Welcome!
Black may be beautiful when speaking about people of color, but what about black when it refers to other things?
Greg and I were recently invited to a formal event in which everyone is required to wear black. We have never heard of anything like that before, so I started talking to others about it, and I also did a little research.
A few people that I talked with that were also invited, thought that wearing black was a little strange, but they were going since they had suitable outfits to wear.
Yesterday, I talked with another person, and she also thought that the all-black event was unusual. She said that it reminded her of a show that she saw about a wedding where everyone was wearing black, including the bride!
I decided to do a little research about the color black although I'm already pretty familiar with it since I'm an artist.
Black is actually a noncolor. It is the absence of light. It can symbolize death, sin, evil, mourning, darkness, and depression. Black is a Satanic color. A black hole in space is a scary place of no return.
Witches wear black. We've all heard of black magic. It's witchcraft used for evil purposes. Witches often have black cats. We certainly don't want a black cat to cross our path for fear of bad luck. (Although in Wales, black cats are considered to bring good luck!)
For color in your home, "Black absorbs light, and this creates a negative, draining effect." Use it cautiously. It can be used as an accent to other colors, but because it does not transmit the light we need, it fails to nourish us the way other colors do." ~From "Color Magic for Beginners" by Richard Webster. This is a really informative book that tells you everything you need to know about using color in your life.
Greg and I have an old house (circa 1901) that we have gradually been working on for the past four years. Originally, there was quite a bit of black in the house, on the stairway, in the kitchen, etc. There were long black curtains in the living room that touched the floor which reminded Greg of the American sixties sitcom, "The Addams Family."
We know of one man who had a bedroom that was all black. His life did not end well!
Thankfully, we now have a lot less black in our home. The long black curtains have been replaced with shorter light brown ones. The stairway has the original wood color. The kitchen just has small accents of black. We feel much happier now that we are rid of that overpowering black! Our house now has a lighter feel. People even remark about the good energy in our house!
Several years ago, the little black dress was introduced by the fashion industry so women thought that it was a must-needed addition to their wardrobe, but according to modern fashion expert Carol Tuttle, most women of any type don't look good wearing black!
I once had a dress that had quite a bit of black on it, and I never felt comfortable wearing it. I finally decided to get rid of it, and I felt relieved that I wouldn't have to wear it anymore.
However, black is not all bad. It can bring a look of sophistication to both houses or clothes, if not overdone.
Neither Greg nor I have the appropriate clothes to wear to the aforementioned formal event, since neither of us likes wearing black, so we just decided not to go. Otherwise, we would have to either buy or rent the appropriate black clothes, at great expense, that we'd most likely never wear again.
Those that are having this event are not evil because just they required the attendees to wear black clothes, it's just that they want to have a very special event in which people are all dressed in their black finery to have a good, picture-perfect, memorable time.
We'll just send our regrets, best wishes, and a nice gift. (To quote Shakespeare, "To thine own self be true.")
Another aspect of black, dark energy is shadow ghosts that I have written about in one chapter of my book, "Photographic Encounters of the Spirit Kind" by Becky Arnott.
This is a photograph of the first page of the "Shadow Ghosts" chapter of my paperback book.
This book has over 100 paranormal photographs that Greg, my brother, and I, as well as others, have taken, along with a description of each one. Besides shadow ghosts, the different photos have ectoplasm, orbs, and other paranormal anomalies, including ghostly figures which are usually rare in photographs.
My paperback book is out of print, but Amazon has the Kindle version. For more information on ordering, please see the widget above. which takes you to Amazon's website.
So, to answer the question, "Is the color black good or evil?"-Black can be good in small doses, or if used occasionally, but too much black can be draining, even harmful, and can even be used for evil purposes in the wrong hands.
I usually end my "The Art of Positive Living" blog posts with a positive quote, and I decided to end this post with a positive thought, too, since it has been so full of dark, negative energy.
Positive thought: "You have to have dark in order to show light, just like in life." ~Bob Ross, Artist
Thanks for visiting! Until Saturday, September 16, 2023, Becky