New-York tribune., 1870-05-30

wit do her charge. i
nictuTe by ZamacOs interesting as this. do not
propose TO speak at any length OF the Salon, In TINS
letter hut | must say word about our American
artists who have pictures here, reserving criticism
that of Mr.. Frederic A. Bridgman, who, the c3ta-
Iocue tells me- is native of New-fork, ana VINO I mas
studied with G6Tome. He has two pictures one " ne
Country Circus the other. two girls rowing ana
talking. The girls are cloverly painted One Is
leaning back and whispering some laughing non
sense in the others who bends forward to eaten
the words. The difficult position IS well managed,
ana there Is the working OF an able artist
i'm the mSn who could show by hlS treatment OF the
suhcct that he had night To choose II. The other
picture more pOpular-and, in fact, neither of the
young women in the boat interests Us much In her
character So that when we have taken our pleasure
In studying the way which the artist has contended
with troubles of his cOntTivng, touch our
hats 90 the young tirts III the boat and our ways
The Country Circus is much better. There are
two horses in the ring coming directly tOus with that
soft slow gallop which country circus horses think
quite good enough for their audience. and on the
back of one Of them a French Apollo balances q
French angel IN blue game petticOat in most
dangerous and safe position on his shoulder
The clown and nng-master are IN the mlddle
of the TIug of which we only see man,
and the audience sit about on rough wooden benches
There great deal of talent shown in this picture
and We have very few men at home VINO are Nv All
capable of doing anything so clever ne movement
of the horses, the ghtneSS OF the rldSIs, ana the
really remarkable skill with which the character ana
expressions of the spectators caught make them
worthy Of he praise heard gwen II before the Salon
waa openc1 Neither of Mr. Bridgman's pictures is
GOOD in color-hev thin and weak in this respect
hut they have such good qualites-they hold out
such real solid PROMISE that Will hope the color
II wonld not be fair to Judge Mr. Henry Bacon's
How hn paid the Scot bv its appearance in the
Salon hung above the line and in a slant
ing position 10y which the light is reflected as 10
give @ very unequal value to the cOlors. j should
prefer 20 speak Of this picture by hard-w0rklng
young man of talent after the pictures nave an been
ro-huuC, 1s they will be in three weeks that being
tie sensible French way of undoing the SINS OF the
hanging committee. But win just say here that
is Wcll-vaiuted picture, in which every part has
been taI,4lly studied to aid in telling the story,
the story simple enough one OF an artist who pays
for hls breakfast ard nights lodging bE painting
yellow hon on the innkccpeI-S sign. 1he grouping
u the hgures is natural, and so managed as to keep
the sUt lec. unity while allowing the eye TO 90
and come, now taking in the two girls at the
well who are teasing another about the hand
some yuuuc artist who Is putting on the airs of
master, what ne thinks will pass for such; now
ptyiG the blacksmith in the distance whose gawkY
apprentice has left him 10 stare at the wonderful
stranger; now pleasing ourselves with the handsome
servant Who can keep her eyes of the young fellow
While r.r cleans the table. lheIc Is great ceNeTneSs
iu Mr. Blg0l'S picture, and | am sure that when II
comes down To- It's proper place upon the line, II VIII
DE fortunate 10 meet with many who will enjoy its
nature and It, humOr. Mr. BacOn'S facility stands in
MS wy It's "A most dangerous gift IN Idrls, where
The temptations To try to work quickly and deX-
ttIausy once 20 handle the masters style without
th" masters study are very strong nut tlel many
Try @ uis VINO have MT the facility Of Mr. Bacon
which makes worse result.
must leave the other Americans, Mr.. Frank n.
Smith, VI. /. B. Mayer, and Mr. May until my
next l,tie-, and many painter and many picture
beside c. c.
THE LONDON EXHIBITION.
IoSuoN, Nay What greater contrast than be-
tween the French Salon and the Exhibition of the
Royal Academy! And the contrast is as great be-
tween he two sets Of spectators between the two
collections of pictures Strange it may seem,
find the English crowd much the gayer and more
animated Of the two. Perhaps this may be partly
owing the fact that in consequence of the smaller
size of the rooms as well as their fewer number the
buzz Of talk in the English galleries is more conccn-
tratcd than i'm the French, where, except on Sundays
no matter how many people be collected, there is
never an uncomfortable crowd. in the Royal Acad-
cmv. however. every day, after . o'clock, there is
srch crush rs to render circulation a matter of
difficulty After that hour seeing the pictures well
is lust impossible. The English people are much
more considerate than the French in these matters
and do not push and take advantage Of weakness or
OF roiteness as their theoretically potter neighboTs
do but bodies are bodies. and especially English
bodies, and there are only so many square feet of
inclastc space and when the bodies are out of all
proportion TO the space, what is to be dOnef
You may have the best viii in the world you may
De as unwilling as you ought 10 be- TO squeeze your
way past people who cannot move, to tread upon
cOrns 70 stand between placid old ladies OF pretty
young ones and pictures that they think so nice or
" so sweet hut if You would move at all, you must
move as vou can. and in the ROYAL Academy rooms
there is but one way. Wedgcd in this crowd, and
slowly moving wedge-wise and edge-wise, you
hear all the comments, all the criticisms, all the
smalltalk and after some hours of it, weary hours,
too at the best You get to feel at home among this
frank good-natured people The French Salon is, as
have said too big ever to be crowded, and the
French have a singularly quiet, undemOnstratiYe
way Of compOting themselves in places of this sort
which gives rather lonely airto the vast buiding-
the Louvre Versailles and this Paas de InduStrie,
where they heap their treasures together. Out in
the open air in parks and gardens in the streets at
the thcaers the French full Of talk and laughter,
but a. they pass in troops through rooms crowded
with pictures statues and objects of art they seem
fo lose their tongues and keep themselves to them
selves. As for the average intellectual character OF
the two sets Of spectators the French and the
English. there certainly does not appear to be
much choice between them. The French are Just as
much taken with the poorest pictures in their GAL
eres as the English with the poorest IN theirs
The kind of picture that has most charms for the
English audience has no charms at all for the French;
The converse is not always strictly true. suppose
tior work by GGrOme OF MessOnnier, or COurbet, or
Bougucrraau or Merle would give great pleasure to
English folk: but the religious, the domestic, the
roodv" pictures which move great numbers OF eX-
,ecnt people here to admiration, would make no
impression at all upon the unleaIned across the
.hanuel and would excite only contempt IN the
bosoms of the learned there. This contempt would
not be ust;fabe in all cases, but in most OF them,
IL certainly would and il is result Of the teach
ing that art should have a religious or moral ann
that so many English painters have set themselves
10 the task OF painting pictures of the sort allnde
to. pictures which grow out Of their own contracted
clgous ideas and appeal to the contracted renglous
idr..s OF those who delight in them.
There is no doubt, much foundation for the gen
erli notion that the French know much more about