Sunday, February 28, 2010

The Neoclassical and the Baroque

Neoclassical generally implies a certain cleanness to the lines, a sharpness of edge. Things tend towards the austere, certainly, but they don't eschew a certain decorative edge, a bit of colorand drape. What is most important is clarity born from a certain simplicity of vision and a desire to make that vision manifest. I'm a huge fan of the neoclassical.

But sometimes, there's just no substitution for wallowing in the baroque.

There was a time when I was a big fan of the Unearthed Arcana book. Today I find it a bit unwieldy and a bit too strongly tied to a certain vision of what D&D is that doesn't always click with mine. But there was a time when I certainly believed that more was more (and you could easily argue that I still believe that, I'm just more eager to make certain that the more is mine). I'll probably never play it, but I'm still very eager to see what Emprise! looks like. Best of luck to the Greyhawk Grognard. :D

Aeneas' Flight From Troy by Federico Barocci.

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