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Trompe-l'œil literally means “deceive the eye.”
Artists use extremely convincing details to make painted objects appear as though they're actually sticking out of the surface.
A painted nail might look like a real nail casting a tiny shadow.
A piece of paper may appear to be attached to a wooden board.
Some historical paintings even reproduced writing, newspaper clippings, and other flat objects so realistically that viewers could momentarily believe they were real.
The trick works because the painting copies visual clues our brains normally use to identify physical objects.
The strangest part is that the more convincing the illusion becomes, the more you may want to reach out and touch it.
© The Metropolitan Museum of Art