Quotes About Design – Christopher Dresser circa 1876
Quote About Art Appreciation
Discouragement is often felt at work not being appreciated, I know; but it is easy to bear discouragement when there is the inward consciousness that it arises from the ignorance of the beholder. But there must be the full assurance of superior knowledge, and not merely the hope that the taste of the producer is in advance of that of the spectator. A man may possess true humility, and yet be fully conscious that he knows more than others. If, however, the occupant of an apartment fails to appreciate decorations because they are in advance of his taste and knowledge, he will yet learn to appreciate and value them if he but grow in knowledge. Besides this, there is a something about superior works which, though indescribable, seems to carry with them a conviction of their worth. However much the ignorant may sneer at that which is in advance of their powers of appreciation, they yet feel an inward consciousness of their own inability to judge of merit.If we do what we know to be good work — work full of knowledge, of beauty, of truth, and of power — we can rest satisfied, for all whose praise we covet will appreciate the value of what we do.
Quote About Truth in Art
How can we expect our art to be cherished and to be loved unless it sets aside what is false? And how can we hope that it will exert a purifying influence upon those who study it if it be not true? We are the employers of a noble art, which has qualities capable of refining the tastes, the feelings, and the very natures of those who contemplate it. It must, then, be free from what is false. Truth must ever be the first principle in our creed, and with that man who will not join me in the effort at revealing truth in his every work I have no sympathy.
Every True Artist is a Genius? Sometimes…
At times every true artist is the subject of peculiar yet, unfortunately, transient power, which for the time renders him superior to his common self. These are the moments that the student must never lose — moments in which he knows no law, and in which he appears to be raised above the necessity of appealing to scholastic learning. It is at these moments that Genius comes to his aid and guides his hand. But be assured that this aid is only given to those who by industry and patient toil acquire that knowledge which makes them, to speak figuratively, fit companions of the Muses.
The Importance of Knowledge
No one, however original in thought he may be, and however subtle in his perception of beauty, can become a great ornamentist unless he has knowledge of what has been done by those who have worked at his art under various influences and at various times.
Studies in Design – Truth, Beauty and Power by C. Dresser Ph.D. circa 1876