The Sun.
London, England, 1846-05-11 00:00:00

EXHIBITION OF THE ROYAL

ACADEMY.

The catalogue of the exhibition of tne Royal Academy,
this year, ce-amins a list of eo less than 1,521 works of
art. It is natural to suppose that among such au im-
mense number (the pictures alone amount to 1,390) there
must be a great deal of rubbish, but the rubbish does
not preponderate, and the exhibition of 184$ is cer-
tainly an improvement upon that of last year. Of
portraits there are a goodly number, among which we
may notice 66 and 199, portraits of her Majesty
and Prince Albert, painted for. Christ's Hospital, by
F. Grant, A. Her Majesty is represented on horseback,
and Prince Albert is standing by the side of his charger.
As portraits they are life-like, and as works of art they
rise to the rank of historical pictures. Mr. Grant has
exhibited artistical talents of the hi. hest order in these
magnificent paintings, which are great in every sense of
the word.
The picture of the Exhibition is 14, " Ordeal by
Touch," D. Maclise, R.A.-_." The belief that the corpse
or a murdered person would bleed on the touch, or at
the approach of the murderer, was universal among the
northern nations."—Sir Walter Scott. The .corpse of
the murdered is exposed in the church, be-
fore the high altar. At its head stands the !Asher)
—at its feet sit the judges, watching intently
the process of the ordeal. The accused, who is advancing
towards the corpse from the side of the bishop, is in the
act of stretching out his arm (winch seems actually to
quiver with nervous excitement), and putting his finger
on the wound ; tut he dares not look at the dead
man—his face Is studiously averted from the contem-
plation of the corpse. Admirably centrasted with the
holy calm of the bishop, the fixed attention of the
judges, and the trepidation of the accused, is theintense
agony and indignation of the widow, who bends in
grief over the curse of her murdered husband ; and,
not comprehending the meaning of the horrible scene
at which she is called on to assist, her little girl,
who seems to shrink in vague horror from the dead and
from the living, and clings in fright to her mother for pro-
tection. Around and in the back-ground are stern-look-
ing men clad in mail, while over the altar appears the
image of Christ in agony on the cross, and above all,
like ministers of mercy contemplating in pity and sorrow
the scene below are the Madonna and child. The
finishing cf this is perfect, and the effect of the light
shining on the armour of the mail-clad men is mar-
vellous.

53. " Time of Peace," and " Time of War," are two
allegorical pictures by Edwin Landseer, R.A. The
" Time of Peace" is a pastoral scene—a flock of sheep
are grazing in a field amidst dismounted cannon and
broken weapons, and one of the lamb. is serking, not
" the bubble reputation," but food, " even in the cannon's
mouth," into which it is composedly thrusting its nose.
"Time of War" is a very tine picture In the tbre-
ground are troopers 1) ieg " eta' k" on the ground,
with their horses dead and dying around them;
the execution of the horses is marvellous. The
collapse of muscle and of nostril, so characteristic
of death, is fearfully true to nature in the dead steed,
and in the dying one terror is admirably depicted ;
the veins seem bursting, the mane stands almost erect
with terror. The background represents the flames of
burning houses fl :shing through the smoky darkness of
battle. It is altogether a most effective picture.
165. "The Stag at Bay" is also by Edwin Landseer.
It is one of those wonderful specimens of animal por-
traiture, which, sere Snyders, no artist has ever been
known to paint so truthfully as Landseer.
David -Roberts. has in this room (we confine ourselves
in this notice to the east room) three exquisite speci•
wens of oriental scenery :-13. " The Tomb of the Caliphs
in the Desert ; 91. " Street in Grand Cairo" (really a
marvellous picture); and 209, "Ruins of the Temple of
the Sun, Baalbec."
Turner his in this room three pictures. 59. " Re-
turning from the Balt" (St. Martha), 74. Gcing to the
Ball (St. Martin,);; 237. " Hurrah for the Whaler
Erebus, another Fish." Of these, the going to the ball
is to our taste the best. It requires distance to bring
out the full effect of this picture, but, the proper point of
view attained, the'effect is gorgeous. With respect to
the of her two, they ure such as only Turner could
imagine, and only Turner could execute. This will by
some be considered as high praise, by others as censure,
but it is the simple truth.
Etty has three pictures in the EaS. Room. 37. " The
Grape Gatherer." Why he should have chosen to ex-
hibit a nude figure, with a basket of grapes on her head,
under this title we cannot imagine, except it be that
he can paint nothing but the nude figure. His flesh tints
we admit are exquisite, but still this sehject should not
have been chosen by him, or it should have been diffe-
rently treated.
166. Composition from Milton's Comus:—
" Circe with the Syrens three,
Ami Tst the flowery kirtled Naiades."
The colouring of this picture is perfectly dazzling, but the
picture, as a whole, is of far too meritricious a character.
200. The Choice of Paris.—ln the treatment of this
subject, Etty has not been felicitous. The females are
not goddesses, but mere women, and very ordinary
women too.

140. " Choosing the Wedding Gown," W. lluiready,
R.A., is a little gem, quite equal to any of the old
Flemish masters.

22. " A Dutch Dogger carrying away her Sprit."
C. Sunfied, R.A.

" On the Dogger bank, in the cold North sea,
Wearily day and night toil we ;
Weary, wet, hungry and cold,
Three poor fishermen, weakly and old."—Old Song,
_ .

Never has Atanfield produced snithing equal to this de-
licious picture—the tossing vessel, the green, fiiamy-
crest.,d waves, the gloomy attnoFphere, are depicted with
a truthfulness perfectly marvellous. As a landsc-tue
painter, Stansfield bears away the palm from all com-
petitors. He has in this room another exquisite pic-
ture, 188.