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Paris confinement Musée d'Orsay
Bruno Fournier
Photography - 17 x 31 x 1 cm Photography - 6.7 x 12.2 x 0.4 inch
$951
Paris confinement Pont des Arts
Bruno Fournier
Photography - 30 x 40 x 1 cm Photography - 11.8 x 15.7 x 0.4 inch
$1,063
Paris tour tour Eiffel 1
Bruno Fournier
Photography - 24 x 18 x 1 cm Photography - 9.4 x 7.1 x 0.4 inch
$895
You are a story
Justin Pumfrey
Photography - 76 x 51 x 0.01 cm Photography - 29.9 x 20.1 x 0 inch
$1,734
You Are A Story
Justin Pumfrey
Photography - 61 x 51 x 0.01 cm Photography - 24 x 20.1 x 0 inch
$1,448
The Gun Chronicles: A Story of America, USA, 2022
JR
Print - 50 x 100 cm Print - 19.7 x 39.4 inch
$805
La plage III
Clara Delaporte
Photography - 40 x 60 x 2 cm Photography - 15.7 x 23.6 x 0.8 inch
$1,118
1971 Féraud Black Sculpture Metal
Albert Féraud
Photography - 35 x 45 cm Photography - 13.8 x 17.7 inch
$2,125
Entrer dans la lumière
Dominique Jullien
Photography - 20 x 30 x 1 cm Photography - 7.9 x 11.8 x 0.4 inch
$391
Arcane IX- L’Hermite
Richard Laillier
Fine Art Drawings - 30 x 20 x 0.5 cm Fine Art Drawings - 11.8 x 7.9 x 0.2 inch
$1,118
Arcane IV- L’Empereur
Richard Laillier
Fine Art Drawings - 30 x 20 x 0.5 cm Fine Art Drawings - 11.8 x 7.9 x 0.2 inch
$1,118
N°150-03 13 (NG28)
Nicolas Galtier
Painting - 150 x 150 x 4 cm Painting - 59.1 x 59.1 x 1.6 inch
$6,487
Miami Stripes 09 11bn
Luca Artioli
Photography - 114.3 x 177.8 x 0.3 cm Photography - 45 x 70 x 0.1 inch
$5,000
Chaperon rouge illustration 1
Ghislaine Ferreira
Fine Art Drawings - 30 x 20 x 1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 11.8 x 7.9 x 0.4 inch
$559
Matrix Index 5 / Silver
Colleen Wolstenholme
Sculpture - 66 x 66 x 15 cm Sculpture - 26 x 26 x 5.9 inch
$1,790
Cheveux d'Encre Émotion
Feng Kaixuan
Photography - 45 x 30 x 1 cm Photography - 17.7 x 11.8 x 0.4 inch
$805
Love, Light & Lines (Vol.4)
Kamal Obat
Photography - 60 x 49.8 x 2.5 cm Photography - 23.62 x 19.6 x 1 inch
$450
Love, Light & Lines (Vol.2)
Kamal Obat
Photography - 60 x 49.8 x 2.5 cm Photography - 23.62 x 19.6 x 1 inch
$450
La famille avant tout
Mathieu Pujol
Photography - 50 x 75 x 0.1 cm Photography - 19.7 x 29.5 x 0 inch
$951
Nossa Senhora da Rocha Church
Gonçalo Martins
Photography - 36 x 29 x 0.1 cm Photography - 14.2 x 11.4 x 0 inch
$235
Capucine 1957 Slim Aarons Limited Edition Estate Stamped Print
Slim Aarons
Photography - 76.2 x 50.8 cm Photography - 30 x 20 inch
$3,020
N°80-4 14A (NG22)
Nicolas Galtier
Painting - 80 x 80 x 3 cm Painting - 31.5 x 31.5 x 1.2 inch
$2,461
Jean-Marc Barr
Arnaud Baumann
Photography - 40 x 40 x 0.1 cm Photography - 15.7 x 15.7 x 0 inch
$671
Les Nuls en Ripolin
Arnaud Baumann
Photography - 40 x 40 x 0.1 cm Photography - 15.7 x 15.7 x 0 inch
$671
Pierre Desproges
Arnaud Baumann
Photography - 50 x 40 x 0.1 cm Photography - 19.7 x 15.7 x 0 inch
$671 $570
Gretchen Van de Kamp Ward In Gustave Tassell
Slim Aarons
Photography - 101 x 101 x 0.01 cm Photography - 39.8 x 39.8 x 0 inch
$4,026
Florence Pritchett Smith
Slim Aarons
Photography - 51 x 41 x 0.01 cm Photography - 20.1 x 16.1 x 0 inch
$2,561
Yoko Ono in black ribbed sweater, Central Park, NY 1973
Bob Gruen
Photography - 61 x 50.8 x 5.1 cm Photography - 24 x 20 x 2 inch
$2,500
Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, MSG, NYC 1972
Bob Gruen
Photography - 50.8 x 61 x 5.1 cm Photography - 20 x 24 x 2 inch
$2,500
Mick Jagger, MSG, NYC 1972
Bob Gruen
Photography - 50.8 x 61 x 5.1 cm Photography - 20 x 24 x 2 inch
$2,500
Mick Jagger, NYC 1972
Bob Gruen
Photography - 61 x 50.8 x 5.1 cm Photography - 24 x 20 x 2 inch
$2,500
John Lennon, Mick Jagger and Yoko Ono, Record Plant, NYC 1972
Bob Gruen
Photography - 50.8 x 61 x 5.1 cm Photography - 20 x 24 x 2 inch
$2,500
Johnny Rotten & Sid Vicious, Europe, 1977
Bob Gruen
Photography - 50.8 x 61 x 5.1 cm Photography - 20 x 24 x 2 inch
$2,500
Jon Bon Jovi, Moscow 1989
Bob Gruen
Photography - 61 x 50.8 x 5.1 cm Photography - 24 x 20 x 2 inch
$2,500
John Lennon contact sheet, NYC 1975
Bob Gruen
Photography - 61 x 50.8 x 5.1 cm Photography - 24 x 20 x 2 inch
$2,500
Joe Strummer and Gaby, NYC, 1981
Bob Gruen
Photography - 50.8 x 61 x 5.1 cm Photography - 20 x 24 x 2 inch
$2,500
Bernie Taupin and Elton John, NYC 1971
Bob Gruen
Photography - 50.8 x 61 x 5.1 cm Photography - 20 x 24 x 2 inch
$2,500
Clash & Bo Diddley, Agora Ballroom, Cleveland OH, 1979
Bob Gruen
Photography - 50.8 x 61 x 5.1 cm Photography - 20 x 24 x 2 inch
$2,500
Black Sabbath NYC 1971
Bob Gruen
Photography - 50.8 x 61 x 5.1 cm Photography - 20 x 24 x 2 inch
$2,500
Waiting for the drums
James Sparshatt
Photography - 40 x 50 x 0.1 cm Photography - 15.7 x 19.7 x 0 inch
$788
Gaudí 014
Ivanna Alejandra Sanchez Moretti
Photography - 80 x 60 cm Photography - 31.5 x 23.6 inch
$895
Lits double
Christian Lefevre
Photography - 75 x 100 x 0.3 cm Photography - 29.5 x 39.4 x 0.1 inch
$1,029
Angry
Joanna Glazer
Fine Art Drawings - 40 x 30 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 15.7 x 11.8 x 0 inch
$324
Mujer de Santiago
James Sparshatt
Photography - 35 x 35 x 1 cm Photography - 13.8 x 13.8 x 0.4 inch
$788
La vieja guajira
James Sparshatt
Photography - 35 x 35 x 1 cm Photography - 13.8 x 13.8 x 0.4 inch
$788
Pared el Palmar, Pigment Prints
Miguel Winograd
Photography - 110 x 91.9 x 0.3 cm Photography - 43.3 x 36.2 x 0.1 inch
$2,000
La dama de la plaza
James Sparshatt
Photography - 35 x 35 x 1 cm Photography - 13.8 x 13.8 x 0.4 inch
$920
Sans titre 51
Bruno Fournier
Photography - 46 x 30 x 1 cm Photography - 18.1 x 11.8 x 0.4 inch
$1,230
Sans titre 49
Bruno Fournier
Photography - 46 x 30 x 1 cm Photography - 18.1 x 11.8 x 0.4 inch
$1,230
Femme masquée 7
Bruno Fournier
Photography - 80 x 80 x 1 cm Photography - 31.5 x 31.5 x 0.4 inch
$1,790
Femme masquée 6
Bruno Fournier
Photography - 80 x 80 x 1 cm Photography - 31.5 x 31.5 x 0.4 inch
$1,790
Femme masquée 5
Bruno Fournier
Photography - 80 x 80 x 1 cm Photography - 31.5 x 31.5 x 0.4 inch
$1,790
Femme masquée 4
Bruno Fournier
Photography - 80 x 80 x 1 cm Photography - 31.5 x 31.5 x 0.4 inch
$1,901
Femme masquée 3
Bruno Fournier
Photography - 80 x 80 x 1 cm Photography - 31.5 x 31.5 x 0.4 inch
$1,790
femme masquée II
Bruno Fournier
Photography - 80 x 80 x 1 cm Photography - 31.5 x 31.5 x 0.4 inch
$1,790
Black and white
Before the arrival of photography – with the exception of some etchings and lithographs – all the images we consumed were in colour. Quite simply, because no one would ever have thought to do anything else – why paint in black and white when colour was so readily available?
Yet despite this, today many photographers still choose to work in black and white – such as Pauline Théon, Kadir Von Lohuizen or Joh Lowenstein – even though their photos are taken in colour by the camera itself. Is the black and white trend a fleeting effect of fashion, or a symbolic return to the roots of the photography movement? Black and white photography has something that colour photos, despite recent innovations and the extraordinary quality of images today, cannot quite access. The use of black and white lends significant force to the composition: the contrasts, the shadows and the figures all stand out more strongly. People simply feel differently when faced with a colour photo versus a black and white image.
Colour is a distraction of sorts, a disturbance: colour is a nuisance.
And yet, some photographers still prefer colour to black and white, whilst others merge touches of colour with otherwise monochrome compositions. But in the end, all agree that both styles impose a totally different way of looking at a photo: from researching the shot to post production work, when artists develop or retouch the image. The use of colour is therefore something of a process in its own right, relating to two different ways of viewing the world and showing it others. The question, then, is what is being told, and why is it being in the way that it is?
The symbolic value of putting black and white together is a good starting point for reflecting on the fascination that they generate even today. There could not be a more fascinating, more striking ambivalence than when black, the 'colour' of darkness and burnt coal, considered a non-colour, is placed alongside white – representing light, and the result of all the colours merged together.
The problem faced by photographers today is that black and white still carry strong connotations of the past, of an era before the popularisation of colour and its massive cultural recovery amongst the press and photo journalists. In fact, it is rare now that contemporary subjects are photographed in colour, but we still associate black and white images with a retro feel.
So what does contemporary art have to say about it all? Discover Artsper's selection of black and white works: on the border of past and present, of the real and the imaginary… let us guide you!