Page View
The craftsman
Volume XXXI, Number 3 (December 1916)
Silhouette illustrations for "Midsummer Night's Dream": drawn by P. Konewka, pp. 268-270
PDF (1.2 MB)
Page 268
SILHOUETTE ILLUSTRATIONS FOR "MID- SUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM": DRAWN BY P. KONEWKA The Man in the Moon: "All that I have to say, is, to tell you that the lan- thorn is the moon; I, the man in the moon ý this thornbush, my thornbush; and this dog, my dog." HE decorative force and appeal of the Japanese print stands out with peculiar prominence from all other ex- pressions of art. Its charm lies partly in the Japanese mastery of outline, and partly in their delicate sense of color value. A beautiful line has always meant much to both the Chinese and Japanese people. Their reverence for it, in fact, almost approaches worship. In their minds "a single stroke contains in itself the principles of life and death." By a deft accentuation and by a purity of stroke they manage to suggest in an astonishingly few motions the wild exultation of birds flying before a storm, the sad sound of the surf on a lonely shore, cool drifting fog among the pine trees. Upon their knowledge of line and line composition they have developed a great and distinct art, one that has high and honored place in the respect of artists and art lovers the world over. Though the silhouette in no way ranks with the Japanese print in artistic value, yet somewhat the same art principles operate to its success. In the making of the silhouette there must be great dexterity of hand, combined with keen appreciation of character, knowledge of the effective relation of bold masses and delicate detail. Surety of stroke and a sensitive fancy must be in evidence. The silhouette has never been given serious consideration, though it possesses so ex- ceptional a decorative value, but will doubtless come into its own in the very near future. Because of its simplicity it ranks somewhere near to the Japanese print in importance, and because of the rare onnor- tunity afforded for character representation, it into the field of the miniature painter. No 1 power to convey a more striking likeness than f in spite of these varied possibilities of developn commanding a dignified attention, very little ha Occasionally, however, someone arises who r through his own pleasure in its beauty and belie: in its esthetic power. This Christmas seasoi brings us several most delightful portfolios o: silhouettes, by P. Konewka, so rich in fancy, s( humorously alert and so exquisitely drawn tha they will do much to quicken general interest an( uplift the standard of this art. We are pleased t( be able to show a few taken from the "Midsuxmei Night's Dream" series, a subject that lends itselt with exceptional charm to the silhouette art 268
Based on the date of publication, this material is presumed to be in the public domain.| For information on re-use see: http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/Copyright