Learning resources

Art Riffs: Make an Op Art drawing inspired by Bridget Riley

Blaze II
© courtesy the artist and Karsten Schubert, London 2011. Image credit: National Museums NI

Blaze II 1963

Bridget Riley (b.1931)

National Museums NI

Introduction

Op Art is short for 'optical art' and describes a style of art that developed in the early 1960s. Op artists are interested in how our eyes read an image. They experiment with abstract geometric shapes and patterns to explore a range of perceptual phenomena including dazzling, afterimages and the illusion of movement. 

Bridget Riley burst onto the art scene in the 1960s with her groundbreaking Op Art drawings and paintings. Using intricate abstract geometric shapes, patterns and alternating colours she created artworks with optical illusions of movement and three-dimensional effects.

This activity shows you how to create an Op Art drawing or painting inspired by Bridget Riley.

You can find out more about Bridget Riley in our Bridget Riley and Op Art resource.

Research and be inspired

Look at this painting by Bridget Riley. Use the nudge questions below to reflect on the painting if helpful.

Movement in Squares

Movement in Squares 1961

Bridget Riley (b.1931)

Arts Council Collection, Southbank Centre

  • What is your first response to the painting?
  • How would you describe it? (Imagine you are describing the painting to someone who hasn't seen it.)
  • How has Bridget Riley used colour, shape, line and composition to create a 3D effect?
  • What sort of brushstrokes do you think she used? (Quick and gestural or slow and careful?)
  • Bridget Riley wanted her paintings to appear dynamic. Do you think she has achieved this?

Watch and make

In this video, award-winning art teacher Andria Zafirakou shows you how to create a Bridget Riley-inspired Op Art drawings using simple materials.

  • Use coloured pencils or gouache paint rather than felt pens if you prefer.
  • Or scale up onto a larger piece of thick paper or card, and use acrylic paint to create an Op Art painting.

Variations and development ideas

Explore other ways of using simple lines and shapes to create an Op Art artwork.

  • How else could you space and arrange the lines?
  • Try using dots or other shapes.
  • Use image editing tools on a computer to warp or manipulate shapes.

You could also experiment with colours – using three or four colours and arranging them in different ways.

Poudreux

Poudreux c.1970

Jeffrey Steele (1931–2021)

Amgueddfa Cymru – National Museum Wales

  • Try using complementary colours to maximise the optical effect. (Complementary colours sit opposite each other on the colour wheel. When they are placed next to each other, the colours seem to buzz or pop!)
  • Or use analogous colours (colours that sit next to each other on a colour wheel) to create a sense of harmony.  In her later works, Bridget Riley created abstract compositions of shapes inspired by nature and often used analogous colours to create a sense of harmony.

Explore more Op Art for inspiration

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