Humans are good at finding patterns and especially good at recognizing evidence of other humans. Sometimes this evidence is recognized when not present - for example, hearing spirit voices in white noise, or perceiving faces or shapes in clouds or other random images. I was not sure if this phenomenon had a name - maybe it is Pareidolia? Or maybe this is specific to seeing religious images. In an old, deleted idea there had been some discussion of whether this is like stochastic resonance: noise (for example white noise in the case of spirit voices) amplifies something not a signal to the status of signal.

In any case, this is for fun. Various underlays with squiggly and dense random patterns can be moved beneath outlines - many of faces on bodies but other outlines too. This could be done with tracing paper or ipad magic. When the artist "recognizes" a face emerge from the pattern it is held still and he or she can trace it. On removing the underlay the found face or other image remains.

Many who lack artistic skills can make a fine tracing of a face. I propose that these nonartists are overthinking the matter - in some way this is the same principle as "drawing on the right side of the brain". I propose that if the artistic hopeful perceives a face in chaos and traces that, it will be more of an original artistic endeavor than tracing a copy. Eventually maybe he or she will not need the crutch of the noise pattern and be able to "see" the image on the white page?
-- bungston, Jun 12 2012

Not everyone "sees" the same images, though we all tend to see the same "faces" and "profiles" in the outlines of mountains and rocky outcrops.

Then again, there are some real kooks, like the Japanese guy who told the world he had seen all manner of miniature creatures in ancient "fossils". I probably should go and find a reference to him and his laughable "discovery".
-- UnaBubba, Jun 13 2012



random, halfbakery