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 of how human vision can interpret colors differently under certain Debate rages over color of dress 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 Understanding the Blue and Black Dress Illusion