The mirror. (Stillwater, Minn.) 1894-1925, 1894-07-05
CHAUTAUQUA.
ART AND ARCHITECTURE.
BY MEMBER OF CLASS ID.


In my study of this subject the one point thai
impressed me as having in any way a superiority
over the architecture of our own day. was the
sOldity of the structures erected by the old mas
tiers. True, we marvel at the beauty, the grand
eur of the Greek, the Gothic and the Ph6nician
style of Art; we are amazed at the inspirations
and wonder whence they were derived yet we
must consider that the great structures of these
early centuries took years. centuries to complete,
their completeness the result of the study, the
genius and skill of different generations. while
we today think. tomorrow act. and the next day,
almost, behold a structure of beauty, of finish
and convenience that was not dreamed of in
those early days We must give our own modern
artist, our own architect their just praise. Our
structures, however. have not the SOlidity of
those master pieces of DID, while in point of
beauty and grandeur, to my mind our own peri
cd Outranks anything since the creation of the
world, that we have any history of, with perhaps
two or three exceptions, namely, 1.-The Pyramids
of Egypt, the great Oriental mausoeum, Tai
Mahal, which is beautifully described as
''dream of love- and the Vatican There is not
an engineering problem in any work of antiquity
Observation-Disclosures The....mound builders
of the Mississippi valley performed many Tunes
greater toll than was needed in building the Pyri
mlds. which are simply piles of mathmatically
arranged stones, and history shows no greater
engineering than the Brooklyn Bridge or the
grading and tunneling of the railways in the
United States during the past half century.
Those who attended the Worlds Fair and
were at all ObServant must have noted the utter
beWllderment and establishment of the people
from all parts of the world as they gazed upon
the wonderful creations. the stupendous build
ings there exhibited. AS they wandered through
the streets of the greatest city on EARTH and
looked on the buildings towering into the skies
as they entered such structures as the AudtO-
rium Masonic Temple and Woman's Christian
Temple and scores of others no less grand and
noted, the beauty, the skill. the convenience of
these great works of genius, these men of ASIA
Greece and Rome almost bowed down at this
shrine OF mans genius, at the wonderful pro-
gress OF man in everything creative. Yet there
was one thing they overlooked, doubtless, that
we all know to be too true. These structures
have not the solidity, the foundations that char
acterZe the works of the ancient masters. They
are built but for a day. The great avarice of
man. his greed for the almighty dollar, makes
him weak where he should beinvulnerable: and
so with his structures, which should be his mon |
ument. The desire to construct as cheaply as he |
can so that the profits might be great did not
possess the masters of old, and while their !
structures have in many instances withstood the |
ravages of centuries ours of to-day soon crumble
and decay.
From the early ages down to the fifteenth and
sixteenth centuries all great structures the
church and the cathedral, We're thrown open
alike to the rich and the poor the beggar and
the lord met upon terms of equality. 1t was the
palace of the poor and always open to their So
JOurn at Will. 1t was the museum of art, not to
display the oStentaton of the rich or the luxury
of life but to teach by pictures and reliefs the
history of the world as then known and com
pretended. They could see not only the art of
the present but of the past. How different in
our own day! While we erect magnificent
churches and places of art. they are mostly for
the pleasure of the rich and not for the better
ment. the improvement of the many 1t is This
point which struck me the most forcibly in nv
study of the ancients, and we are forced to adj
init its truth. We have in the world to-day
buildings of wOndrOus beauty. but do the beggar
and millionaire meet there upon common foot
ing? True. we have art galleries and museums
free, so-called, but let the poor make a practice
of entering them and how long would the rich
grace them by their presence how long continue
to contribute to their supportc Thousands upon
some rare master painting. only to be placed in
some private gallery where none but the select
may enjoy them We not only show our weak
ness III points of architecture, but what is more
material. in character. The bOldnesS firmuess
ana grandeur of the architecture of these old
masters was equaled by the greatness of their
characters; as their lives. so were their build
lngs solid, firm. and while we are their equals,
nay their superiOrS in point of beauty and great
architectural genius, while we have copied from
and in nearly every instance excel them in
beauty of construction. in works of art, in great
engineering. we have not given that detail to the
construction of our lives that animated these
masters OF Old, so as to perpetuate imperishable
names. temples must crumble and pass away
W De replaced by Others more grand. We gaze
upon the wonderful handcraft of man TODAY
with awe. deeming it almost devine that man
can conceive anything so perfectly beautiful as
the creation of some picture or the erection of
some building, but in a day, a year, some other
product of mans unlimited power and genius
arises before us which makes all previous efforts
seem but commonplace Not so with great lives
A NOBLE character cannot be improved UPON
can never perish; it lies forever the greatest Gre
atlon OF God or man. God created man. and
man mas never been improved upon, not even by
woman, VINO is but part of man at best and if
ne does his part. makes the life placed in his
podliy structure perfect, fills it with the graces
and noble aims it was intended to possess, then
we nave structure that will Outlive time itself
and the pen of the artist the genius and skill of
the arcmtect can never improve Railways per-
feet grand. and its grandeur and beauty its SIM
plicity.
Therefore it would be well. while we study and r
copy the creations of the old masters to study
more closely their characters and lives and let
us improve upon them. Let our foundations be
The solid rock of God and Duty, and we shall
leave to future generations such structures that
% criticize will be bat to praise, and to copy.
heir highest aim.