The Portland daily press., 1877-06-18
Art Gossip.
Pictures and Statues, Ancient aud Modern.

Mr.. q. Il. Grant is engaged on large land
scape and figure subject, commission to 90 to
| London. The commission came from the pUr-
chaser having seen "Amy Wentworth" at the
| late Boston art exhibition.
Mr. George L. Brown is just now engaged on
a view of Capri, a commission which will not
be shown out of his studio On the summit n
fine view of the ruin of the villa of Tiberius
Cesar is represented, and lower down the vii
lage of Capri and the almost perpendicular
| ledge OF red sandstone, which catches the light
IN way that delights Mr.. Browns eye for
| strong color.
| NJ. Vioilet-le-Duc writes from Milan to the
journal des Debats 81 have been distressed at
my visit to Sante Maria delle Graza to see tho
fresco OF Leonardo da Vinci completely disfg-
ured by restoratons. The three apostles at the
end OF the table, on the right of Christ, have
been entirely repainted. And then, this fine
| painting is in its last stage of decay The wall
is incurably damp, and the plaster flakes off in
small pieces, which gradually become larger
1t Is many years since l saw the Cenacolo, but
from what remains it appears to me that Nor
ghen's engraving is singularly wanting in the
greatness, action and expression of the orig
| inal.'
The saint Jedn-Baptiste" of Henner is
simply a head upon metal platter-rendered
with horrible reality. 1t might be called Dor,
trait in nature nlorte, since one of the leading
Partisan merchants was oblging enough to
serve as model. He refused at first, but his
wife. having in mind probably the youthful and
admirable representations Of the Saint by the
| old masters, persuaded him to change his deci-
| sion. He evaded all her inquiries as the work
| progressed, but when it was finished she was
allowed to see it. Scarcely was the curtain
| drawn from before it, than the shock of this
dreadful and unexpected apparition, bearing
the exact features of her husband, caused her
| to fall, fainting, to the floor.
NJ. ID. Conway, in his last letter to the Gin
cinnati Commercial, describes G. +. Watts
picture, death and Love" which he calls the
best in the Royal Academy exhibition: "He
who looks on this picture looks as il through a
pane in mans breast. To door where Just
now roses were climbing and doves nesting the
great white-draped form of Death has ap-
preached. We do not see the face of Death,
his back is toward us, and we only see that he
Is giant whose heavy foot is planted on the
doorstep, his pallld, powerful arm stretched out
till his hand rests on the door that must open
to him. Already torn and fallen branch Of
an outer climbing.rose marks where has passed
the power that spares no beauty, and near his
feet crouches poor dove with torn feathers
one dove alone. AT the door Love has planted
himself to defend the entrance-a slender, max.
ed boy, as 1t might be of thirteen or fourteen
| summers One slender arm is strained against
| the giants breast, another small hand is thrown
back over the shoulder. as if to try and clutch
| the door, which Deaths hand has reached over
his tLove's) head. In the struggle the wings of
l Love have become a many-cOlored tangle of
broken feathers. But it is the face of the boy
that is most pathetic. Amid the struggle he
gazes up into the face of his dread antagonist
with an expression blended of fear and piteous
anguish. There is also look of the exhaustion
OF strength and the last pleading for mercy.
The head OF Death is gently inclined down
| ward toward that of Love, but the form stands
hrm as marble; the outstretched arm is inexor-
able. 1t is pleasing harmony that is awak-
ened when one, turning from this picture,
catches sight of Mr.. BurnJones's Spes,' on the
i opposite wall. Hope-a beautiful woman, with
bright, sprlngtide raiment-is imprisoned in
dungeon, and we see her against background
| OF iron grating. But Hope bears in one hand
| stem OF white lilies all in bloom, and with the
| other hand she has reached up to heaven and
drawn it down into her prison. All around her
are the hard walls and iron gratings of her dun
| geoD, but her happy eyes are turned to its cell
ing-that is pure blue sky
The excavations at Olympia in Greece, under
the patronage of the German Government, are
still continued, and still repay the labor and ex-
pense. The trenches which are dug In all di-
rectons about the Zeus Temple reveal number
of old walls and a terrace supposed TO have
been part OF the sub-Structure of the eleven
treasure chambers has been uncovered Be-
tween two parallel walls marble base and fe-
male Roman figure have been found the figure
resem bling the statue of Livia in the Neapoli-
| tan Museum, the head being well preserved
| and having traces of color in the hair and eyes
another Roman structure has been uncovered
WIN frontage OF eleven hundred and forty
ieet and depth OF three hundred feet and q
| large addition In the rear. The building con-
tanned many sculptures in a more or less in
| lured condition: among these are conspicuous
fourteen marble statues larger than lffe-sixs,
| eight OF them being female figures, mainly
matrons, few youthful figures and little
| girl. One of the male figures is the statue of
an emperor clad in richly-decorated armor; his
armsoearer is near by, also palm tree with
one branch; three other figures wear the toga,
and the sixth is that of a lad wearing mantle.
From Inscriptions it appears that the statues of
| Faustna the younger, wife Of Marcus Aurelius,
aud OF her son Commodus and his sister, were
| placed here by Herodes Atticus. Herodes
seems to have built the great hall on the high
| bank OF the Kronion river, affording fine
view of the entire Altis, or Grove of Zeus, in
which to group the members of the reigning dy-
| nasty as votive Offering. Other members of
| the imperial family and of the house of Herodes
were afterward added IN token of their graft
| tude BY the Elians. Although they are only
portrait statues. the fourteen figures are none
the less works OF art in every respect. The By
| zantine Church or Hippodameion, the dscoy-
| cry of which has already been annouced, has
been completely freed from the surrounding
| and superintendent earth, and a well-con
structed aqueduct surrounding it on three sides
has been exposed to view, with here and there
outlets for the water. This acqueduct is sup
posed to be OF more antique ori gin than the
church. The Inscriptions and articles of bronze
found are few and of no great Importance.
Among them are an antique griffin, group of
| seven nude female figures, lance heads, ETC.
Another statue has been found; it is youthful
Hermes holding baby Bacchus on his left
arm, and is probably the work Of Praxiteles.
The right arm of Hermes and both legs below
the knee are gone, as also is the upper part of
the boys body except the head.
Mr.. G. ID. Warner, in the Hartford Courant
| writes concerning the Halleck and Scott stat
ues in Central Park, "Of the fast accommodating
statuary of the park. one should speak with
caution Anglo-Saxon parks and cities are
| evidently nohgood places to grow statues. The
latest addition, about which there was throng
| of gazers on Sunday, is the statue of Halleck.
| 1t is worthy of wondering observation There
| is probably nothing worse in all London. The
| figure is seated in a chair with antique legs
much too small to accommodate it; and the legs
of the statue, one thrown over the other, pro-
ject in front of the pedestal, and will probably
some day drop off. The figure has somewhat
| the appearance of being tied into the small
chair by 8, piece of the drspery; this drapery is
| somehow hung in the rear of the figure for a
| sort of background, and falls in angles which
correspond with the sharp angles Of the statue.
| How Mr.. Halleck's head was set upon his
shoulders we do not know, but we judge from
this statue that it was screwed on. 1t ought to
be unscrewed now and then, to give it rest
l 1t looks little like the stopper of bottle.
The long neck is garroted with a tight ban
dsge surmounted by a standing collar, so that
the head can never change its position. The
idea that the face is upturned to catch inspira-
tion is destroyed by the mechanical fact that
| the bandage about the neck is drawn so tight
as to render any other position impossible Mr..
Halleck is not looking up of his own free will
by any means; and the right hand, thrown
| down at his side aud backward, grasping pen
which is ready to record the inspiration caught,
suggests the agony of the choking LAGOON. IL
stands near the Walter Scott, and not far from
| Wards Shakespeare which is perpetual de-
| light for its refinement, dignity and repose.