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!
Hom Nguyen
Painting . 180 x 180 x 4 cm Painting . 70.9 x 70.9 x 1.6 inch
$52,373
Recommended by Artsper
Elizabeth Becker
Painting . 66 x 101.6 x 0.3 cm Painting . 26 x 40 x 0.1 inch
$1,950
Recommended by Artsper
Bernhard Lang
Photography . 90 x 72 x 0.1 cm Photography . 35.4 x 28.3 x 0 inch
$1,152
Recommended by Artsper
Bernhard Lang
Photography . 60 x 80 x 0.5 cm Photography . 23.6 x 31.5 x 0.2 inch
$1,152
Recommended by Artsper
Bernhard Lang
Photography . 90 x 60 x 0.1 cm Photography . 35.4 x 23.6 x 0 inch
$1,501
Recommended by Artsper
Bernhard Lang
Photography . 80 x 120 x 0.5 cm Photography . 31.5 x 47.2 x 0.2 inch
$2,211
Recommended by Artsper
Bernhard Lang
Photography . 75 x 100 x 2 cm Photography . 29.5 x 39.4 x 0.8 inch
$1,501
Recommended by Artsper
Bernhard Lang
Photography . 90 x 63 x 0.1 cm Photography . 35.4 x 24.8 x 0 inch
$1,152
Recommended by Artsper
Bernhard Lang
Photography . 105 x 70 x 3 cm Photography . 41.3 x 27.6 x 1.2 inch
$2,549
Recommended by Artsper
Bernhard Lang
Photography . 120 x 80 x 0.1 cm Photography . 47.2 x 31.5 x 0 inch
$2,211
Recommended by Artsper
Bernhard Lang
Photography . 84 x 120 x 0.5 cm Photography . 33.1 x 47.2 x 0.2 inch
$2,211
Recommended by Artsper
Maria Esmar
Painting . 140 x 180 x 0.2 cm Painting . 55.1 x 70.9 x 0.1 inch
$6,518
Recommended by Artsper
Maria Esmar
Painting . 80 x 60 x 4 cm Painting . 31.5 x 23.6 x 1.6 inch
$1,397
Recommended by Artsper
Maria Esmar
Painting . 100 x 100 x 4 cm Painting . 39.4 x 39.4 x 1.6 inch
$1,746
Recommended by Artsper
Maria Esmar
Design . 140 x 220 x 0.2 cm Design . 55.1 x 86.6 x 0.1 inch
$7,216
Recommended by Artsper
Maria Esmar
Painting . 100 x 120 x 4 cm Painting . 39.4 x 47.2 x 1.6 inch
$2,910
Recommended by Artsper
Maria Esmar
Painting . 100 x 100 x 4 cm Painting . 39.4 x 39.4 x 1.6 inch
$2,677
Recommended by Artsper
Maria Esmar
Painting . 100 x 100 x 4 cm Painting . 39.4 x 39.4 x 1.6 inch
$2,322
Recommended by Artsper
Maria Esmar
Painting . 100 x 100 x 4 cm Painting . 39.4 x 39.4 x 1.6 inch
$2,328
Recommended by Artsper
Maria Esmar
Painting . 100 x 150 x 4 cm Painting . 39.4 x 59.1 x 1.6 inch
$3,375
Recommended by Artsper
Maria Esmar
Painting . 50 x 50 x 4 cm Painting . 19.7 x 19.7 x 1.6 inch
$1,047
Recommended by Artsper
Sumit Mehndiratta
Painting . 81 x 117 x 1 cm Painting . 31.9 x 46.1 x 0.4 inch
$931
Recommended by Artsper
Sumit Mehndiratta
Painting . 91 x 122 x 0.1 cm Painting . 35.8 x 48 x 0 inch
$1,979
Recommended by Artsper
Sumit Mehndiratta
Fine Art Drawings . 76 x 56 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings . 29.9 x 22 x 0 inch
$1,047
Sumit Mehndiratta
Print . 100 x 100 x 0.1 cm Print . 39.4 x 39.4 x 0 inch
$1,164
Recommended by Artsper
Sumit Mehndiratta
Sculpture . 84 x 84 x 4 cm Sculpture . 33.1 x 33.1 x 1.6 inch
$1,164
Recommended by Artsper
Sumit Mehndiratta
Fine Art Drawings . 76 x 56 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings . 29.9 x 22 x 0 inch
$1,036
Sumit Mehndiratta
Fine Art Drawings . 76 x 56 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings . 29.9 x 22 x 0 inch
$931
Recommended by Artsper
Peter de Boer
Painting . 55 x 46 x 2 cm Painting . 21.7 x 18.1 x 0.8 inch
$1,629
Recommended by Artsper
Peter de Boer
Painting . 60 x 50 x 2 cm Painting . 23.6 x 19.7 x 0.8 inch
$1,792
Recommended by Artsper
Peter de Boer
Painting . 45 x 35 x 2 cm Painting . 17.7 x 13.8 x 0.8 inch
$1,338
Recommended by Artsper
Peter de Boer
Painting . 50 x 40 x 2 cm Painting . 19.7 x 15.7 x 0.8 inch
$1,734
Recommended by Artsper
Peter de Boer
Painting . 100 x 120 x 2 cm Painting . 39.4 x 47.2 x 0.8 inch
$4,306
Recommended by Artsper
Peter de Boer
Painting . 80 x 100 x 2 cm Painting . 31.5 x 39.4 x 0.8 inch
$3,457
Recommended by Artsper
Peter de Boer
Painting . 100 x 100 x 2 cm Painting . 39.4 x 39.4 x 0.8 inch
$3,492
Recommended by Artsper
Claire Bonnet-Masimbert
Fine Art Drawings . 70 x 50 x 1 cm Fine Art Drawings . 27.6 x 19.7 x 0.4 inch
$582
Claire Bonnet-Masimbert
Fine Art Drawings . 70 x 50 x 1 cm Fine Art Drawings . 27.6 x 19.7 x 0.4 inch
$582
Claire Bonnet-Masimbert
Painting . 140 x 140 x 2 cm Painting . 55.1 x 55.1 x 0.8 inch
$2,793
Recommended by Artsper
Claire Bonnet-Masimbert
Fine Art Drawings . 65 x 50 x 1 cm Fine Art Drawings . 25.6 x 19.7 x 0.4 inch
$582
Philippe Pasqua
Painting . 330 x 220 x 10 cm Painting . 129.9 x 86.6 x 3.9 inch
$139,662
Recommended by Artsper
Philippe Pasqua
Sculpture . 65 x 90 x 80 cm Sculpture . 25.6 x 35.4 x 31.5 inch
$68,667
Recommended by Artsper
Philippe Pasqua
Fine Art Drawings . 160 x 160 x 4 cm Fine Art Drawings . 63 x 63 x 1.6 inch
$32,588
Recommended by Artsper
Philippe Pasqua
Painting . 100 x 80 x 4 cm Painting . 39.4 x 31.5 x 1.6 inch
$19,087
Recommended by Artsper
Philippe Pasqua
Painting . 130 x 80 x 0.1 cm Painting . 51.2 x 31.5 x 0 inch
$12,686
Recommended by Artsper
Philippe Pasqua
Fine Art Drawings . 40 x 30 x 0.2 cm Fine Art Drawings . 15.7 x 11.8 x 0.1 inch
$3,492
Philippe Pasqua
Fine Art Drawings . 40 x 30 x 0.05 cm Fine Art Drawings . 15.7 x 11.8 x 0 inch
$4,423
Philippe Pasqua
Fine Art Drawings . 40 x 30 x 0.2 cm Fine Art Drawings . 15.7 x 11.8 x 0.1 inch
$3,492
