In
page layout,
illustration
An illustration is a decoration, interpretation or visual explanation of a text, concept or process, designed for integration in print and digital published media, such as posters, flyers, magazines, books, teaching materials, animations, vide ...
and sculpture, white space is often referred to as
negative space. It is the portion of a page left unmarked:
margins,
gutters, and space between columns, lines of type, graphics, figures, or objects drawn or depicted, and is not necessarily actually white if the background is of a different colour. The term arises from
graphic design practice, where printing processes generally use white paper. White space may be an element of design rather than just space left blank.
When space is at a premium, such as in some types of magazine, newspaper, and yellow pages advertising, white space is restricted in order to get as much information onto the page as possible. A page full of text or graphics with very little white space may appear cluttered, and be difficult to read.
Some designs compensate for restricted white space by use of
leading
In typography, leading ( ) is the space between adjacent lines of type; the exact definition varies.
In hand typesetting, leading is the thin strips of lead (or aluminium) that were inserted between lines of type in the composing stick to inc ...
and
typeface
A typeface (or font family) is the design of lettering that can include variations in size, weight (e.g. bold), slope (e.g. italic), width (e.g. condensed), and so on. Each of these variations of the typeface is a font.
There are thousands ...
. Extensive white space may be left intentionally, with the purpose of giving an appearance deemed classic, elegant, or rich.
See also
*
Composition (visual arts)
The term composition means "putting together". It can be thought of as the organization of the elements of art according to the principles of art. Composition can apply to any work of art, from music through writing and into photography, that is ...
*
Ma
*
Minimalism (visual arts)
*
Type color
References
{{reflist
External links
16 Things about White SpaceOn White Space in Graphic Design
Artistic techniques