The New York herald., 1922-08-20
Fifty thousand Examples
In Decorative Art Field

The mirror which reflects this orig
inal trend ia taste is the Museum OF
Art. which is the chief aid for its cul-
tivation. At the Metropolitan Museum
of Art there are shown $4,000 objects
in decorative art fields alone; there
are 10000 textiles and 1000 laces; nor
does this all include the additional
thousands Of pieces in the Oriental
STYLES, nor the paintings, sculpture
and architectural objects.
Here the visitor will find represen-
tatives Of manufacturers OF textiles
silks. hats. haberdashery, furniture
metal work. jewelry, household fur
rlishings, designers of gowns and init
mate clothing all busy originating new
designs from every conceivable object.
Everybody is intent on the particular
designing in hand, some are copying
the jeweled work of the long disap-
peared Memphis craftsman. the deco
rative linen weaves or some color
scheme from Egyptian tiles. others are
tracing Athenian vase decorations and
rolychrome tiles, others are cleaning
conventions from mosaics. some are
getting new color schemes from au-
Client stained glass windows, while
others see in the etchings on armor
executed by Cellini or Michel Angelo
a design for a tie or handkerchief
border.
Up TO the moment Americans have
been busy perfecting machines and
oonquering mechanical problems. max
ing headway in material progress and
A.
enormous heritage OF technical meth
DDS. of producing and selling organiza-
tions. and the Museum is now bring
Ing together art and industry. MAX
ing art worth money in trade--home
furnishings and clothing TO the tune
of a billion dollars a year-made and
spent in America.
This is the day of the art trades. :
said Richard F. Bach. associate in in
dustrial arts. in the Metropolitan Mu-
scum Of Art. the industries to-day
are our great capitalizers of art--they
make art pay: and the schools
whether general or special, must meet
that condition. Unless the content OF
their courses will help to make art
pay, in other words be related directly
to current methods Of production, their
students will be useless in industry
in corresponding degree.
Art teaching means not only prop
erly training designers and artisans. it
means also training the people at
large. The museum Is rapidly injecting
taste into the masses and taste is. in
a sense, national experience. a ira
dition. The method In taste or prin-
ciples OF design can be readily taught
and can be passed on to children and
children's children. This viii not make
artists; but It will raise the general
standard OF judgment in the mass.
Potential designers and other artists
VIII start from a higher level, but in
the meantime the museum is teaching
art appreciation to every Tom. Dick
and Harry who is interested enough
TO attend the classes. It is a new sys-
tenn OF teaching with new brand OF
teachers.
This higher level said Mr.. Bach
will demand a better design in the
stores. IL will make no stated de.
mand; II will simply refuse poor de.
sign whatever the commodity, even II
only in cold cream Jar or, may ! say
IT, package Of cigarettes.
THE stores will be manned by EN-.
ployees who have had this traininf
supplemented by further art selling in.
atruction OF their own and so will bs
able 70 meet the manufacturers hal
way in the matter Of better design
The manufacturers are far ahead o.
the dealers in their conviction Of tn,
selling ~ design.
Some day all art schools excep
those for students Of so-called fin'
arts will be simply supertrade schools
then we shall have met our RESPONSE
biiity Of service TO the industry. For
after all. the industries may say W.
make art, and concretely they do
They cannot be held in check, they
must be helped. and from the museum