Fun colour experiments

Here are some fun colour experiments that help demonstrate how our brains perceive colour. Look at the image below with the two squares. They’re two different colours, right?

Now put your finger across the line where the two grey squares meet. Or look at the image below with the black bar.

The squares are the exact same shade of grey, even though the one on the top looks darker. Our brains are programmed to interpret shadows a certain way. In this case, it thinks the top square is brightly lit grey and the bottom square is poorly lit white in a shadow.

Stare at the black cross in the image below – do you see a green dot moving around the circle?

Now try following the green dot as it moves around the circle. It’s gone, isn’t it? That’s because the green dot isn’t really there – it’s an afterimage. Your brain is seeing green (magenta’s complementary colour) in the empty space as the dots flash around the circle. Here’s another example – stare at the red circle for 30 seconds, and then look to the blank space next to it.Do you see a turquoise circle? Except the turquoise circle isn’t actually there! Your brain is imposing the turquoise circle on the blank space.

And one more colour experiment. Read the colour names below out and say the colour of the font out loud. For example, the first colour font is RED.

RED

BLUE

PURPLE

GREEN

ORANGE

PINK

YELLOW

Now try it again – remember, you’re saying the colour of the font, not the word.

RED

BLUE

PURPLE

GREEN

ORANGE

PINK

YELLOW

Was it harder the second time? Did you get any of the font colours wrong? Part of your brain tries to identify the color while another part of your brain reads the word. This regional brain conflict can produce errors in perception.

These are just a few examples of how our brains perceive colour. Do you have a favourite colour game or optical illusion? Let me know, I’d love to check it out :-)