San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1892-10-10
DEAN COMFORTS DEPARTURE

He is to Found College of Fine
Arts at the City of LaPorte,
Texas
, 1t is the definite decision of Dean
G Gorge Comfort to leave Syracuse at
the end of the present college year in
order that he may enter on the work
of founding college of fine arts at
La Porte, Texas, IN pursuance OF a
plan to cooperate with which he was
invited by the capitalists VINO have
the enterprise in hand. The Dean
will, however, remain in Syracuse
long enough to see the department. of
the University which he has built up
safely transferred to others, and if
necessary will return here temporari.
ly to give his successor the benefit of
his advice and experience.
George Fisk Comfort l.. II. D.,
Dean OF the College of Fine Arts of the
Syracuse University. was born at
Berkshire, Tompkins county, n. Y,
Septemb Der 20, 1888. Dean Comforts
early education was pursued in ST.,
Charles College. Mo-, Wyoming SEMI
nary, Kingston Pa, and in Cazeu-
ovia Seminary. In 1857 he graduated
In the classical course at the Wesley
an University, Middletown. Conn.
After he had prepared for college he
devoted tour additional years before
en- tering college to the further study
of music and art, the natural science
and the modern languages. His
chosen study in his youth as we'll as
in his later years was art and esthet-
les, and was seriously drawn to giv-
ing his life wholly to practical art,
but was led to devote himself to the
theory and history of art and the re-
lation to pedagogy. Alter graduation
he taught natural science and draw
ing and painting in the A menia and
Fort Plain seminAries. In 1860 he
went 20 Europe, to study the history
of the fine arts, esthetics and archeol-
Ogy. He travelled extensively in the
Orient and in all the chief countries
of Europe, carefully studying the
monuments, museums and schools of
art he was a year and half in Italy
and over two years in Berlin, where
he pursued his studies in the Univer-
sity, the Academy of Fine Arts and
the Royal Library. He wss received
in social circles of leading artists.
sors OF art and archaeology of that
great litery capital of the world, as
Cornelius, Keinlo bach. Lepsius, Wsa-
gen. Gerhar5, Piper, Won Ranks and
others. This social and personal con.
tcct aud acquaintance with leading
headlights in Berlin was of priceless
value in giving insight into the mode
of thought and of the great German
scholars. antiqusrians and artists,
and In furnishing stimulus and in
spiIation for the peculiar form of edu-
cational work to which he devoted
himself subsequently with so great
success in America.
In September, 1865, Dean Comfort
accepted q call to the chair of modern
Languages and literature in AlIeghe-
ny College, Meadv;ile, Pa. In 1868
he resigned his chair to accept lee
,tureship on Christian archaeology In
the Drew Theological Seminary, at
Madison, n. j., taking his residence
in New York. He also prepared the
series of text books for the study of
the German language and literature,
published by Harper & Brothers. In
this year he originated the movement
and took upon himself the chief lat Dor
of organizing the American Philolcg-
ical A Association, Of which he was the
secretary from 1859 to 1874. He took
q prominent part in organizing the
Metropolitan Museum of Art, being
called to give the main address at the
public meeting held November Is, '69,
in the Union League Theater. which
resulted in the founding of this mu-
scum, of which he was q trustee and
q member OF the executive committee
until he moved from New York to
Syracuse In 1872, to enter his work 10
the chair to which he has been elect
ed of modern languages aud literature
and esthetics in the newly founded
university in that city. In 1873 he
laid before the trustees of the univer-
sity the project for a College OF Fine
Arts, with courses of study in all of
the fine arts, both formative and pho.
netic, co extensive with the courses
in Colleges of Liberal Arts, the collie
giate courses in the fine arts thus be-
ing four years in length and being
preceded by preparatory courses
three years In length This project
was accepted by the Board of Trustees
and the College of Fine Arts w9s
opened In Septem Der, 1878, with three
courses OF study in operation, those
in architecture, painting and music.
In this college the fine arts are
taught systematically in their theory,
history and practice; q judicious Sc
lection is added of such liberal
studies in literature, general history,
natural sciences and the modern lam
guagee as bear most directly upon
the fine arts. Being new depart
ment in education in America, and in
some respects different from any
school in Europe, the history and de-
velopment of this College of Fine Arts
has been watched with great interest