Black and White

Those who come to my classes will tell you that I tell them not to use black in their paintings.  “Black is not a color,” I tell them.  “It is the combination of all colors.  You can make black by combining all or opposite colors.”

I am so insistent about the non use of black it isn’t unusual to hear someone erupt in a rather loud voice, “Black?  You can’t use black!” when they see someone using it.  I am rather proud they have learned that lesson so well and are willing to experiment with other colors.  Eventually someone will come upon something that does require black and I insist they mix purple, or crimson with it to give it life.  Nothing is ever pure black.

As for white... Seldom is white used on its own.  White is usually used to mix with other colors to make them lighter in tone.  It is primarily a mixer.

My thoughts about black and white took me beyond paint to a remark I made just the other day, “It’s hard to tell good from evil when they don’t wear black and white hats anymore.  Remember,” I said, “when, in the early westerns, the bad guys wore black hats and the good guys wore white?  You could always tell what side they were on.”

We have been conditioned to think black is bad and white is good.  Phrases like, “There was a blackness in his soul,” and “She was as pure as the white driven snow.” put pictures in our minds.  Little children might be afraid in the dark and imagine they see monsters in the not so discernable shapes that are familiar and seen so clearly in the light.

Hollywood has done its share, too, of making us wary of the dark.  Isn’t it in the dark of night evil reigns... murder, rape and robberies are committed?  

Darkness verses light is in religion, the arts, music.  Black is worn for mourning the death of a loved one.  Widows wore black for extended periods of time.  Blackness related to death and Light to the Resurrection.  Hell is illustrated as the darkness of the underworld and Heaven, the bright, sun-shining sky.

I could continue making these comparisons.  My purpose in using them is to share with you my thoughts about how we have become conditioned by black and white.  Both colors, black and white, evoke an emotional response within us...one, I think, which should be examined closely.

But there’s one thing the colors black and white have in common when it comes to paint.  They can both be used to block out and cover over other colors.  They are the only truly opaque colors on the palette and in this they are equal.

I think we can learn a lot from paint... that black is never truly black, but the combination of colors.  White is described as the absence of color so one enhances the other.  Light always shines brighter against the shadows and darkness always has light within it.  We need both. Black and white together result in some pretty dynamic paintings!   

Black and white together...equally...side by side...with all their different qualities, tones and values... create a pretty awesome world!  Don’t you think?

God Bless us all!

Connie