Last Crusade 03 (Guest): Thoughts on Beauty

Thoughts on Beauty

A guest post by Mike McDaniel

Those of us fighting in the Last Crusade (which perhaps should be called the Ultimate Crusade) do battle for Beauty, amongst other things. But what is Beauty?

This question came up recently, and I will do my humble best to address it.

In aviation, we have a saying. “If it looks good, it’ll fly right.” This isn’t always true, as there are airplanes that look good but fly badly, but airplanes that fly well usually look the part. And I think this is as good a starting place as any to define what is Beautiful.

Beautiful things work well.

An airplane, a ship, a bridge, a cathedral – those objects that perform their designed task well look good. They are efficient, with no wasted material, no excess weight or bulk. A Gothic cathedral is a marvel of stone filigree, with the structural margins cut down as low as the designers dared go to let in as much light as possible. Likewise, the M1903 Springfield rifle is considered the most beautiful service rifle ever issued by the U.S. military…in no small part because it is light, slim, and elegant. A delight to handle, with no wasted material.

Beautiful things also have shapes consistent with the materials from which they are made, and the purpose for which they are designed. Organic materials are made into curved objects. Natural but non-organic materials, such as stone, normally are made into things with gentle curves or straight lines. Man-made materials, such as steel, are usually linear. Compare the cathedral of Notre Dame with the Air Force Academy chapel. Both are places of worship, both noted as architectural achievements, but very different designs. Which reflect the very different materials.

For a beautiful object, even the embellishments and decorations should be consistent with the materials and basic shapes. Curving objects call for curving decorations, while linear objects demand linear decoration. A round-ish object like a revolver is engraved with scrollwork, while something dominated by straight lines like a Glock calls for a geometric pattern. (Yes, I know the idea of spending money to engrave a Glock may see silly. Kindly indulge me while I make the point.)

Then we turn to beauty in art. Art is communication…or at least it is supposed to be. Beautiful art should clearly communicate the artist’s message, whether it be an explicit argument or simply a mood.

Most modern “fine art” lacks beauty because it fails to communicate clearly. Deliberately so, in my opinion. Go outside the “urban fine art” world, and there are many talented artists doing excellent work.

And that communication should reflect Truth.

Communicating a brazen lie undercuts the beauty of the presentation. Many of us trying to listen to a speech by Bill Clinton or Barack Obama, both quite talented orators, have a voice screeching in the back of our heads shouting “LIAR!” as loudly as a jet engine on full afterburner. And change the channel before we go deaf.

In brief, that which is Beautiful is that which works well, has a form consistent with the purpose and materials, and does not conflict with Truth.