MyLeoNes™

Negative space — Art, 7–10 years

The empty areas around and inside a subject are part of the picture too. Artists can shape these spaces to make the subject clearer or more surprising.

The empty part has a shape

Negative space is the area around a subject, or a hole inside it, that is not the subject itself. It is not simply “nothing”: its edges and shape help us understand the object. Looking at the empty part can sometimes make drawing the object easier.

Why notice the empty areas?

Beginners often focus so hard on a cup, hand or tree that they lose its true shape. Artists noticed that the spaces between things can be simpler to see and measure. Using them solves the problem of a subject becoming crooked or crowded when every mark is made from memory.

Drawing the space between fingers

1. Place your hand flat on paper and look at the gaps between your fingers. 2. Draw each gap as a small shape, without drawing the fingers. 3. When all the gaps are in place, draw around their outside edge. The hand appears because its surrounding spaces have the right shapes.

The mistake: ignore the gaps

A common mistake is to draw only the object and treat everything around it as leftover paper. That feels sensible because the object seems like the main thing. But if a gap is too narrow, wide or crooked, the object’s outline changes too, even when its separate parts look carefully drawn.

Where empty shapes are useful

You can use negative space when drawing a bicycle, a chair, a plant or a person. Logos often shape the empty area so that a second image appears inside the first one. In a room, leaving clear space around furniture also helps people move and see what matters.

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