The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1876-04-27
SNINGlGN ART.

The parlors OF the Congregational Church,
were filed to OVERCOMING Tuesday evening
of last week, by an intelligent audience,
come together to listen to Prof. Swings
lecture on cart in the Fifteenth Century"
The Professor introduced the subject by
Saying hat his lecture would be more OF
talk than q lecture Each century carries
some great feature; and III the fifteenth, art
was that feature and Angelo the central
character. This centzry was given up al
most entirely to art, as the sixteenth was
given over to the drama. In the sixteenth,
the preacher gave up preaching and put the
bible on tie stage, SO in the fifteenth every
thing vas subservient to arL-the beautiful.
No century has created itself; 1t is the
product of preceding ones-the child OF
those that have gone before it. Mankind OF
to-day is six thousand years old; for we are
now as the past has made us. We are che
children of history. The past lets drop the
bodies of men, but preserves the history OF
their lives. God has not made any thing
worthless, to tie immortal History is the
urns into which the past centuries have
emptied whar they have contributed for the
future. Our language is about 1900 years
old, and during this time each of the cen
turtles have added something towards filling
the urn of language. Thus are we the chill
dren Of history.
Now, what caused the rise of art in The
or hot Is in he
centuries which followed? AS Greece was
created to be the cradle of art so was Greece
the giant The Greeks rendered everything
an art. Their language was an art. The
greek verb had / 500 parts -ouly think OF it
the verb, to love. with 1900 parts would
express every possible phase of that senti-
ment The Greeks discussed everything
all the subjects that we have before US to-
day were discussed by them-religion, poll
tics, social reform, women's rights educa-
tion--all were treated by the Greeks as arts.
Then came the christian religion; and
Greece disappeared before the advance OF
the church. In the fifteenth century Greece
reappeared, and with this temperance
came Angelo, SO receptive, SO sensitive, SO
perfectly fitted for the practice of art; and
the arts arose. The four corners of the
earth were searched for specimens of an
cient Grecian art, and all cast down at the
feet of Angelo The century was concen-
trated upon art. Concentration gives per-
lection, ard with perfection comes
beauty. Concentration produces mar
rowness, and narrowness gives force,
which enables greater development Etc
take place Angelo had but the one path,
and that was art. Had he lived in eur time
he would have had before him many paths
to wealth-many examples of success: A.
t. Stewart, Vanderbilt. the tightening rod,
and the sewing machine man; and in his
perplexity he might have called upon some
great philosopher and asked the question
"what shall / do," and received for reply,
Ego west, young man, go west"
Success in art comes from some great in
splration. In the fifteenth century, every
body was infatuated with art-with taste
fol art; and this public taste de
velopod Angelo. This was one OF his
inspirations. The rich loved art and were
willing to pay for it. Religion became ex
ternal and the popes paid their wealth foi
art-fcr artistic decorations for their cathe
dras This was another inspiration. There
can be no great success in art without
great theme. Angeles theme was religion
his examples from the bible. Old themes
died. These new themes of christianity and
Angelo 3ogether made art the main thing
Religion became a show-a spectacle
pageant-grand to the eye, but not to the
soul Angelo had one other great inspira-
tion; love-WoTan's hand to urge him on.
He found this loving one-Victoria Colonna
the bright vision always before his eyes.