On a new type of optical illusion

This is a short open letter to the French-speaking scientific community dated January 1833. It is significant for offering the first published, unequivocal description of the “illusion of movement” achieved using animated drawings via the device commonly known as the Phenakistiscope. Joseph Plateau’s letter can be paired with the next article in this issue, an almost contemporaneous essay by Simon Stampfer that outlines near identical discoveries in greater detail. Together, these texts provide the foundation for a key aspect of cinematographic technology and its artistic potential. ©Joseph Plateau & Richard George Elliott ((Translator)) (2016) On a New Type
of Optical Illusion, Art in Translation, 8:1, 11-18, DOI: 10.1080/17561310.2016.1143704