The ornament in Jean d’Udine’s essays

Résumé 0

Jean d’Udine, whose real name was Albert Cozanet, is a little-studied theorist, in spite of his work being quoted by various modern artists of the early twentieth century. Between 1921 and 1936, he published a series of essays whose title began with “Qu’est-ce que” [What Is . . .], in which he sought to define the different artistic expressions. Throughout his studies, the notions of ornament and decoration make several appearances as a transartistic category. They question the visual appeal of forms through the concepts of charm and beauty, the function of art, and the idea of mimesis. They also imply a relationship to the world imbued with mathematical conceptions and rhythmic correspondences. The ideas of Jean d’Udine can be linked to a number of artists from the inter-war period.