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White

In physics, white is the sum of all the colours. To the human eye, white appears to be the total absence of colour. Amongst artists, white and its many uses in art are continuously evolving and challenging those who would embrace them. Is white, then, a non-colour, or an enhancer of colours? Intangible or material? Absence or excess?

Since Antiquity, white has been appreciated for its symbolic value. In Ancient Greece, where they would paint their statues, it was a sign of incompletion, whereas the Romans believed it showed pomp and imperialist virtue. With the rise of Christianity, white was used in opposition to black in order to emphasise moral dichotomies: the pure, divine white against the darkness. In some cases, however, white was used to show sickness or death, most notably in the pallid representations of the skeletal, crucified Christ.

In the Renaissance white was used to sublimate faces and backgrounds. Da Vinci even based his sfumato technique on the soft transition from light into darkness. Throughout the history of painting, white was considered precious for its ability to reflect light. It attracts the gaze even when used in the tiniest quantities, and illuminates the subject, drawing out stunning contrasts as seen in the works of Rembrandt, or in Vermeer's famous Girl with the Pearl Earring.

With the rise of Impressionism, white was used as the brightest tone amongst shades of grey. While Manet produced canvases which were forerunners to monochromes, including The Reader, which was almost pure white, Monet delivered a stunning gradient of whites whilst recreating the snow at his home in Giverny. The first true white monochrome appeared with the arrival of Malevitch's White Square on a White Background. The artist said 'I have broken the blue boundary of colour limits, and come out into the white'.

 

Modernists were equally passionate about white and valued it incredibly highly. Miro in particular questioned the status of white on canvases. In his painting Woman, Bird and Star white is in parts boldly painted, but is also distinctive for its absence around the star. Picasso, on the other hand, explored white in conjunction with his famous coloured periods. Piero Manzoni became famous thanks to his 'achromatic' paintings, a series of canvases produced exclusively in shades of white. Moving into the 20th century, white became synonymous with minimalist abstraction. For artists like Kandinsky, white was a cosmic colour, associated with a spiritual search for the absolute, guiding the artists as he seek to express his emotions.  

 

Today, white remains an ever popular subject. Roman Opalka made his name creating a series of white numbers of a white background, while Daniel Arsham reinvents white walls in galleries by letting his artwork drip down onto them. White is a colour with multiple symbolic interpretations. The colour of divinity or humility; of purity and immaculate, of emptiness and absence, but always colour. If blue has Klein and red has Rothko, it appears that no artist has yet succeeded in fully mastering white – but maybe you'll find them in our selection!


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Sculpture, Painter Can, tizlu

Painter Can

tizlu

Sculpture - 30 x 24 x 12 cm Sculpture - 11.8 x 9.4 x 4.7 inch

$1,387

Print, DeLorean, Ryca

DeLorean

Ryca

Print - 85 x 119 x 0.1 cm Print - 33.5 x 46.9 x 0 inch

$809

Print, Le train de l'amour, Ben

Le train de l'amour

Ben

Print - 76 x 56 x 0.05 cm Print - 29.9 x 22 x 0 inch

$2,890

Sculpture, Sauvage, Grégoire Devin

Sauvage

Grégoire Devin

Sculpture - 48 x 45 x 20.3 cm Sculpture - 18.9 x 17.7 x 8 inch

$4,500

Sculpture, Mona Lisa, Jo Di Bona

Mona Lisa

Jo Di Bona

Sculpture - 21 x 20 x 0.5 cm Sculpture - 8.3 x 7.9 x 0.2 inch

$1,387

Fine Art Drawings, Grosminet, Onemizer

Grosminet

Onemizer

Fine Art Drawings - 32 x 23 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 12.6 x 9.1 x 0 inch

$4,161

Sculpture, MC Caviar Courchevel, XTC

MC Caviar Courchevel

XTC

Sculpture - 30 x 18 x 18 cm Sculpture - 11.8 x 7.1 x 7.1 inch

$2,543

Painting, Pojukx, Remix

Pojukx

Remix

Painting - 39 x 37 x 3 cm Painting - 15.4 x 14.6 x 1.2 inch

$682

Print, Marilyn, Devin Miles

Marilyn

Devin Miles

Print - 50 x 50 x 2.3 cm Print - 19.7 x 19.7 x 0.9 inch

$1,849

Painting, Cocacola 6, Granados

Cocacola 6

Granados

Painting - 104 x 74.5 cm Painting - 40.9 x 29.3 inch

$1,040

Print, Marilyn I, Blank Barbie

Marilyn I

Blank Barbie

Print - 76 x 76 x 0.01 cm Print - 29.9 x 29.9 x 0 inch

$2,427

Painting, Luana, Walter Minus

Luana

Walter Minus

Painting - 29.7 x 21 cm Painting - 11.7 x 8.3 inch

$1,029

Print, Fragile #1, cObo

Fragile #1

cObo

Print - 42 x 29.7 x 0.1 cm Print - 16.5 x 11.7 x 0 inch

$288

Painting, Hope, Ludovic Ponze

Hope

Ludovic Ponze

Painting - 53 x 43 x 5 cm Painting - 20.9 x 16.9 x 2 inch

$694

Painting, 8 - Mickey, Harleen X

8 - Mickey

Harleen X

Painting - 100 x 80 x 0.1 cm Painting - 39.4 x 31.5 x 0 inch

$809

Print, The Thinker, Kaï

The Thinker

Kaï

Print - 61 x 61 x 1.54 cm Print - 24 x 24 x 0.6 inch

$6,000

Painting, Tower Brick Bridge, Pys

Tower Brick Bridge

Pys

Painting - 26 x 26 x 4.2 cm Painting - 10.2 x 10.2 x 1.7 inch

$680

Painting, Hayu, Roby Dwi Antono

Hayu

Roby Dwi Antono

Painting - 100.5 x 80.5 x 2.54 cm Painting - 39.6 x 31.7 x 1 inch

$79,500

Print, Submission, Nigel Howlett

Submission

Nigel Howlett

Print - 46.99 x 41.6 x 1 cm Print - 18.5 x 16.4 x 0.4 inch

$4,950

Fine Art Drawings, Train, Ryan Travis Christian

Train

Ryan Travis Christian

Fine Art Drawings - 21.59 x 27.94 x 1.5 cm Fine Art Drawings - 8.5 x 11 x 0.6 inch

$10,500

Painting, ST-II, JaveL Art

ST-II

JaveL Art

Painting - 40 x 40 x 2 cm Painting - 15.7 x 15.7 x 0.8 inch

$694

Fine Art Drawings, Broken Button, Claes Oldenburg

Broken Button

Claes Oldenburg

Fine Art Drawings - 41 x 36 x 16 cm Fine Art Drawings - 16.1 x 14.2 x 6.3 inch

$20,500

Design, Banc Skate, Art Pej

Banc Skate

Art Pej

Design - 45 x 80 x 21 cm Design - 17.7 x 31.5 x 8.3 inch

$624

Painting, Kaleidoskop, Iren Orlova

Kaleidoskop

Iren Orlova

Painting - 115 x 89 x 2 cm Painting - 45.3 x 35 x 0.8 inch

$2,196

Painting, Snoopy, Oli Art

Snoopy

Oli Art

Painting - 61 x 50 x 3 cm Painting - 24 x 19.7 x 1.2 inch

$1,800

Print, Audith Rhodes, Dain

Audith Rhodes

Dain

Print - 30.5 x 25.5 x 2.54 cm Print - 12 x 10 x 1 inch

$2,150

Painting, Double trouble, ODart

Double trouble

ODart

Painting - 80 x 60 x 3 cm Painting - 31.5 x 23.6 x 1.2 inch

$1,503

Sculpture, Dear Dita, JM Collell

Dear Dita

JM Collell

Sculpture - 126 x 96 x 5 cm Sculpture - 49.6 x 37.8 x 2 inch

$6,357

Print, Art, Masanao Hirayama

Art

Masanao Hirayama

Print - 40 x 50 x 0.01 cm Print - 15.7 x 19.7 x 0 inch

$173

Sculpture, Surfer, Michel Haddi

Surfer

Michel Haddi

Sculpture - 95 x 35 x 63 cm Sculpture - 37.4 x 13.8 x 24.8 inch

$16,182

Painting, Bob Ooblong, Jerkface

Bob Ooblong

Jerkface

Painting - 30.5 x 30.5 x 2.54 cm Painting - 12 x 12 x 1 inch

$12,500

Painting, Mickey fuck, Illian

Mickey fuck

Illian

Painting - 80 x 80 x 1 cm Painting - 31.5 x 31.5 x 0.4 inch

$809 $688

Print, Paint In Black, Mr Sly

Paint In Black

Mr Sly

Print - 42 x 42 x 0.2 cm Print - 16.5 x 16.5 x 0.1 inch

$405

Sculpture, Un monde meilleur, MrHope

Un monde meilleur

MrHope

Sculpture - 20 x 18 x 18 cm Sculpture - 7.9 x 7.1 x 7.1 inch

$150 $135

Fine Art Drawings, The winner, Will Street

The winner

Will Street

Fine Art Drawings - 35.56 x 27.94 x 0.2 cm Fine Art Drawings - 14 x 11 x 0.1 inch

$405

Print, Marx, Manuel Boix

Marx

Manuel Boix

Print - 65 x 50 x 0.1 cm Print - 25.6 x 19.7 x 0 inch

$462

Painting, Snoopy love, Vili

Snoopy love

Vili

Painting - 20 x 20 x 1 cm Painting - 7.9 x 7.9 x 0.4 inch

$81 $73

Print, Look at me inside, Sapo

Look at me inside

Sapo

Print - 42 x 30 x 1 cm Print - 16.5 x 11.8 x 0.4 inch

$92 $83