Saturday, August 09, 2008

Decadent Art and Sculpture


I am not ashamed of my love of Decadent Art.

This picture from
http://www.leninimports.com/alphonse_mucha_gallery.html#amgall

with thanks

4 Comments:

Blogger chris miller said...

And I am not ashamed of being Puritanical (at least as much as Lorado Taft was)

Definition of Decadence from the Concise Oxford Dictionary: "a luxurious self-indulgence".

(which is exactly what I was thinking before I looked it up! -- and it certainly fits the image you have presented)

What's wrong with a bit of self-indulgence ? Nothing, I hope--- or how dreary our lives might be.

But to glorify self-indulgence through the arts ? No -- the only things that should be glorified are things that are higher, greater, and other than self.

As if it mattered what we do.

12:37 am  
Blogger Robert said...

Wow this is going to be a deep one and complicated.

If you have a quick look at The Decadent Movement associated with The Aesthetic Movement,'Fin de siecle' writers and with Symbolism in Art then you will see what I meant. Where do you feel Taft fits in that pot Chris?

4:54 pm  
Blogger chris miller said...

Yikes! I'm not that literary -- and I can't even read French!

I have spent the last few months reading -- and re-reading -- an 1895 Chinese novel (in translation) about life in the upscale brothels of Shanghai. Talk about decadence -- whew!

It doesn't seem to celebrate a "luxurious self indulgence" however. More like -- just a report on the difficulties of life.

Like -- the paintings of Edvard Munch -- who, Wikipedia tells us, was also in the "Decadent movement"

Where does Lorado Taft fit into it all?

To me -- he seems to celebrate midwestern American wholesomeness.
It's a rather limited - perhaps superficial theme - but it has a certain local charm.

10:43 pm  
Blogger Susanna said...

God RObert! YOur blog is hitting home run after home run!

every post blows me away

8:05 pm  

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