In this week’s free Deke’s Techniques episode, Deke sets out to create/trace the Impossible Trident illusion in Adobe Illustrator. You know, this thing, also, named by Mad Magazine the “POIUY.” I have no idea pwhy.

While the visual is busy bending your mind, you’ll be learning some key (and dare I say actually useful) Illustrator skills:

How to trace a template. (Which you can download below to practice on your own.

How to make, rotate, and copy ellipses.

How to trace the “top” (is it? I don’t know, my mind is forked) section and troubleshoot overlapping points and snapping errors.

How to continue tracing without entirely losing your forking mind.

And finally, if you’re a member of LinkedIn Learning, how to add the gradients that further enhance (if you want to call it that) the illusion.

Deke’s Techniques, showing you how it can’t possibly work.