Pattern and Ornament: Readings, Ivins, William M. ""Ornament" and the Sources of Design in the Decorative Arts."

I don't think Im going to be the only one who says that is article was making me go back and re-read, re-read, and re-read again. It had so many layers of information with each new person, where they were from or where their art style came from,type of craft, it was just a lot to take in and process. To begin with I saw the pictures of each artist's work that was placed in the center but its just not enough for me to appreciate the intricate works that the article kept talking about. They spoke about engraving silver vessels, hand graving copper plates, how they did works on steel, and something as different as crafting a spoon. But the article itself drags on and on and repeats the same descriptions in different ways to get the point of the pieces across. It made me dizzy.

In the article it states how amazing Jacues Hurtu's work was and by the picture that they showed us in the middle of the page I did think it was pretty but not as "genius" as they described. It made me look up some of his works and although they were nice I think that the other artists mentioned, such as Pierre Marchant, did just as good of a job. While I was looking at Hurtu's prints for the most part they have a very similar lay out: something large in the center, four bold designs surrounding the center, and flower-like designs.

Honestly all these works remind me of those popular Zen Tangle books that have become super popular now. They're like coloring books for adults. The designs are intricate and use negative space and dark areas to bring the viewers eyes around the piece. I think I would've been more interested in the pieces if I hadnt seen flat drawings of the designs but rather how they looked on the plates and pieces of jewelry that they kept describing.

My favorite line in the article is at the end saying "for however much we may tug at the straps of our fashionable French boots, all that we do thereby is to prove the more conclusively the the process of certain logical types are alien to us." I believe that says a great deal on how they embrace their creativity. They're proud to think outside of the box.