DOI Page / Citation link:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.42067#0176
152
Style
of which is a laborious process, should then have been intentionally
destroyed. However, I do not wish to introduce a new unproven theory
in place of others. For our purpose it is sufficient to recognize
the frequent copies of natural and technical forms in pottery.
The same happens, although not quite so extensively in wood
carving and even in stone work, particularly in soft stones that may
be worked with a knife. Wooden copies of objects made of buffalo
horn occur in Africa. Many of the beautifully carved wooden
goblets from the Congo region look to me like pottery vessels, held
in place by stone supports. Carvings in wood imitate forms made
by joining pieces together. In some regions we find stone vessels
of the same form that is usually used for wooden ones. Best known
among imitative stone forms are the prehistoric European stone axes
which are copies of the forms of bronze weapons that were in use
in more southern regions, or the stone settees of ancient South
America, copies of wooden seats.
We have spoken so far only of the general forms of the objects,
not of decoration or ornament. We have seen in our discussion
of the purely formal elements that the technique will sometimes
bring about patterns on the surfaces of the manufactured objects.
We mentioned the patterns produced by flaking of stone, by adzing
and by weaving with coarse material. The importance of these
surface patterns for the development or ornament can hardly be
overstated. When a large board is adzed, the workman must shift
his position in order to cover the whole board. According to the
way he moves, different patterns of adjoining surfaces may develop.
Much more important are the patterns that naturally develop when
a weaver plays with his technique, that is when he or she is no
longer satisfied with the simple weaving up and down, but begins
to skip strands and thus introduces more complex rhythms of move-
ment. The solidity of the fabric requires alternations of skipping
and thus the twilling leads immediately to diagonal surface patterns.
The more complex the rhythmic movements, the more complex
will also be the patterns. The attempt has been made to trace the
Style
of which is a laborious process, should then have been intentionally
destroyed. However, I do not wish to introduce a new unproven theory
in place of others. For our purpose it is sufficient to recognize
the frequent copies of natural and technical forms in pottery.
The same happens, although not quite so extensively in wood
carving and even in stone work, particularly in soft stones that may
be worked with a knife. Wooden copies of objects made of buffalo
horn occur in Africa. Many of the beautifully carved wooden
goblets from the Congo region look to me like pottery vessels, held
in place by stone supports. Carvings in wood imitate forms made
by joining pieces together. In some regions we find stone vessels
of the same form that is usually used for wooden ones. Best known
among imitative stone forms are the prehistoric European stone axes
which are copies of the forms of bronze weapons that were in use
in more southern regions, or the stone settees of ancient South
America, copies of wooden seats.
We have spoken so far only of the general forms of the objects,
not of decoration or ornament. We have seen in our discussion
of the purely formal elements that the technique will sometimes
bring about patterns on the surfaces of the manufactured objects.
We mentioned the patterns produced by flaking of stone, by adzing
and by weaving with coarse material. The importance of these
surface patterns for the development or ornament can hardly be
overstated. When a large board is adzed, the workman must shift
his position in order to cover the whole board. According to the
way he moves, different patterns of adjoining surfaces may develop.
Much more important are the patterns that naturally develop when
a weaver plays with his technique, that is when he or she is no
longer satisfied with the simple weaving up and down, but begins
to skip strands and thus introduces more complex rhythms of move-
ment. The solidity of the fabric requires alternations of skipping
and thus the twilling leads immediately to diagonal surface patterns.
The more complex the rhythmic movements, the more complex
will also be the patterns. The attempt has been made to trace the