negative space creates positive spaces

Walking along Sherbrooke Avenue in Montréal, I came across an interesting wall. Ivy was growing across the surface, except for randomly assorted spaces.


Taking a step back, this wall was part of an outside patio for a local restaurant. A creative use of nature in an outdoor commercial space.


Here is another cool example in the same city. The facade of this building was at one point saved, and now functions as a wall separating the sidewalk from the dining public. Another great example of adapting older buildings for reuse.


This last picture was taken by myself in downtown Youngstown:


Some may call for this building to be torn down. But as we see in other cities, we can adapt our structures for new usage before destroying them. Can the space be structurally supported and illuminated? Maybe flowers can be grown along the surface...

There are many functions this type of space can serve as we hold onto our historical character.