The Express.
London, England, 1863-04-04 00:00:00

FINE ARTS.

At Mean. Graves' Gallery, in Pall-mall, there
is now exhibited a large picture by the American artist,
Mr. J. F. Cropsey, of the View from Bielunond-hill. It is
mime to remark how our cousins carry (their love of the
gigantic into their painting. We bare never yet seen
a picture of any pretensions by an American painter,
that was not on a canvas that would almost serve
for the drop scene of a theatre. Probably something of
this disposition to grapple with immensity in landscape
Is due to the vast extent of the ordinary views in the
country of the prairies, the Andes, and the Mississippi.
But another characteristic of American landscape painters
is that they paint these large pictures with the most
mints attention to details, suck as the landscape artists of
the old world purposely reject as beneath Dodos in so
grand a theme. The American painter ignores the quality
which we appreciate under the term of " breadth," and
rather glories in bringing into prominence every tinge and
leaf of hie trees, and every blade of pus in the foreground
be prefers in his downright manner to be a realist, and have
the imagination to take care of itself. Now the inevitable
result of this treatment of a grist major* in that the
work is not impressive, it has none of the stupendous &e-
-recter of the seal view, closely ea the artist Ma laboured to
IMltate the /MOIL L trying thus to stamp the great wig:Ma
I with all its majesty of spice and intricate beauty of forme
and colours combined, the isspiration of the moment is last.
In this picture of Mr. Crepsey's we notice the effort and
the failure to which we refer, ►hough we should be gamy
not to eppreciate so much artistic ability as is displayed,
particularly in the sky and distance. The view is not taken
from the highest point, but from a spot at the back of the
gardens of the Star and Garter, the entrance to which is
made something of in the foreground by pleeiag a brilliant
peacock upon the wall—an artifice quite in keeping with the
showy and harsh oolonring mattered with so much
hardihood upon the figures grouped about the fore-
ground. These holiday people—ladies gaudy as butterflies,
children like humming birds, soldiers like fireflies, with an
Italian and his monkey, and a group of,donkeya, are all par-
ticularly unlike the figures one sets upon itichmoud-hill, to
say nothing of their being so clumsily drawn. The mss
ci the =dart and coldest geese in the belt of trees ooeupy-
ins the aide of the picture, and intended to *bow off and
force the sunlight in the sky and foreground, is not only •
cruel infliction upon the spectator who has an eye for the
soft tints of summer light, but it is simply impassible under
the sky painted above. No foliage is ever seen of this raw
colour when the sir is full of warm evening mist, and the
golden rays are reflected in every direction. Turn-
ing away from the foreground, the eye falls
with mare pleasure upon the river shining in the vale
below, •ed,wsaders over the purple grey distance in search of
Windsor Oast.* which cornea in appropriately enough. The
distance, the middle ground, and the sky, are good re-
deeming points in the picture, and soothe the irritation
which the two hideous poplars and the other foreground
objects create. The picture is to be engraved, and no doubt
muds of the sting will be taken out ci it by the judintoos
km* at the artist, who relies upon black and whit* may
for his effects. In this form it will be certain to prove meet
acceptable to all the world who come to see, and ever to be
delighted with, the splendid view from Richmond-hill.