Realism and Illusionism

With an illustration from ancient greek mythology traceable to two famous and renowned artists in a quest for supremacy; the lecture began. The first artist created a painting of fruits that fooled birds into believing that the painted fruits were actually edible, while he went over to the other artist's work to uncover his rival's masterpiece. He met his downfall as he attempted lifting the veil to reveal his counterpart's work, which was in actual fact the work itself. His rival had succeeded in fooling the man who fooled nature in its most minute form of intellectual tolerance and as such; fooled the most complex creature on the face of the earth. Deception befell the deceptor, and the con-man became the conned.
This illustration set a steady pace for the lecture which delved deeper into the concept of realism. It set a pace for the study of the relationship between art forms and the represented world in its bare form. This Illustration also birthed the basis for the study of Illusionism. Illusionism is an attempt at the representation of reality via a medium of art, and this concept is clearly visible in the present day society as man is a creature revered for his affinity to representation. From there, we went on to study the natural instinct of disbelief which contradicts the zealous drive of man to believe in the supernatural or more powerful beings in existence.