PROJECTIVE ORNAMENT

NATURE

Such a saviour being by the very necessities of the case denied us, may we not go directly to Nature and choose whatever patterns suit our fancy from the rich garment which she weaves and wears? There is no lack of precedent for such a procedure. The Egyptian lotus, the Greek honeysuckle, the acanthus, the Indian palmette, achieved, in this way, their apotheosis meaning: elevation to divine status/peak of perfection in art. The Japanese use their chrysanthemum, their wisteria and bamboo, in similar fashion; so why may not we do likewise? The thing has already been attempted, but never consistently nor successfully.

While far from solving the problem of a new language of ornament, for reasons presently to appear, the conventionalization modern note: the process of adapting natural forms into stylized, decorative motifs of our native grains, fruits and flowers, would undoubtedly introduce a note of fresh beauty and appropriateness into our architecture.