This thing we are ascribing to Ruskin seems to be a paraphrase by Lewis Mumford,not a recommendation in itself. Also, Teniers and Tintoretto seem to have equal measures of detail and indication in their structure. Kate Sullivan
-----Original Message----- From: Cheerskep <[email protected]> To: aesthetics-l <[email protected]> Sent: Sun, Jun 17, 2012 10:43 am Subject: Re: "For what Ruskin said of the difference between a great painter, like Tintoretto, and a low painter, like Teniers, holds for every manifestation of life: the inferior painter, not recognizing the difference between high and low, between what is inten A provocative quote, and more than a little repelling. A "work of art" is not like "life". There are moments in life that are "careless", even intentionally so: If I've worked all day, I embrace the after-dinner time -- a cognac, a cigar, slackly watching a game on tv. But when at work, I cut myself no slack. "If you see a painting with equal attention paid to every inch, you can be sure you're seeing a minor painter." Nonsense. Mumford appears to mistake moments of directed focus for healthy carelessness, shrewd self-conservation, and intentional change of pace for a composer's dozy relaxing. In a message dated 6/17/12 2:23:05 AM, [email protected] writes:
*"For what Ruskin said of the difference* between a great painter,
like
Tintoretto, and a low painter, like Teniers, holds for every
manifestation
of life: the inferior painter, not recognizing the difference between
high
and low, *between what is intensely moving and what is emotionally
inert,
gives every part of his painting the same refinement of finish, the
same
care of detail. The great painter, on the other hand, knows that
life is
too short to treat every part of it with equal care: so he
concentrates on
the passages of maximum significane and treats hastily, even contemptuously, the minor passages: his shortcuts and simplifications
are
an effort to give a better account of what matters. This reduction of essentials is the main art of life."* "Conduct of Life" (1951,Mumford) http://books.google.com/books?id=YQmxAAAAIAAJ&;
q=%22essentials+is+the+main+art+of+life%22&dq=%22essentials+is+the+main+a rt+o f+life%22&hl=en&sa=X&
ei=nXbdT4_ZH6fN6QGkiaWrCw&ved=0CDkQ6AEwAA
