Art Metalwork Chapter 2

THE CORRELATION OF METALWORK AND DESIGN.

Until a few years ago design was taught with only pencil, paper, and a little color as the necessary materials. At the present tune we use clay, leather, wood, reed, raffia, and textile materials, iron, copper, brass, and silver, and all the tools necessary to the proper working of the materials. Until recently a design was called good if it looked pretty on the paper or if it were well drawn, and the question of the use and of the construction seldom entered into the consideration of the problem. Nowadays, while good drawing is a requisite, the standards by which a design is judged are : First, is it suited for the use and purpose for which it is designed? Second, can it be made in the manner designed, and of the material indicated in the design? Third, is the indicated construction sound, and will the article be durable if constructed in this manner? Fourth, is it a suitable article for decoration? Fifth, is the decoration based on the structural elements of the design? Sixth, has the decoration been conventionalized to conform to the limitations and requirements of the tools and processes?

It is not to be expected that grammar or high school students will all wake excellent designs, even with the best of teaching. Even the very best professional designers make dozens of designs before they get one that will fulfill all of the requirements and limitations. All designers, whether amateur or professional, have a definite problem with certain limitations and requirements, and it is the business of the manual arts teacher to give to the student a definite statement of the problem, and to have the student work it out under instruction, taking into consideration the requirements of use and sound construction, the limitations Of material, the time involved in the making, and the skill and ability of the student who is to carry the design to its completion.
Design is a subject that has its fundamental principles, its rules, and formulas, and it must be taught as such, and not in a 11,17, or indefinite way. The problem should be presented to the student as definitely as a problem in mathematics and when a student is asked why a certain design is good or bad, he should be able to answer, because it violates or conforms to this or that rule.
Metalwork in copper, brass, or silver is a subject that is coming rapidly to the front in the manual arts and it is inseparable from design. In it we have means of expression for the art of design that is almost perfect, lending itself readily to constructive design, to line, and form, as in bowls, vases, etc., and to the use of characteristic forms of construction as a means of decoration, as in lanterns, candlesticks, and electroliers, or in similar problems where rivets or lapping is used as a means of construction. It lends itself also to the study of spacing and proportion, as in the side of a lantern, or the parts of a candlestick, or the border of a plate; to surface decoration in etching, sawpiercing, hammering, chasing, enameling; and to coloring by means of heat or chemicals.   Metalwork has a decided advantage in the fact that there is no clanger of breakage, and in the ability of the metal to stand a repetition of nearly all the processes over and over again until it is right. Even when an article is finished we can go back and repeat the processes and change it entirely from what it was in the first place. Other advantages are the low cost of the necessary supplies, the simple and inexpensive equipment. the fact that elementary work may be done without benches, that it can be done with canal facility by both sexes, and the high commercial value of the finished work.
The first problem suggested is that of a watch-fob or bag-tag made of copper or brass, and the first instruction ill the designing of this problem, as with all of the other problems, should be in explaining and illustrating the constructive and utilitarian requirements. This may be done by holding up a small piece of copper and a strip of leather, and leading the class to see that a hole in the copper for the leather to pass thru and fasten to is necessary before it can be even the simplest kind of a. watch -fob.-- bringing out the rule that construction must be thought of first. Next is the size of the fob. Some pieces of cardboard cut in squares or rectangles, some too large and some too small, and some about the right size for a watch-fob, should be shown to the class. The students should be led to see that the fob must not be too large or too small, but that it must be of a practical size. After we have decided on the size, then we have to design the outline or shape. Starting from the square or the rectangle, show how the shape may be varied and made more interesting by cutting or rounding off the corners. Then cut off the bottom corners more than the top corners developing into the triangular shape; then round off the corners and show slight curves instead of straight lines. During all of these trials keep before the class the importance of the strap bole.
After we have determined the outline we have arrived at the stage where the decorative design must be considered. The process of etching it on the fob places a limitation on us, in that we must leave the metal full thickness around the edge and around the strap hole to avoid making the fob weak. This brings out another rule, that the decoration roust be subordinate to the strength and utility of the article decorated. Then come three rules together: first, that we should have a center of interest or point of attraction for the eyes all([ attention to rest upon; second, that the design must support or follow the shape; thirst, that the various parts of the design should harmonize and hold together and not look as tho they had been sprinkled on. A small square mirror is of great help at the stage. It is made use of by folding the drawing paper to make a crease, then opening it out and again and drawing one-half of the design on one side of the line and placing the mirror on the center crease. The complete design will be seen reflected in the mirror, by slightly moving the mirror one way or the other the design call be varied. This brings into use an important principle of design, that of symmetry or like- sidedness, where there is perfect balance on each side of the central line. This principle may be illustrated to the class by drawing meaningless lines or letters and figures and placing the mirror on them. Suggestions for designs will be shown that will interest and often help the students.
The designing of the nest problem, tire paper-knife, is similar to that of the watch-fob, and gives further practice in the rules and principles of design already familiar. The added feature of raising the center to give stiffness and strength to the knife gives further emphasis to the rule that construction and utility should dominate.
The next problem, the hat-pin, gives us further limitations and an opportunity to demonstrate the principles of radiation and four part symmetry which may be presented in this way : explain that a hat-pin design is best which has no up or down, and has the point of interest in the center with the design radiating from that center. Radiation also tends to make a design more united. The principle of radiation may be illustrated to the students by the use of. two mirrors used in this manner: Draw a one-fourth section of the design, and on the quarter lines place the two mirrors meeting at the center, and the design will be mirrored entire. There is a special advantage in the use of the mirrors as they obviate the necessity of drawing the entire design to see whether the design is pleasing or not. If the design is pleasing the paper can be folded on the section lines and rubbed over oil to the other sides, saving time and labor and giving the students more inducement to draw more and varied designs.
Passing over the other problems, the tie-pin, belt-pin, cuff-links, and desk-pad corners, which give further practice in the rules and principles involved in the fob and paper-knife, also the blotter, which gives more practice in radiation and in two- and four-part symmetry, we come to the problem of designing the book-ends. here we can show the points of force and growth of the design, and the need of stability in the design at the bottom to avoid the appearance of top heaviness.
In the candlestick is brought out the general rule that the height should seldom be more than three times the diameter of the base. To give practice in good proportion draw on the blackboard a candle socket and pillar; then draw a base that is plainly too wide, and one that is too shall, gradually working out two limits of size, one that is large, but would not do if it were larger, an-other that is small, but would not do if it were smaller. Then you have a choice anywhere between these two limits. In this way is brought out the innate sense of good proportion that nearly every person has if lie can be brought to realize it, also the absolute necessity for considering the method of construction, and the advantage obtained by using any of the characteristic forms of construction as a feature of the design.
Passing over the problem of the lantern, which gives further practice in the principles involved in the candlestick, we now have a problem in line and form in the designing and making of a small simple bowl. One method in teaching the proportion of curves is to draw on the board a, few curves and show that the curve that starts with a long sweep and changes near the end to a sharp curve is the best. Lines which are too even in their curvature never have character or strength. Those that start nearly straight and end in a sharp curve show life and spirit. There should also be beauty of proportion between the long and the short curve; as a general rule the sharp curve should take the smallest part of the line and the long curve should be from three to seven times as long. In the bowl form, it is usually best when the proportion of the short curve to the long curve is one to three; that is, the short one-third and the long curve two-thirds of the entire line. We also have to consider, and are limited by, the tools used in this first problem in "beating up" or "raising" a form. All broken interrupted lines are to be avoided and we must strive for a smooth, graceful bowl form of good proportion. This problem may be made more interesting by designing a border to be etched near the top edge of the bowl.
The next problem is that of the round plate, from 6" to 10" in diameter. To obtain the proportion of the border, draw on the blackboard a circle representing the diameter of the plate, then draw a border that is evidently too narrow, then one that is too wide, and gradually establish limits in the same way that we did in the candlestick base. It will be found, however, that the best pro-portion will be obtained when the border is from one-fifth to one-seventh of the diameter of the plate.
Now we way design a decorative pattern to be etched on the border. There are five possible ways in which this may be de-signed: First, the design units radiating from the center outward ; Second, radiating from the rim towards the center; Third, moving around the border, but with the attention centered at the outer edge; Fourth, moving around the border, but with attention centered at the inner edge; Fifth, moving around the border with the center of attention equally divided between the inner and the outer edge. In designs which move around the border it is best to have them move or grow to the right. The mirrors are of great help to the student on this problem, as it is necessary to draw only one section, by placing the mirrors on the section lines meeting in the center the entire design will be reflected in the mirrors.
The next problem is that of the nut-bowl, which gives further practice in line and form, as in the small bowl, with additional design problem of making pleasing vertical divisions. These will be carried out by "crimping," "fluting," or "paneling." Draw on the board a circle representing the diameter of the bowl and divide it into a pleasing number of sections; five, six or seven divisions will be found the most satisfactory.
This necessarily brief statement of some of the fundamental rules of design as applied to metal Work is simple an effort to show in general a. method whereby design may be correlated with metalwork in the seventh and eighth grades, and in the high school classes, working under
regular school conditions where a definite method of procedure must be pointed out to the class to secure the best results.
N\`e should have more and better design in the manual arts because the student has to think, compare and judge before lie can do; because it is a perfect correlation with drawing and art training in the most practical way; because it brings into manual training a definite cultural element; because it is of definite value in the majority of vocations; because it enriches the content of manual training; because it makes the work of more interest to the student, to the teacher, and to the general public; because the product is of greater commercial value; because it brings out the individuality of the student, and affords a perfect means of self expression ; because design, or the fact that an article must be suited to its purpose and must "look good," is as vital to life and industry as is technique; because it gives constant practice in and develops analytical and synthetical reasoning power; because it trains the student's power of imagination and develops his creative and inventive thought.

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