By PatD, a Trail Mix Contributor
Wiki tells us that Trompe-l’oeil (French for “deceive the eye” — pronounced trômp ˈloi) is an art technique that uses realistic imagery to create the optical illusion that the depicted objects exist in three dimensions.
Just after the election, an astute writer wrote this in a letter to The Star:
… we have the political version of a trompe-l’oeil painting, in which objects offer the illusion of three-dimensionality. The textures of Clinton’s fictional criminality – even monstrosity – were ultimately rendered more prominent than her opponent’s actual racism and sexism. Sadly, a rational, qualified and progressive candidate was obscured in this Trump-l’oeil. (Kirsten Munro, Toronto)
More to the point in general, the hopenchange blog also equated the new president with the art technique:
The idea is to create a nearly 3-dimensional illusion of grandeur, when the reality is that the decorative urn, Greek columns, or window looking onto a magnificent Mediterranean vista is only the depth of a coat of paint. And that’s where we’re at right now with Trump L’oeil – trying to separate the illusion from the reality.
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