the
forms external to him, as nature and human life, inspire the emotion,
and these external forms the artist reproduces, with of course the
necessary modifications, as the symbol and means of expression of
his emotion.

The distinction between the representative arts and the arts of form
is not ultimate, nor does it exclude one class wholly from the other;
it defines a general tendency and serves to mark certain differences
in original motive and in the way in which the two kinds of work
may be received and appreciated. In actual works of art themselves,
though they differ as to origin and function, the line of division
cannot be sharply drawn. The dance may be an art of form or a
representative art according as it embodies the rhythms of pure
movement or as it numerically figures forth dramatic ideas. Painting,
as in the frescoes of the Sistine Chapel and the wall paintings of
Tintoretto and Veronese in the Ducal Palace of Venice, may be
employed in the service of decoration. Decoration, as in
architectural sculpture and in patterns for carpets and wall-coverings,
often draws its motives from nature, such as leaves, flowers, fruits,
and animals; but when the function of the work is decorative and not
representative, the naturalistic and graphic character of the subject is
subordinated to the purposes of abstract and formal design. A
picture, on the other hand, which is frankly representative in purpose,
must submit its composition and color-harmony to the requirements
of unity in design; in a sense it must make a pattern. And a statue, as
the "Victory of Samothrace," bases its ultimate appeal, not upon the
fact of representation, but upon complete, rhythmic, beautiful form.

To the appreciator the arts of form carry a twofold significance.
There is first the pleasure which derives from the contemplation and
reception of a harmony of pure form, including harmony of color, of
line, and of flat design as well as form in the round, a pleasure of the
senses and the mind. Second, works of art in this category, as they
are the expression for the artist of his emotion, become therefore the
manifestation to the appreciator and means of communication of that
emotion.

Man's delight in order, in unity, in harmony, rhythm, and balance, is
inborn. The possession of these qualities by an object constitutes its
form. Form, in the sense of unity and totality of relations, is not to
be confounded with mere regularity. It may assu