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Scientifictionist, issue 2, after 1945
Page 11
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THE ART OF THE SUN by E. Merrill Root Introduction THE ART OF THE SUN serves two purposes. The first of these is a logical refutation of the oft tendered argument that art would suffer under Technocracy. Also, the article opens the door of the future just a mere crack to give us a vague and blinding glimpse of what the art of tomorrow will be like; a culture of abundance capable of producing masterpieces of literature, painting, music, and sculpture that would make our present stand in the field of art look like the first scribblings in the copy book of a kindergarten pupil. We are only on the threshold of human expression. Most fans have read stories which dealt with the art forms of 2500 A.D. or 3000 A.D., and after raeding have perhaps sighed, wishing that they themselves could experience the exquisite melodies of glowingly painted canvas of some distant tomorrow, never realizing that the things they sighed for were within grasp. The art of Tomorrow could be the art of Today -- for today's art is no more than the expression of yesterday's futilities, and very paltry indeed in comparison with what is possible. The second purpose of THE ART OF THE SUN is an invitation by the author for a personal re-evaluation of human concepts. E. Merrill Root does a thorough job of stressing the importance of a completely honest subjective and objective analysis, so there is no need to go into the matter here. However, a word to the Ivory Tower Dwellers of fandom would not be amiss. Those fans who have trouble effecting a reconciliation between the pleasant shadow-world of fantasy and the seemingly harsh reality of a modern scientific world, will find THE ART OF THE SUN a convenient and easily digested stepping-stone to firm soil of fact. Practice the factual self-analysis that Mr. Root preaches; you will find that the external world isn't such a bad place. To misquote a rather famous man, "There are more beauties in the physical world than are ever dreamt of in fantasy." Ivory Towers have a nasty habit of falling apart about one's ears, so why not just walk out on your own two feet, and open your eyes and mind to the beauty that is yours for the taking. An introduction would not be complete without a personal note. When I first read THE ART OF THE SUN six years ago. I was deeply impressed; so deeply that I took Mr. Root at his word. That is why I have written the above with firm conviction -- I know, because it applies to me. And when I read THE ART OF THE SUN again last night, I was again deeply impressed. Perhaps that was because it is a very impressive piece of writing. -- Harold Bertram. Vincent Van Gogh, most individual of modern artists, painted objective things: a chair, a woman of Arles, his simple homely bedroom with its chair and table and pitcher, a pair of wooden shoes or a pipe, the sunflowers of the field...These he lit into color with the fiery sun of his own heart; but these he painted simply and clearly for the sake of their own clear and simple selves. He loved the texture of leather and wood, the shapes of stubby pipes, the handled contour of concrete, useful, human things. His heart was a sun and the sun gives form and hue; its light creates the geometry of line, the spectrum of color. Van Gogh was a sun and the sun gives power to each thing to say: I am! Van Gogh dreamed also of a community of artists. He knew that art could not live when the artist was a play-boy, giving beauty not as the daily bread (and wine), but as the fad and freak of the few rich or of the art-fanciers who flourish in an inorganic world. He knew that art must be integral in life. And so he dreamed, and so he sought to found, a brotherhood or artists who should picture the texture and the substance of man's life with objective clarity. He page 11
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THE ART OF THE SUN by E. Merrill Root Introduction THE ART OF THE SUN serves two purposes. The first of these is a logical refutation of the oft tendered argument that art would suffer under Technocracy. Also, the article opens the door of the future just a mere crack to give us a vague and blinding glimpse of what the art of tomorrow will be like; a culture of abundance capable of producing masterpieces of literature, painting, music, and sculpture that would make our present stand in the field of art look like the first scribblings in the copy book of a kindergarten pupil. We are only on the threshold of human expression. Most fans have read stories which dealt with the art forms of 2500 A.D. or 3000 A.D., and after raeding have perhaps sighed, wishing that they themselves could experience the exquisite melodies of glowingly painted canvas of some distant tomorrow, never realizing that the things they sighed for were within grasp. The art of Tomorrow could be the art of Today -- for today's art is no more than the expression of yesterday's futilities, and very paltry indeed in comparison with what is possible. The second purpose of THE ART OF THE SUN is an invitation by the author for a personal re-evaluation of human concepts. E. Merrill Root does a thorough job of stressing the importance of a completely honest subjective and objective analysis, so there is no need to go into the matter here. However, a word to the Ivory Tower Dwellers of fandom would not be amiss. Those fans who have trouble effecting a reconciliation between the pleasant shadow-world of fantasy and the seemingly harsh reality of a modern scientific world, will find THE ART OF THE SUN a convenient and easily digested stepping-stone to firm soil of fact. Practice the factual self-analysis that Mr. Root preaches; you will find that the external world isn't such a bad place. To misquote a rather famous man, "There are more beauties in the physical world than are ever dreamt of in fantasy." Ivory Towers have a nasty habit of falling apart about one's ears, so why not just walk out on your own two feet, and open your eyes and mind to the beauty that is yours for the taking. An introduction would not be complete without a personal note. When I first read THE ART OF THE SUN six years ago. I was deeply impressed; so deeply that I took Mr. Root at his word. That is why I have written the above with firm conviction -- I know, because it applies to me. And when I read THE ART OF THE SUN again last night, I was again deeply impressed. Perhaps that was because it is a very impressive piece of writing. -- Harold Bertram. Vincent Van Gogh, most individual of modern artists, painted objective things: a chair, a woman of Arles, his simple homely bedroom with its chair and table and pitcher, a pair of wooden shoes or a pipe, the sunflowers of the field...These he lit into color with the fiery sun of his own heart; but these he painted simply and clearly for the sake of their own clear and simple selves. He loved the texture of leather and wood, the shapes of stubby pipes, the handled contour of concrete, useful, human things. His heart was a sun and the sun gives form and hue; its light creates the geometry of line, the spectrum of color. Van Gogh was a sun and the sun gives power to each thing to say: I am! Van Gogh dreamed also of a community of artists. He knew that art could not live when the artist was a play-boy, giving beauty not as the daily bread (and wine), but as the fad and freak of the few rich or of the art-fanciers who flourish in an inorganic world. He knew that art must be integral in life. And so he dreamed, and so he sought to found, a brotherhood or artists who should picture the texture and the substance of man's life with objective clarity. He page 11
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