Henry Moore, (British) 1895-1986,Reclining Figure, 1935-36
Elmwood, 19 x 35 x 15 in. Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Buffalo

Look at this wooden sculpture. Notice the open space carved through the torso of the body. See how this opening gives interest to the carving. The round shape created by the "hole" echoes the round shape of the head and the rounded form of the shoulders. Moore deliberately removed a piece of his sculpture.

Do you think this was a good decision?

This poster provides us with an interesting example of how artists use Space. The carver, including his head, arms and tools represent the Positive Space. The rest of the space becomes the Negative Space. Shahn chooses not to leave the Negative Space empty. Instead he fills a large portion of it with words. This Negative Space becomes a very important part of Shahn's message. The words speak to us about what ideals we, as humans, should live by. Shahn mentions ideas such as the Right To Be Safe and Justice For All.

Note how the arms of the carver encircle the words. Why did Shahn do that?

Here the man appears to be "embracing the ideals" carved into the Negative Space.

This is a student work. It is an example of two-point perspective. There are two points on either end of the horizontal horizon line (which is hidden behind the buildings). The rules of perspective were developed during the Renaissance Period (1400-1500's). Artist used these rules to create a sense of three-dimensional space while drawing or painting on a flat, two-dimensional surface.

In this work, you can see into the distance as your eyes are drawn to the sides of the paper. Do you know why? A diagonal line is read by the human eye as a movement line. The eye is drawn up the diagonal direction and "into" the drawing.

This very famous American painting is called Christina's World.

What is the Positive Space? Christina and the houses in the distance are the Positive Space.
Look at how much background Space or Negative Space the artist left. There is so much more Negative Space. What does all this Space do to the painting?

Do you sense that Christina is lonely? Perhaps she feels apart from her home and family.

This work is classified as a still life. A still life is a depiction of a group of inanimate objects, such as flowers or fruit, usually arranged by an artist. How do you think Cezanne created a sense of Space in this work? Why do some objects look like they are in front of other objects?
He overlaps the objects. The fruit is on top of the white cloth. The cloth overlaps the bottle and bowls so they appear to be in front of them. Objects that are lower on the canvas appear closer. Objects that are placed higher up on the painting surface appear further back. By overlapping, artists can create a sense of depth.