I am using the term "overexposure" in relation to the final image, not necessarily the amount of light captured by the sensor.  In other words, some parts of the final image are clipped or washed out so that both colours and detail have been partially lost.

The image below contains a complete range of tones from pure black to pure white:

However, I prefer to process it so that the background is very overexposed (but not entirely lost) and the emphasis is transferred to the two children in the centre of the picture:

If you have an example of deliberate overexposure that you like, please post it in this thread.

This thread was prompted by this one which set me thinking that we really ought to have more threads talking about processing for artistic effect.  The artistic side of photography is too easily forgotten when talking about the mechanics of the software.