Omaha daily bee., 1908-12-13
YORCLUM ANSWERS CRITICS
Replies to Structures on His "Rever-
ence Sincerity" Article.
DEPLoREs TREATMENT OF ESSAY
Pleads that Major Portion of Our
Art schools Mould BE Turned
INTO Mere Manual Train
ing Schools.

Gutzon Borglum is back on the job, az
one may refer in such profane terms to the
activities of a great sculptor). In less
slangy language, Mr.. Borglum has replied
to the criticisms aroused this fall by his
article on Reverence, Sincerity and Indi-
viduallty in American Art" OF these
qualities he said there were none and
thereby aroused a hectic flush throughout
the American art world.
In the December MURDER OF the Crafts
man, the sculptor and painter, Of whom
Omaha is proud because he lived his early
years here and still calls 1t his home,
makes reply. He begins with deploring
the way his essay was treated, having
been Interpreted in a wrong spirit. He
then goes on to plead that the major por-
tion of our art schools should be turned
into manual training shops, so 'Instead
of 900 art students m every 1000 eventually
finding ar asylum in some '-uncongenial
atmosphere, at a bread and butter wage
disappointed men With a hazy chain of
ideals-they would be master craftsmen
putting life and beauty into our liberal
arts; invaluable citizens, and incidentally
economically independent, contented, joy
GUS"
Those who ave known aught OF the
afterlife Of most graduates OF art schools
will bear Mr.. Borglum out in this, and
will assert that any scheme which will
turn an unhappy, struggling and some
times embittered lot of men and women
into such citizens as he pictures, at least
deserves respectful consideration. His posi-
ton is outlined in the following excerpts
from the article in question:
Fundamentally Wrong,
Fundamentally we are wrong in making
these fine arts a profession. We have
made professions of what is with the great
their natural and inevitable expression.
their common means of delivering them
selves to humanity; we have established
schools for the manufacture of artists,
than which there is nothing more fridicu-
lous, because 1t Is impossible, as the quail
ties that make a craftsman an artist are
his own, linked with what is divine. and
can neither be explained nor impaired.
This idea Of going into a school to be-
come a genius, to become a great painter
or a great sculptor, is as foolish as II
has proven utterly unsuccessful. Great
artists have often been benefited nv tha
facilities offered to perfect themselves. but
they have rarely. II ever, Joined the mass
or art students. Schools should teach
crafts-they should make practical crafts
= workmen. They should make
men who, when they go out into the world
and seek their place, should not starve be,
cause empty and barren of great feeling
or insight, fitting them for teachers. poets
or creators of new beauties. They would
not have to enter life with this false handi.
cap OF incomplete mastery of a fine art
they have not the greatness to make i'm
mortal. For 900 OF them fail-and fill
places at the heads OF press or decorating
enterprises that need an art man.
There are today hundreds of young men
In New York who are practically graduates
from our art schools, I mean from the
league and the academy, the real schools
which are In the market for the business
OF making artists-not capable, useful
craftsmen, but artists We have annu-
ally hundreds Of these young men and
women who have drawn from life"
modelled from life.' painted from life.
who seek the magazines this they may
illustrate, the decorators and sculptors
that they may assist. Anyone who has
had n experience with these young peo-
pie knows how useless, practically worth
less, they are. They will tell you they
have drawn from life under So-and-s So,
which does not help you for you want
practical expression of their ability as ap-
piled to purposeful art Let us use the
case OF a young sculptor. He shows me
the photos of life studies; they may be
good or bad according to the years he has
given to work. h 1 ar interested in
is his resourcefulness, his general ability
this his work gives me no measure Of
1 ask: Can you make a cast?' 'Ye-yes