Posted by Daniel Deschuyteneer on December 20, 1998 at 14:51:43:
In Reply to: Reading White First posted by R. John Howe on December 20, 1998 at 07:32:24:
Dear Jim,
Your interpretations requires more then some work on the part of the viewer.
I looked several times at the picture of your Salor chuval and I wasn't successful to see your "interdigitated" image of the cat with that of an eagle. Seeing a horse or an elephant on the opposite axis was really impossible.
So I began to modify your picture, using the black and white process of Wendel and other technical artifacts which allow us to read "the white first". Images of two confronted animals could be then clearly seen. This picture can be seen below and two eyes were artificially added in the upper gull to make the things clearer.
The abstract "animals" look more like two (cats or) dogs with three legs and no one resembles an eagle.
Your horse or elephant on the opposite axis doesn't appear.
The picture showed here helped me to see an to understand what "you" see. Nevertheless I think that what "you" see wasn't intentional.
It's our/your interpretation/imagination which creates the animal forms seen here. If the weaver would really wanted to draw leopards or cats, and eagles, she would surely draw them more realistic, or at least more realistic rendering would appear in earlier or related rugs. I am sure that using the same process I would be successful to create related images in other rugs from other countries.
Last, I don't think that by only modifying the color scheme that "cat and eagle" could become a horse or an elephant.
Regards
Daniel Deschuyteneer