New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1878-02-09
THE WATER-COLOR SOCIETY
EXHIBITION AT THE ACADEMY.


patton. This seems to us new and not very In
telgent way Of looking at the matter. We had sup
posed but this came be- from our want OF ilumina
ton lack OF poetic cairvoyance that the serious
ness of any occupation lay the intention, in the thought
that at the bottom. and IL that were earnest
then the material employed was matter OF less
moment. We should have said that head OF Jupiter,
cut a Greek gen. might have much OF the MIND OF
PhIdias in it, as II 1t were colossus made Of gold and
ivory by the sculptor Some little terrac0a figures
from Tanagra in BGotia lately discovered are so charm
attitude and exprf and are colored with such
delicate taste that they give us new Idea OF antique
sculpture and silence the directors to the theory
that the Greeks, q cultivated people, could ever
painted their statues But why give illustrations
OF fact SO well knSwni Size is nothing material Is
nothing; the creative imagination can WORK on what
form OF matter, within what bounds. 1t WILL Be
Sides waer-color painting to come back to that, Is
OF tile oldest forms of art 10 modern times, to reckon
whole modern. FrescO-paintng Is waterc0or
painting pure and simple and frescopainting is the
medium by which some Of the greatest minds that ever
worked in art have expressed themselves. Michael
Angelo indeed reported to have said that opainting
was for women and Children not for men, but, when
the tine came found that they could
express manly thoughts as well IN oil as their
predecessors had done In watercolor Let an artist have
something serious and he 1t In whatever
baud. II, these days, watercoor Is not as
serious would have it, 1t is surely the fault OF these
VINO IT, or rather who misuse it, practical reason
why il should indeed be looked upon as a serious
medium IL. that IL IS one OF the most permanent.
Good water color painting nearly imperishabe The
and become part OF the paper and they
fade yey llttlc even after to the light for
long time. or course, If oil painting were done with
the and conscientious thoroughness employed by
old Flemish painters, it also might be recommended
for its permanence. But whatever may be the practice
of artists to-day there long time when there was
~ and
has paid for this careessness in the loss by cracking
chilling and fading OF many q first-rate piece OF
work Turner's oil pictures have for the most part sur
fered greatly by time, while his watercolor drawings
are almost undmmed in their cheerful loneliness Tur-
ner, by the way, is reckoned serious man, and he
seems not found w9orcoor painting hindrance
to his seriousness.
pleasant feature OF the present watercoor EXHIBITION
il the unanimy with which the artists have abandoned
the use OF body-color year or two ago, bodycolor
was the rule, and the best men-Mr. Samuel C0lan Mr.
Louis Tiffany. chief among them-Tere making Their
drawings look like oil mInus the transparency
and ms little like wateroolor they could conriye. This
year. with few exceptions they have all returned to pure
watercoor and, to eyes the general character OF
the exhibition Is much improved by the change.
Mr. Samuel COman in his drawings in the present eXh-
bon hardly makes OF body color ut all MS Ia
thcdral Qnimger" in pure wateicolo and by this
change in his method OF working. almost more than by
his choice OF subject IN certain OF MS uId"Sr, NC PuS
those Of us In the wrong who in him artist COM
m;ed almost hopelessly 10 follow road forever.
Mr. Louis Tiffany too, IN his "Cobbers Of Agiers, has
secured lumnousness and transparency by the use OF
watcr-cOOr alone.
II we were little unjust the other day in what we
said about the Corridor less fault than that
of the Hanging Committee There are. 1t Is true, fewer
downright vulgar drawings IN the exhibition this year
than usual. but those few 20 great way. and do
a nm suchp nil ce "a Wallace
SCOTS Love Me- Love Ny Dog" Is enough to spoil
whole side OF q room. and does In TACT,
make It difficult 10 ENJOY tho few delicate
drawings that hang near 1t. IL IL, indeed,
much easier love the dog In this particular instance
than TO love the lady, but could be- happy H. to use
an Irish bull old Chauccr we bad the absence OF
either dog lady. When we see such iow4iown pic
turc as this such caricature OF caricature as Mr.
Pcases owl Train. " No BSi. or Ir 4. A. Andersons
Garden in Seville" No. 22l, we wonder what the
Hanging Committee. the Committee OF Control would
be at that they should accept things 50 conspcuously
vulgar and hang them where their vugarity will do the
most harm. For picture like this OF Mr.. Anderson'S
does more at first sight vugarze the IL hangs IN
than a drawing like SIR klingwOrth Johnsons, The
New Rins" or Mr. Edward Tofany's THE Revcric,"
can do elevate It, The good work hides. aud has to he
discovered the bad work Is loud and will not leave
II. alone. However, whatever may be the reason
whether fewer vulgar pictures sent this year. or
more rejected, true il Is that there has not been
an exhibition for many years 40 devoid Of offence
IN this respect the present one. We shall not how
ever be able to report entirely clean bill OF health
until the Hanging Committee are empowered to reject
all drawings, matter by whom contributed, that are
not Worthy to be admitted. Mere membership ougGt
not to insure immunity from rejection 20 far as adj
mission to the walls goes. all contributions ought to be
on an equa lily. Why should the public be
obliged to look at Mr. William Wallace SCOTS draw
ings whether Il wants TO sce 1t or no., simply be
cause he ia a member We know. gentlemen, that
YOU have reformed these matters ndl1erently but We
may you 20 reform them altogether Then
there Is another why the corridor gets
worse name year than IT altogether deserves. ana
this u.s. that IL Is hung with little discretion We heard
a lady say. who studying the drawings IN the corn
dor One would hardly think the Society OF Decorative
Art had been here latey-ihcre Is no trace OF any
decorative skill in the In which these walls are ar
ranged" And this Is certainly true. All the coarse,
bold, crude pictures are brought c)nspc
uousy to the front and small delicate pieces. OF which
there many this year. saudwiched between ana
Embedded among them in the most ineffective way
What good hanging do to bring out the beauties oil
pictures and 10 make a wall look rich may be seen any
day at our Metropolitan Museum. where Inc
curator Mr. IIutehings. has hung two walls OF
one of the rooms with the finest OF tho old pictures that
belong TO the Museum and with others that on oan
and produced decorative effect that enhances as well
| the .individual merits OF the pictures But here
In the present exhibition, just the opposite has
been done. There is only very uniecoraiiNc
shabbiress produced, and many OF the best draw
ings are swamped by their Ill neighborhood
Who In this confusion enjoy as they deserve such
delicate drawings ms Mr.. Henry Farrcrs "Moonrlse,
Long Island Sound" No $685. though some one has spied
IL out and bought 1t the same artists Becaihlci
Long Island Sound" No. 1913, or Mr. H. NJ shurtleirs
Breezy Day" No. 800 Mr.. L. Hopkinson
Smiths Woodstock Valley" No. Az, or Mr.
G. p Cranch's In the TIarbor OF Venice
40. 39S-this not among the delicate WORKS. but AMI
mated and glowing in color. orbut these are IN better
light and In the midst OF less affecting surroundings
| NJ. Lln