Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-12-05
WILL HELP EDUCATION
COL. CLARKE;s OPINION OF STARS
ART COLLECTIONS.

Pure form. the colorless perfection of
statue is sometimes difficult for the I'M
trained to appreciate. There must be an
environment of beauty in which the child
grows up If all the unconscious influences
of art are to affect deeply the impressional
consciousness of the young"
The speaker was Col. l. Edwards Clarke
OF the bureau of education, who has pub
| nshed three volumes on art education, and
his theme was the ineXhaustible influences
which concentrate upon school room deco
roated as he says The Stars collections of
antique and medieval casts must decorate
L was myself" continued Col. Clarke
devoted to pictures; color was peculiarly
fascinating to me, and it was not until
went to Italy that l was able to see sculp-
ture. mean. of course, to see it as to I'M
derstand its meaning and be impressed and
aroused by its beauty.
1t was one day when 1 stood all alone
before the statues of Lorenzo and Guiliano
de Medice in San Lorenzo, Florence You
know, they were erected by order of Leo
H. In the inches of the walls of the rather
small chapel are seated statues of both
princes; under these on the rounded lids of
the sarcophagi repose in Giuiano monu-
ment the figures of Day and Night: in that
~ i-Ot ShHo liAc uS Oh Dawn ana Even
ing. The figures are of heroic SEE me
statue Of Giuiano, In martial trappines
shows great simplicity and dignity of bear
ing. It is. however, surpassed by the figure
of Lorenzo. who musingly supports his head
on one hand, appearing like thought petri-
lled IN marble: hence the name given to If
OF III Pensiero.' For the first time I saw
sculpture, and my teacher Michael
"PerfecilV simple "a Inn and 5;on;6,1 ~
great marbles made me understand what
l had never been awakened to before: since
that time | have been able to feel the
beauty of monumental sculpture as I had
understood oniy painting.
IL Is not necessary to be teaching all
the time When The Star collections have
Deen placed in the schools, their silent in
nuence-for l have carefully studied the
list OF subjects and seen the specimen
casts, and l know there are none better
their constant influence, 1 say, will be such
tnat pupils WILL according to their degrees
or culture and mpressionabIeness be
awakened to their beauty every day
Sculpture is somewhat abstract The
value or these things from an educational
standpoint will depend at first on the tact
OF ten teachers In the use of them. In
the days of ancient Greece and Rome, or
the Italy of the middle ages, the whole
popuface had grown up with ideas concern
Ing the gods, or the saints; such knowledge
was part of the common coin. Now il
we are to understand the great Minerva
Giustiniani of the Hermes the Parthenon
slabs or the Poiyhymnia, besides the ar
tistic delight We obtain from the beauty
of pure form, we experience greater salts
faction If We have been led intelligently to
know the stories, the IDEAS the actions
which the casts symbolic.
The Star stories published from day to
day have contributed much to that end
II is a noble work The Star Is doing
Thirty years ago there was practically no
art in America-that is, no art instruction.
So primitive and prejudiced We're we be-
fore the centennial OF '78 that when Hiram
Powers Greek Slave was exhibited la
dies were not admitted to see 1t with gen
tlemen. The progress in art education
since that time has been incalculable, the
strides art has made In America have been
colossal And here in Washington, where
in the Corcoran Gallery one of the first
collections of casts was brought together,
1t is peculiarly fitting that the schools
should lead In the effort to make a proper
art environment for American youth
must say The Star is doing grand work"