neck. The white pan in lower left is shoulder. The profile is the whole shop. Don’t look just at the buckets. IT is soooo cool! Really great.

  7. Oh! Omigosh! I was lookind at the SECOND photo and going “huh, where’s the face?” but you have to look at the first one! Omigosh, idiot. That’s what I am. I am so stupid.

  8. For the guy that things this is photoshoped – the two photos were taken from different angles so of course it’s going to look like they are in different places.

  9. I can’t see it. I think it sucks. How is it a face? All I see is a bulding!!! I am a yound child, you should make them so that children get it.

  10. Awesome.Unlike what most say,this is not photo-shopped.It is possible to make something like this.You could do it to your house,if you wanted.

  11. I am an artist and it has always fascinated me that non-artistic folk will critique what they themselves are not capable of doing. This is a wonderful piece of art! I hope the artist continues to explore his gift and share it with others.

  12. That was tough! Would’ve been helpful if i’d known the entire photo is a man’s profile. I was searching for a small guy within all the stuff.

  13. On the right side of the shop, next to what appears to be a grey painted piece of wood… is a black mans face. I have also seen the entire picture being a face too.

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