Art NYC has a two-part interview with one of my favorite painters, Amy Crehore.
Me: Why are your Pierrots always wearing blue and sometimes have their faces painted black? Is there any symbolism?Amy: Well, they started out in white, but ended up blue. I needed some color, I guess, to contrast with red. But, blue is appropriate, I think. Like Picasso's blue period. My pierrot is a mischievous and melancholy imp. He gets into trouble a lot. But, the girl is fond of him and they have a sort of ambiguous relationship.
The black face is a twist on the white make up that he usually wears and also relates to music/entertainment that was popular back in the 1920's. And I think the black face adds something graphically to the paintings.
