The Cincinnati daily star. [volume] ([Cincinnati, Ohio]) 1875-1880, 1880-05-27
THE DAILY STAR
BROOKLYN LETTER.

characteristics of the Collection
Mercantile Go-operation and the
Progress Ii is Making i'm the Me-
tr0poiis-An Art RnMOr.~ .rr
Correspondence Of the Star. f'.t's
BROOKLYN, N. Y, May "a, 1880.
Art has its season like everything else,
and when the Trustees of the Brooklyn
Art Association decided to hold their
Spring Exhibition this year at least six
weeks later than usual they made mis-
take, and discovered, when too late, that
picture venders, even connoisseurs, are
capricious, and much more so such OF the
public as at the conclusion of exhibit
tions are won't to step in and reward the
efforts of artists by purchasing pictures.
So, though very good, If not very
noteworthy, collection of paintings has
been hung on the walls of the gallery in
the beautiful stone Art Building in Mon
tague street, it has not been visited by
the wonted throngs during the past
week, the first of the two weeks the gal
lery will be open, though the attendance
has been fair.
The opening and likewise the fortieth
reception took place last Monday even
ing, the 17th, and terribly hot and sui
try night it was; in the gallery the heat
was intensified almost beyond human
endurance by the hundreds of jets Of gas
used for Illuminating purposes, and the
consequence was that the guests, thou
sand or more, paid comparatively little
attention to the pictures, and after a
hurried survey of the exhibits wended
their way to the Academy of Music adjoin.
ing and opening into the Art Building,
where an opportunity was afforded either
to promenade or listen to the music of a
band stationed in the center of the floor
(the parquette had been foored over
hedged in with plants in full bloom.
The heat, however deferred everybody
from putting forth even so slight exer-
ton as is called for in promenading,
and the result was no one ventured upon
the floor, and thus the elegant toilets
worn by many of the ladies failed to re-
c,ive the display they merited.
The exhibition was also marked by a
new departure. Heretofore it has been
the custom to use as an annex gallery in
conjunction with the two galleries in the
Art Building the assembly y rooms of the
Academy of Music, the two buildings
being so constructed that by pushing
back two immense iron sliding doors
they can be thrown together, the assem-
bly, rooms being commodious suite of
apartments in the rear of the auditorium
OF the Academy OF Music. BY this ar
rangement wall space sufficient to ac-
commodate six hundred pictures is af-
forded. But having SO much space to
fll, has sometimes proved an embarrass-
ment to the Hanging Committee who,
when frstrate material was exhausted,
not infrequently found staring them in
the face a considerable amount of bare
wall which for appearance sake they
felt compelled to cover up.
So in lieu of better they have at times
been obliged to make use of mediocre or
worse pictures, very much to their own
disgust and the subsequent disappoint-
ment of the public. This year, to obvi-
ate this difficulty, it was determined to
confine the exhibition to the large and
small galleries Of the Art Building. u.s.
ing the Assembly Rooms in conjunction
with the Academy auditorium simply
for purposes of reception and promenad-
ing. The judiciousness Of the decision
is attested by the improved quality of
the exhibition.
The collection, as whole, is good,
though possessing few novelties and
still fewer pronounced efforts. The
total number of pictures displayed is
261, all in oil, by special resolution of
the trustee. Among the most note
worthy paintings are a spirited marine,
"Ashore at Bridgehampton, L. l., by
M. F. II. DeHaas, in my estimation the
first marine painter in this country;
q purely conceived and poetically-
treated figure piece entitled echo" by
Henry A. Loop; landscape full Of
subtle effects entitled Morning in the
Woods" by A. III. Bryant; a cleverly-
painted portrait by Daniel Huntington
who holdsa place among the best portrai
painters in America; and a still life re-
markable for richness of coloring ant
textile qualities, by George Henry
Hall.
The following artists of National re
pute are also well represented in the col
lection: A. F. Bunner, G. H. McCord
Gilbert Gaul, J. S. Brown, Arthur Par
ton, R. W. Hubbard, T. G. Tiffany
Kruseman Van Elten, s. R. Clifford
George H. Yewell, J. H. Witt, w. L
Sonntag, A. 7. Brecher, J. W. Caselear
and W. Shirlaw. .A.
A novel feature, for Brooklyn at least
Is the illustration of the catalogues witt
facsimiles of pen-and-ink sketches b,
the resident artists of the pictures b,
which they are represented in the Exhi
bition. These illustrations impart to tn
catalogues value other than that which
an ordinary guide-book possesses. Pen
and-ink work, especially when designed