SEEING BELLEVUE KENTUCKY THROUGH YELLOW COLORED GLASSES

by Susan Amis

Yellow Colored Glasses

The yellow glasses I found in Bellevue, Kentucky aren’t those from the Beatles’ famous Sargent Pepper’s song. The first thing I saw on a cloudy spring day in the seemingly ordinary town of Bellevue, Kentucky, were some unordinary yellow goblets. To me, the goblets were vintage treasures. At first glance the yellow surprised me. My subconscious mind kicked my emotions into gear, while my conscious mind started contemplating what a full bodied red wine would look like in this glass. Would clear sparkling water seem to be lemony? With my imagination now captivated by these yellow glasses, I knew I must buy them.

With my purchase in hand and the tone now set, I was ready to discover what else Bellevue had to offer. As I strolled along tree-lined Fairfield Ave., the main street of Bellevue, I found myself surrounded by a special mix of home and garden finds, seasonal decor, and antique rarities. Eventually, I made my way into another store filled with riches. As my mind finished processing the items throughout the store, my eyes took sudden notice of the images that abounded on the walls of the store. They were everywhere: optical illusions, three dimensional paintings, trompe-l’oeil (derived from French meaning “to fool the eye”) at its best.

Tromp-l’oeil painting acknowledges that the viewer understands the difference between reality and non-reality and then toys with that dichotomy. But I was in Bellevue, Kentucky, a place I would not expect to encounter French-monikered mind tricks. As I once read, I was ”having a much larger cerebral endeavor than I expected”!A brief inquiry revealed that the store(Interior Visions) is owned by Curtis Heuser, one of the Midwest’s premier decorative artists. He specializes in fine mural and trompe-l’oeil techniques. Curtis took the time to show me his portfolios that he keeps in the store. They hold one illusion after another. He has over 20 years of experience and is still embracing his talent for artistically fooling the eye. I was left speechless, which is rare for an avid conversationalist.

Tromp-l’oeil has been well represented from the Greek and Roman times to perspective drawings during the Renaissance. In more recent times, but before the advent of green screens and computer generated imagery, Tromp-l’oeil has filled practical needs: in the classic movie Singing in the Rain (1954), Donald O’Connor appears to be dancing down a hallway when he is in fact just dancing in front of a cleverly painted wall.  Today’s youngest generation continues to keep Trompe-l’oeil alive through the creation of 3D street art. The designs are not only breathtaking but also perceptually stimulating. Just like my yellow goblets.

You might be aware that the human eye is more sensitive to light in the yellow part of the spectrum. It’s as if more light is reaching the eye. When you have been skiing on a cloudy day you are always glad to have the yellow lenses on your goggles to help you see the slope, even on the bunny hill where you might find me.  While it was the yellow glasses I found in Bellevue, on a cloudy spring day, that first caught my eye and brightened up my view, it was only the beginning of a day that titillated my mind and my dazzled my senses!

So hurry to Bellevue to explore the hidden treasures in the shops, art galleries, cafes, and tea houses.

I left a few behind. I was taught to share.