Metaphors are often thought of as a spoken or written language device. However, they work constantly in our visual perceptions as well. Indeed they are pervasive in everyday life if we choose to become aware of it. Our conceptual system is fundamentally metaphorical in nature.

Take the image above for example. What do chairs mean to you? comfort, a place to rest, a seating for an authority figure? So why is one, apparently incongruously, in a forest?

Is the blood on the chair a sign of violence and death or is it a symbol of the life-force?

What thoughts or images do coloured balloons elicit in you? fun, a celebration, freedom to fly? Then why is there a noose attached? And what about readers of Stephen King novels, specifically 'IT'? What would a balloon signify to them? So are the balloons a metaphor for escape and freedom from the menace of being lost in an impenetrable forest (which is itself a metaphor for something else to each one of us) or are they a potent of more evil to come?



I urge you to rest awhile on the comfortable chair and ponder these things...