The Principles of AestheticsParker, De Witt H. (De Witt Henry)
Philosophy
The Principles of Aesthetics
Parker, De Witt H. (De Witt Henry)
Aesthetics
With reference to the division of interiors into parts, the same two
types are exemplified which we found in studying the visual and the
dynamic aspects of buildings. Either the parts of the interior space
are clearly marked off from each other, and the perception of the whole
which they constitute is reached by a process of summation; or else,
to one standing within, the space is first perceived as a whole, and
its parts, lacking clear definition, are perceived subsequently. In
the former type, the parts are of pronounced individuality, and the
whole is their free and joint work; in the latter, the parts are merged,
and tend to be lost in the whole. These two possibilities exist whether
the space be of radial or longitudinal form. In general, the classical
styles lend themselves to the coordinate type of division of the
interior, while the later styles favor the subordination of the parts
to the whole.
The other factors in the beauty of architecture, besides the expression
of the forces resident in its forms, can receive only scant notice
from us. Among these is light--its admission, exclusion, and diffusion.
A house with ample windows flooded with sunshine shares the feeling
of an open day; a cathedral, dimly lighted, stimulates a mood of
brooding mystery and meditation, like some dark forest. Another factor
is color. Color plays a double part in architecture: first, to enliven
the neutral tones of certain materials; and second, to impart specific
moods. It was no barbaric taste, but a keen feeling for life and warmth
that induced the Greeks to paint their temples; and without their rose
windows, Gothic cathedrals are like faces from which the glow of life
is departing. The different colors have the same feelings in
architecture that they have in painting. The reds and purples of
ecclesiastical stained glass stimulate the passion of adoration, the
blues deepen it, and the yellows seem to offer a glimpse of heavenly
bliss. Sound, its presence or its absence, is another factor in
architectural expression: the quiet of the church in contrast with the
noise of the busy street outside, the peal of the organ, or the chorus
of young voices. Although architecture is a spatial art and music a
temporal art, they nevertheless go well together because the emotions
aroused by both are vague and voluminous, and the sounds, reverberating
from the walls and filling the inclosed spaces, seem to fuse with them.
Ornamental carving performs a diversifying and enlivening function
similar to that of color. So long as its lines follow those of the
architectural forms, it may well be rich and elaborate. It is fitting,
moreover, that buildings designed to be houses of the gods should
contain their images, and that the same spirit that expresses itself
in playful lines should become embodied in griffin and gargoyle.
Finally, erected in the open, with no shelter or enframement, a building
is, in large measure, a part of nature and possesses something of the
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