Quotes about Black And White

Inspirational black and white quotes that will change your life

“Life is not black and white” is a saying everyone has heard. This saying may be true, but we cannot deny that black and white make up a huge part of life. We should know that these two colors are always in varying degrees in our lives, creating different shades of gray. Thus, saying “life is gray” would be a better representation of reality.

Yet, black and white are often seen as two extremes that never meet or intersect. For some people, having this sort of mindset can be helpful as it makes it easier to navigate their way through life and all its difficulties. However, that’s no way to live, we should not ignore the varieties of life just because it doesn’t fit a stereotypical box.

Below are some quotes covering the black and white spectrum talking about life, love, race and actual colors. This expansive list of quotes comes from various sources, from novels and movies to politicians, celebrities, and revolutionaries.

Black and white quotes about life

When we were all born, we had a clear-cut view of what the world was; good and bad, wrong and right, black and white, but boy, were we wrong. As we grew up, we realized that life can’t be put into two binaries. The world is far too vast and multifaceted to do so, and those who try to force everything into boxes will only hurt themselves.

“There’s so much gray to every story – nothing is so black and white.” – Lisa Ling

“Life isn’t black or white, it’s all sorts of shades of gray.”  – Nicky Morgan

“It’s very human to try to put things into boxes, and it’s hard for us to reconcile with gray areas, and yet somehow, that’s the area I find the most poetic, the juiciest.”  –  Arca

“Most of life is gray, with a little tiny bit of black and white” – Bill Henson

To live a life without nuance is to live without truly understanding human nature. The yin-yang symbol reminds us that there’s good in bad and bad in good, and we’re all a mixture of both. We’re not black or white, and we can never be.

“When you reduce life to black and white, you never see rainbows.” – Rachel Houston

We’re so quick to make things black and white and to put things in their box. But everything is this mixture – and that’s what this world is – is this blend of different things.” – Matisyahu

The experiences that shape us put us in tough positions that don’t always feel right. We can get overwhelmed by everything, get tired of bad things happening to us, and life causing us pain even when we try to do right. But learning the simple lesson that you can’t navigate life without a mixture of black and white, good and bad, hurt and happiness, pain and pleasure would open your eyes to a world of gray areas.

If the world was black and white, then darkness would have never mind, the night would have never cried, and the day would have never smiled …” – Muskan Bhatia

“Life is in color, but black and white is more realistic.” Samuel Fuller

Black and white thinking quotes

Looking at the world in a black and white manner is an oversimplified way of thinking that does no one any good. When we were younger it may have made sense, but as you grow up, it becomes more apparent that the world is not so clear cut and that in everything, there are sections of gray that most things fall into.

After all, if bad can sometimes come from good actions, good can surely be gotten from bad actions. Nowhere does it say that only bad can come from bad actions.

“If only it were all so simple! If only there were evil people somewhere insidiously committing evil deeds, and it were necessary only to separate them from the rest of us and destroy them. But the line dividing good and evil cuts through the heart of every human being. And who is willing to destroy a piece of his own heart?” ― Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn

Still, we can’t always blame ourselves for falling prey to the idea that the world is black and white. Sometimes it’s easier to put things into boxes to process them in our minds, but just because it’s the easier thing to do doesn’t mean it is the way to go. If we do this, we would be erasing a myriad of colorful experiences and run the risk of being myopic and close-minded. Let yourself think freely and look at the wonderful spectrum of our existence and the existence of others. Remember that we’re nothing but a mosaic of countless experiences.  

“We are gray areas” – Jon Ronson.

“Evil comes from elsewhere, Matthew Houlihan believes. Evil is other people. She will leave him this illusion, mostly because she envies his ability to keep finding comfort in simple, black-and-white views of the world.” ― N.K. Jemisin, The City We Became

“There’s no black and no white, just shades of gray…But the small betrayals lead to bigger ones, morality is eroded.” – Alphonse Karr

There’s so much gray to every story – nothing is so black and white.”  – Lisa Ling

At some point in our lives, we would have to put the gray areas of existence into perspective and confront the messy parts of morality. We would be forced to ask ourselves if wrong can be justified and if the right choice can be the wrong choice. We would have to learn to navigate the different shades of experience.

When I was young, I had a very clear point of view on things in life, on moral questions. There was a black and white viewpoint on my world. As I’ve gotten older, I see the gray areas appear. — Joel Edgerton

When I learned about the gray existing between the black and white of absolute terms, I began to experience more peace. The more I expanded my gray areas (more than 50 shades), the more peace I experienced in my life. — David W. Earle

Black and white quotes about love

Humans live their life trying to find some semblance of love or connections because to exist without love would be to live a life without color. Love is a powerful force that has been romanticized, and with good reason, by many people, from poets and musicians to politicians.  Still, love is a nebulous power that has caused many wars but also brought peace to warring communities. As powerful as the presence of love can be, its absence or loss can invoke emotions and shake the world.

“The world went from black and white and into color when I laid eyes on you, my love. There’ll be no going back” – R.K. Lilley

Just like how humans are multifaceted, so is love. There isn’t one right way to love and be loved, and there isn’t one type of love as it exists in many forms, from the love that can be found between lovers to the love between mothers and their children and the love shared among friends. Just as there are many forms of love, there are multiple quotes that try to conceptualize the multiplicity of what love feels like.

 I believe very strongly that when it comes to desire, when it comes to attraction, things are never black and white, things are very much shades of gray. – Brian Molko

Sometimes couples have to argue, not to prove who’s right or wrong, but to be reminded that their love is worth fighting for. – Nishan Panwar

I don’t know why we work, my husband and I. We just do. We are black and white, yin and yang. – Heidi Klum

There’s no right or wrong when one chooses to be happy. It’s just a battle between one’s own happiness and the judgment of others. – Nishan Panwar

One hard pill to swallow about love is that, for the most part, we can’t control who we love. Love doesn’t see your morals, beliefs, biases, commitments, and doesn’t know right or wrong. It exists independently of such concepts in a spectrum of different colors.

“Love was that way. You could not render it in black or white. It always came down to the strange, blended shades of gray.” – Jodi Picoult

“There’s love of children, love of self, love of God, love of a partner. And all of them have a different shape, but all of them is the same in the end” –  Lenora Antoinette Stines

Black and white photography quotes and sayings

Photographs are windows into the past that capture emotions and memories and lock them in time. There are several millions of photographs taken daily with camera phones, entry-level cameras, or by professionals in today’s world. Many of these are in color, but photography didn’t begin in color. It started in black and white when subjects often had to wait for hours to have their photos taken.

If you’ve been to history museums, you can see that most of these photos are in black and white. But while black and white photography may best demonstrate age, it also demonstrates timelessness and depth. It captures nostalgia perfectly. Even now, many photographers prefer to shoot in black and white. There’s a beauty to black and white that color photographs can’t exude. Here are some quotes that put into words what these black and white photos make us feel:

Black and white photography has the potential to make any photographer a better photographer.” – Rob Sheppard

“There’s something strange and powerful about black-and-white imagery.” – Stefan Kanfer

“Black and white photography has an enhanced sobriety and gravitas that can be well suited to formal events such as weddings.” – Tim Savage

“Nothing conveys mood and emotion quite like a good black and white image. But simply removing color from an image is unlikely to achieve this.” – Robin Whalley

“When you photograph people in color, you photograph their clothes. But when you photograph people in Black and white, you photograph their souls!” – Ted Grant

“When images are in black and white, they seem timeless. When you see Carrie Otis in an ad from 1989 next to an ad with Klara Wester from 2009, you don’t see a 20-year difference between the pictures.” – Paul Marciano

“I think it’s because it was an emotional story, and emotions come through much stronger in black and white. Color is distracting in a way, it pleases the eye but it doesn’t necessarily reach the heart.” – Kim Hunter

“The world is in color, you have to work at black and white.” – Andrew Maclean

Positive white and black history quotes

History has not always been kind to people of color; there has always been this invisible force that tries to divide us based on the preconceived notion of white, black, brown or red. However, none of these matter because we are all one at the end of the day. We all have blood coursing through our veins; we all eat food, laugh, sleep, dance, listen to music, and breathe air. We all have dreams and aspirations irrespective of whether we are “black” or “white.” Yes, we may look different, but that is the beauty of it all. Our differences add flavor and color to the world.

We cannot fixate on the bad history we once had. Instead, we can learn from it, do better as a group of people and create a world where black or white does not matter. So, let us reflect on the wisdom of these quotes by notable men and women that inspire all of us to be better.

“We all require and want respect, man or woman, black or white. It’s our basic human right.” – Aretha Franklin

“I am Black; it means that I must undertake to love myself and to respect myself as though my very life depends upon self-love and self-respect.” – June Jordan

“Won’t it be wonderful when black history and Native American history and Jewish history and all of U.S. history is taught from one book. Just U.S. history.” – Maya Angelou

“Our nation is a rainbow – red, yellow, brown, black, and white – and we’re all precious in God’s sight.”- Jesse Jackson

“If you are a white person who would like to treat black people as equals in every way — who would like to have a set of association with blacks that are as positive as those that you have with whites — it requires more than a simple commitment to equality. It requires that you change your life” – Malcolm Gladwell

“Let Black be synonymous with glory.” – Beyoncé Knowles Carter

Quotes about loving the color of your skin

Have you ever looked at yourself in the mirror and felt that your skin color was not beautiful or attractive. Or that you weren’t adequate in any way, well we are here to tell you that you look gorgeous. Your skin is there to protect you, and it does not matter if you’re black, white, or any other shade; you are beautiful.

For a long time, racial discrimination has influenced how a lot of people feel about their skin. Because somehow, skin color became a determinant in the way we interact with each other. However, people’s skin color should not affect how our bonds are formed or how we connect with one another because your color is nothing more than the concentration of melanin on it. So, don’t let something as inconsequential as that have power over you.

We have compiled some quotes that will make anyone feel good about their skin.

“I am dripping melanin and honey. I am black without apology” – Upile

“I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.” –Martin Luther King, Jr.

“Black women were created of brown sugar and warm honey. The sweetest thing to bless the earth. Be wary of anyone who tells you otherwise.” –Alexandra Elle.

“The black skin is not a badge of shame but rather a glorious symbol of national greatness.” –Marcus Garvey

“I don’t care about skin color, everybody is a human being. Beneath every skin color, you bleed red. That’s just the bottom line of the truth – Angelique Kidjo

“Your beauty will be in shades of melanin and light.” -R. YS Perez

“Can anything good come of a backward way of thinking like judging someone based on skin color? No way.” – Adam McKay

Don’t be so proud of your skin colour we all are same when light goes off.

“There is a lot of pressure on women to conform to a certain image – shadeism itself is another manifestation of that.”

Quotes about color

Have you ever wondered what the world would be without color, just boring beige and no flavor. Colors bring life into everything – the red apples, the green leaves, the colors of the rainbow, and the blue skies are all that make life a little better.

We perceive colors because certain objects reflect wavelengths of visible light that we can see. The fact that we can see the deep luminous violet of the indigo plant is because the plant reflects that particular color.

Colors help us navigate the world we live in as it can be used to pass messages, make statements, for decorations and for symbolic purposes. For instance, purple denotes royalty, and white is used to show peace (hence the saying “raise the white flag). Additionally, countries worldwide have flags with colors that are used to identify them. Companies use it for marketing their products, and artists combine a mixture of colors to create aesthetically pleasing pictures. It is still a color that tells us when to stop frying the chicken as it turns golden brown.

“Color is all. When color is right, form is right. Color is everything, color is vibration like music; everything is vibration.”  – Marc Chagall

Nature, in her wisdom, also uses color to signal to us the change of seasons. When we notice the green everywhere, we know that spring is near, but when the leaves turn golden brown, we know that the autumn has come and the winter is close by.

For everyone, color makes them feel different emotions and means something unique to them. Here are some quotes about what color means to several people.

“Colors are the smiles of nature.”- Leigh Hunt

“Color is my day-long obsession, joy and torment.” – Claude Monet

“I think we all need to be able to dream in all colors.” – Victor J. Glover

“Each life is a unique blend of energy that colors the planet.” – Lauren Roedy Vaughn

“Mere color, unspoiled by meaning, and unallied with definite form, can speak to the soul in a thousand different ways.”  – Oscar Wilde

“The best color in the whole world is the one that looks good on you.”

“But if one stops believing in dreams, life loses its meaning, loses its colors.” – Cristiane Serruya.

“Color is a power which directly influences the soul.”  – Wassily Kandinsky

Motivational black and white quotes that will inspire you

Having days where you feel unmotivated and like the weight of the world is on your shoulders is pretty normal. It happens to the best of us, and this is especially true in today’s clime where it seems like there’s a new problem arising every day. A lot of things are happening all at once, and most of them don’t feel good. However, we must learn to live through the bad parts just as we do with the good parts.

“Life can be just black and white, but with imagination, life is a kaleidoscope of exhilarating colors and breathtaking adventures.”- Wes Adamson

We are here to remind you that there is still beauty and wonder to be seen in the world. Go out, take a walk to the park, strike a conversation with a stranger, enjoy the symphony of nature, and let the colors of the world reignite your passion. Or better still, you can look at these quotes and become inspired.

“Life isn’t black and white. It’s a million gray areas, don’t you find?” – Riley Scott

“You are the rainbow that adds color to my gray skies.” – Avijeet Das

Life isn’t black and white, but you can’t call it colorful either. It is actually what you make of it, so how you look at it matters a lot.” ― Prem Jagyasi, Carve Your Life: Live a great life with carvism

“Your attitude is like a box of crayons that color your world. Constantly color your picture gray, and your picture will always be bleak. Try adding some bright colors to the picture by including humor, and your picture begins to lighten up.” – Allen Klein

“White stars don’t mix with the dark blackness of the universe. If they did… everything would be gray.” – Erik Tanghe

“We’re all complex creatures, and we shouldn’t have to pick one thing to be passionate about. Life isn’t black and white, so we shouldn’t live that way.” – Cassadee Pope

Black and white captions for Instagram

Some days you will feel poetic and just want to make your pictures black and white. Black and white add professionalism to your photos as well as give them a timeless feel. On those days when you post your pictures on Instagram, you will need the right black and white quote as a caption to accompany it.

Quotes like these help you express and describe your feelings, state of mind and vibe at that point in time through perfectly crafted words. But finding the ideal caption that ticks all the boxes can be challenging, but don’t worry because we have some quotes for you.

“Black and white, oldest of the vintages, newest of the last season.” – Vikrmn

“The black and white photographer is a musician, transposing notes on the fly, visualizing a final print from the world of color.” – Ted Dillard

“I don’t see the world completely in black and white. Sometimes I do.” – Benicio Del Toro

“Life’s not black-and-white. Sometimes the ends justifies the means.” – Emily Giffin

“To see in color is a delight for the eye, but to see in black and white is a delight for the soul.” – Andri Cauldwell

“A good color picture is usually a good black and white too.” – John Beardsworth

“Black and white always looks modern.” – Karl Lagerfeld

“Black and white photography is truly quite a ‘departure from reality,’ and the transition from one aspect of visual magic to another was not as complete as many imagine.” – Ansel Adams

“We’re just trying to find some color in this black and white world.” – The Maine

Black and white are all about perspectives. It could mean many things for different people, but if there was anything that these quotes have taught us, it is that reality is not a binary but a spectrum. It can be a spectrum of colors, love, life, emotions and perspectives. And the way to find the meaning of life is to acknowledge our differences and the nuances of our existence.