H.I.M. words concerning fine arts
``A purely materialistic art would be like a
tree which is expected to bear fruit without flowering and to sacrifice grace
and beauty for mere utility.Our admiration for the creator's handiwork should
not be limited to those things
he has provided us with for our daily needs, but should include all that is good
and beautiful.
It is these tender feelings of deep and silent admiration evoked from our hearts
by the beauties of creation that should find adequate expression in the fine
arts.
Music, drama and the other arts are rooted in the ancient history of our empire,
and their development to an even higher peak of perfection will be possible in
the atmosphere of a university. Ethiopia possesses an ancient literature and its
study can be fostered here so that the Ethiopian youth inspired by this national
example, may raise it to yet higher levels of excellence.
The study of the heroic history of our empire will stimulate the imagination of
building authors and teachers.``