Denman Waldo Ross

Denman Ross's ideas about art and design reached a wide audience between the 1890s and 1930s with his teaching at Harvard University and his books. An analysis of his teaching works using abstract art and his influential text A Theory of Pure Design: Harmony, Balance, and Rhythm With Illustrations and Diagraphs (1907) can enrich our understanding of American art in its origins and its reliance on science. Examination of Ross's interests in science and the scientific method helps explain the combination of the visual and transmitted signals found in his work.