The Concept of Positive and Negative Space
In Interior Design

We have all heard interior designers talk about positive and negative spaces. Let’s have a look in more detail, what are they.

When talking about positive and negative spaces it is important to first understand the term “space” in itself. In interior design, any volume which is being contained within masonry walls and is habitable is normally termed as space.

The volume that gets enclosed in an architectural structure is just a tiny fraction of the vast amount of “universal space”. By universal space, I mean the cosmos or the gigantic vastness in which our planet and all other planets survive.

The volume, which gets contained in a building, varies according to the use of the building. A cinema theatre and a bedroom will surely have different purposes and hence volume. Volume gets defined by three factors, length, breadth and height of the habitable room.

But irrespective of the volume both types of buildings mentioned above have “spaces” enclosed within. Let’s consider the bedroom for the sake of this article.

A typical bedroom will have certain architectural elements attached to it at the time of construction of the building and certain “imposed” later for the sake of proper function. Also, it is important to note that no one builds bedrooms in isolation. A bedroom is always a part of the entire home plan.

The architectural elements already present in a bedroom would be attached toilet and its entrance door, attached terrace or backyard entry and attached study room. All these spaces have work like supplementary role in a bedroom. Now the “imposed” elements are the furniture in the room, other accessories that will occupy the space in a bedroom.

A typical bedroom will have a double bed, wardrobe, dressing table, side tables, study table, book shelf etc.. All these are necessary to use the room in a comfortable way. When these are arranged in a room what remains is termed as the “circulation space”. Now most people think that the volume of the furniture and the remaining empty space must have a balance between them. Because it is not the occupied volume, but the empty volume, that decides the comfort levels inside a room.

If you visit a store room on the basement of a house which is normally used to dump useless things, you will notice that the empty space remained is very less and hence the comfort levels there, are poor. So in interior design the “empty space” is equally important. Now here comes the concept of positive and negative spaces. Normally a negative space is considered a space which cannot be used for a specific human activity.

But this is not true. As said above the overall comfort level in a room is determined by both the occupied as well as non-occupied spaces. So, any smallest piece of floor area that is not being occupied is going to contribute to the comfort levels.

That’s why the terminology of being positive and negative as far as usability is considered becomes a personal matter. What you think as a useless and non -functional space can become a good place for your kid and his friends when they play hide and seek. It’s just the viewpoint to look at thing that matters.

Also a little creativity can alter a non-functional space into a functional one. But remember what I said earlier, in interior design empty space matters. It is not just beautiful furniture, costly paints/wallpapers/paintings that are going to decorate your rooms. Finally it boils down to only one thing, YOU and YOUR mental as well as physical health in that space.

I hope this article was helpful to everyone.