New-York tribune., 1873-06-14
FINE ARTS.
PICTuREs IN PARIS.

THE SALON or 1873 COMP ARIsoNs WITH EXHIBITIONS
OF FORMER YEARs--YoUNG ARTIsrs-HlSrORICAL
PAINTINGS.
sFR0os THE REGULAR CORRESPONDENT OF THE TRIBUNE.l
PARIS, May THE Salon of 1878 opened day
before yesterday Descriptions OF pictures are for the
most part like descriptions or battles-equay intei
,yiple and entertaining. Whether for lay writer,
eshetcs or strategy is the easier theme is hard 10
say Respecting this Salon, however even to those who
cannot visit IT, facts mostly OF the material order,
may be worth noting, and general remark or two be
yentured The opening Of the Salon is always the
event Of the here 1t regarded though with
less absorbing attention than usual this season
Of general and anxious political agitation from whchfor
the rest IL offers partial relief II you take some wise
conservative, Legitmist Bonapartist paper TO your
breakfast and read there that all the world is IN con
stenstOn and sadness by reason OF BarOdes eeclon'
that for the reason hundreds OF thousands I"e
UniOH prints 100000 iutcligcnuy alarmed oi tie sup
rior classes have left Paris that travelling TRUNKS "o a.
premium, You twill he surprised, when louhslS i"'
the Palais de FIndlsrie at the difficulty you nave III
working your way through the crowds gathered 'hcFo
about the good pictures OF these tnero arc iu""9 a.
usual; although almost any one' coming ouV iIOn '"
hrst VISIT will tell YOU as usual what you will agree TO-
that this inferior former Salons In sense TINS Is
true though not in the you are thinking OF al the
moment: and the inference IT, many do, You straight
way draw It, that French art is sop the decline is drawn
astray from carelcssly surveyed premises
The first impression, frOm a necessarily rapid and SO
fnpercc survey 500 pictures, needs TO be guarded
against for several reasons At first view bad can
vas especially If glarngy bad and defects or faults IN
good one especially garine, III the eye and draw at
entiOu as much as good one. The gencrazed impress
sion then besides being confused somewhat is likely TO
I've unavorabe and particularly unfair. The black sheep
discolOr the flock One in hundred OF Americans who
now come abroad in shoals, IS batanty noisy, preten
touS iueradcably foolish aud offensive Hence there is
disar ab inn i'm Whi
arc becoming vulgary held by Europeans not more nor
less than the vulgar American estimate OF
cheating Italians, vain Frenchmen gross Germans and
brutaIy proud overbeanng Englishmen.
The Od.hand comparison made between the actual and
preceding annual exhibitions to the disadvantage Of the
actual one. comparison that have constantly heard
made about opening day, with the conclusionde-
gcneracy OF French ar-fOr the last 20 years. IL is
surely uufara in addition TO others, to encour
age hope that mistaken In conclusion. When that
promising young artist Zone Of the several thousand
whose cOored in frame had been rejected by the
Jury Of admssou lie Vert de Ia Croute presented to
me with the ready made conclusion, could but guess
that both unfit The comparison he, and moro pre-
tentious critical grumblcrs, really though uncon-
sciousy making not between the Exposition of this
year. which they had just through, and tho Expo
ston Of the last late year, but between their
incompletey studied general view Of TINS one
Salon. and the choice masterpieces OF the last half
temptation, had been sudiousy appreciated and hung
SOW select in the gallery Of their memory.
As 20 the Salon OF 1873, am afraid that 10 is and Will
keep true that IL shows no high crowning. eXcep
dona masterpiece, that Is among the contributions OF
young painters There for instance, painting
30 attractive Of surprise and admiration poor young
Reguaults Salome done in 1870 But, by counter
instance, could the taste and comprehension for old
Corots pOecoreastic landscapes have been cultivated
without his examples aid and now, tins work of his
with the mastery Of which he has long since made
familiar first exhibited, il would be- II not the warm
BY acclaimed triumph OF this year, the starting point Of
comparison against all poetic landscapes OF the next
ten years.
Ola very different kind is "The Darkness Of the
Sixth Hour" Elrths TrUulatiOn, the sympathy of
the very Elements in the great moment Of the Tragedy
Of Humanity enacted Calvary, by Gustaye DJr6.
We have had oyemuchO DOT6 OyermUch OF his bOOkse
and Of his enteIprsiug star exhibitors. wofully
overmuch OF his mercantile shrewdness and accompany
ing ameutably fertile commercial prOductiveness But
after aand specially notable is this, before all hdt
Gustaye Dor6 truly and rests stil an artist Now
had this Darkness OF the Sixth Hour" been but the
second third Of ms appearances at the Salon. instead
OF being the latest would rank high revelation OF
new genius With exception. however and that fora
entirely distinct merit Of characteristic expression in the
personal Of the Novice and the Old Monks in the
salon OF 1862 thereabOut This is past all compar
son with his previous efforts the highest best result Of
to-day from amateurs or from cOnnosseurs Dor6 mas
worn out his early admirers.
Milct Baudry, Diaz, Fromentin, G6rome, and halta-
dozeuln0re OF the best aud best known, by accidental
specimens Of their capacity in America do not at all
present themselves in this years Salon. American art
lists do not hold large place this year as they did
last The jury admission supposed 10 have beeneX
ctptonay May in bis admirable speciality az por
trait artist aud by accepted rank hgher order OF design
Igham Bacon with cloverncss in genre recognized 10y
the French; a Miss Tombns who has sent in her pecu
liarIv disagrecabe uucOnmOnly able" portraits, and
several other American painters mold their places on the
walls not needing TO fear their French rivals.
The Salo OF is exceptionally aCroeaby free
from official and histOrcO-mlitdry painted panoamas
Instead Of our imperial full dozen twO have
but one strictly official tableau Il s not very bad. The
ordinarily wofu waste of what passes for
Historic" battlefield painting, is agreoaby restricted
pupil of WAN has committed a bad decoration Of an
disappointed tbeater which he chooses to style the Bat
tie of Wissembourg Although pupil Of WAN, this is
inexcusable. For lesser episodes OF the late war
there arc admirable paintings, equally admirable for
their artistic as for their historic fidelity. W. H. H.
LOCAL SKETCHES.