Schwarz

Pop culture loves to look into the abyss. In its sparkling blackness, it discovers a mirror of itself, of its secret desires and passions, but also of its fears. The dialectic of the (non)colour black is the Ariadne's thread that takes us on a journey lined with strange, frightening and fascinating plants: it begins in 1968, when modern pop culture gradually lost its innocence, and it ends in the frightening media self-portrayal of right-wing extremists and Islamists. As a DJ, filmmaker, musician and journalist, film and cultural studies scholar Marcus Stiglegger (born 1971) has gained deep insights into the abyss of pop culture, which he now brings together in fascinating chapters. It is about 'black' subcultures, fashion and politics, about 'occulture' and fetishism, about abysmal ideals of beauty and cultural terrorism. And along the way, the author develops a philosophy of the colour black. The richly illustrated volume concludes with a personal interview with the Viennese film and culture critic Christian Fuchs on the blackness of pop.