El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1916-11-07
Standards Are Necessary in Art;
Ell PaSo Must Have Art Exhibit
By RUTH MONRO AUGIR.

n ECAUSE the worlds record for the
100 yard dash is 8 3-5. that tim,
IL is held Up as the standard by
which every athlete. would-be-athIete
or athletic fan. cages the achievement.
! Of himself and his fellows. Unless a
( runner can make the 100 yards within
& a fair nearness to this time. he has no
ranking as "A runner. because ne can
not pass measurement by this stand
+ ard
Tenors that can attain high c be-
long in a class by themselves and set
standard for others TO be judged BY.
In every department of industry and IN
science and every profession the
achievement is judged by the standard
Of excellence previously attained. The
present accomplishment must be a
close equal to this standard of excel
lence in order to receive any recogni-
ton II IL can surpass the old record
then the standard is simply raised
notch o. two and il supplants the old
standard as a measurer of excellence
High Standards in Art.
High standards are the most valuable
things in the world in every activity
and the most important thing about
them is that they are constantly being
changed and replaced by higher stand
ards. which means that the world is
progressing
In art, standards are as necessary. as
in any other human activity though
they are more difficult to define. A
tremendous amount of mediocre work
is produced every year-wOrk that is
not technically bad. but that lacks
Vitality and worth Whileness. It is in
order to maintain high art standards
that at the big art exhibits of the
American Society OF Artists The Ma
uonal Academy and other similar or
CARNATIONS. which are held annually
in the east the pictures submitted
have 10 be passed upon by a jury be-
fore they are accepted for the exhi-
bition- This jury is made up OF the
best artists in each organization The
pictures submitted come from all over
the country. and often less than a
third of them are accepted
"Big League Art Exhibits.
These New York city. Philadelphia
and Boston art exhibits are TO art
what The big league teams are 10 base
ball painter has not arrived" IN
I'll his paintings have not only been
accepted and hung at the big exhibits
but until he himself has been elected
10 membership in one OF these artists
organizations. These exhibits repre-
sent each year the best that has been
accomplished in art and sculpture
through the year. It IS these exhi1 bits
the gathering together OF the best
work OF the country. that make New
Ork. Philadelphia and Boston the art
"
standards in art have TO be seen
a runner in Yuma, Ariz.. can meas
ure his record on 100 yards with that
made by a runner in Yale. or Eaton.
because he only needs the time as his
standard, but in art the painter has TO
see and compare this work with that
OF other painters-not by any means
with the idea Of copying. initiating OF
borrowing ideas but to see how his
own accomplishments compare with
other peoples Interest in art is
gradually, II slowly. spreading over the
country and there are now artists
clubs in many Of our big central and
western cities. like Chicago. st Louis,
Denver. san Francisco and Los Angeles.
These artists societies hold annual ex-
hibits. managed much on the same
ideas as the big exhibits OF the east.
and are doing a very great deal TO
create interest in what is really good
art and TO stimulate artists TO higher
endeavor-
Travelling Art Galleries.
The travelling art exhibit which has
established itself as a most valuable
factor in art education has done a
tremendous amount of good. II is to
these travelling exhibits that FL Paso
must look for its art stimulation. be-
cause the number Of people who de-
serve the name of artists in this part
OF the country IS very few
There is absolutely no reason why