The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1871-04-28

The Fine Arts.
Every now and then the interest La good
pictures revives. 1t is the same with litera,
ture. When food tide Of good books-or
even bad books, if they be only favored with
little sensation and dellcately sprinkled. with
vice-comes from the publishers presses the
public mind wakens up at once to book read
ing. So also when few meritorious collec-
tions Of pictures are put into the market the
thirst to possess few of the gems becomes
strong among people who have taste enough
to appreciate and money enough to purchase
them. The recent sale at the Somerville Art
Gallery is case in point. At two evenings,
sales collection which realized certainly not
less than sixty thousand dollars was disposed
of by the auctioneer. We will not say that
all these works were gems of the first water,
nor that many of them did not bring prices in
advance of their value; but, then, they came
guaranteed by the good name of the con-
signers, the two leading firms in the picture
business in the city; and, again, they had
been long enough on exhibition to enable con-
nosseurs to form judgment as to their merit.
1t is pity, however, that the two best
pictures in the collection should have been
carried off to Philadelphia-Ros Bon
hours Highland Sheep" which sold
for five thousand five hundred dollars,
and an exquisite gem by Alfred Stevens. Of
Paris, which was sacrificed at two thousand
five hundred dollars. They were both pur-
chased by Philadelphia gentlemen. We only
hope that their light will not be hid under a
bushel when they get to the City Of Brotherly
Love.
We cannot help being gratiied at the evil
dence of growing interest in art furnished by
sion referred to. 1t represented much of the
cultivation as well as the wealth of the city, to
say nothing Of those who came from surround
ing cities and our suburban neighborhood.
The bidding on the pictures was most liberal,
sufficiently so, we think, to satisfy the artists
and the owners. In proportion as the taste Of
the people for all that is good and genuine In
art aourishes among u.s. just SO should all that
is poor and weak and trashy-in fact, every
thing in the shape of picture which is a mere
travesty upon art-be sedulously excluded
from the salesroom. The eye must be edu-
Gated to love art by the frequent presence Of
good models just as the ear is trained to a
perception of splendid music by coming in
contact with the highest class of art by the
best composers.
Our resident artists, having now got pretty
well done with their winters labors in
the studios, are about packing up their
traps for journey toward the bosom
of Nature, in some direction or another.
Let us beseech them to bring us back
something more original than the usual an
nual contribution which we have hitherto re-
ceived as the result of their country excur-
sions. 1t may be said that a landscape is
combined of certain fixed forms-trees, rocks,
rivers waterfalls, bold fairgrounds, dreamy
mid-distances and pellucid vanishing points
and thus originality is not quite possible.
But remember that landscape does not pre-
sent itself to the eyes of any two men alike,
and that the atmnsrhorn -i.Oh, inore than
dull forms, creates and gives life to. a land
scape-is not the same any two days together.
Therefore, we say, let us not have the pictures
of year ago reproduced under different
names, the same in style, the same in thought
and expression. Nature, as she roams aud
frolcs in the country, revels in variety, and
smiles or frowns in fresh features every day.
Let our artists, who must comprehend our
meaning. then, bring back little Of this fine
freshness, this originality of nature, to
brighten their easels and give new stimulus
to the growing public taste for the fine arts.