im-age ar´chae-ol´o-gy™, [im-ij] [ahr-kee-ol-uh-jee], n. 1. The systematic recovery by artistic methods of imagery within the ground of a painting. 2. A dig into the surface ground with the butt of a paintbrush to imprint an image. 3. The space between the figure and the ground from which emerges a skeletal impression of an image. 4. A constant searching for the middle ground through the application of paint and projected thought that culminated into a work of art.