blanc contre plein

16:25 Feb 20, 2012 

That is a slightly different issue and I am not sure that our discussion is lending itself to assisting the Asker. I will leave my answer and first comments as they are and otherwise let you continue the discussion as you see fit.

16:19 Feb 20, 2012 

Of course, my study of art was focussed on the practical business of actually painting, so who am I to argue with somebody who has a PhD in Art History? However, I think that most artists who do figurative work in 2D find negative space an essential element of their work. My painting teachers (mainly trained at the Slade) certainly stressed it as something we needed to attend to in our drawing and painting. If you see a drawing by a student who does not understand about negative space, the failing is generally immediately obvious.

15:17 Feb 20, 2012 

From my art studies at PhD level, negative space is something that is far more widely associated with sculpture and graphic design:

In page layout, illustration and sculpture, white space is often referred to as negative space. It is that portion of a page left unmarked: the space between graphics, margins, gutters, space between columns, space between lines of type or figures and objects drawn or depicted. The term arises from graphic design practice, where printing processes generally use white paper.

White space should not be considered merely 'blank' space — it is an important element of design which enables the objects in it to exist at all, the balance between positive (or non-white) and the use of negative spaces is key to aesthetic composition.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_space_(visual_arts)

I agree with you that Terry's suggestion is not an exact translation, hence my tentative agree. There is something worthwhile in his suggestion that I wished to acknowledge, and yet here you are apparently arguing against your own disagree.

15:05 Feb 20, 2012 

From my own art practice and study of painting ('A' Level and Manchester College of Art and Design), I am quite certain that positive and negative space apply as much to drawing and painting as to sculpture. For confirmation see:

"Forms and shapes can be thought of as positive or negative. In a two dimensional composition, the objects constitute the positive forms, while the background is the negative space. For beginning art and design students, effective use of negative space is often an especially important concept to be mastered. This exercise in cut paper required the student to work with the same composition in black on white and white on black simultaneously. This makes it difficult to ignore the background and treat it as merely empty space. The effective placement of objects in relation to the surrounding negative space is essential for success in composition."
http://char.txa.cornell.edu/language/element/form/form.htm
and
http://minimalistphotography101.com/visual-art-positive-and-...

12:44 Feb 20, 2012 

Since the author before mentions the variety of "supports", I think they follow by mentioning several stylistic features - which likely apply to all the different media.

12:25 Feb 20, 2012 

describing the "Formes érectiles"? All we need is a picture, or two.

12:22 Feb 20, 2012 

but, given the style, the author says: black on light and white on solid colour

11:47 Feb 20, 2012 

A typical formulation used to express the opposite of 'blank canvas' (if canvas is what is meant here) is 'crowded canvas', so 'blank versus crowded canvas'. It would sound much better in EN if you were to insert 'canvas' or equivalent.

11:32 Feb 20, 2012 

@SJLD, Terry Richards :)

11:19 Feb 20, 2012 

And DV has beaten us both. Never mind.

11:18 Feb 20, 2012 

Who beat me by a minute :)

11:16 Feb 20, 2012 

that it is "blank" (please post your replies) :)

11:11 Feb 20, 2012 

Is it blanc as in blank rather than white? The previous phrase is a contrast "dark v. light" and this one could be "blank v. filled" with the added bonus of the third contrast between black and white (neither of which meanings are actually used!) All very artsy :)

How this all fits in with erectile forms is probably best not thought about!

11:10 Feb 20, 2012 

noir contre lumière - darkness vs light
blanc contre plein - blank (empty) spaces vs filled spaces

Artistic writing often seems absurd... what do you expect from surrealism?