In defense of the Monochromatic medium
Soooo why aren’t any of your pictures in color? I have been asked this question many times throughout the years and it continues to be a very fair question. We are now in the twenty-first century after all, and not only has color photography become readily accessible it has also proven to be incredibly capable. Why would I knowingly limit myself to a monochromatic palate, ignoring the beautiful and emotive world of color, am I merely trying to make photographs that appear traditional or classic?
In our fast paced social media crazed world, the vast majority of people view photography as nothing more than a means to “capture” moments to revisit later: travel, time with family and friends, even new outfits or fancy meals are fair game. While the general public use photography to document their lives, many “photographers” are using the medium not as means for personal growth or expression, but instead as a way to gain attention and popularity. It’s quickly discovered that the easiest way to do this is by churning out daily posts on social media of dramatic, overly saturated color images of grand landscapes. Images that quickly draw the eye and stop the thumbs scrolling for a moment, utilizing exaggerated beauty and shock value in place of substance. Pop culture regardless of the medium is geared toward this low common denominator, which is why it appeals to the masses in the first place, it is easily grasped and asks nothing of the viewer. Most of today’s landscape photography is pre-packaged in this way, encouraging quick and easy consumption while targeting the broadest audience possible.
Early in my photographic journey I too had high hopes of making vibrant color pictures of beautiful grand landscapes, with monochromatic abstractions nowhere near my radar. But through the years as I studied and became more fluent in the language of form, I discovered an incredibly natural affinity toward monochromatic work and had no idea why. The bright colorful images of my own time were undeniably beautiful but held little interest to me in the long term, quickly catching my eye but never “wearing well” over time, as I slowly learned the unfortunate truth that my initial impression had indeed revealed all that the image had to offer to me. Black and White photographs on the other hand were departures from the reality that I knew, confusing and seemingly safe to dismiss at first, but with a subtle element of mystery that began making more and more sense as time passed. This initial period of hesitancy, followed by the slow entry into the gateless gate of understanding reminds me of Zen koans, which to the average reader appear as nonsensical gibberish, but to those who are on the path of knowledge and are genuinely seeking answers, a profound and even life changing meaning may reveal itself. Dorothy Norman eloquently states “The deepest meanings of images are not always easily recognizable at first glance, they emerge with increasing clarity only as we experience them. They take on a living reality to the degree that we are able to penetrate the mask that hides us from ourselves”.
In modern color theory, the colors of the color wheel are all associated with different emotions, and they have proven to give rise to these feelings in the viewer time after time, red for anger, yellow for happiness etc. This incredible capability of color seems like a lot to give up for a creative artist, but is it? A black and white image is not simply a photograph that has no color, it instead utilizes something which I believe to be vastly more important than human emotional states, Black and White. The pioneering abstract expressionist painter and art theorist Wassily Kandinsky when speaking of color theory in his book, Concerning the Spiritual in Art, states that Black is the color of mystery, death and the profound final pause, and White symbolizes a world far above our own, a spotless world of perfection and silence, but not a dead silence, a silence pregnant with possibilities. In line with this way of thinking the best monochromatic photographs would then be dealing with life’s great mystery, spiritual potential and death, while the best color photographs would deal with states of human emotion.
Photographers today have the choice of pursuing their work in either of these very distinct realms. The objective and powerfully emotive color realm packed with beautiful and dramatic scenes, and a quieter more subjective spiritual realm rendered in ghostly black and white, and capable of invoking the invisible by way of the visible. It is true that color photography presents surface beauty in an unrivaled manner, simply because the planet that we inhabit is beautiful, but significant obstacles arise in regards to it becoming penetrating artwork. Color photographs have difficulty providing a deep, subjective experience due to the inherent objective properties of the medium. Re-presenting a scene with easily recognizable subject matter precipitously falls into the pretty picture pitfall, with the overriding and hollow thought being, “Wow that’s beautiful”. Or perhaps we will make the popular comment “it’s almost like I’m there”, as we picture ourselves wearing that yellow raincoat in front of the waterfall. This is the best case scenario for most photographs, and once posted to social media and the short-lived attention received, it effectively reaches the end of its lifespan without any meaningful connection ever taking place. How is that Edward Weston’s Pepper #30 made in the 1930’s has held and continues to hold the attention of so many great minds by comparison? Could it be that Edward didn’t just make a beautiful photograph of a pepper as we know a pepper to be in reality, instead he made a photograph of the essence of life utilizing the forms that he discovered within that pepper.
Strangely enough I really do appreciate color in artwork as can be seen in my love for the vivid work of artists like Paul Klee, Wassily Kandinsky, Pablo Picasso, and Piet Mondrian. But when it comes to photography, the black and white medium remains unrivaled in its ability to reveal traces of something more. Stripped of vibrant colors, superficial appearances fade and the underlying form take precedence, distilling the subject to its raw essence and clarifying the message. The true subject matter of black and white photography is not to be found on the surfaces of worldly objects, but is a discovery of life’s essence within the language of form and the stories that this essential form may reveal. Receptive viewers then establish a connection, utilizing the photograph much like a mirror as their own peculiar interpretation of the story crystallizes, creating a much deeper, intimate and ultimately more meaningful experience. Those of us who choose to pursue black and white photography in a serious capacity, do so not to appear as if we are part of a grand, classic tradition, or to make pictures that have an “old timey” nostalgic appeal. We make monochrome photographs because we have placed a priority on the spiritual over the physical, on depth of meaning over beauty, and on personal growth over popularity. This is why I will continue to quietly wave my monochromatic flag of defiance in this bright colorful world for color photography may illuminate the mind, but black and white photography provides radiance to the soul.
