Das wiedergefundene Paradies

A man courts a woman by means of a dove and flowers in this near-abstract cartoon by Walter Ruttmann and Lotte Lendesdorff.

I once got into a dispute over art with a relative who is a Sunday painter. Discussing a particularly ugly piece, I asked "Is there too much beauty in the world?" "No one can define beauty," he countered.

"Beauty is the perception of clear symmetry or regularity within a matrix complicated enough to command our attention," I said.

His answer was a blank stare. Then, contemptuously, "Well, that's what you say."

By my definitions, this is a beautiful bit of animation.