Design
Slipping Optical Illusions into Post-Earthquake Christchurch
With the power of trompe l'oeil, Mike Hewson tries to give hope to New Zealanders "surrounded by decay and uncertainty."
What to do with an earthquake-damaged walkway looming dead and unused over a popular thoroughfare?
One approach would be to have wrecking crews disassemble it with heavy machinery and dump trucks. Or, if you're artist Mike Hewson, you could plaster it with photographic "wallpaper" so it blends into the background buildings and sky – effectively removing the pesky eyesore from one angle, and turning it into an optical curiosity from others.