Horror vacui

In art: Fear of empty space

My (mostly incorrect, but practical when I need it) Working Definition:

Imagine drawing a starlit sky. You start placing the dots randomly, perhaps clustering them into groups. Then suddenly, something feels off. You start planting stars in the parts that feel too empty. The sky is out of balance, it might fall on its side.

After a while, the sky doesn't feel empty any more, but it also doesn't feel as good or interesting as it used to. Now it's a bowl of oatmeal. Random, but devoid of rhythm and hierarchy, unique, but same. It can't topple, but it has neither structure nor form. Plus, the oatmeal is room temperature.

@me: Also, compare ك and ک. fleeting

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a giant foot-shaped snail with a house on its back. the house is still in construction, with a big crane towering above it The image is a stylized black-and-white illustration. In the lower left corner, there is a small, cozy-looking house with smoke rising from its chimney. The smoke, however, does not dissipate into the air but instead forms a dark, looming cloud. Within the cloud, the silhouette of a large, menacing face is visible, with its eyes and nose peeking through the darkness. The creature, perhaps a cat, appears to be watching over the house ominously, creating a sense of foreboding or unease.