"There is an exquisite balance in the work that can be made sense of only by interpreting 'weight', 'force', 'location', and 'value' metaphorically, based on a schema whose structure specifies forces or weights distributed relative to some point or axis." M. Johnson, The body in the mind
Johnson's comment on Accompanied Contrast is brilliant and captures the very essence of a metaphor. What the painting reveals is a form of abstract expressionism that cannot simply be read literally as for example Calvinism does conceive the bible. The image invites the reader to pour into it experiences, beliefs, expectations, worldview, and a taxonomy of one's own. Thus, figures and shapes transcend the ontological form and add to the inanimate the notion of personification. The rectangulars could be houses, cronies, or birds. The shapes incorporate human qualities and seem to me the epitome of complete diversity in a state of peace and harmony. I wonder if you could go as far as to say that abstract art is the visual continuation of figurativeness and rhetorical structures.
