ART EDUCATION. I45 



and where he ma3% that power is onl}- good after it is assimi- 

 lated and has become appreciation. 



It is not fair to send a student forth into the world, where 

 his first commission may be the painting of a decorative 

 panel, so uninstructed that he does not yet know the first law 

 of decoration, that the ornament shall enrich but not destroy 

 the architectural character and stability of the wall. Had 

 the student even heard of such a law, how could he, all at 

 once, develop the sense of decoration, the appreciation of the 

 character of style? So he must paint a panel like most of 

 those in our public buildings, neither decorative in method, 

 nor justly associated with the architecture, and add another 

 failure to the long list. 



Had he been trained in the purpose and range of possibil- 

 ity in his own art, and had he been shown the power that lies 

 in the other arts of- design, had he been taught the methods, 

 the standards and the limitations of each, it would have 

 opened his eyes to beauty, enriched his understanding, refined 

 his pleasures and ennobled his craftsmanship. All this has 

 been lost to him because those to whom he committed himself 

 have forgotten that the mind needs food as well as the eye, 

 and that not only discipline but culture go to the making of 

 the artist. 



And this is the sorest waste of all ; that thousands think 

 they are studying art who are only learning to paint, and that 

 of the few who learn to paint well so few can pass unaided 

 from the standards and aims of the school to the aims and 

 standards of art. 



