Negative space is probably one of the most interesting elements that designers and artists can play with when they are designing a logo. Do you know what is negative space? For those of you that don’t already know, negative space is the empty space the surrounds an image. Negative space can be used especially well in logo design and it is a great way to strengthen your logo and to give it that something extra special. Negative space can be used to hide symbols or letters in your logo that will delight and dazzle your customers. Not everyone sees negative spaces right away, but when they do, your logo will seem especially special and clever.
Here are 6 awesome examples of logos that use negative space to create an impact:
FedEx
The FedEx logo is probably one of the most famous logos when it comes to its use of its negative space. Look closely. What symbol do you see in the negative space? The ‘E’ and the ‘x’ match up perfectly to create an arrow. Brilliant!! The arrow represents the speed and reliability of FedEx.
Fedex logo design. Can you see it?
Hartford Whalers
I have been watching hockey my entire life and I was surprised the other day when I realized that the Hartford Whalers logo uses negative space in its logo as well. Sometimes, it amazes me that the mind sees what it wants to and I can’t believe that I never noticed this before. Do you see it? Do you see the hidden ‘H’ in the negative space? It is fantastic, smart and expertly executed.
Hartford Whalers Logo
LG
Do you see a face or do you see the letters ‘L’ and ‘G’ used in the LG logo design? The LG logo shows us a fun and playful way that negative space can be used to create a smart and effective logo.
LG Logo. Do you see an image or letters?
USA
I love how the USA network logo uses negative space to create the ‘S’ in their logo. In this case, the negative space ‘S’ isn’t hidden, instead it is used in a way that actually accentuates the letter ‘S’ in the USA network logo. Great work by the logo designer.
Usa network logo. What letter do you see in the negative space?
Carrefour
This is another one of those logos that I have been looking at for a long time and only just recently realized that there was something hidden in their logo that I hadn’t seen before. There is a hidden ‘C’ in the negative space of this logo. It is a little trickier to see then some of the other negative space logos but once you see it, you will never look at the Carrefour logo the same again.
Carrefour logo design. Brilliant use of negative space in this design.
NBC
The negative space used in the NBC logo is probably just as famous as the negative space used in the FedEx logo. I love how simple and effective it is to use negative space in a logo. The NBC logo uses the colors of a peacocks feathers and the negative space is used to display the body and the head of the peacock itself.
NBC logo design