The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1896-12-13
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SALT LAKE ART
AND ARTISTS
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The secret of the fine arts. such as
painting, sculpture. poetry, music and
architecture, is that they reveal
thought. The highest art is that
which revals the divinest-the most
godlike ideas. Each branch of art ad-
mits of endless degrees of excellence.
The school child makes pictures on a
slate; they may be commonplace. or
they may reveal a touch of nascent
genius. In after years. the child skill
that seemed remarkable will have de-
veloped into creative power that chal-
lenges the admiration Of the world.
In music and poetry, we see the same
evolutionary process rising from rude
beginnings to angelic perfection. In
architectus, the skill that was first
shown in building a dollhouse Is f1nahy
displayed in the massive cathedral
that stands as a historical monument
and the index of the religious culture
CT a race.
In each of the several forms of art,
the skill OF the artist rises into COM
munion with a divine ideal. and While
the artist may not realize his art as
religious, vet in the rhaDscdies OF art.
in the inspiration that makes the great
and true artist, We have the essential
quality of worship; and whoever really
worships the divine. does it with
movement of soul and intelligence that
is allied to some form of art
=
Hence in all forms, art is revelation
of thought-the showing forth of ideals
lin embodiments of physical force like
music, in intellectual symbols as in
poetry: in structures. like sculpture
nd in n
lief, like painting In music the I'M
dulations of sound are transformed
into rhythms of soul. and throughout
the whole of spirit land there comes
an echo to the harmony. Poetry is the
expression of feeling and sentiment in
the rhythmetic form. Sculpture and
architecture exalt form. and their high
est attributes are grandeur and sub
Unity. Painting is the fullest of life
and nature; it has both form and
color; il has all that belongs to space,
and with color it reveals all shades of
feeling and passion.
A marble statue or a massive tenn
pie may speak volumes through their
presentation of form; but with equal
command over space, the painting.
having the added charm of color, seems
the most largely endowed instrument
for revealing the subtle meanings, the
shades of feeling, the symbols of pas
sion, the grades OF intelligence, the
type OF civilization. ell, in fact, that
belongs peculiarly to organic life.
Form in itself is a cosmic attribute
of art. As we think of the universe in
it's evolving grandeur, we overlook the
thought OF color and imagine a sub
lime form. But nature. as she comes
to US in daily intercourse, is a picture.
There is form, but especially does she
deal in color The morning dawn. the
golden sunset, the cloud-fiecked sky,
the painless depths of azure, the blue
expanse of the ocean, the weird charm
of the sunlight when broken into
shades by clouds or mist, the forest
Verdure, the wisdom or witchery of the
human eye, the bloom of youth or the
decrepitude of age, the qualities of life
and beauty everywhere displayed in
nature, these are pictures, employing
both form and color in the revealing
Nature is the great artist; she en-
ploys all forms of art; and she ere
ates nothing that has not some thought
of art as the essence and soul of its
existence
As civilization progresses art will be-
come more and more its vehicle and
expression. We now have men en-
gagged in art, men who are cultivatin-
beautiful thoughts. treasuring up ideals
of power, sublimity and grandeur. and
If they were called upon to render a
practical account of themselves, they
could hardly render a reason that
would satisfy this ever too practical
and worldly world. The true artist is
driven by the art ideal that hovers in
his soul He is possessed by the crea-
tive impulse; from the dawn of art as
a profession, the world has failed to
realize that the artist is a minister of
heavenly gifts, that he lives to reveal
the ideals that are imDerishable and
eternal What more could be said to
ingratiate the artist into the good
graces Of the community; what more
need be said to induce true men and
women. to appreciate those whose lives
are consecrated to the revelation of
beauty, passion. grandeur, good and
evil. all the forms and phrases of real
life.
General Ottinger is one of the pioneer
artists of Utah and TO obtain informa-
ton regarding the art Of Utah years
ago. he was Detitioned for a few rem
iniscences.
THE first Society of Artists? " he
said. well the first organization of
the kind formed-let me see-in 1864.
We called it The Deseret Academy of
Arts and our Headquarters were stu
stands, in what was then known as
Romney's hall. We had among our
number, engi 1eers. photographers. and
architects. One of us would preside
for week as teacher. to be succeeded
by another, sometimes the architest.
who would give points on his latest
geometrical drawings; again the pho
tographer. with his best ideas on pho
Biography. Sc, you see, we studied art
in many forms. This society met only
in the evenings and continued all win
ter. In the spring, however, We dis
banded membership. Three years later
we reformed but interest was lacking
and the second time we gave NJ the
idea. There was no school for art
from that time until 1873, when we
formed a club which was called the
Utah Art Society,", with George A.
hfeears as president Our cIubroom was
in the Jennings building. This class
was more of a sketching club than any
thing else. and we progressed very
nicely until there came TO be so much
wrangling and discussion over the by
laws-which seemed TO suit no one and
required framing anew at each meet
ing that the society disbanded in the
spring.
Previous to my coming. which was
in 1861, there had been scarcely any
artists in this country. Art was not
work was painting the scenery of the
theatre. which was being erected at
that time. A fellow workman was a
man named Joseph De L'ArD. who
afterwards went 70 New York, where
he married the dauohter of General