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PRIMITIVE DESIGN

HOW GROTESQUE ARE ALL THESE

creatures; what terrible significance has it all? That is the thought which one has
on entering an Indian exhibit. A bear leers at one from overhead, balanced on a
killer whale which spouts forth ancient venom. Who can explain these relics of a
peoples youth? Few, very few. We need not let this discourage us, however, for
although the interpretations are difficult to obtain, they are unnecessary to the lover
of beauty and design.

The Thunderbird may be an emblem of goodwill, the Bear may be a protec-
tion to the wearer; it is intriguing to hear that when the Raven flaps his wings and
blinks his eyes in anger the storm rages; but look at the design of these wings and
eyes. Could one wish for better balance in line and mass? In the hand of the
craftsman even a grizzly bear becomes sleekly formal, even to the design of the
teeth. The transformation is more than this when a duck’s foot forms a border rival-
ling the Greek key in formality. The basket designs are worth studying for ingenious
ways of styling nature. These trays, burden baskets, and water buckets are the
cedar bark product of fanciful crafts—by women who weave into them many an
ancient tale. Years ago, an old woman of Sardis wove the story of her life into a
mat which she presented to the church. There is no figure of naturalistic form dis-
tinguishable in the design, but it is a delight for color and arrangement. There is
an interesting thing about this design, for what appears to be a rather clumsy join
in the mat is really a complete break in the pattern. Dr. Raley, the well-known
collector of Indian curios, assured me that the mat was planned and executed in one
piece. Primitive art has many similar peculiarities. In spite of the narrative objec-
tive the design is never overloaded. The way in which the forms overlap on the
totems is beautiful, especially on the slate pieces. The painted designs on wooden
articles display great ingenuity in the use of simple forms and the balance between
curved and straight lines is quite satisfying. We are fortunate to have such ready
access to the most beautiful primitive art alive today. He who seeks it among these
weird symbols will find beauty lurking around many a wooden curve or clutched in
many a slate paw.

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