The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1818-05-12 00:00:00

Rotil .cAYikmv.

No. 11.
, .
Portrait if her late Royal Highness the Princess
tharlotte.-0. Worn, R.A.
Mr. DANA had the honour of being particularly
employed by the lamented Princess. and his ran.-
traits of her Itoyal Highness are entitled to parti-
cular observation, from the opportunities winch he
must have had of catching the character of her
countenance and particular expression of her fea-
tures. All his portraits of her Royal Highness
(and they have been many) ore remarkable fur a
soft and tmosteutatious exotessiou; they have the
marked lineaments amid portly and dignified rim-
tour of the original, but tempered with a mildness
and contlesceusion which is productive of the most
Pleasing effect. The dress of ber Royal Highness
is flowing and rich, without being gaudy and mere-
tricious—the colouring is blond and harmonious,
and the hack-ground beautifully finished.
Mr. DcWit hay also a fine portrait of the Prince
of Saxe Coburg, which is a companion to the
former. His Royal Highness is dressed in a gene-
ral's full uniform.
Between these two portraits Sir THOMAS LAW..
ammo has an exquisitely-finished portrait of the
Prince Regent, in his full robes. The artist has
not forgotten the pleasing effect of a little flattery
in his portrait ; but the colouring of the robes, the
breadth of the drapery. and the exquisite richness
and harmony which he has brought out in the de-
tails, are beautiful in the extreme.

In the portrait of the Duke of AVSLLINGTON,
this artist must be contented with only a part of
the praise which rumour assigned to it before the
Exhibition. The colouring is unquestionably beau-
tiful, and parts of the drapery, particularly the
sleeves and upper part of the cloak worn by the
Duke, are isicotnparahly fine. The head of his
Grace is also finely formed, but in expression it is
certainly deficient in that loon of animation which
the occasion calls for. The horse has also an awk-
ward and constrained attitude, which cannot be en.
tirely overlooked, notwithstanding the fine colour
of the body, and execution and anatomy of some of
the limbs.

CLLCOTT'S Month of the Tyne is a beautiful pic-
ture—the roundness of the ships, their reflection
on the water, the distant prospect of the shore, and
the floating clouds, are all depicted with the truth
and variety of mature.

TURNER'S three landscapes are compositions of
• varied and extraordinary kind—Roby Castk, the
seat of the Earl of Darlington, displays the calm
scenery of stature, as it is developed to us in the
prospect of an extensive and highly cultivated de.
meant, the only variety in which is furnished by the
broken and uudulating lines of the ground, and the
contrasts presented by local shadows. The aerial
perspective is finely distributed. The Dort Pac-
ket Boat becalmed is a fascinating picture—the
luxuriant richness of the colours, the glowing ap-
pe•raole of the heat, and unruffled transparency of
the water, present • calmness sad stillness finely
suited to the subject. Both the distance, and the
right side of the pictnre, are wrought in a unique
manner, and throughout the whole there is the
finest and most harmonious repose. The Field of
Waterloo is an extraordinary composition. To ex-
press the ravages of war, and the compendious de-
solation of a battle, the artist, like the poet, has
condensed his ideas, and directed his whole effort
to the portraiture of a single groupe—the rest of
the field is made up with the scattered and broken
fragments of military materiel—the horror of the
scene is heightened by the dark masses of thunder
clouds, intermingled with the smoke of cannon, and
the conflagration of Hugoumont. lie has annexed
to the name of this picture iu the Catalogue, Lord
BYRON'S beautiful lines—

a Last Noun beheld them full of lusty life;
Lae eve in Rearty's circle proudly say;
Tb attidaigkl brought the siigual--suuud of strife;
The unni, Iha obirelat ling of arms—the day,
Paildisiespollsgetty stern array!
The thealsr clouds close o'er it, which when rent,
The earth is fevered thick with other clay
Which her own flay shall cover, heaped and pent,
Rider and beessi &Rod, fue, iu uue red burial bleut!"

It is impossible, by any force of illustration, to
give a more terrific description to all the mingled
horror. of battle than this picture contains. The
effect appears to be produced not so much by the
desolation winch the groupe in the centre present.,
as by the elemental conflict, the smoking masses
through which occasional bursts of conflagration
appear, and in parts illumine the scene of horror.
The range of powers which Mr. TURNER has de-
veloped in these iiictures, is wonderful. There is
a magical strength in his colouring which baffles
all ittlempts to describe it effects.
Mr. H. B. CHA LON'S small portraits of Animals,
(Nos. 584 and 585), are beautifully executed. The
Growpe of Dogs, and the fine Grey Arabian, might
have been hung in a snore favourable positiou—
their merits unquestionably entitle them to it.