Negative Shape/Space Lesson

Today I am going to give you plenty of examples of what this is.

When I first started teaching students about negative shape I would use my hands as an example.   

After making a heart shape with my hands I asked them what they shape they could see.

Changing my hands position I asked them what they now could see.

Heart and Heart should have been the answers.

Negative shape in art is a lot like that. 

The artist works on the space around the shape that they would like you to really see.  Usually in the negative shape or space there is no drawing or coloring.  It is just a blank space.

Can you see the vase?  Now can you see the man's profile in the negative space?
The vase is the postitive space and the profiles are in the negative space.

In this example what is the negative space?  The cat or the dog?
The dog is the positive space and the cat is the negative space.

This is another example of negative shape/space.  The 2 & 3 are the negative space but they are very easy to see.  Can you see how those numbers are part of the background?  The space around any object being painted or drawn is negative space.

The black cat in this picture is in the negative space, because it part of the background.

The picture of this girl is an excellent example of positive and negative shapes.  

If you follow this link it could teach you a little more about shape.

This is a famous logo that uses negative space.  

The peacocks neck and beak are what you see as negative shape.

This chair has negative space of a very comfortable chair, but the actual sitting of the chair may be very uncomfortable.

The great challenge now is to try to get your students to use negative space in their art.  

I have posted an example of a haunted house that I did with a third grade class last year. 

Scroll down and check it out.

"Lines create the outline of shapes.  Each time a line outlines a shape, it is really creating two images: the positive one and a negative one." -How to Teach Art to Children


If you were to think about maybe what a negative shape would be, what would you see?