Painting an Optical Illusion Checkered Pattern for Beginners.
Want to learn how to paint an optical illusion checkered pattern that tricks the eye? This viral moving checkerboard effect is easier to create than it looks.
I spent an entire afternoon experimenting with color combinations after seeing this trend on my socials. Here is everything I learned, broken down step by step.
Materials Needed
First, let us talk about the materials needed. Here is the list:
- Something to draw on. This can be a canvas board, a sketchbook, or thick quality paper. I personally experimented on 300gsm paper. I would recommend at least 200gsm and above.
- Your primary art medium. I personally tried gouache and acrylic because they are opaque in nature and easy to build up. Acrylic markers work well too.
- Secondary art medium (for the pattern). I personally used paint and a twin marker. If you have acrylic markers at home, that works too.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Now, let us go through the big picture of how you can paint this illusion effect.
1: Draw the Checkered Pattern
To start, draw out the pattern in pencil. I simply used a ruler and marked out 0.5 inch on each side, then drew a line through until I had the entire checkerboard pattern.
2: Paint the Checkerboard Colors
Next, grab the medium of your choice and start painting. If you are using gouache or acrylic paint like me, a flat paintbrush works best.
Take note not to overlap the paint, and keep your edges as clean as possible. I would also do two layers of paint to make sure it is opaque. You can definitely do three or even more layers if you want to slowly build it up.
The end result will look like this:
3: Add the Viral Illusion Effect
Now comes the fun part. All you have to remember is this pattern: WW, BW, BB, WB. W stands for white and B stands for black. You repeat this pattern all over the checkerboard.
A trick I use is to dot the first row and first column first.
After that, dot your way down diagonally with the same color.
For the black dots, I usually use a twin marker. For the white dots, I like to use acrylic paint with a pointed brush. If you have a white acrylic marker at home, that works too.
And this is how you get the viral illusion effect!
Ways to Experiment with This Checkerboard Illusion
Once you know the fundamentals of painting the checkerboard illusion, here are a few ways you can experiment further.
1: Try Different Color Combinations
The first thing you can do is switch out the colors to see what works best. This part is genuinely interesting to play with.
What I noticed is that for some color combinations, the effect is really obvious on camera but not as obvious in real life. For others, it is the opposite. I also noticed that the higher the contrast between the two colors, the more obvious the illusion becomes. Look at the difference between these three combinations I experimented with.
2: Change the Checkerboard Illusion Size
Another way to experiment is by changing the size of the squares. Because I was working with a limited canvas size in my sketchbook, I kept mine at 0.5 inches. You can go one step further and see whether changing the size makes a difference.
Here is an example of me experimenting with this digitally:
3: Add Objects to Your Illusion Art
Next, you can add your own flair by drawing objects on top of the pattern. Here is me drawing a stingray on mine.
You can definitely go wild here.
4: Switch Up Your Canvas Size
Last but not least, once you have experimented on the same canvas size, try switching it up. If you have been painting on paper, try it on a canvas board instead. Experiment with different shapes too, like a rectangle or a square.
Here is a comparison:
Happy painting!
This post is all about painting an optical illusion checkered pattern.
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