1 + 1 = 3 (2023) presents Stefano Contiero’s exploration of perceptual impossibility through the tactile nostalgia of anaglyph 3D technology. This collection of 112 works challenges viewers to transcend the flat screen through red and cyan stereoscopic glasses, transforming digital art into a sculptural experience that defies dimensional logic. Each composition features impossible geometric floor planes that appear to float and interconnect in space, their wireframe boundaries outlined in bright cyan and red creating depth that springs from the screen when viewed through anaglyph glasses. The title’s mathematical paradox becomes visual reality as layered architectural modules create spatial relationships that multiply perspective itself.
The anaglyph technique, once the domain of cinema matinees and comic book adventures, becomes a poetic bridge between analog memory and digital possibility in Contiero’s hands. Like M.C. Escher’s impossible architectures and Victor Vasarely’s geometric optical illusions, these works manipulate visual perception to reveal the malleable nature of spatial reality. The overlapping translucent floor planes create architectural impossibilities, their precise wireframe geometries suggesting modular building blocks of virtual space that exist only when viewed through the red and cyan lens of childhood wonder.
Created as a special collaboration with Bright Moments for the 2023 Art Blocks Weekend in Marfa, Texas, the collection embodies the intersection of generative art and experiential installation. Following the emotional intensity of Intimità (2023), 1 + 1 = 3 represents a shift toward conceptual playfulness while maintaining Contiero’s commitment to transformative viewing experiences. The work demonstrates that artistic truth lies beyond conventional perception: viewers must literally change their perspective to access hidden dimensions where mathematical impossibility becomes visual reality.