Modern Painters, Volume 2 (of 5)

"Modern Painters, Volume 2" by John Ruskin is a philosophical treatise on art, aesthetics, and the nature of beauty written in the mid-19th century. The volume delves into the concepts of the theoretic and imaginative faculties, exploring how they pertain to the perception of beauty in art and nature. Ruskin asserts that art is not merely a pastime but a serious pursuit that engages deep moral and intellectual responsibilities. At the start, Ruskin reflects on the importance and difficulty of appreciating beauty, emphasizing that art requires careful and earnest study. He discusses the degradation of art in contemporary society, criticizing the utilitarian view that measures value through practical applications alone. Ruskin differentiates between practical arts, which serve immediate utility, and theoretical arts, which reflect and elevate human perception and understanding of beauty. He argues that understanding beauty demands a moral and emotional engagement that transcends mere sensory pleasure. Overall, this opening sets the stage for a profound exploration of the moral dimensions of art and the profound connection between human experience and the divine. (This is an automatically generated summary.)

John Ruskin was an English polymath – a writer, lecturer, art historian, art critic, draughtsman and philanthropist of the Victorian era. He wrote on subjects as varied as art, architecture, political economy, education, museology, geology, botany, ornithology, literature, history, and myth.