What (who) is silhouette - definition
![[[Goethe]] facing a grave monument, cut paper, 1780](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/GoetheVorEinemGrabmalMitWeiblicherBuesteS92.jpg?width=200 "[[Goethe]] facing a grave monument, cut paper, 1780")
 MET DP161828 white balanced white bg.png?width=200 "Attic Greek Black-figure Neck Amphora attributed to the Princeton Painter, ca. 550–540 BCE")
![targets]] are use for military, police and civilian firearms training.](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/Target-human silhouette.png?width=200 "targets]] are use for military, police and civilian firearms training.")
![[[Metallic silhouette]], like these of the [[National Rifle Association]] are used for target shooting.](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/Metallic silhouettes.jpg?width=200 "[[Metallic silhouette]], like these of the [[National Rifle Association]] are used for target shooting.")
![A traditional silhouette image of [[Jane Austen]], 18th century](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/JaneAustenSilhouette.png?width=200 "A traditional silhouette image of [[Jane Austen]], 18th century")
![[[Beethoven]] as a boy, finely cut with details of hair and clothing, 18th century](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/Beethoven 16 Silhouette.jpg?width=200 "[[Beethoven]] as a boy, finely cut with details of hair and clothing, 18th century")
![The [[Mudflap girl]] is a common modern image on car mudflaps](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/Mudflap girl.svg?width=200 "The [[Mudflap girl]] is a common modern image on car mudflaps")
![Silhouette image representing human [[evolution]]](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/Human evolution.svg?width=200 "Silhouette image representing human [[evolution]]")
![[[Traffic signs]] often use silhouettes. This sign warns that the road crosses a railway line.](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/Japan road sign 207-A.svg?width=200 "[[Traffic signs]] often use silhouettes. This sign warns that the road crosses a railway line.")
![The flag of [[Cyprus]] shows a map of the country in silhouette form. Countries are often identified by silhouette maps.](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/Flag of Cyprus.svg?width=200 "The flag of [[Cyprus]] shows a map of the country in silhouette form. Countries are often identified by silhouette maps.")
![New York]]. Monuments are often identified by their silhouettes.](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/Statue of Liberty, Silhouette.jpg?width=200 "New York]]. Monuments are often identified by their silhouettes.")
![The [[Osborne bull]] advertising sign in [[Las Cabezas de San Juan]], [[Spain]].](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/Toro Osborne Cabezas de San Juan.JPG?width=200 "The [[Osborne bull]] advertising sign in [[Las Cabezas de San Juan]], [[Spain]].")
.jpg?width=200 "Lined up for sunset")
.jpg?width=200 "Cambodia at sunset")
![Sunset on [[Lake Constance]]](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/Sonnenuntergang, Bodensee.jpg?width=200 "Sunset on [[Lake Constance]]")
![Christ the Redeemer]]'' statue in [[Rio de Janeiro]], Brazil](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/Cristo Redentor night.jpg?width=200 "Christ the Redeemer]]'' statue in [[Rio de Janeiro]], Brazil")
![Mounted Brazilian [[dragoon]] in [[Brasília]]](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/23 08 2022 Solenidade de chegada da Relíquia do Imperador Dom Pedro I (52306879686).jpg?width=200 "Mounted Brazilian [[dragoon]] in [[Brasília]]")
Wikipedia
A silhouette (English: , French: [silwɛt]) is the image of a person, animal, object or scene represented as a solid shape of a single colour, usually black, with its edges matching the outline of the subject. The interior of a silhouette is featureless, and the silhouette is usually presented on a light background, usually white, or none at all. The silhouette differs from an outline, which depicts the edge of an object in a linear form, while a silhouette appears as a solid shape. Silhouette images may be created in any visual artistic medium, but were first used to describe pieces of cut paper, which were then stuck to a backing in a contrasting colour, and often framed.
Cutting portraits, generally in profile, from black card became popular in the mid-18th century, though the term silhouette was seldom used until the early decades of the 19th century, and the tradition has continued under this name into the 21st century. They represented a cheap but effective alternative to the portrait miniature, and skilled specialist artists could cut a high-quality bust portrait, by far the most common style, in a matter of minutes, working purely by eye. Other artists, especially from about 1790, drew an outline on paper, then painted it in, which could be equally quick.
From its original graphic meaning, the term silhouette has been extended to describe the sight or representation of a person, object or scene that is backlit, and appears dark against a lighter background. Anything that appears this way, for example, a figure standing backlit in a doorway, may be described as "in silhouette". Because a silhouette emphasises the outline, the word has also been used in fields such as fashion, fitness, and concept art to describe the shape of a person's body or the shape created by wearing clothing of a particular style or period.
