Analysis Of Ornament. The Characteristics Of Styles: An Introduction To The Study Of The History Of Ornamental Art - Softcover

Ralph Nicholson Wornum

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0371789990 ISBN 13: 9780371789995

Publisher: HardPress, 2021

Synopsis

Analysis Of Ornament. The Characteristics Of Styles: An Introduction To The Study Of The History Of Ornamental Art by Ralph Nicholson Wornum is an introductory survey of ornamental design and its history. Originally prepared as part of a sixteen-lecture course for the Government Schools of Design in the years 1848–1850, the work offers a concise theoretical framework for understanding ornament as a distinct field of study. The text distinguishes symbolic (mythical or emblematic) from aesthetic (purely perceptual) styles, and treats style as a reflection of cultural character. It identifies two primary dimensions of ornament—flat (pictorial) and relief (sculptural)—and emphasizes principles of shape and contrast, repetition and series, and the subordination of detail to overall effect. The author traces nine major historic styles across Ancient, Medieval, and Modern periods, including Egyptian, Greek, Roman, Byzantine, Saracenic, Gothic, Renaissance (Trecento and Cinquecento), and the Louis Quatorze/Louis Quinze developments. Throughout, the text advocates a disciplined approach to design: study of essential principles, disciplined use of natural and conventional forms, and a preference for arrangement and harmony over mere imitation.

Edition details

• Publisher: HardPress
• Publication date: 2021
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0371789990
• ISBN 13: 9780371789995
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 184