Aesthetics

Some have insisted that sculptures should be colorless ; while others have sung the praise of color with ardour. A view of real sculptures will readily reveal that in some cases a color treatment seems quite appropriate, while in others the reverse is surpassing. Therefore, it is meaningless to draw a conclusion unless the matter is well analized. There should be no objection to imagining an original or genuine sculpture in order to compare it with others for the effect of achromatism. I wish here to express my views on the subject and trace the course that may lead to the true effect of achromatism in sculpture.

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The metope, as well as the pediment, is the most important decorative part of the Doric temple. Metope plates stand between triglyphs upon the architrave. From the mid-seventh century B. C., as the wooden Greek temple was changed into the stone building, the metope plates, too, were gradually translated from clay into stone slab i.e. from picture into relief. History of the metope relief, therefore, assumes some signifieant features because of its special conditions as the decorative sculpture attached to the building. In this treatise I want to consider its develop ment from several points of view.

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In Quattrocento Florentine School, painters' interests were concentrat ed chiefly on the anatomical studies of living things orthe perspe ctive of their background. And the representations of the flowering plants were still following the archaic forms, About the middle of the Quattro cento, through Alesso Baldovinetti's studies on the matter and the tech nique, the representation of flowers received a new sentiment, while the archaic forms still remained. But the method of the Sienese School had previously been brought to Florence, then sensuous, secular painters such as Fra Angelico or Fra Filippo Lippi appeared. Botticelli adopted their features effectively, and created the most gracious flowers, perfect in their vegetable forms. But his decorative forms show us also the limits of the Quattrocento in flower painting. He preserved the same decorative forms not only in composition, but also in every object on the canvas. Even in a figure painting such as "Adorazione dei Magi", flowering plants are as decorative as ever. Such tendency arrived at a climax in "Nascita di Venere", but we cannot find such perspicuous flowers as in "primavera". Since then his flowers lost a longing for the natural beauty, and became the direct presentation of a spiritual longing.

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Of six elements into which Aristotle analyses a tragedy, mythos holds first place and ethos is next in order. But this view is doubtful for us, because the relative importance of character and plot varies with different dramatists and different national temperaments, and in the evolution of tragedy there has been far more room for the growth of character-drawing than the plot. Now in this report we will pursue after Aristotle's fundamental views, for example, the universal representation of poetry, the probable or necessary sequence in tragedy etc., and then try to find the true relation between mythos and ethos.

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