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CONTROVERSY ABOUT THE PRINCIPLES IN SOVIET ART By Margaret Carter

EDITOR'S NOTE; Owing to limited space, we regret that we are unable to complete Miss Carter's article in this issue. However, it will be completed in the final edition, The artist's attitude toward the State and his position in it should be of interest to us all. ; I think that these notes are exceedingly interesting in that they show what has resulted in antistic expression under one country's experiment in one form of socialistic government.

I do not think, however, that it is the business of the government to dictate to the artist what he shall do.

It is most important that the artist interpret richly, fully and dynamically the various phases of humanity; if he did not do this his work would have no meaning. But his expression must be individual and not a mass product nor an expression limited by the dictates of any group in power.

Quoting from the article I have read I find this "Certain views one never por- trayed for example, the picturesque cupolas of the Byzantine architectures Archi- tecturally, the painter depicts buildings in construction, factories". This statement denotes a limiting, a hampering of artistic expression. A wicite of art must firstly stand up from its plastic qualities and from the fact that it con- veys something of significance to people. The choice of subject material is not the criterion of a picture.

If some young, modern Russian, with the sou] and functional qualities of an artist, happened to be greatly moved by viewing a Byzantine cupola in some strange mood == what then? Must his soviet conscience or his artistic conscience dictate to him what shall be done? Why should he not, with all the plastic powers he possesses create a picture to the best of his ability expressing what he felt about this sale ak kind of a building?

This does not mean to condemn the painting of a factory rather, I condemm the idea involved that anyone attempt to exclude anything as art expression and ex- ploits something in its stead, All things are of potential aesthetic value and it is the discriminating mind of the artist which chooses from this material at hand and, by a subtle blending and mysterious cohesion evolves the work of art. As art students you will be familiar with the great painting by El Greco, "Toledo in a Storm". Here is a landscape with buildings and it is possible, to one familiar with Spain, to recognize the architecture as Spanish. But docs one recognize those buildings as architecture of a Spain going through the grilling tortuous time of the Spanish Inquisition?

Isn't it more important that one can respond to the great surging rhythm of sky,

trees and buildings rather than to identify only one kind of building in the land-.

scape? (To be concluded in our next issue)

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satin o-anessettiiee i acieaiaa

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