Notes

Contacts: Why do we wear black? / Doris de Pont -- A Maori perspective on the wearing of black / Chanel Clarke -- Black in the Victorian era / Jane Malthus -- Black as a fashionable colour / Elaine Webster & Natalie Smith -- Black heroes : New Zealand sport / Ron Palenski -- The black singlet as a cultural icon / Stephanie Gibson -- Black clothing in New Zealand cinema / Helen Martin -- The cultural politics of wearing black / Prudence Stone -- Back in black / Andrew Clifford -- A culture of ease / Claire Regnault

Ten essays compiled by Doris de Pont, published to coincide with the touring exhibition Black in Fashion, by the New Zealand Fashion Museum

Summary: New Zealanders choose to represent ourselves to the world wearing black - and not just the All Blacks, Tall Blacks and Silver Ferns. Many of our fashion designers choose black as the cornerstone of their collections, and a great deal of our cultural icons (think Fred Dagg) are also characterised by wearing black. Black is a ... celebration and exploration of New Zealand's obsession with clothing ourselves in black - in society, power and politics, cultural icons, sport, fashion, film and music, from the Little Black Dress to the All Black jersey, Dunedin goths, the business people of Lambton Quay. (Publisher)