Monochrome literally means “a single color,” regardless of whether red, blue or any other colors. But the word generally refers to some kind of expression with no hue, in black and white.

Aristotle said that colors are produced through the mixture of black bodies with white. In a precise sense, it would not be correct, as black and white are not colors but the light-dark contrast, yet it would be pertinent in the sense that all the colors exist between darkness and light. Yes, our visual world exists only with light. However, it was at this late date that we came to be able to record the sight with colors easily, and until then the major means of conveying information had been printing with black ink or monochrome photography that could seize presence or absence of light.

Needless to say, we can now quickly and easily get much colorful information, but expressions in black and white still surely exist. That is because there would be another realm that could never be seen with colors. In this exhibition, you will find another aspect of monochrome with black expression of prints and light of photographs.