186 
KERAMIC STUDIO 
MRS. HENRIETTA BARCLAY PAIST - Page Editor 
2298 Commonwealth Ave., St. Paul, Minn. 
"O EFINEMENT can nowhere better be shown than in the 
-IV restraint exercised in the matter of table decorations. 
Here is where we should put on the brakes. Personally I am 
not in sympathy with elaborate decoration, either as to the 
china used, or the accessories. I do not care for the illusion of 
a Japanese or Italian garden, or anything foreign to the busi- 
ness in hand. There is an eternal fitness of things which 
should be considered before a love of display. A dish of real 
fruit as a centerpiece is much more sincere and tempting and 
conducive to a healthy appetite than the most artistic repre- 
sentation in glass. Flowers and candles are logical and always 
beautiful for special occasions — but let us consider the normal 
average meal rather than the special occasion. We will not 
eliminate the centerpiece of flowers or fruit but we will reduce 
the "trimmings" to a minimum and the "service" to a basis of 
utility. 
Let us remind ourselves again that the most logical place 
for decoration is near the edge of dishes and where impossible 
— on the outside. On account of the difficulty of obtaining 
perfect and permanent results with enamels on hard glazes, 
I think it would be better if we were willing to be satisfied 
with flat color and gold for the average table service. It 
isn't necessary to do everything in relief just because it is 
popular and interesting, and — difficult. We do not always 
have to be striving for the extreme, the novel, or the elaborate. 
Especially do we find this spirit at exhibitions. • One tries 
to outdo the others in the elaborate use of enamels — or other 
materials. It is not necessary to tell all we know on one or 
two pieces. Art is more than technique — or mastery over 
materials. We would do better to consider more the "fitness 
to purpose" and express some simple thought consistently 
