I am working with a customer file and came across an element that when selected is identified as Non-Native Art in the left edge of the control panel. It does not show up in the links pallet. This particular one is a square with a graduated screen. It appears grayscale but the eyedropper reveals it is composed of CMYK.
I am wondering what type of elements are Non-Native? What programs created them? How do they get in Illustrator?
I often see this when I convert from PDF. This might be a gradient or other artwork that can be defined in PDF but is not editable in Illustrator. I even see this when I save as PDF without Illustrator Editing Capability then re-open in Illustrator. Perfectly normal gradients are now "Non-native art".
Be careful with non-native art. I ran into this problem the other day (a pdf with a gradient made in InDesign that I opened in Illy) and found that the colours were not the same as in the original InDesign file. Probably colour settings were not the same in the two applications.
I solved the problem by writing down the gradient settings in the InDesign file and making a new gradient in Illy with the correct colours. I used a copy of the clipping mask shape and filled it with the new Illy gradient.
If the non-native gradient is angled you can drag the new gradient to match the tilt of the masked non-native object. Best to have the preview turned off while you do this, then you can see the masked object and snap the gradient to its corners.
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