"It is an empty space" is idea most people have about Negative space. In various media such ad publication, packaging, direct mails or marketing support materials that can work for them. However, that common misconception can be far from the truth. Also known as white space, in art it is the used to describe the space between and around subjects of a certain image. It can be most seen when the space around a subject forms an interesting or artistic shape. They can be letters, words paragraphs or text; it's the space in and outside of graphics and also between all of the other elements of certain page. Its necessary especially in giving spatial relationship between visual items and it also guides the reader's eye from one point up to the other to occasionally.

Using the Negative space is a key element of most artistic composition. Take a two tone black and white image, normally the subjects depicted in black and the space surrounding it is left white, thus forming a silhouette of a certain subject. However, if you reverse the tones, the space around it is printed in black and the subject is left blank making the negative space to be obvious as it forms the shape around the subject. Negative space can also be used to depict a certain subject in a certain medium by showing everything around the subject but not the subject itself like in Photography where objects in the same focal plane can not be considered a negative space or in situations where elements of an image can distract the intended subject. A certain composition can be considered as a good design once has a balanced positive space, and the way to achieve it is to use equal negative space. The most simple but always taken for granted principle of design is to a "place to rest" thus increasing a composition's appeal subtly. In music, it is used to indicate silence. Even the Da Vinci's Last Supper, negative space was also used. White space in terms of layout is a technique often overlooked by designers. They concentrate mostly on what they put in that sometimes they forget what to leave out. Without enough whitespace, it would be impossible to read texts, emphasis on graphics will be lost thus balanced is not achieved.

Whitespace can be seen everywhere, take Apple's iMac where they show computers in multi colors that forms against an all white background. This trend has been everywhere from print media as well as on the web. "The less is more attitude is today's trend, where designers get to harvest fruits of less labor.