[Suggested translation, Marije Osnabrugge:] Since the artless work-Masters [NDR: artisans] do not only boast, that the main amusement or power of their works consists of a gaudy softness or coarse hardness; But the inexperienced spectators also believe, that the works that are most void of Art are the most powerful;

Junius discusses what causes enjoyment (‘vermakelijkheid’) in the beholder of art. He complains that bad artisans (intently not calling them artists) pride themselves on works that are actually void of artistic value. Junius names two examples of bad art: works that display exaggerated softness (‘zachtheid’) or instead coarse hardness (‘hardheid’). This section is formulated quite differently in the Latin and English edition. The selected Dutch terms have no Latin or English counterparts. [MO]

[Suggested translation, Marije Osnabrugge:] As the Athenians thought to have great reason to honour and serve their patron god Minerva above all the other Gods and Godesses, as such they thought it well to erect a beautiful statue for her on an elevated base; they commissioned two of the very best Artists, Alcamenes and Phidias¸to do this; and they meanwhile let it be known that the statue that was to be judged the best in everyone’s judgement, would be paid for with a nice sum of money, so the Artists eagerly went to work, driven by the hope for great profit and greater honour that appeared would follow from it. Alcamenes was completely inexperienced in the Mathematical Arts, and thought that he had acquitted himself farily well, when his statue appeared beautiful to those who were standing close. Phidias on the other hand had decided, according to the knowledge that he had from the Geometrical and the Optical sciences, that the whole appearance of the statue would change following the situation of the envisioned height, (…) as such saw the tides change within a matter of hours; because as the sweetness that one could perceive up close in the lovely statue of Alcamenes, disappeared because of the height and changed into a certain hardness, as such the crooked deformity of Phidias’ statue was softened miraculously by the forshorthening of the heightened location, and the difference in craftsmanship between the two artists was so remarkably large, that the one received the deserved praise, the other, on the other hand, was brought to shame with his work, see […]

ALCAMENES
PHIDIAS
TZETZES, Joannes

In recounting the story of the competition between Alcamenes and Phidias for the commission of a statue of Minerva, Junius explains the importance of knowledge (kennis) of mathematics, geometry and optics for an artist. In the case of the two sculptors, Phidias’ knowledge makes the difference in the effect that the statue has on the beholders. In the Dutch edition, JUnius is much more explicit than in the English and Latin edition in his analysis of why Phidias’ sculpture was more successful in the end. He explains and identifies the foreshortening as the decisive factor. [MO]

[Suggested translation, Marije Osnabrugge:] As everyone knows that het pieces that are daubed chessboard-wise with coarse and different coloured patches, are not without reason considered very ugly and abominable, as such one can easily take from this that the hard brown should not suddenly bump into the clear light. The Brown should be worked into the gray rather gently, to arrive better from the gray to the light. The Paintings that loosely clasp the black and the white together, look like a plate of marble or a chessboard from afar; therefor one should try to soften this hardness by adding half-colour grays, in order that two contrasting colours, may, gradually fading, dissolve and melt into eachother through an artful diminiution.

This section does not exist in the Latin and English edition. [MO]

[suggested translation, Marije Osnabrugge:] When one is Painting Illumination, that one Invents and Draws oneself, Copies or that one wants to colour some Art of Printing in a natural way, one should always pay attention to the evenness and flatness and also especially to the harmony, or moving back and forth, which should be caused by the difference between strong and weak Colours, by adding them flatly and proportionally diminishing, without them causing any hardness or stiffness.

In the English translation, this section is part of the Introduction to the second part of the book. The structure of this introduction is therefore different from the Dutch chapter (in the second edition of 1670, which we are treating here). Many of the terms are described in the English introduction, but no specific terms are used (for eenparigheid, vlakheid, houding). [MO]

[suggested translation, Marije Osnabrugge:] {Pupils resent flatness.} Because this teaches us the notion that almost all Pupils have hesitation about the flatness and angularity at the beginning of their practice, and appear to are more inclined towards dimness and softness, and frequently ruin the flat parts with small lights and shadows: believing they would lapse into hardness from angularity, and through flatness would cause their things to appear naked and imperfect, notwithstanding that they judge it right in the Original, therefore – out of fear to fall – rather crawling on Hands and Feet, in a childlike manner.

It appears that the translator who worked on the English translation, misunderstood Goeree. He mixed up what, according to Goeree, had the preference of pupils (i.e. dommeligheyt and sachtigheydt) and instead that they prefer vlackigheydt and kantigheydt. Goeree, on the other hand, stated that pupils were hesitant to produce vlackigheydt and kantigheydt and instead stick to dommeligheyt and sachtigheydt. For this reason, the corresponding translations are not provided here. [MO]

[suggested translation, Marije Osnabrugge:] In our last proposition we have proven that the drawing by daylight is the most profitable, because it gives a much softer and uniform shadow and also because the bodies show themselves more naturally in colour and reflection, without hardness; to the contrary the lamp light creates very strong and cut-off shadows and lights.