The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1900-02-27
SECRET OF JAPANESE ART.
Condolences Its Chief Characteristic.
MOdesty of Native Artists when
They Fail.
From BRUSH and PenclI.


From Brush and Pencil.
While much-very much-of japanese
art is suggestive impressionism, il is in
variably marked by being concise, The
japanese people are the most poetic peo-
pie in the world, but their sense of the
beautiful is so marked that they leave
nothing vague. They deal with mysticism,
TO be sure but Gf one may put it in this
way) they make even their mysticism def
mite. Their art is the expression Of their
training in absoluteness. Tradition gov
erns the mind of the japanese artist to
such an extent that until he has given
himself up TO a long and arduous appren-
ticeship to study. he would not dream of
exhibiting his work but for his masters
criticism, nor would his onesty-for the
Japanese are an honest people-permit
his to consider himself an artist, much
less to be called one.
Our Western conditions are not SO Sc
we're, and consequently our art is loosely
constructed as far as art as a system is
concerned. This is quite right, and it is
not to be believed that Japanese art is
everything (and perhaps it is not broad),
yet let the statement stand that there is
much in Japanese art and art methods
that we need in our art. We of the Occi-
dent undoubtedly have the only field
which may be improved by such a COM
bination of the art ideas, for our art is
always seeking any honest means of eX-
preston, and is absolutely unhampered
by any sense of obliga ton to those ira
ditions we may have. On the other hand
if one may judge by exhibitions of such
work in Toxic and the work of Japanese
students in Occidental ateliers, the at
tempts of certain progressive Japanese
artists from time to time to apply the Oc-
eliminated in hopeless failures.
When they strive to clothe their subtle
creations with Occidental pigments in an
Occidental manner they fail. Our artists
studying in Japan do the opposite thing;
or, to sum the whole business, you can
pour soul into paint. but you cannot pour
paint into soul so well. We have yet TO
learn Oriental directness in the technique
of application, and one cannot do direct
things without positive knowledge Hence
we can well anvil ourselves of their system
of training. This system, concisely, is
this: Observe and perpetuate the best of
what your have observed Gmpressionisic
school, the humor you have observed
(carica ture), the evil you have observed
(grotesque), everything you have observed
as its affects you (realism), as it actual
ly is, unimpeded by your feeling (abso-
lutte realism). These degrees may be COM
bined and proportioned. but it is the sys-
tenn of japanese tradition. One readily
sees that our methods and our "trckery'
in instances are not founded always on
the positive knowledge which observation
begets because where results-often just
as astonishingly beautiful as they are ac~
cidental-cannot be explained by the one
arriving at them, more positive knowledge
need not and would not narrow the sphere
of the artist 1t is not knowledge which
has kept Japanese art as narrow in one
/ N hpqlItW
all that the most ambitious strive for is
TO be had through more truth We merely
lack some of the truth, which the Japan
csc have in superabundance; they lack
some-and much-of the truth that was
our founda ton, and to whose store we
have added from Leonardo da Vince to
Whistler.
AS one demonstration of what we might
avail ourselves let us take for instance
the method-genuine Japanese one
which Mr.. Chase is said to employ in
teaching his pupils the technique of art.
The pupil is taught first of all the use
of everything placed near him to use;
then he is shown how to use it. Just how
he himself will use it depends upon his
progress and marks his individuality and
style. While Mr. Arthur Dow has his pu-
pills use everything Japanese, this other
method does not require it, although Jap
anese inks and brushes and papers are
terials are time-saving. The next thing
the pupil does is to keep his eyes open,
directing his attention to one thing or one
set of things. For such training of OBJ
servation tray bearing several objects
is placed near him for short time and
is then Withdrawn. He now tells what he
saw thereon. AS these exercises of the
acuteness of vision progress the tray is
left for shorter periods of time, and fin
ally hastily passed before the pupil. All
this is gone through with many times, uu-
til the person has acquired such facility
that he can remember every object that
was before him. 1t is surprising how short
a time 1t takes for such training and Jap
anese children of six are often able to
enumerate as many as thirty-siX objects
so put before them. The next step is to
remember the location of these things. At
this point the drawings are commenced.
These probably will be little more than
indications. After one has acquired such
facility, form is memorized and applied to
the positions of the objects RENE INBRED;
the next thing is color and the last de-
tail.
-@-o-s