The Santa Fe weekly gazette. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.T. [i.e. N.M.]) 1851-1854, 1853-09-03
Mills's Equestrian Statue.

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A correspondent of Ha,perS' Maga-
zine is disposed to censure the equestrian
statue of General JACKSON, by MILLS,
which has excited such universal admir-
alton. The writer represents himself as
a mail contractor, and if we place faith
in the adage that every man is to be trust.
ed in his own art, we need not neces-
sarily infer that he is a connoiSseur in
sculpture. He objects to the color Of
the statue, and to its being perched 50
adroitly upon two legs. The color is said
to be too bright. We apprehend that it
will be dimmed soon enough by expos.
ure to our climate. As to the other OBJ.
jectlon, we cannot but regard it as a
great merit in the artist that he has been
enabled to dispense with the various ar
titcial contrivances that have been resor-
ted to by the most eminent sculpt to
support their equestrian statues. A group
Of serpcnts sustain FMcoNEr's celebrated
statue Of Peter the Great. Another eel
ebmted statue is supported by the tail of
the horse, and in other cases more bare
and simple contrivances have been en-
ployed. Mills has succeeded in max
ING selfsurported equestrian statue ;
and it may &c an "Americanism" in us
to admire his work on that account, a.
mong others, but that will not induce us
to withhold our admiration.
1t is the general spirit of this produc-
tion that excites the wonder Of all who
behold it, Every body is not critical,
but every body knows what pleases him,
and the untied voices of the uniformed
Indicate, perhaps more truly than the dis.
corlant criticism of the initiated, the
merits of a statue Of this description. A
work that has induced such Congress
as has just expired to vote $4,000 as q
gratuity to the scul tor, and $4,000 to
engage him on a new Undertaking, can.
not be without remarkable merit of some
sort. In this case we think our repres.
entatives were carried away by the efect
Of the statue. which to us is striking and
imposing beyond any thing we have seer
in art We do not suppose that there
was more then one man in either House
capable of assing a critical Judgment OF
the statute as work of art, but they
were astonshed and carried away by it
1t will produce the same effect among the
masses everywhere, in spite of the crit
les. We care not what connoisseurs sa,
ola work that satisfies and delights tn,
million.
We would not he understood however
TO intimate that this work of Mills ha,
failed to please men familiar with tn,
art. From what we have learned and
heard, it is highly commended by tn,
class who claim to be the "best Judges.
Our friend the mail contractor is the frs
person we have met with who is disposed
to unl,rvalue it, in that cant of criticism
which SrERNE says is of all cants tn,
most disgusting. As all the world i
about going to the Worlds Fair, the,
will have an opportunity of Judging 70
themselves with rcgarlto the merits Q
this very remarkable work ofart--the or
iginal caste OF which, We learn from tn
New York papers, will be exhibited dur
ing the continuance of the Fair in spa
cious hall that has heen procured in tn
immediate neighborhood. The space
We understand that could be allotted t
the statue in the Crystal Palace was nc
sufficient to exhibit it to advantage.