Thursday, January 31, 2013

Trapped White Space Defined

Last week, I posted a card and complained that I had to offset the sentiment so it wouldn't trap white space. Several people asked me to explain what trapped white space is, so here goes.

Trapped white space is white space that is trapped in a design, boxed in by design elements, thus creating an unattractive hole in the design. It is much more common on scrapbook pages, where elements can overlap and create trapped empty space that draws the eye where you don't want it to go.

Properly used, white space opens up designs and allows the artist to direct the viewer's eye to focal points and create visually interesting layouts, but when white space gets trapped unattractively by a poorly planned design, the eye goes to the trap, not the focal point.

Here's an example of trapped white space:


Notice how your eye is drawn to the hole in the middle, trapped between the two butterflies and the sentiment. The white space can't escape to the edges of the design...it is trapped.

What NOT to do!


Rearranging the elements so the white space can flow to the edge of the design opens up that space...and also creates more movement in the design.





Same picture, with arrows

Notice how easy it would be to create trapped white space if the blue antenna overlapped the pink butterfly wing. Boom. Trapped space...perhaps not terrible, but not ideal either.

Now, not all trapped white space is bad. In fact, it's sometimes quite necessary in a design. Think about the insides of handles on coffee mugs or tea cups, or outline polka dots. Yep, the white space is, technically, trapped because it can't escape to the edge of the space, but it's integral to the design and doesn't distract from the main image.

Consider this lovely image from Hero Arts. There are tiny areas of trapped space, but they don't draw the eye.



Check out the flow of white space as I marked it. The small trapped areas are marked with green x's and the open areas marked with pink arrows.



You can bet those pink arrows were planned, not accidents, and those areas of green x's were kept small on purpose. They create depth in the design without pulling the eye away from the dogwood flowers.

This image from Papertrey's Through the Trees is another good example of white space trapped for a reason. The rectangle boxes in all the white space quite literally, as if we're looking through a window into the woods. The so-called "trapped" white space is integral to the design and pulls your eye through the window. Stamp a red bird on a branch in this image, and you have a gorgeous, framed scene...not an ugly hole.




I hope that clarifies trapped white space.


Now, let's revisit the stamps from my original card. I tried stamping a sentiment directly under the three leaves, just to see if I was right to offset the sentiment in the original.



Definitely trapped, and not very attractive. If I stamped the word farther below the leaves, it would just float in space, and any sense of unity would be lost.




While the "fix" below wouldn't have worked on my original card, it's a perfect way to use that little trio of leaves to highlight a sentiment. The tiny triangle of trapped white space doesn't draw the eye...it anchors the sentiment to the image, creating a stronger sense of unity and balance.



And that's what I know about trapped white space.

36 comments:

  1. I can imagine white space pounding on the wall and a muffled voice, "Help! Let me out!"

    Thanks for the clarification and telling that not all trapped white space is bad.

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  2. Well explained. Your illuistration of "what not to do" is perfect because the eye is definitely drawn to the hole in the middle.

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  3. I love reading your blog! It's so informative! And, your projects are gorgeous!!! Thanks for all you do!

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  4. I love this! I'd never fully realised what it was that made some of my cards look a little NQR, but you've nailed it - thank you for explaing it so clearly!

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  5. I'm learning so much from your design theory posts! Thank you! Now I know why some of my cards just don't look right - the white space is trapped :)

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  6. Thanks very much for illustrating your lesson. Now I get it :)

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  7. Once an educator, always an educator. Great tutorial!

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  8. Thank you for this. I do learn a lot of different things from you. Thanks for taking the time to share the whys.

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  9. Well when the first picture showed up on my reader I had to find out WHY! you would make such a card. Now I know. Thanks for the setting the white space free...

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  10. Now I have to go look at all my cards to see where I messed up by trapping white space. I never heard of this before you mentioned it. Dang, you are wicked smart!

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  11. Thanks for explaining and illustrating this idea so well - especially the "Thanks" and dogwood examples.

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  12. Thanks for the description of "trapped white space". I learned something new.

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  13. Great explanation! Thank you. I learned something new!

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  14. Wonderfully practical design tips in this posting! I love these - can you do more of them :)

    Big hugs, and thank you,
    Audrie

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  15. What a superb design lesson - thank you so much! Your explanation is so clear that I immediately understood the concept. I'm printing this off to keep in my file of card-making instructions and tutorials.

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  16. Thanks for explaining that - I learned something new and will now watch for trapped space :)

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  17. I've noticed trapped white space in cards I've made and it really bothers me, although I didn't know what to call it--or do about it. Great post.

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  18. Yup - this is why I love you!! You give such succinct simple explanations for design!

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  19. Thanks Susan for your detailed explanation! It is really helpful for me to grasp the concept.

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  20. What a great lesson in design! Thank you, Susan!

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  21. This is very very helpful!! Thank you for the info, Susan :)

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  22. Thanks so much for the education!! I truly learn a lot from reading your blog(s). Please keep educating us. By the way, where did you learn all this?

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  23. Thanks for sharing this, Susan! I really enjoyed it!!! Very helpful and informative! Can't wait to put it to use in my card designs!!

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  24. you really are the BEST teacher in blogland! Your explanations are so clear and precise and so very, very helpful :-) I wish my art teacher at school had explained all this stuff rather than just arranging bowls of fruit and leaves........

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  25. I happened to be perusing your blog and came across this post...Thank you so much for clarifying this design detail! Very helpful!

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  26. thank you!! Never thought of it that way and I appreciate your time in explaining and how to correct

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  27. Thanks for this post - I love to learn about different elements of design I can apply when making my cards.

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Thank you so much for taking time to comment!