Г-44

БИТЬ В ГЛАЗА (кому) VP, subj: concr or abstr) to stand out to such an extent that one cannot fail to notice it

X бьёт (Y-y) в глаза - Y cannot help noticing (but notice) X

(in limited contexts) X is striking (in limited contexts of things that evoke a negative reaction from the speaker) X is hard on the eyes X hurts the eye(s).

...Город никак не уступал другим губернским городам: сильно била в глаза жёлтая краска на каменных домах и скромно темнела серая на деревянных (Гоголь 3). (The town) in no way yielded to the other provincial towns-the paint on the stone houses was the usual yellow and just as hard on the eyes, while the paint on the wooden houses showed as a modestly dark gray, quite unexceptional (3a).