Black? Black is mystery -- ambiguous, anonymous -- inscrutable darkness. Black is elegance, sophistication, depth, dark sexuality, power. Black is Gene Pitney singing, "black is black, I want my baby back." Black is cool, baby. Formal cool and laid-back cool. Black is serious...seriously cool. Johnny Cash cool.
Black is absence -- the absence of color, absorbing all the light of the spectrum, the absence of comfort, the absence of sound. Black is night, the cruel never-ending night of alone, the silence of death, the color of despair, an ocean of pain.
Black, the color of fear, fear of the unknown, black holes -- a hiding place from the world, root chakra, survival.
But...overcome, the darkness becomes light, the shadows colors...
more about black
Like red, black is a paradox: it can be serious and conventional...or mysterious, sexy, and sophisticated. It can be a sign of mourning or a sign of rebellion. Black is the color of authority and power, elegance and sexuality -- even villainy and cruelty -- but it can also imply piety, humility, submission and deference. Black can provide a feeling of protection and comfort, and yet, project a sense of mystery.
In John Harvey's Men in Black, he says
"To wear black is to mean business, to have pushed frivolity aside. But it also is the color of fashion, of sophistication, of city dwellers."
Although black can be awesome on its own, it can also simply serve as a kind of neutral background against which the most minute shades of other colors stand out clearly. Since its effects are dramatic, black should be used carefully. Accessorizing with black can imply many of the power connotations of the color without being overwhelming -- while at the same time adding a touch of sophistication.
