January 21, 2008
Hardy on art in general and JMW Turner in specific
Hardy on Art
“In a work of art it is the accident which charms, not the intention; that we only like and admire. Instance the amber tones that pervade the folds and drapery in ancient marbles, the deadened polish of the surfaces, and the cracks and the scratches.” (p. 196)
Hardy on JMW Turner
“Turner’s watercolours: each is a landscape plus a man’s soul. . . What he paints chiefly is light as modified by objects. He first recognizes the impossibility of really reproducing on canvas all that is in a landscape; then gives that which cannot be reproduced a something else which shall have upon the spectator an approximative effect to that of the real. [. . .] Hence, one may say, Art is the secret of how to produce by a false thing the effect of a true. . .” (p. 222)
from The Life of Thomas Hardy, 1840-1928 by Thomas and Florence Hardy (Wordsworth Editions, 2007)
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Hardy’s use of the word charm I very much like. Poor charm — “charm school”, “charm bracelet”, “works like a charm”, “charmed, I’m sure” . . . . That art might charm us — why, what could that old fool have been thinking?
That art may enchant us, enthrall us, transport us. Indeed.
Thank you, Mr. Renner, for these two morceaux choisis. They are tasty and offer a great deal to chew on.
especially:
Art is the secret of how to produce by a false thing the effect of a true. . .
this would have been useful when i was trying to explain to my friend stamati the 2 dimensional illusion that humans seem so capable of perceiving that the perception is taken for granted… he had asked me if i had shown my dog the photograph that i took of her. a long way removed from Turner i know.