Contour/Outline/Silhouette

The contour is the locus at which the parts of opaque solid objects appear to form an edge because it corresponds for the viewer to the projection of the rim, namely the curve that divides the surfaces into visible and invisible parts. The rim between the visible front and the invisible rear side is projected onto the contour that is the envelope of all the curves of equal depth. Although the rim and the contour run into depth, they are distinct concepts that regard the object-centred and the viewer-centred description. The outline is the boundary of the surface delimited by the contour, which fills a spatial region. Rubin (1921) discovered the property that allows the contour and the outline playing a crucial role in perception by studying the figure–ground phenomenon. The geometrical and perceptual properties of the contour and the outline support the perception and the production of pictures.