The Lancaster gazette. (Lancaster, Ohio) 1846-1852, 1851-08-07
Far ME Laacdsier Gazette.
Painting and seaIPturs.
No. III


estimate Of The arts. whence the pc
collar connection Of sculpture with the
Grecian Polytheism,' and Of painting with
Christianityl" The fact may doubtless
be assumed; for although the ancient
writer's record in the same terms Of praise
the names Of Zeuxis and Phidias. Of Ap.
elles and Praxiteles; yet from all we can
collect on the subject Of Grecian painting.
aud the few specimens which remain
(confessedly not fair criterion.) we are
led To conclude. that the breadth and
depth of coIoring. the magical effect Of
light aud shade, and the delicate per.
specIive Of modern painting, were little,
or lmperfectly known, to the Grecian ar.
tist. The inferiority OF all sculpture on
christian subjects is unquestloned and
unquestionable. The Moses Of Michael
Angelo. the Adam and Eve OF BanJi
nelli, and the MagdaIen of Canova, are
among the few celebrated exceptions:
properly speaking. only the last is chris
tian. Almost all other fine modern sculp.
ture is not only initiative of nature, but
to some degree of the Grecian models.
The German critic Schlegel remarks,
that. "the mind of the Grecian, If the
fancifulness of the expression be excus-
ed, was like his atmosphere, all light:
that Of the christian, like our variable
uorthen sky, an interchange of light and
shade. The mythology of the former
was series Of self.existent beings, Of
different powers aud attributes; he en-
bodied. he personi6ed every effect Of ma.
ture; all by his creative Imagination be
came harmonized. The running foun-
tain was Naiad pouring her urn. the
shadow on the mountains an Dread, the
sun fair.haired youth in golden car
Many Of his divinities we're mere immor-
tai men, who lost Only the grosser parti-
ces of their nature. but retained their
distinctive forms and qualities; even the
souls of the departed were capable Of
corpo cal and sensual enjoyments; and the
islands of the blessed administered cloud
less sky for the sight to repose on, rich mu
sic for the hearing, and unfading flowers
for the smell. Above all, indeed, above
men,heroes and gods. was Destiny; which
, they understood not, nor attempted to un.
derstand. Their philosophers grasped
at it, and their poets scared towards it;
4 nay, sometimes dared to embody even
this in the Fates, who wound the thread
of life; but in general. all were conten,
to own that TO be impossible which them
Selves could not pass.
In tragedy and tragic sculptures this
= viewless Destiny, was the principal sourc
|, Of fsublimity. The aufferings of Gdipu'
/. and Ajax and LAGOON, have all charac
9 ter Of fatality about them; the const anc
u and lofliness of their characters seem ;
issue with what they scorn to yield t,
a but which cannot but overmaster them.
s Thslhen was the province of sculptur
er for here its positive and determine
70 outline. its strong and elf.existing m ltt
in rial, was natural aud requisite. Hel
Of the Imagination which would not be sa
ct isfied by less than defined existence
u was fully gratifed. It had no notion :
r divinities in other than human form. Y,
mustthe hero and the god have somethin
g Characteristic and peculiar. Proceedin
IS upwards therefore from human form, CO
lg lecting and moulding from it all that wt
at noble and majestic, refining away what W;
gross, or harsh, or inharmonious. alwa,
IN natural, but in natures mole pure an
n perfect mood, the artist embodied Il
if very essence of grace, dignity aud powe
of The passions he expressed were such
Do all feel, but seemed felt as no one ell
" could feel; the actions were what it W
es conceivable that all might perform, b
I'd the manner of acting none could hope
nd reach. Still farther from common life,
40 created sort Of pure aud passionless n
~ ure, and threw over it an inexpressb
IA serenity, such as appears in the Antinou
h. and strange to say. in the Apollo: whe
IN assuredly scorn and pride are strong
lis featured, yet over the whole figure is
:" heavenly calm aud placidness; there
900 no blood, no swollen vein,no distorted s.
of ew. but general smoothness and unbl
as ken quiet. ....
In the mind of the Christian, it "
no said. is an interchange Of light and shat
um He is irreaistibly impeled to medit
, is on what is dark aud mysterious; on ct
nifty and the nature Of his own soul,
au omnipresent and iucomprehensi
.os God. Just light enough has been reve
nm ed to invite him into that darkness whe
ers 10 he is lost; in vain does he averthim
age from these unfathomable subjects ir d
lde pair; they force themselves upon h
a ouorv thourbG lon~ ,,,rsnaJ laa,la