The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-05-31

architect to carry out his original design
and that two years after he had resigned
as architect.
The criticism of Mr.. Schmitz's designs of
the War and Peace" groups seems still
more unreasonable. The assumption seems
to be that because he is an architect he is
not an artist, that because he designs mon
uments he is incapable of designing groups
of sculpture. Yet the latter is his profess
sion as much as the former as several fine
monuments in Germany testify No artist
in Germany questions Mr.. Schmitz's ability
to design groups of statuary or sculpture
as well as other features of a monument
But his local critics say his designs are
not American. Let US have something
distinctively American" they say. 1t is
pretty hard to tell just what this means,
but one of the local critics tries to ex-
plain it as follows
There can be no national art without
local expression, and we can have no
American art that is not drawn from ma
ture as manifest in America and as col
ored by American sentiment. 1t is con-
coded to-day that there is no American mu-
SIC except the negro melodies. Why? Be-
cause the negro learned his music from
nature and your musicians learned theirs
from men. and so our critics and our
doctrinaries insist forcing us to the
ideals of Wagner and Bach, but there is
something lacking. There is a longing in
the American heart that is not met. Sound
note in a room where there is a stringed
instrument, and If there is string tuned
to its pitch it Will Vibrate in response. So
with the human heart. At our recent mu-
sic festival an American shocked the critics
by calling for Home, Sweet Home The
artist shocked them by giving it. 1t was
an oasis in the desert-that shadow of a
great rock in a weary land-to those who
had only the teachings of nature, who
longed for something they could under
stand and to which their hearts could
vibrate. Some day. perhaps, man will
arise who can satisfy that longing in
American hearts. Then we shall have
American music.
We learn from this that there is no
American music except the negro mel
odies" and that Home, Sweet Home"
represents a purer style of music than do
the compositions of Bach and Wagner.
From the same point of view Bruno
Schmitz's designs for the groups are criti-
cised because they are not American. But
if they artistic what does it matter
if they are not American? Art is cosmo-
politan and not for a generation, but for
the ages. A group of WAR" or Peace
designed as the local artists and critics
would have it might look very realistic to-
day and very ridiculous hundred years
hence. Mr.. Schmitz's original design for the
monument was selected by a committee of
experts as the best out of seventy sub
mitted without knowing whether it's author
was native or foreign. 1t won on it's merits
alone. If any mistakes have been made
in the construction of the monument from
that time to the present they have not
been made by Mr.. Schmitz. AS for dis
tinctively American art" we have two
specimens of it in the browning figure, done
by IN Ohio man. and the absurd naval
astragal done in Philadelphia. The pres
ent board of regents can congratulate
themselves that they are not responsible
for either of these features. They have
done wisely in employing Bruno Schmitz to
do the War and Peace" groups, and
they should adhere strictly to the present
plan. f. ,