Black

Ten essays compiled by Doris de Pont, published to coincide with the touring exhibition Black in Fashion, by the New Zealand Fashion Museum. 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 gorgeously illustrated 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 and the patched jackets of gang members. Doris de Pont, founder of the Fashion Museum of New Zealand and curator of the pop-up exhibition Black in Fashion, has brought together 10 richly illustrated essays on the importance of black in the New Zealand psyche in a collection to wow and inspire.