Patent ID: 7261419

Claim:
An image display apparatus comprising: an illumination optical system having a light source; a plurality of spatial light modulation elements each having reflecting electrodes; a polarization element corresponding to each of the plural spatial light modulation elements; wherein the illumination light from the illumination optical system enters a condenser lens whose optical access is directed obliquely against the illumination light; a color separation/composition element for color-separating illumination light from the illumination optical system into light for the respective spatial light modulation elements and for compositing reflection lights from the spatial light modulation elements, the color separation/composition element having reflection planes laid obliquely with respect to the illumination light; a projection optical system for projecting composited light outgoing from the color separation/composition element to display an image of the respective spatial light modulation elements; a first polarization change means for causing light of wavelength band which is supposed to pass through the reflection planes of the color separation/composition element to be of P-polarized light toward the reflection planes and causing light of wavelength band which is supposed to be reflected by the reflection planes of the color separation/composition element to be of S-polarized light toward the reflection planes, the first polarization change means being disposed in an optical path between the illumination optical system and the color separation/composition element; and further comprising a retarder stack in the optical path between the illumination optical system and the color separation/composition element.