New-York tribune., 1878-05-11
FINE ARTS.
NATIONAL ACADEMY OF DESIGN.
FIPTY-THIRD ANNUAL EXHIBITION.

the exhibition which, II we believed theH u'ios' '
be cassed under the head of ideal or poeneal None
n, these are very exhilarating TO the fancy
nor very encouraging TO the critical DoSe-
neses who are out with their lanterns III
search OF poets; H. haply in this land OF ours such
may be found Few they are however they deserve
chapter TO themselves as mueh certainly, as those
snakes Of which the historian OF Iceland proposed to
treat And II even we have in TO writo there
are no poets In the Academy" we shall, at least nave
proved our good WILL aud that cover was placed ior
them In case they had arrived.
Yet II ali the critics say. and all that Mr. John La
Farges friends true. should certainly nave
I'm this artist not only poet but poet the ike OF who
is hardly he found In this age OF ours ohe en'hu
saste gentleman assures us that Mr. la Fargo Is the
greatest of living artists" Another enthusiastic gentle
man lin ;pottlcOats this one) avo"s that He
has Lost all confidence in the critical opinions
OF some newspaper writer or other ever
since that person guped little in the welneaht en-
deayor 10 obge his friends by swallowing MI La farge
whole And in fact there small but very vigorous
circe-a clique II might he called, II one were not 100
eoodnatured-that has set up this artist as an RShec
touchstone by which they propose instantly and nia
bly, to distinguish true lovers OF art from mere pre-
tenders.
All this is an old story OF artists and their worship
pers and these woudbe friends will do but little harm
40 long as they do not persuade the artist himself TO
be of their party. But TO judge by the pictures whch
Mr. La Fargo has condescended to sehd 10
this years exhibition his friends do certainly hceu
20 he warned that their lavish and undiscrimhatlng
euIooes NAV some day make m forget what Is due TO
his reputation. 1t would be dangerous triimg with
that reputation wero he exhibit another year three
such travostes of invention. drawing color as TINS
"Hillside study" No 27l; "A Bather," No. 800; and
"AndrOmeda" No. 617.
The Hillside study is called study but what can
IL be study OH Certainly not OF anything In Daturc
one can best epomize its demerits by parodylng Mas
ter Stephens parody of Sidney in Jonsons play;
oh sky, no sky, but blue in solid slices!
on trees no trees who eyf5 ITi tss3 sG ee nea
No one of Mr.. La Farges pictures in this exhibition
vould have right 10 complain of disrespectfu treat
ent but Of all the three this Hillside study shows
either the most assurance the most unconselousness
Assurance We should certainly call it, were 1t the work
of hand unknown to u.s. but in the case OF
Mr.. La Fargo it only be attributed to un-
consciousness that picture so empty OF every
quality nay positive in its defects and those of every
sort should be shown to the public with his name
attached to IT, OF do not learn by means OF
this performance for the first time, that Mr. La Fargo
cannot draw the human figure. His admirers, even,
some Of them at least cOnccde it, but count
It, il not q positive merit, at least We
NAL fault His great power Of imagination, they say,
his power Of color his this that the other surprising
excellence makes this inability TO draw, not alone the
human figure, but any member OF il, mere matter OF
mOOushlne Well, grant 1t might be go. We are
often put off in these days with faultess drawing and
with impeccable perspective, when ask for
ideas, for Imagination, for fancy, for feelng-f0r
any one Of the things, in short that
picture must have be picture. And Mr. La Fargo
could give these things any one OF them he might
arrange his bones and muscles TO suit himself, just as
great men done IN all times and ages But we can
not admit that Mr. La Fargo has either imagina-
ton, or fancy, power Of color, or feeling, In
any such measure to give him the right to be
Indifferent TO these tithes Of mint and eummin What
his admirers insist our accepting as lmagina-
tive cannot to rate higher than groesque
witness his Bishop HattO in the Rattower." his
Pied Piper OF Hanelin," his "WolfTamer," and his
Fisherman and the Genius (frOm the Arabian Nights
Observation-Disclosures that do not grow finer with
enlarged experience but seem less and less as we
become intimately acquainted with the works OF
the greatest men.
This argument would be superhous If it we're not for
the arrogancy of the claims put forth in behalf
OF this artist by his few admirers whO few as they are
have power to make themselves heard great way We
have never been unwilling to give Mr.. La Fargo all
that we have believed to be justly his due, but
in those days must mildly protest against the in
Justice that is done to tho artist himself by
the exravagant audation that is being heaped upon
him. Two three years we stood up almost alone
in defence OF landscape by this artist t Paradise
Newport y In the Academy exhibition which one OF the
Journals that can hardly find wogs strong enough
10 praise his unfortunate contributions Of this
year brutaly stiematized as "a green map
for which the artist had the lmpudence TO
charge $1,000" The picture was soon after
sold for the full demanded by the artist and was
well worth the money. 1t was a learned wellpainted,
and thoroughly honest picture, OF the few works
ever exhibited by Mr. La Fargo that have come near to
iustifyng the euOgcs Of his friends But 1t was GER
tany not imaginative work Its charm consisted In
its being tender loving decatcly enjoyed, portrait OF
a beautiful scene.
We must look at Mr.. La FarGes other pieces on these
walls how is II possible 10 treat them seriously
What ia this Bather" doing The matter-offact
spectator sees a heavy-lmbed young woman standing
on what he may suppose from the printed title of the
picture to be beach; and looking down with solld
indifference at her sore toe. There is no grace In
her attitude; nor, indeed. can che be fairly
said to have any attitude. She is simply
standing stuck up in the middle OF the with her
arms hanging at her side. Tho drawing OF the trunk
and limbs Of hands of the feet of the head is OF
that hesating quality with which Mr.. La Fargo has
made familiar in his drawings ON the block, and
which seems TO grow worse and ever worse
with growing time. The only portion OF the
drawing that is not hesitatinP is the drawing OF the
girls sore toe. This though unnecessarily realistic, is
well done, and glad can find anything in the
picture TO praise The color Of the little work is not In
any way delightful. The hard blue OF the Bather's
pojaa brought into any relation with the land
scape and the drapery. whimsically opaque in some
places and transparent in Others is very pOtty in its
effect.
The last Of these three pictures the "Andromeda" is
without any at all for being Its the most child
ish and unhandsome treatment OF this romantic subject
we have ever seen. Here if nowhere else, wo admit
Mr. La FarSc's entire originality, do we think any
one will care TO dispute it with him. Here is our
"Bather" again, the same heavy-limbed young
woman With her last garment nearly twitched
of, and clinqDg like limpet, In des-
peration of fear at something, to an i'm
possible rock The monster lis not in sight nor is
Perseus and II schOoboy asked what is the mat
ter with this girl his likely answer would be, Oh,
sunnose some one is going 10 spattcr her because she is