A liquid crystal projector, having a configuration in which an exhaust fan (38) is arranged adjacently to a projection lens (37; 82) at an angle to the optical axis of the projection lens, a configuration including a plurality of tilted wind-directing plates (40), a configuration in which the arrangement of a first reflection mirror (10; 55), a first lens array (4; 54), a light source (1; 51) and the exhaust fan is substantially parallel and adjacent to the arrangement of the projection lens, a dichroic prism (35; 80) and a second dichroic mirror (19; 64), and/or a configuration in which the lens array has the incident surface thereof made of a concave lens (43).