In the case of visual 2d design, space is a way to create a sense of separation between elements that makes a design more visually appealing and usable. In graphic design, white space refers to the space that surrounds the elements. Whether youre looking for an overall shift in your brand image, a website redesign, a simple promotional package or an event that wows your clients, white space has the tools and the talent. Design corina ciripitca october, 2011 4 minutes read. Negative space may be most evident when the space around a subject, not the subject itself, forms an interesting or artistically relevant shape, and such space occasionally is. Read on to find out how white spaces, which are easily ignored by users and. Its simply the space in a design and it can have any color, texture or pattern.
To help designers achieve this, visual design considers a variety of principles, including unity, gestalt properties, space, hierarchy, balance, contrast, scale, dominance. For publication designers, white space is very important. Visual design aims to shape and improve the user experience through considering the effects of illustrations, photography, typography, space, layouts, and color on the usability of products and on their aesthetic appeal. Space is a design consideration that recognizes the importance of empty places in a design. White space is important because it refines a design and gives the other elements, image and type, room to exist. White space is always occurring in a design from the moment you open up a blank document, the design has begun with white space. Using white space means having a good eye for composition in the first place. Negative space can make the difference in the focal points of a design, the overall look of a design, its legibility, and our overall perception. Whitespace is the key to accomplishing a simple, elegant and useful product in web design. White space is not your enemy is an easytoread introduction to graphic design for students, communications professionals and anyone who has ever been asked to create a website or brochure with no design background.
White space in graphic design, and why its important printwand. Information and translations of white space in the most comprehensive dictionary definitions resource on the web. Importance of whitespace in good design successivetech medium. Use of micro and macro white spaces in different proportions help in defining the character of web page. A solid understanding of negative space designfestival. Ample margins and short lines, with extra leading between lines blocks of. White space can be any color, as it refers to the background of the design. Sometimes the use of white space can be the difference between a great web site and a mediocre one. Yep, the white space is, technically, trapped because it cant escape to the edge of the space, but its integral to the design and doesnt distract from the main image.
Probably the best example of a website that implements macro white space intensively and effectively is the homepage of. White space in graphic design, and why its important. Negative space, in art, is the space around and between the subjects of an image. Why you need white space in your daily routine jocelyn. White space graphic design fullservice graphic design firm. White space is the space that exists, most frequently behind and around forms, in a work of art or graphic design.
Any type of blank space that isnt in competition with the focus content can be classed as white space, as the design below suggests. But the design is such that there is a split in the pen nib and this split is designed in the shape of a spoon. White space sometimes spelled whitespace is integral because it tells our brains which elements in the design are the most importantit helps. Contrary to the name, white space doesnt just apply to the color white. White space is the blank space, the empty space, between elements. In the context of architecture, space is a physical environment in which people live and work. Graphic design is a way to communicate a certain message by using typography, visual arts or page layout techniques whether we are talking about newspapers, ads, logos and branding or websites. A beginners guide to communicating visually through graphic, web and multimedia design. I partner with small and mediumsized businesses across the country to strategize on creating an effective marketing campaign through graphic design. White space is a very important design element, just as all the. There are two types of white space, the undefined white space, which is what you get when you open a new document, and active white space, which occurs when an object is place in undefined white space. Well, despite its name, whitespace does not need to be white. In other words, it is an art concerned with design elements that can be applied to the letters and text as opposed to, say, images, tables, or other visual enhancements on a printed page. Its the space we leave between elements to give a layout an elegant look, a clean look.
Kim golombisky and rebecca hagen, white space is not your enemy. Contrast simply means that one item is different from another. White space or negative space is simply unmarked space in the design. It is balancing the rest of the design by throwing what is on the page or the screen into relief. White space definition of white space by the free dictionary. Lately we can see that more and more designers are realizing the importance of creating clean designs. White spaces help separate paragraphs of text, graphics, and other portions of a document, and helps a document look less crowded. Defining true creativity through white space in graphic design.
More use of whitespaces means less use of content per fold which means. Focal press, 2010 uses of white space a visually inviting style can result from several uses of white space. Whitespace should not be considered merely blank space it is the element of design that enables the objects on the page to exist. Creative communications is a fullservice design firm that works with your business to creatively promote your product, service or event. Learn more about using white space in your graphic designs. White space in a symmetrical design is considered passive because it is not integral to our perception of the positive elements, and if noticed at all it is seen just as a background white 41. Alternatively referred to as spacing or whitespace, white space is any section of a document that is unused or space around an object. Knowing how to use white space can be an effective tool in your design arsenal. As a metaphor, white space is at once ubiquitous and. It is what separates content and is a design element of its own.
Why is white space good for graphic design designmodo. In the broadest sense, typography is as old as the most ancient alphabets, ideograms, and hieroglyphic images. Rather it applies to any areas of a design not taken up by other elements, such as text, photos or illustrations. Its this attention to detail that makes the composition easier to navigate. Using white space or negative space in your designs. Active white space is blank areas on a web page that are placed on purpose. Unlike micro white space, macro white space acts as a container of the overall design. In fact, the empty spaces in your compositions play a pivotal role in the success of your designs. In page layout, illustration and sculpture, white space is often referred to as negative space. It allows the reader to no be over powered by the design because thereas enough balance between foreground and background. Branding is the key to a successful business identity. In fact, its sometimes quite necessary in a design. Areas that contain content are called positive space, while areas that contain no content are called negative space.
I am janell osborn, owner of and designer at white space graphics, llc. Visual and graphic design is not something that started with the rise of the internet. You may find the term negative space here and there. Every year there are several new books on design published and i tend to group them in two categories.
Sophistication and luxury in print design, you might notice that your client wants every last piece of his real estate used to promote his product. Close proximity indicates that items are connected or have a relationship to each other and become one visual unit which helps to organise or give structure to a layout. This design technique helps separate paragraphs of text, graphics. Basically, white space is the space between grouped elements in your designs. It is also the space within individual design elements, including the space between typography.
White space does not literally mean an empty space with a white background. This logo has a pen nib as the main figure which symbolizes the writer. White space definition and meaning collins english. Active white space this is the space that you make a conscious effort to add to your design for emphasis and structure. Why whitespace is so important in web design segue technologies. This means you have to be able to find the right layout and. Ignoring white space is like ignoring the room in which you are positioning furniture. In interaction design, white space or negative space, refers to the empty space between and around elements of a design or page layout between paragraphs, pictures, buttons, icons and other items on your web page. White space allows the reader to easily engage the design without being confronted with too many graphics or type.
In web design terms, its the space between graphics, columns. White space exists for a reason to ease the process of analyzing graphics or content so this is what you have to remember while using it in graphic design. In this context, white space basically means a place where a company might have room to maneuver in a crowded playing field. These spaces prevent your design from appearing overcrowded, and they help guide your readers eye towards key information by contributing to your visual hierarchy. White space is the area in a design or on a page that is left blank or white. This form of design is defined by visual communication and it takes some time to master. In layout and composition, contrast can help you do many things, like catch the readers eye, create emphasis, or call attention to something important. The human eye percepts an organized and clean layout better than a cluttered space full of visual disturbances. Without consistent alignment, your work could start to feel disorganized. It is the space between the layouts, lines of paragraphs, between paragraphs, between different ui elements and so on. Typography may be defined as the theory and practice of letter and typeface design. White space refers to the areas in your design that do not contain content, including the larger spaces between design elements and the tiny spaces between letters.
Here are some of my latest work, click on a image to view more. You may find the term negative space here and there, indicating the exact same thing. A good experience means having space to breathe between. The power of white space interaction design foundation. Active white space is often asymmetrical, which makes the design look more dynamic and active. The term arises from graphic design practice, where printing processes generally use white paper. It is the space that balances things out and reminds us that designs are beautiful. Think about the insides of handles on coffee mugs or tea cups, or outline polka dots. There are two types of white space, active and passive. In the last installment of our design principles series, we will explore the power of white space also known as negative space, and how. We do that by compiling a team of professionals thats specific to each client. The principle of proximity is simply the process of ensuring related design elements are placed together. There are two major types of white space in graphic design. An excellent example of use of white space in logo design is guild food writers logo.