Dressgate: If you saw THAT dress as white your brain was working overtime Long Black Prom Dress with Contrasting Beads PromGirl Black Hot Pink XSmall Black and blue or white and gold? The dress color debate rages online The actual dress was black and blue. The confusion came from how lighting and color perception tricked people's brains, making some see it as white and gold. It became a viral example In 2015, a photograph of a dress went viral, dividing viewers over whether its colors were blue and black or white and gold. This optical illusion highlighted differences in human color perception I've been thinking about "the dress" for 10 years. Here's what I've learned.