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!
Bruno Roudil
Sculpture . 62 x 35 x 18 cm Sculpture . 24.4 x 13.8 x 7.1 inch
CHF 4,334
Recommended by Artsper
Kardesch
Painting . 120 x 120 x 2.5 cm Painting . 47.2 x 47.2 x 1 inch
CHF 6,261
Recommended by Artsper
Feng Kaixuan
Painting . 200 x 80 x 1 cm Painting . 78.7 x 31.5 x 0.4 inch
CHF 3,179
Recommended by Artsper
Feng Kaixuan
Photography . 80 x 120 x 3 cm Photography . 31.5 x 47.2 x 1.2 inch
CHF 6,935
Recommended by Artsper
Feng Kaixuan
Painting . 50 x 40 x 1 cm Painting . 19.7 x 15.7 x 0.4 inch
CHF 1,252
Recommended by Artsper
Feng Kaixuan
Painting . 40 x 30 x 1 cm Painting . 15.7 x 11.8 x 0.4 inch
CHF 1,060
Recommended by Artsper
Feng Kaixuan
Painting . 13 x 21 x 1 cm Painting . 5.1 x 8.3 x 0.4 inch
CHF 1,734
Recommended by Artsper
Feng Kaixuan
Painting . 13 x 21 x 1 cm Painting . 5.1 x 8.3 x 0.4 inch
CHF 2,890
Recommended by Artsper
Nagsoul
Fine Art Drawings . 70 x 50 cm Fine Art Drawings . 27.6 x 19.7 inch
CHF 1,445
Recommended by Artsper
Marian Williams
Fine Art Drawings . 44.5 x 31.5 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings . 17.5 x 12.4 x 0 inch
CHF 193
Marian Williams
Fine Art Drawings . 44.5 x 31.5 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings . 17.5 x 12.4 x 0 inch
CHF 193
Marian Williams
Fine Art Drawings . 44.5 x 31.5 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings . 17.5 x 12.4 x 0 inch
CHF 193
Marian Williams
Painting . 100 x 81 x 2 cm Painting . 39.4 x 31.9 x 0.8 inch
CHF 1,878
Recommended by Artsper
Marian Williams
Painting . 116 x 89 x 2 cm Painting . 45.7 x 35 x 0.8 inch
CHF 2,408 CHF 1,806
Recommended by Artsper
Petr Strnad
Painting . 70.4 x 50.5 x 0.1 cm Painting . 27.7 x 19.9 x 0 inch
CHF 472
Recommended by Artsper
Nicolas Galtier
Painting . 100 x 100 x 3 cm Painting . 39.4 x 39.4 x 1.2 inch
CHF 3,275
Recommended by Artsper
Nicolas Galtier
Painting . 100 x 100 x 2 cm Painting . 39.4 x 39.4 x 0.8 inch
CHF 3,275
Recommended by Artsper
Nicolas Galtier
Painting . 100 x 100 x 2 cm Painting . 39.4 x 39.4 x 0.8 inch
CHF 3,564
Recommended by Artsper
Nicolas Galtier
Painting . 50 x 50 x 3 cm Painting . 19.7 x 19.7 x 1.2 inch
CHF 867
Recommended by Artsper
Nicolas Galtier
Painting . 60 x 30 x 2 cm Painting . 23.6 x 11.8 x 0.8 inch
CHF 674
Recommended by Artsper
Kirill Postovit
Fine Art Drawings . 13.5 x 24 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings . 5.3 x 9.4 x 0 inch
CHF 1,878
Kirill Postovit
Fine Art Drawings . 31 x 24 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings . 12.2 x 9.4 x 0 inch
CHF 838
Kirill Postovit
Fine Art Drawings . 70 x 50 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings . 27.6 x 19.7 x 0 inch
CHF 578
Kirill Postovit
Fine Art Drawings . 50 x 70 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings . 19.7 x 27.6 x 0 inch
CHF 1,245
Alain Bertrand
Painting . 114 x 146 x 3 cm Painting . 44.9 x 57.5 x 1.2 inch
CHF 16,374
Recommended by Artsper
Alain Bertrand
Painting . 80 x 40 x 2 cm Painting . 31.5 x 15.7 x 0.8 inch
CHF 2,890
Recommended by Artsper
Alain Bertrand
Painting . 60 x 73 x 2 cm Painting . 23.6 x 28.7 x 0.8 inch
CHF 3,660
Recommended by Artsper
Alain Bertrand
Painting . 89 x 116 x 3 cm Painting . 35 x 45.7 x 1.2 inch
CHF 10,595
Recommended by Artsper
Alain Bertrand
Painting . 89 x 116 x 3 cm Painting . 35 x 45.7 x 1.2 inch
CHF 8,669
Recommended by Artsper
Alain Bertrand
Painting . 89 x 116 x 3 cm Painting . 35 x 45.7 x 1.2 inch
CHF 8,669
Recommended by Artsper
Alain Bertrand
Painting . 65 x 100 x 2 cm Painting . 25.6 x 39.4 x 0.8 inch
CHF 6,357
Recommended by Artsper
Hiro Ando
Sculpture . 130 x 95 x 95 cm Sculpture . 51.2 x 37.4 x 37.4 inch
CHF 21,190
Recommended by Artsper
Hiro Ando
Sculpture . 31 x 25 x 25 cm Sculpture . 12.2 x 9.8 x 9.8 inch
CHF 3,853
Recommended by Artsper
Hiro Ando
Painting . 130 x 162 x 3 cm Painting . 51.2 x 63.8 x 1.2 inch
CHF 7,031
Recommended by Artsper
Hiro Ando
Sculpture . 150 x 80 x 60 cm Sculpture . 59.1 x 31.5 x 23.6 inch
CHF 25,043
Recommended by Artsper
Hiro Ando
Sculpture . 100 x 90 x 90 cm Sculpture . 39.4 x 35.4 x 35.4 inch
CHF 34,675
Recommended by Artsper
Hiro Ando
Sculpture . 100 x 90 x 90 cm Sculpture . 39.4 x 35.4 x 35.4 inch
CHF 19,264
Recommended by Artsper
Hiro Ando
Sculpture . 100 x 120 x 80 cm Sculpture . 39.4 x 47.2 x 31.5 inch
CHF 34,675
Recommended by Artsper
Hiro Ando
Sculpture . 30 x 70 x 40 cm Sculpture . 11.8 x 27.6 x 15.7 inch
CHF 18,300
Recommended by Artsper
Hiro Ando
Sculpture . 100 x 150 x 60 cm Sculpture . 39.4 x 59.1 x 23.6 inch
CHF 32,748
Recommended by Artsper
