DOI Heft:
No. 372 (March 1924)
DOI Artikel:The lay figure: on an experiment with possibilities
DOI Seite / Zitierlink: https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.21399#0198
The lay figure : on an
EXPERIMENT WITH POSSI-
BILITIES. a a a a a
“ So the Academy is going to take to
poster designing i ” remarked the Critic.
“ Well, it is certainly an interesting depar-
ture. I shall be curious to see what comes
of it.” 0 0 0 0 0 0
"Yes, I read something about it in one
of the papers,” said the Plain Man. “ Don’t
you think it is a little undignified i ” 0
“ Undignified ! Good Heavens ! ” cried
the Young Highbrow, “ who cares two-
pence about the dignity of the Academy i
What staggers me is the impudence of
these Royal Academicians, who are pre-
suming to meddle with something that is
utterly beyond them.” 000
“ But the Academy is an association of
eminent artists,” protested the Plain Man.
“ Surely, if there is any art in poster
designing, a Royal Academician ought to
be able to do it a great deal better than the
mere commercial artists who go in for that
sort of thing.” 0000
“ Gently, my friend,” broke in the
Critic. “ You must not talk like that about
commercial artists, as if they were neces-
sarily of minor ability. As a matter of fact,
poster designing is a very exacting art
which needs exceedingly skilful treatment,
and abounds with technicalities. Among
the commercial artists there are many most
accomplished men who have given years
of study to these technicalities. If the
Academy can improve on their work it
will be no undignified performance, I can
assure you.” 00000
“ The more horrible the mess the
Academicians make of the job the better
I shall be pleased,” declared the Young
Highbrow. “ I hate the beastly con-
descending way in which they profess to
patronise what they are pleased to regard as
minor arts. I am certain the Academy only
took up this scheme to advertise itself.” 0
“ I would rather give it credit for an
honest desire to raise the poster in the
estimation of the public,” said the Critic.
“ I can hardly believe that the Acade-
micians are ignorant of the difficulties
that they will have to face, and, anyhow,
I am sure that when they come to grips
with these difficulties, they will acquire
180
a much increased respect for the com-
mercial artist.” 0000
“ Do you really think it possible that
they will not make a success with this
work i ” asked the Plain Man. 0 0
“ We must hope for the best,” answered
the Critic. “ Technically they can hardly
be expected to be as successful as the men
who have had far greater experience and,
pictorially, they have a much higher
standard to reach than most people would
imagine.” 00000
“ I am not hoping for anything,” sneered
the Young Highbrow. “ I know exactly
what we are going to get.” 000
“ Blessed is the omniscience of youth,”
laughed the Critic. “ For myself, I am con-
tent to wait and see. Seriously, though,
I think that we can fairly look forward to
being presented with a new point of view.
The very fact that these Academicians
are attempting something well away from
their usual line suggests many possibilities.
But I doubt whether, from a purely
commercial standpoint, any of the re-
sults will be superior to the best designs
of many relatively unknown poster artists
of the past and present, though the adver-
tising value of the Academy itself will, of
course, make them popular.” 0 0
“ What I cannot understand is why, if
commercial artists are as clever as you
make them out to be, the Academy does
not elect some of them,” remarked the
Plain Man, “ or would that look like con-
descending i ” 0 0 0 0
“ For my part, I very much wish it
would,” returned the Critic. “ Certainly,
I should not see anything patronising in
that, because I hold that commercial art
is important enough to deserve recognition
by the Academy, even though the Academy
is, rightly enough, an exclusive body which
grants admission only to men of real
merit.” 00000
“ Have we not been forgetting all this
while that we owe to the Academy one of
the most popular posters of our time i ”
asked the Plain Man. “ What about
Bubbles i Why should not history repeat
itself i ” 0 0 0 0 0
“ It will! Horrible idea ! It will! ”
shrieked the Young Highbrow. “ That is
just what we have to expect.” 0 0
The Lay Figure.
EXPERIMENT WITH POSSI-
BILITIES. a a a a a
“ So the Academy is going to take to
poster designing i ” remarked the Critic.
“ Well, it is certainly an interesting depar-
ture. I shall be curious to see what comes
of it.” 0 0 0 0 0 0
"Yes, I read something about it in one
of the papers,” said the Plain Man. “ Don’t
you think it is a little undignified i ” 0
“ Undignified ! Good Heavens ! ” cried
the Young Highbrow, “ who cares two-
pence about the dignity of the Academy i
What staggers me is the impudence of
these Royal Academicians, who are pre-
suming to meddle with something that is
utterly beyond them.” 000
“ But the Academy is an association of
eminent artists,” protested the Plain Man.
“ Surely, if there is any art in poster
designing, a Royal Academician ought to
be able to do it a great deal better than the
mere commercial artists who go in for that
sort of thing.” 0000
“ Gently, my friend,” broke in the
Critic. “ You must not talk like that about
commercial artists, as if they were neces-
sarily of minor ability. As a matter of fact,
poster designing is a very exacting art
which needs exceedingly skilful treatment,
and abounds with technicalities. Among
the commercial artists there are many most
accomplished men who have given years
of study to these technicalities. If the
Academy can improve on their work it
will be no undignified performance, I can
assure you.” 00000
“ The more horrible the mess the
Academicians make of the job the better
I shall be pleased,” declared the Young
Highbrow. “ I hate the beastly con-
descending way in which they profess to
patronise what they are pleased to regard as
minor arts. I am certain the Academy only
took up this scheme to advertise itself.” 0
“ I would rather give it credit for an
honest desire to raise the poster in the
estimation of the public,” said the Critic.
“ I can hardly believe that the Acade-
micians are ignorant of the difficulties
that they will have to face, and, anyhow,
I am sure that when they come to grips
with these difficulties, they will acquire
180
a much increased respect for the com-
mercial artist.” 0000
“ Do you really think it possible that
they will not make a success with this
work i ” asked the Plain Man. 0 0
“ We must hope for the best,” answered
the Critic. “ Technically they can hardly
be expected to be as successful as the men
who have had far greater experience and,
pictorially, they have a much higher
standard to reach than most people would
imagine.” 00000
“ I am not hoping for anything,” sneered
the Young Highbrow. “ I know exactly
what we are going to get.” 000
“ Blessed is the omniscience of youth,”
laughed the Critic. “ For myself, I am con-
tent to wait and see. Seriously, though,
I think that we can fairly look forward to
being presented with a new point of view.
The very fact that these Academicians
are attempting something well away from
their usual line suggests many possibilities.
But I doubt whether, from a purely
commercial standpoint, any of the re-
sults will be superior to the best designs
of many relatively unknown poster artists
of the past and present, though the adver-
tising value of the Academy itself will, of
course, make them popular.” 0 0
“ What I cannot understand is why, if
commercial artists are as clever as you
make them out to be, the Academy does
not elect some of them,” remarked the
Plain Man, “ or would that look like con-
descending i ” 0 0 0 0
“ For my part, I very much wish it
would,” returned the Critic. “ Certainly,
I should not see anything patronising in
that, because I hold that commercial art
is important enough to deserve recognition
by the Academy, even though the Academy
is, rightly enough, an exclusive body which
grants admission only to men of real
merit.” 00000
“ Have we not been forgetting all this
while that we owe to the Academy one of
the most popular posters of our time i ”
asked the Plain Man. “ What about
Bubbles i Why should not history repeat
itself i ” 0 0 0 0 0
“ It will! Horrible idea ! It will! ”
shrieked the Young Highbrow. “ That is
just what we have to expect.” 0 0
The Lay Figure.