Wednesday, August 12, 2009

Monochrome: The Gray Scale on Etsy



Handpicked on Etsy
Monochrome art explores a single color and its tonal variations. Today's selections are a tribute to the gray scale, represented in this array of photographs, ceramics, bodily adornment plus a wrapped stick of graphite that an artist might use to render a subject in black and white. In contrast to our color-infused reality, black and white photography teaches our eye to appreciate the full range of light upon surface, revealing nuanced gray shades stepping from white all the way to black. Before the invention of photography, artists sketching in coal, graphite or ink used their discerning eye to analyze light and shadow, converting colors into values of gray. Though we sometimes consider black and white to be the most objective portrayal of a subject, in fact it is an abstraction, given the technicolor reality of our world. Artistic expression in black and white or sepia tones is meditative, elegant, haunting, dreamlike or surreal, and sometimes is in itself a stylistic statement of rebellion. Click on the pictures to go directly to these Etsy listings. Prices range from $2.00 to $130.00.
Today's Etsy artists include: MirekPhoto, sclark, themaritimepost, Xenotees, waternymph, GomezbyHand, EarthborneArt, TheButterflyFactory, MNNPottery, andescruz

6 comments:

Lynelle said...

I have the collective names of animals tee - my most favorite tee ever. Great collection!

LifestyleBohemia said...

Gorgeous selection of prints!

Heidi said...

Gorgeous! I love the simplicity of black and white - like a book vs a movie - it leaves more to the imagination. Thank you for including my necklace - it is an honor to be among so many great items!

Anonymous said...

Thank you so much for putting my work and link on your blog (with some great artists)! It is so heartening to see what a great community ETSY has generated. I am encouraged and excited to keep up the work and contribute more.
-Pat Gomez (Gomezbyhand)

KCR Lehr Studio said...

One of the beauties of black and white is the tone and mood created. The subtleties of color make us look more closely at the other design elements. Great selections! I really liked all of them but the print was one of my favorites.
Colleen of
kcrlehrstudio.etsy.com

Andria said...

Thank you all for taking the time to comment on this theme. This collection of black & white barely scratches the surface of what's hiding on Etsy's search pages. This is a theme I'll be revisiting to hunt down more undiscovered tonal treasures.