The fade-away idea first occurred to him when he was visiting a friend who was wearing a tuxedo and playing a violin in a very dimly lit room. Phillips noticed that even though he could see little of the man, his friend's complete figure was suggested by just the highlights on the violin, the shine on his shoes, and the small bits of white shirt that were visible. Phillips had used the technique in black and white ads, and decided to see if he could make it work in color as well. Within a couple weeks, he had a painting ready to show the editors, depicting a young girl in a polka-dot dress, feeding corn to a flock of chickens. Of the lady, only her face, arms, and feet were painted, with the rest of her figure and clothing suggested only by the arrangement of the polka-dots; of the chickens, only their heads, wings, and feet are visible, with the viewer's mind supplying the white feathers and the lady's white dress. (http://www.americanartarchives.com/phillips,c.htm)