Positive and negative space are important aspects of any piece and is what the viewer has to use as a point of reference.
Tony Cragg
With this painting there is a clear disparity between the objects in positive space and the negative. In fact the negative space contains nothing, not even a surface to hold the objects yet the arrangement of the objects helps create a surface for the objects to sit on.
Patrick Caulfield
The painting below focuses on the dining set by occupying it with bright orange chairs and obscuring the back wall. The negative space is brought more into focus by the black strip in the middle of the room. Perhaps it is meant to represent a ray of light from a nearby window yet it creates a positive aspect of the room that links the back and front together.
The painting below is similar to that of Cragg’s above where there are only objects in the room. The objects themselves and the relative distance between them are what create the surface underneath. Also with the objects arranged in front of one another there is also a sense of depth and the negative space became so much more apparent between the objects.
David Hockney
The negative space in this piece by Hockney takes up the right hand portion of the painting however it does not draw away from the positive space on the painting. The patterns do well to represent the different surfaces provided in the room and even though the flowers are clearly the centre piece of the painting, the whole picture is balanced nicely.
Alex Wallace: Drawing 