TransWikia.com

Word for a single picture which can be interpreted in two different ways

English Language & Usage Asked on May 20, 2021

What are pictures that have two visual interpretations called? See the following image:

enter image description here

This image shows a skull from one perspective, and when you look at it a different way, it shows a girl sitting under trees. There are many images like this. What do you call these pictures?

2 Answers

They are called ambiguous images. One can argue that there is ambiguity in what the image ‘should’ be, though that ambiguity is often intentional.

Ambiguous images or reversible figures are visual forms which exploit graphical similarities and other properties of visual system interpretation between two or more distinct image forms. These are famous for inducing the phenomenon of multistable perception. -Wikipedia

Answered by Lawrence on May 20, 2021

Similar to @Lawrence's answer but with little more context.

As per Wikipedia, your picture is an optical illusion, and within the set of optical illusions, a cognitive illusion, and within the set of cognitive illusions, an ambiguous illusion.

Ambiguous illusions are pictures or objects that elicit a perceptual "switch" between the alternative interpretations. The Necker cube is a well-known example; other instances are the Rubin vase and the "squircle", based on Kokichi Sugihara's ambiguous cylinder illusion.

Answered by Richard Kayser on May 20, 2021

Add your own answers!

Ask a Question

Get help from others!

© 2024 TransWikia.com. All rights reserved. Sites we Love: PCI Database, UKBizDB, Menu Kuliner, Sharing RPP