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THURSDAY, JAMUAKV 10, 1895. 



THE ORIGINS OF ART. 

 Pie Anfange der Kiinst. By Dr. E. Grosse. 301 PP- 32 

 figures in the text, and 3 plates. (Freiburg i.B. : Mohr, 

 1894.) 



DR. E. GROSSE, in his book on "The Origins of 

 Art," has struck out a new and very promising 

 line of research. Other authors may hive woriced to a 

 limited extent at restricted aspects of the subject, or may 

 have theorised to an unlimited extent ; but no one has 

 -tudied the beginnings and evolution of the arts, with 

 such constant reference to what actually occurs, irrespec- 

 tive of what the arm-chair philosopher imagines might 

 have happened. 



Dr. Grosse limits its present investigation not only to 

 primitive art, but also to the sociological aspects of the 

 science of art, not because he does not appreciate the 

 other aspects, but because he wished to deal the more 

 thoroughly with this particular problem. His main 

 object appears to be to show, as he expresses it, that '' art 

 does not serve only as a pleasant amusement, but for the 

 fulfilling of the most earnest and highest practice of life." 

 The book contains the following chapters: The aim 

 of the science of art ; the method of the science of art ; 

 Primitive folk ; Art, Decoration, Ornamentation, Repre- 

 sentation (sculpture and painting) ; Dancing, Poetry, 

 Music, and Conclusion. The method adopted is that of 

 comparative ethnography, and our author confines his 

 attention 10 the lowest and least settled peoples — to the 

 hunter-folk. In order to elimimte as far as possible the 

 secondary factors of race and climate, he studies the 

 condition of each art among the following peoples* 

 Australians, Mincopies(Andamanese), Bushmen, Eskimo, 

 and Fuegans, with occasional references to other 

 peoples. 



Each of these chapters is treated in so fresh and sug- 

 gestive a manner, that one is tempted to quote largely ; 

 but a sum narv of the general conclusions will give a fair 

 idea of the scope of the book. The chapter on dancing 

 is particularly interesting, and the importance of the 

 dance in social evolution is clearly brought out ; no one 

 who has witnessed and s'udied various kinHs of savage 

 dances, ran fail to feel that they have a significance and 

 value which is entirely lost in the dances of civilised 

 people. ''The pleasure of strong and rhythmical move- 

 ments, the pleasure of imitation, the pleasure of 

 giving vent to the feelings, these factors," writes 

 Dr. Grosse, "give a complete and sufficient explan- 

 ation of the passion which primitive folk have for 

 dancing" At the sane time, he points out that the 

 occasional assembling for social dances induces co- 

 operation among loosely-connected hunier-folk. " It is 

 perhaps dong with war the one factor which causes the 

 members of a pri nitive group to vividly feel their 

 solidarity, and it is at the same time one of the best rre- 

 paratives for war. It is difficult to overestimate the 

 value of primitive dances in the culture-development of 

 mankind." 



It is found that the artistic creations of the hunter-folk 

 have by no means arisen from purely lesthetic intentions, 

 NC. 13 15, VOL. si] 



but they serve at the same time for some practical object, 

 and frequently this latter appears to be the chief motive. 

 Primitive ornaments are not originally and essentially 

 employed for decoration, but as significant marks and 

 symbols. In other cases the esthetic intention certainly 

 predominates, but, as a rule, it is only in music that it 

 appears as the sole motive. 



Although artistic activity, as such, hardly anywhere 

 occurs at the lowest graies of culture, still it is every- 

 where recognisable, and essentially of the same character 

 which one finds in the higher grades of culture. Only 

 one art, architecture, is wanting among any of the hunter- 

 folk. Herbert Spencer suggested that the three main 

 groups of poetry — lyric, epic, and dramatic — were evolved 

 in the course of the development of the higher culture 

 from an undifferentiated primitive poetry ; but these are 

 already to be found in an independent position of their 

 own at the lowest culture grade. 



Primitive art forms are constructed according to the 

 same laws as the highest creations of art, the great 

 Eesthetic principles of rhythm, symmetry, opposition, 

 gradation and harmony are etnployed by the Australians 

 and Eskimo as well as by the Athenians and Florentines. 

 The sensations of primitive art are narrower and coarser, 

 their materials are more scanty, their forms are poorer 

 and more clumsy ; but in its essential m itives, means, 

 and aims, the art of primitive times is one and the same 

 with the art of all times. 



Dr. Grosse does not believe that racial character has a 

 decided determining significance in the development of 

 the art of a people at the lowest grade of culture, but that 

 the individuality of the folk, as well as that of indi- 

 viduals, continuously increases with the course of their 

 development. The uniform character of primitive art 

 is due to a uniform cause, and that culture factor is 

 the uniform character of the condition of life of the 

 hunter-folk, irrespective of race or latitude. 



The particular kind of production of a people depends, 

 above all, on the geographical and meteorological con- 

 ditions under which they live. The hunter-folk have 

 remained hunter-folk — not, indeed, as the older ethnolo- 

 gists believed, because they were from the very beginnmg 

 condemned to stand still through a fauity disposition, but 

 because the nature of their native country prohibited 

 progress to a higher form of production. Herder and 

 Taine maintain that climate exerts a direct influence on 

 the spirit of a people and the character of their art ; but 

 Dr. Grosse claims to have proved that the intluence is 

 indirect— the climate commands the art through the 

 production. It is doubtful whether this can also be 

 proved for the art of the higher folk, since people pro- 

 vided with a richer culture have made themselves in 

 their production independent of the influences of climate. 

 The progress of culture emancipates the folk from a 

 slavery to nature to a mastery over nature, and one may 

 dare to assume that this also finds a corresponding 

 expression in the development of art. 



There are no peoples without art, and even the lowest 

 and roughest races devote a great part of their time and 

 energy to art ; to art, adds Dr. Grosse (perhaps some- 

 what unjustly), which is looked down upon by civilised 

 nations from the height of their practical and scientific 

 acquirements, and treated mainly as an amusement ; but 



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