Get Premium
Dark mode theme is available exclusively for premium users. Learn more about the benefits of subscribing.
No fees, cancel anytime.
Dark Mode 
No fees, cancel anytime 
then open in external browser
and click "Open in External Browser" 
How People With Bad Eyesight See The World When They Take Off Their Glasses Illustrated In 29 Oil Paintings
Have you ever wondered how people with specific eye errors see the world? Philip Barlow, a Cape Town-based artist, has created a series of oil paintings that vividly shows the struggle of those who have myopia or nearsightedness, the most common refractive eyesight error.
At first glance, Barlow’s paintings look like photographs that are out of focus. But these realistic paintings perfectly portray the blurred effect that nearsighted people see when they take off their glasses, and let those with normal eye vision understand what it’s like to live with this condition. Of course, not only these colorful paintings will scratch that itch of curiosity, but they are also highly aesthetically pleasing and really are the modern art pieces that you've never seen before.
Scroll down to see the blurry-eyed realistic artworks for yourself.
More info: Instagram
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
Not Quite Infinity 7 years ago
It's funny cause this is EXACTLY how I see the world without my glasses
RELATED:
#4
athornedrose 7 years ago
this!! i can never explain to sighted people how the streetlights/traffic lights etc look!
#6
#8
#10
Whawhawhatsis 7 years ago
These paintings are really gorgeous just as artworks, especially the ones like this one where the subjects are so indistinct it's hard to tell what they even are. Besides beautiful art!
#12
#13
GFSTaylor 7 years ago
The artist tends to overdo the circular blobs to indicate lights and reflections. There are just too many of them in some pictures and the reflections on water are not so uniformly round as depicted in these pics. In the this picture, the blobs appear to be in the foreground, and look like raindrops on a camera lens. I cannot focus on anything more than about five inches past the end of my nose. It's an interesting idea though, these pics.
#14
Fiona Messenger 7 years ago
Pretty close to my vision. It looks pretty like this, but annoying in bright sunlight or if you're trying to find someone.
#17
#19
Zahida Perveen 7 years ago
Nd then my friends ask: Why didn't you stop when saw me that morning?
#22
Dian Ella Lillie 7 years ago
I wear specs. Sadly, I would be chuffed to see as well as is depicted in these paintings. Without my glasses everything is just a blur of unrecognisable shapes... :-(
#24
athornedrose 7 years ago
it's weird, like if i take my glasses off i can see this more clearly....
#29
Ritchard Cubbon 6 years ago
I'd trade my vision for a world in which it is sunny all the time.
Add New Image
What do you think ?
Daria Zotova 7 years ago
Being myopic myself, I believe that the lack of detail sometimes makes the world a more beautiful and mysterious place, with more scope for imagination. But most of the time it just annoys you :D
Tony Moon 7 years ago
Amazing renditions. I had my eyes fixed about 20 years ago so I could fly for the military and this really reminded me of what it was like to take off my glasses. It almost brought me to tears because I had forgotten how impaired I was without my glasses. Thank you for these wonderful images and reminding me how good I have it now. Beautiful work.
PBMc 7 years ago
Meanwhile, people with hyperopia are thinking, "Wow, look how sharp and crisp those images are". Seriously though, as someone who ran optical labs for many years, I'll say that these pics are accurate only in the most basic sense. Yes, people with myopia see the world as blurry. Myopia can be very minor with almost unnoticeable blurring to an extreme where shapes are not even recognizable. Though myopia may or may not have been the inspiration for Barlow's style, they are not meant to mimic any vision problem. He is interested in color and lighting. He describes his style as, "The figures in the landscape serve as carriers and reflectors of the light that falls upon them. Bathed in the luminosity"
Logical Hue 7 years ago
Wow, no that's not what this is at all. (Also - no it doesn't look like that when I take off my glasses.) So Hidreley just saw these and decided that's what the pieces looked like to him, and wrote up his assumptions as the artists intentions? That really sucks. Quotes from Ever Read London, the gallery that exhibits his work: "Barlow continues his exploration of bokeh – the aesthetic quality of out-of-focus blur in a photograph" "his ongoing quest to frame and capture in oil paint, the moment when light, form and colour collide; that elusive moment in each of his paintings where time is suspended and distilled"
Biana Weatherford 7 years ago
Sure, that's about how blurry things are. But without all those lovely circles and lens flair.
Lola 7 years ago
The most annoying thing is when someone asks to put your glasses on and all of a sudden you hear, “oh my god you are blind”. Yes, thank you.
just a thought! 7 years ago
These literally don't look like paintings...I obviously don't know how it looks for people with myopia, but these kinda look accurate ? Idk... The paintings are amazing ! Like unfocused pictures through a camera lens
Kobitka-artworks Tumblr 7 years ago
not even close, it's looks preaty cool, but it isn't what we see, everything is super blurry, objects with similar colors become big one spot, on the beach it's realy hard to recoginze what is sand what is human leg :/
Aunt Messy 7 years ago
Just what the world needed. A migraine trigger for the near sighted. He couldn't just admit that he can't focus on his work?
Nubmaeme 7 years ago
Being 20/400+, the world is a very blurry place without glasses, moreso than some of these pictures show. For me, lights look like brightly lit fuzzy dandelions instead of the simple circles shown in the paintings. That really gives Christmas trees a whole new dimension. All told, the artist did an outstanding job at depicting myopic vision.
Rob Williams 7 years ago
I amuse my wife by trying those reading glasses self diagnosis stands. They say things like 'Stand 20 inches away and read these passages...' then if you can read the first one you need 0.5 strength, the second you need 1.0, etc. When I take my glasses off I can't see the display!
Halldora Landvik 7 years ago
It's strange how taking of my glasses made it less blurry and actually closer how I see the world without glasses.
Tiny Dynamine 7 years ago
This is a useful insight as I still have 20:20 vision at 45 but obviously know short-sighted people. It's interesting to see how it is for them.
diane a 7 years ago
I currently have 9 pairs of glasses as am so scared how I could function without them
Kam Popovecz 6 years ago
I love these images. I’m an interior designer and would love to somehow get these on canvas. Also was wondering if the artist does landscape or animals in this style. Thanks foe sharing
Richard Finkelstein 6 years ago
There are some super powers embedded within severe myopic though. First without the eye glasses we have magnifying eyesight for up-close work, almost to the range of a low powered microscope! I love that power. But better yet, without my glasses I can see and recognize faces and other such things pixilated out or censored online or on television. It is quite uncanny and magical and I believe there are some forensic computer algorithms that employ such tactics translated to the computer to resolve otherwise inaccessible detail and meaning from a scene. If I take off my glasses and look at the paintings above they come into a type of focus that those with normal eyes cannot see. I love this power too!
Breanna Cuevas 7 years ago
I wish the artist was cited in the headline. I bet the artist does, too.
Ryo Bakura 7 years ago
This really messed with my head. I see the world that way without my glasses, so I don't need to see the world this way whilst wearing them, thank you.
Bluebell Rizzi 7 years ago
If I close one eye this is how I see the world. In the morning with both eyes open it looks like a drop of water on a camera lense :0
Cactuar Jon 7 years ago
My eyesight is good, but even though, I totally appreciate all of these paintings. They're all beautiful and amazing and it kind of gives me a sense of appreciation for those who cant see that well. I hope their world is just as beautiful :)
Space Nurd 7 years ago
This is great... But my eyesight is worse. Honestly though, it's super accurate.
Captain Marvel 7 years ago
"Have you ever wondered how people with specific eye errors see the world? ...and let those with normal vision understand what it’s like to live with this condition." Okay, I know this comment is going to get a lot of hate but like...the description kinda makes it sound like people with glasses are not human/ completely different to people who don't have them. We're just people. With pieces of glass over our eyes. It's not that big a deal. The paintings are really good, it's just the description really bothered me :/ Sorry if you disagree with this comment.
Charles O 7 years ago
I've been sight impaired all my life (severe astigmatism). The paintings are remarkably close to what I actually "see" without my ridiculously thick glasses. Never quite thought of it as experiencing realtime aesthetic rendering . . . but hey, I'm open to ideas. Beautifully done, thanks for posting this.
Charles O 7 years ago
I've been sight impaired all my life (severe astigmatism). The paintings are remarkably close to what I actually "see" without my ridiculously thick glasses. Never quite thought of it as experiencing realtime aesthetic rendering . . . but hey, I'm open to ideas. Beautifully done, thanks for posting this.
Cyndie Varin 7 years ago
It's that view you have when you'd desperatly need your glasses to find where the hell you've left your glasses at home.
Paula Brown 7 years ago
I never knew people with bad eyesight see bokeh like photographers see it in out of focus areas of an image! I assumed they saw more of a gaussian blur.
Dima Al Malakeh 7 years ago
Most of them are amazing and very close to how I see without my glasses..though I tend not to wear them all day but definitely it's a must at night if I'm out or driving...I hate my myopia😑
Brittany Rae 7 years ago
As someone with relatively good eyesight (I have reading glasses for work on tiny things and computers), this hurt my eyes SO BAD. No wonder my friends got mad at me growing up, this is miserable. Thank god, and science, for eyeglasses and contact lenses. Seriously.
Sabal Minor 7 years ago
These are fantastic- never thought of such a concept. Luv when artists push the envelope, out of the box as U will. I've had gr8 vision until i got in my early 40s & then need reading glasses. Now in my early 50s i am seeing how blurry it is without them in just normal glances (not reading
Neill Powell 7 years ago
While I can agree that eyesight-quality is something of a genetic-roulette-game (particularly in those of Asian descent - as a fact! Proven and documented), our lifestyle is also worsening this. My Last eye-test placed me close to 20/10 vision, which I credit to genetics and my complete petrifying-fear of losing my eyesight. There are things you can do to get those eye muscles working overtime and really prevent the decay, after all, the focus of the eye is controlled by muscles, and like every other muscular-controlled body part can do with a bit of exercise.
Carola Fitzhugh 7 years ago
If you took these blurred pictures and super-imposed another of the same photo just a bit off from the original...that would be my vision. Yes, it is so much fun.* ahem*
Daria Zotova 7 years ago
Being myopic myself, I believe that the lack of detail sometimes makes the world a more beautiful and mysterious place, with more scope for imagination. But most of the time it just annoys you :D
Tony Moon 7 years ago
Amazing renditions. I had my eyes fixed about 20 years ago so I could fly for the military and this really reminded me of what it was like to take off my glasses. It almost brought me to tears because I had forgotten how impaired I was without my glasses. Thank you for these wonderful images and reminding me how good I have it now. Beautiful work.
PBMc 7 years ago
Meanwhile, people with hyperopia are thinking, "Wow, look how sharp and crisp those images are". Seriously though, as someone who ran optical labs for many years, I'll say that these pics are accurate only in the most basic sense. Yes, people with myopia see the world as blurry. Myopia can be very minor with almost unnoticeable blurring to an extreme where shapes are not even recognizable. Though myopia may or may not have been the inspiration for Barlow's style, they are not meant to mimic any vision problem. He is interested in color and lighting. He describes his style as, "The figures in the landscape serve as carriers and reflectors of the light that falls upon them. Bathed in the luminosity"
Logical Hue 7 years ago
Wow, no that's not what this is at all. (Also - no it doesn't look like that when I take off my glasses.) So Hidreley just saw these and decided that's what the pieces looked like to him, and wrote up his assumptions as the artists intentions? That really sucks. Quotes from Ever Read London, the gallery that exhibits his work: "Barlow continues his exploration of bokeh – the aesthetic quality of out-of-focus blur in a photograph" "his ongoing quest to frame and capture in oil paint, the moment when light, form and colour collide; that elusive moment in each of his paintings where time is suspended and distilled"
Biana Weatherford 7 years ago
Sure, that's about how blurry things are. But without all those lovely circles and lens flair.
Lola 7 years ago
The most annoying thing is when someone asks to put your glasses on and all of a sudden you hear, “oh my god you are blind”. Yes, thank you.
just a thought! 7 years ago
These literally don't look like paintings...I obviously don't know how it looks for people with myopia, but these kinda look accurate ? Idk... The paintings are amazing ! Like unfocused pictures through a camera lens
Kobitka-artworks Tumblr 7 years ago
not even close, it's looks preaty cool, but it isn't what we see, everything is super blurry, objects with similar colors become big one spot, on the beach it's realy hard to recoginze what is sand what is human leg :/
Aunt Messy 7 years ago
Just what the world needed. A migraine trigger for the near sighted. He couldn't just admit that he can't focus on his work?
Nubmaeme 7 years ago
Being 20/400+, the world is a very blurry place without glasses, moreso than some of these pictures show. For me, lights look like brightly lit fuzzy dandelions instead of the simple circles shown in the paintings. That really gives Christmas trees a whole new dimension. All told, the artist did an outstanding job at depicting myopic vision.
Rob Williams 7 years ago
I amuse my wife by trying those reading glasses self diagnosis stands. They say things like 'Stand 20 inches away and read these passages...' then if you can read the first one you need 0.5 strength, the second you need 1.0, etc. When I take my glasses off I can't see the display!
Halldora Landvik 7 years ago
It's strange how taking of my glasses made it less blurry and actually closer how I see the world without glasses.
Tiny Dynamine 7 years ago
This is a useful insight as I still have 20:20 vision at 45 but obviously know short-sighted people. It's interesting to see how it is for them.
diane a 7 years ago
I currently have 9 pairs of glasses as am so scared how I could function without them
Kam Popovecz 6 years ago
I love these images. I’m an interior designer and would love to somehow get these on canvas. Also was wondering if the artist does landscape or animals in this style. Thanks foe sharing
Richard Finkelstein 6 years ago
There are some super powers embedded within severe myopic though. First without the eye glasses we have magnifying eyesight for up-close work, almost to the range of a low powered microscope! I love that power. But better yet, without my glasses I can see and recognize faces and other such things pixilated out or censored online or on television. It is quite uncanny and magical and I believe there are some forensic computer algorithms that employ such tactics translated to the computer to resolve otherwise inaccessible detail and meaning from a scene. If I take off my glasses and look at the paintings above they come into a type of focus that those with normal eyes cannot see. I love this power too!
Breanna Cuevas 7 years ago
I wish the artist was cited in the headline. I bet the artist does, too.
Ryo Bakura 7 years ago
This really messed with my head. I see the world that way without my glasses, so I don't need to see the world this way whilst wearing them, thank you.
Bluebell Rizzi 7 years ago
If I close one eye this is how I see the world. In the morning with both eyes open it looks like a drop of water on a camera lense :0
Cactuar Jon 7 years ago
My eyesight is good, but even though, I totally appreciate all of these paintings. They're all beautiful and amazing and it kind of gives me a sense of appreciation for those who cant see that well. I hope their world is just as beautiful :)
Space Nurd 7 years ago
This is great... But my eyesight is worse. Honestly though, it's super accurate.
Captain Marvel 7 years ago
"Have you ever wondered how people with specific eye errors see the world? ...and let those with normal vision understand what it’s like to live with this condition." Okay, I know this comment is going to get a lot of hate but like...the description kinda makes it sound like people with glasses are not human/ completely different to people who don't have them. We're just people. With pieces of glass over our eyes. It's not that big a deal. The paintings are really good, it's just the description really bothered me :/ Sorry if you disagree with this comment.
Charles O 7 years ago
I've been sight impaired all my life (severe astigmatism). The paintings are remarkably close to what I actually "see" without my ridiculously thick glasses. Never quite thought of it as experiencing realtime aesthetic rendering . . . but hey, I'm open to ideas. Beautifully done, thanks for posting this.
Charles O 7 years ago
I've been sight impaired all my life (severe astigmatism). The paintings are remarkably close to what I actually "see" without my ridiculously thick glasses. Never quite thought of it as experiencing realtime aesthetic rendering . . . but hey, I'm open to ideas. Beautifully done, thanks for posting this.
Cyndie Varin 7 years ago
It's that view you have when you'd desperatly need your glasses to find where the hell you've left your glasses at home.
Paula Brown 7 years ago
I never knew people with bad eyesight see bokeh like photographers see it in out of focus areas of an image! I assumed they saw more of a gaussian blur.
Dima Al Malakeh 7 years ago
Most of them are amazing and very close to how I see without my glasses..though I tend not to wear them all day but definitely it's a must at night if I'm out or driving...I hate my myopia😑
Brittany Rae 7 years ago
As someone with relatively good eyesight (I have reading glasses for work on tiny things and computers), this hurt my eyes SO BAD. No wonder my friends got mad at me growing up, this is miserable. Thank god, and science, for eyeglasses and contact lenses. Seriously.
Sabal Minor 7 years ago
These are fantastic- never thought of such a concept. Luv when artists push the envelope, out of the box as U will. I've had gr8 vision until i got in my early 40s & then need reading glasses. Now in my early 50s i am seeing how blurry it is without them in just normal glances (not reading
Neill Powell 7 years ago
While I can agree that eyesight-quality is something of a genetic-roulette-game (particularly in those of Asian descent - as a fact! Proven and documented), our lifestyle is also worsening this. My Last eye-test placed me close to 20/10 vision, which I credit to genetics and my complete petrifying-fear of losing my eyesight. There are things you can do to get those eye muscles working overtime and really prevent the decay, after all, the focus of the eye is controlled by muscles, and like every other muscular-controlled body part can do with a bit of exercise.
Carola Fitzhugh 7 years ago
If you took these blurred pictures and super-imposed another of the same photo just a bit off from the original...that would be my vision. Yes, it is so much fun.* ahem*
Related on Bored Panda
