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당신이 여백의 위치에 있음을
어떻게 생각하는가
영어 이야기 2030
egative space
여백 (餘白)
어느 신혼 부부가 살림을 차리면서 집을 얻었는데
(샀든지 세를 들든) 안방 (master bedroom)에
침대 하나 들여다 놓으면서 이런 말을 했단다,
"우리 신혼방에 '여백 (餘白)'이 넓어요."
여백은 어떤 중요한 인물이나 물건을 그리거나
실물을 놓고 나머지 공간을 뜻한다는 선입관이 있다.
그런데 예술적인 면에서의 여백은 '나머지 (중요하지 않은)'라는
의미만 갖는 것은 아니다.
영어로 말하면 negative space 라고 하는데 그 뜻은 이렇다.
NEGATIVE SPACE is a powerful concept in art and photography
that allows viewers to say a lot with very little.
여백은 보는 사람들로 하여금 작은 것을 가지고 큰것을 말하도록 허락하는
미술 (그림)과 사진에서의 강력한 개념이다.
그리고
NEGATIVE SPACE in art can help us discover who we really are.
미술분야에서의 여백은 우리로 하여금
우리가 진정 누군인지 발견하는 것을 도울 수 있다.
(Psychology Today, September 15, 2023)
여백 같지 않은 여백은 Schindler's List 라는 영화에서
(최근 영화지만 color 가 아닌 black and white 작품인데)
어느 장면에 빨간 옷을 입은 소녀가 관람격을 사로 잡았는데
내 생각으로는 그 소녀 좌우로 걸어가던
어른들의 무표정한 얼굴들이 그 영화의 '여백'이었을 것이다.
그런 의미에서 여백은 '중요 인물 (또는 사물이나 동물)'을 강조하기 위해
영화의 조연이나 extra 처럼 돕는 역활을 하는 것이라는 생각도 든다.
그런 의미에서 여백의 사명 (?)은 매우 크고 중요하다는 주장도 있다
Focusing on the NEGATIVE SPACE has a power
to give depth and perspective, balance, and harmony.
여백에 촛점을 맞추는 것은 (삶의) 깊음과 정망, 균형 그리고 조화를 주는 힘이 있다
부정적 (negative) 임을 좋아할 사람은 없지만
negative 가 positive 가 되기도 한다.
Focusing on the NEGATIVE SPACE can add much to your life that’s positive.
여백에 촛점을 맞추는 것은 당신의 긍정적으로 가는데
보탬이 될 수 있다.
Heal the Mind to Heal the Body
SELF-HELP
Water and flowers are often used to fill in the negative space between parts of a tattoo on your half sleeve.
The circle can be either negative space (blank) or filled in with black.
Focusing on the negative space gives depth and perspective, balance, and harmony.
As the negative space between the lines has a distinctive shape
NEGATIVE SPACE in art can haelp us discover who we really are
, focusing on the negative space can add much to your life that’s positive.
Negative space is the empty space around and between the subject(s) in a composition that does not draw a viewer’s attention
Negative space is a powerful concept in art and photography that allows you to say a lot with very little.
Conclusion
In art and design, negative space refers to the (sometimes) white space on a paper or in a painting — the space not taken up by the subject. In a home, negative space could be considered the blank spots in your home where there’s no design — no art, no furniture, no stuff. It can be just as impactful to pay attention to where there isn’t anything in your home. Expertly executed negative space can bring much-needed calmness to certain rooms and make other design elements pop even more powerfully.By growing accustomed to examining the negative spaces of paintings, photos, music, encounters with friends, family, or at professional meetings, you will get on a journey of self-discovery that is unique to you.
This way, your attention to negative space details will add texture, depth, and perspective to your life.
It might help redefine who you really are and might improve your relationships.
Put another way, focusing on the negative space can add much to your life that’s positive.
Updated September 15, 2023
Reviewed by Davia Sills
KEY POINTS
A negative space in art is the space that is in between people, objects, etc.
Focusing on the negative space gives paintings, photography, and music more depth and perspective.
To discover one's true self, one can explore feelings that come up when focusing on negative spaces in art.
Someone can also journey to self-discovery by naming what they are not, like carving out their own sculpture.
To get a new and different perspective, instead of painting the positive space, which includes people, objects, etc., artists sometimes paint the negative space, which is what is in between people, objects, etc. In doing so, artists uncover a whole different world, richer and more mysterious.
Focusing on the negative space gives depth and perspective, balance, and harmony.
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What if we could apply that technique of exploring the negative space in art to discover more about ourselves?
Source: Vincent Van Gogh/Wikimedia Commons
"The Starry Night"Source: Vincent Van Gogh/Wikimedia Commons
Negative space in painting, photography, and music
Let’s take the well-known oil on canvas painting “The Starry Night” that Dutch post-impressionist Vincent Van Gogh painted in 1889 from his asylum in Saint-Rémy-de-Provence, France.
It is thought that Venus is to the right of the cypress tree, that
the moon is on the upper right,
and that what you see between Venus and the moon are stars.
An example of negative space in this painting is the spaces between the stars.
To discover more about yourself, focus on those negative spaces, on their colors and shapes.
How does focusing on those negative spaces make you feel? Do you experience any body sensations associated with those feelings? In expressing out loud your feelings and body sensations,
you might discover more of your deep self.
preconception (n.)
"conception or opinion formed in advance of experience or actual knowledge,"
1620s, from pre- "before" + conception. Related: Preconceptions.
also from 1620s
Entries linking to preconception
conception (n.)
early 14c., "act of conceiving in the womb," from Old French concepcion (Modern French conception) "conception, grasp, comprehension," from Latin conceptionem (nominative conceptio) "a comprehending, conception," noun of action from past-participle stem of concipere "to take in and hold; become pregnant," from con-, here perhaps an intensive prefix (see con-), + combining form of capere"to take" (from PIE root *kap- "to grasp").
Originally of pregnancy (also with reference to Conception Day in the Church calendar); mental sense of "process of forming concepts, act or power of conceiving in the mind" is from late 14c. Meaning "that which is conceived in the mind" is from 1520s; that of "general notion" is from 1785.
Source: Hanna Morris/Unsplash
Source: Hanna Morris/Unsplash
In photography, look at the picture on the left. After looking at the positive space, which is the two hands, focus on the negative space, which is the space between the two hands.
While keeping an open mind and open heart and without judgment, explore the feelings, emotions, body sensations, and memories that come up for you when you focus on the space between the two hands.
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In music, the negative space is the absence of sound. It is the silence between notes, the pauses between chords, and the moments when the music simply stops. The negative space in music gives more depth to the music and gives us time to dive deeper into our feelings.
Next time you listen to your favorite piece of music, explore what feelings come up when the music pauses.
Source: Michelangelo/Wikimedia Commons
Atlas slave sculpture by Michelangelo. We can see how the artist chipped out the pieces of marble that weren't the body (negative space) until the body appeared.Source: Michelangelo/Wikimedia Commons
Negative space in our own self
We have talked about the negative space of paintings, photos, and music,
but what about the negative space of our own self? That negative space is what is not us.
Let’s go on a journey of exploring what is not us as if we were carving a sculpture of us and chipping out the pieces that are not us.
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To do that, you can either do the exercise by yourself or with a partner. If you do the exercise with a partner, get a timer and have your partner ask you the question, “Who are you not?” and if you run out of answers, use the question, “What don’t you like?” Give one answer like “I am not somebody who….”
Finish the sentence. Have your partner say, “Thank you,” without any comment or judgment.
Then, have your partner ask you the same question again and give another answer.
Set the timer for two minutes, then switch roles for another two minutes.
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After exploring who you are not, you will have a clearer, fuller image of what is left of you, which is who you are.
Another analogy for negative and positive space is our unconscious and consciousness.
We could say that our positive space—the one we are aware of—is our consciousness,
while our negative space is our unconscious.
By diving into what our unconscious thoughts and feelings are,
we will learn more about who we really are.
For instance, if your own answers about what you are don’t surprise you, you have just connected with the negative space of your unconscious.
Let’s add one more exercise:
Negative space in relationships
Next time you get together with a friend, be mindful of the negative space between you and your friend.
What physical distance separates the two of you?
What emotional distance separates the two of you? How does that distance make you feel?
Pay attention to silences between sentences. How do those silences make you feel?
SELF-HELP ESSENTIAL READS
Finding Balance in Imbalance
How Do We Hear the Bird of Hope?
You can also focus on the negative space when you are in your doctor’s office.
A study published in the Annals of Family Medicine describes the importance of being aware of three different negative spaces: the negative physical space (physical distance that separates the patient from the physician), the negative communicative space (information not exchanged during the medical visit), and the negative longitudinal space (what is not done or not said over time in between visits).
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The author of the article concludes that awareness of all those negative spaces is the first step to changes that will improve patient care. Those changes might include the practitioner sitting physically closer to the patient, communicating more during the visit, and establishing more contact with the patient in-between visits.
Conclusion
By growing accustomed to examining the negative spaces of paintings, photos, music, encounters with friends, family, or at professional meetings, you will get on a journey of self-discovery that is unique to you.
Welcome each step of that journey with an open mind and open heart without any criticism
while letting go of preconceived notions.
This way, your attention to negative space details will add texture, depth, and perspective to your life.
It might help redefine who you really are and might improve your relationships.
Put another way, focusing on the negative space can add much to your life that’s positive.
Posted August 4, 2022
Reviewed by Jessica Schrader
key POINTS
Frustration is the emotion we feel when our expectations are thwarted.
The first steps to managing frustration are recognizing the frustration and understanding what preconceived expectations led to the feeling.
© 2023 Copyright All rights reserved | Chris Gilbert, M.D., Ph.D.