, 1875-10-24
THE FINE ARTS.
The Artistic Uses of Terra Gotta
How 1t Is Handled.
Pre-eminence Of Chicago in This
Special Manufacture.
The Art Journals and Other Art Publ.
catons..-The French Etching
Clubs.
What the Chicago Artists Are Doing,
STATtIETTES,

STATUETTEs.
COMPARATIVE MERITS OF DIFFERENT MATERIALS.
The comparative merits Of 'sParian Marble. -
"Bisque, porcelain, and plaster OF Paris, for
statuettes aud reproductions Of sculptured
works, wero discussed in these columns some
weeks ago. It was shown that while Parian is q
pleasing and fine material for purely decorative
purposes, it is Of comparatively little value for
serious artistic uses, plaster Of Paris being the
best material where the object is to procure =
trustworthy copy OF tine original. The defect
of Parian is it's great shrinkago under baking.
amounting to one-third OF one-fourth the linear
dimensions, and consequently to not less than
half the solid dimensions. That is it cube Of
Parian should 60 into the oven inches square,
it would come out not mora than inches in each
dimension, and the solid contents. compared
NTH the original size, would be as a to 81. By
"solid contento," of course, simply cubic meas
ure is intended. for all Parian ia hollow.
Under this astonishing shrinkage it is wonder
ful that Parian retains any likeness to tho
original at all. but it does preserve the general
form very we'll, and often exhibits great sharp
ness Of Ioe. It ia when there Is a aevere de-
mand for accuracy thn: Parian fails. For the
use OF the atist " no needs Temporary models.
anu for many Of the purposes OF the conno!ssenr.
plaster ls entirely Sat sfactorr. Some Of the
finest museums OF atatuary IN the world are
furnished principally with fine plaster casts from
antique statues. But the extreme fragllity OF
plas.es units it for use in permanent and
'soriginal" works OF sculpture, and is consid-
cradle drawb ack even in the humber sphere Of
s:atutettes and household ornament. A sound.
durable material cheaper than marble Or bronze,
is needed for these thirgs. aad such material Is
found IN terra-cotta, the artistic value Of which
,s too little understood IN this co1ntry, though
in foreign countries, and especially in France, 1t
almost supeIsedea plaster.
TEHRA-coTE,
being essentially nothing in the world but clay
oaxed hard, the same material with common
bricks, has been in use from time immemoria',
and. as it is one Of the most indestructible sub
stances kuown presenting absolute resistance to
ire aud decay, and as strong, tha oest Of it, as
granite rock, there are specimens OF 1t pre-
served which data from the remotesk anti tiluity,
and every subsequent age has left rccordo OF its
artistic status in this universal and everlasting
medium.
An old Sauscsit Eoem says Of the hero, He
still Possesses excellent horses. and he loves
them SO we'll that be fashions them ont OF clay
he alao pants horses Of many colors-" Tho
Etrusca1s loft d vast number OF works OF art aud
ornament IN terra Gotta, an important example
OF which is tomb with recumbent statues now
III the museum of Napoleon i'll. in the Louvre.
On tombs Of later da.e there arc many such fg-
urea, and the head is detached, go that it is
supposed that the relatives OF the deceased
selected from q miscellaneous supply at tha
po!ter's load resembling more or less the de-
parted. This would not be- altogether imoossi-
BILE, for among the shousaod nude Cretan statues
in the Metropolitan Museum OF New York, it is
possible to select fair likene=ses OF Napoleon,
Con, Grant, etc In this same Now York col1ec-
tion, among the Di Cesnofa antiquities, are num-
berless terra-cottas, especially ancient lamps.
Tbs Greeks and Romans decorated the faexdes
of their houses with bas~reliefs in terra-cottc,
often very beautiful; the Italian Renaissance in
its turn WAS very enthus:ass1c about busts and
ssatueLtes in tcr7a-cotta, and the famous works
Of the Della Robbias were in part the application
OF enamel to terra-cotta. Not to pursue farther
the history OF material go generally used, there
is at the present time strong movement to-
wards its revival for artistic uses in this coan-
try, movement in winch Chicaso may claim to
be in tho van. Waiter Smith, the State Dlrec-
tor Of Art Education in Massachusetts, writes as
follows:
OF ter1acota burnt estth which the artist and the
art conno1sscur love, they a good things little
gyen here for the highest class Of professional
study it is OF the desires feel to resusciGte the
noble art Of terra-cota upon American soil You may
reduce oil the pictures ia the world to finder melt all
tho bronze statues until they in the gusters cal
cine the marble statues with plaster of Paris burn all
The buildings into lime and az animal creatures and
will glow red-hot, and remain uninjured, aud cool
down again into the shape We fashioned it, Il is the
may To difficult to decide what else 1t Is do which
would be comparatively permanent in any great
universal shock or relapse into barbarism.
TIE STRENGTH OF CAREFULLY MADE TERRA Gotta
upon in London in 1851 yielded only to
crushing .eight Of 400 tons to the square foot,
that IS, the material proved its=lf as strong as
good granite and Several times as strong as
sand or lime stone. When the fe1ibi1ity, the
strength, and the endurance Of this substance
ire taken into account, it's possibilities as an a.
tistlc material a1e csearly manifest.
In the ''Chefs-d' 'Env1es of the Industrial
Arts, d" by Philippe Burty, occurr passage whlch
8 worth quoting. not only because OF its general
oraise Of terra a~cotts, but because it makes men
ion in the first sentence OF one Of its most Pc
:uliar and valuable properties
Earth be forced into mold, and the sculptor
hen and should. while 1t is yet n1oat aad maiea
de, retouch and giTe 1t new surface Such proofs
laYs for this individuality and rastty
han the proofs Of bronze which is oly retnuched
y professional carver. TcEE.cota has less Eigidty
han broHze less uniformity than marble. It's tone Is
Of those reflex lights the great effect Of which is
dependent upon Large suzf.ces. It il erninens1y ma
1oudon h1vo shown US what sort Of style can b. o.
lined in terrcotta. Let our artists bronze for
erof marble for ideal statues, but tade the clay and
nodelng-tooi more often in hand to reproduce the
eatures Of their contemporaries or embody soine |
ieaaing fantasy.
In order 10 understand the process alluded to |
II retoach,ng bY the artist it il necessary to |
now something Of the ordinary
PROCESS or aIAHuFA ACTURE
# rerra-cotta statues and designs which il in |
'Eief this: i f0e suitable clay har1nx been |
is found in various parts OF
indiana, and alsr near here-it is ground and !
ngged like brick clas, only more carefully.
hen. mixed With water to flexible. not fluid,
onditlon, it is pressed into plaster moidB,
aade, far objects OF any complicated form, in
leces-what are known to modelers as ''piace-
nalds and the moids are not filed solid, !
ut linsd with clay OF uniform thickness, 30 as |
. form hollow cast. This last precaution il
ecessary to ayoid twisting and wayptng during |
ring. The completed cast, Withdrawn from |
be mold aud partially dried in the air, is baked
] kiln from five to seven dlys, during waica
is brought to q white heat, and gradually |
ooled down again.
A fuller description Of the process may be
,und in Arthur Beckwith'a report on IS Pottery
!, the international EXHIBITION, London, 1871"
nd this useful little pamphlet 10. Van Ostrand,
ew York, price 50 cents) is recommended aso
or defn1te brief information upon all sorts OF
orceIain, stoneHare, majollca, encaustic TILES,
au kindred subjects
better idea still Of the manufacture OF terra
rita mag bs procured BY visiting
TIE WORKS OF 4 CHICAGO FIRM.