Black and White
Black and white is hardly ever just black and just white. As in an author’s tale in words, selection and choice of just the right word can incite a myriad of impressions in a reader well beyond what the author may have originally intended. For George Cruikshank, Aubrey Beardsley, Howard Pyle and Willy Pogány, black and white became the color palette to stir a reader’s imagination down paths other than where the author’s words might lead. At times, the stark contrast between absolute black and unmitigated white awakened or startled the reader to the author’s intent, more than mere words could do. At other times, an illustrator’s use of sliding scales of grey allowed a reader to experience more reality than an author might normally intend in a fairy tale, legend, or horror story. Even artists such as Rackham and Harry Clarke would eschew color when the author’s words seemed more impactful if drawn or imagined in black and white. Compare the images here with those in Rackham’s Poe for his intentional use of black and white rather than color to convey the author’s intent.
