The Golden State: Where & How to Live, Secure, Visit, Enjoy and Thrive in California

Theory Of Decoration

Too many should not be grouped together, nor should they be too different in character and value. It is difficult to use oils and water colors together, or strongly colored pictures with black and whites, and if they must be combined, great care in arrangement is necessary. Pictures should be hung neither too high nor too low If hung near the height of the eye, they can be seen to best advantage with the least discomfort, and their position with reference to the ceiling line gives scale to the room. Several pictures intended to form a group should be hung close together and on the same level, so as to make them count as a unit. In hanging pictures their relation to furniture should also be considered. A picture hung over a console, cabinet, or other piece of furniture, and related to it by a lamp, statuette, or other ornament, forms an interesting decorative group, each element enhancing the interest of the others. If pictures are so arranged, it will be found that few are needed, but those few produce a restful and pleasing effect. Where the room has a mantel, the space above it offers the best location for a picture, and here we may place the gem of our collection. Add a clock or other central feature, a couple of vases, and perhaps a few minor ornaments, and we have the dominant feature of the room.

Examination Questions

1. How did the Dutch school of painting differ from the Flemish?
2. What are the characteristic types of andirons in various countries?
3. When did oil painting come into use in Italy? What preceded it?
4. Suggest a frame for an original Italian painting of the Madonna.
5. How would you frame an etching with a wide margin?
6. Who was Albrecht Durer? For what work is he famous?
7. What were the characteristics of French painting in the Eighteenth Century? Name several of the best known painters of the period.
8. A bedroom is to be treated in a simple French style. What material would you use for the mantel and its hearth and facings, and how would you treat the space above? Illustrate by small sketch, if possible.
9. For what is Michel Angelo best known? Describe briefly the character of his work.