The Portland daily press., 1880-11-29
e. R. THAxrER.
A GREAT CRITICS OPINION OF A
PORTLAND SCULPTOR.


led in clay by young Thaxter some seven or
eighl years ago. and exhibited at Hales gal
lery on Free street. At that time the work of
this young artist, a boy in years, displayed
great promise and was favorably commented
upon Sine then he has resided in Rome
practicing his art, and it was only last Friday
that Mr. Fred Shaw of the Falmouth Hotel,
whose efforts in clay have been from time
to time referred to in terms of praise-spOke
of Thaxters work in Italy when he visited
him, and worked in the same studio with him
last winter and predicted that he was the COM
ing artist. Singularly enough Saturdays
New York Times contains q long article on
Tha xter from the pen of the great American
critic James Jackson Jarves, who writes from
Rome, holding the same opinion as Mr.. Shaw
expressed. Speaking of Mr.. Thaxter's 'Love's
Young Dream" Mr.. Jarves says:
1 will first describe the motive or conception,
and then endeavor to give some idea of its
execution as modelled in clay. The first dream
of love of young maiden is somewhat trite
theme for artist, poet or novelist in itself;
but so is, perhaps, every idea that enters the
imagination of romancer in any material.
There is no newsthought under the sun, but
there is scope OF infinite variety and originality
in the execution of any old and familiar
thought. And this is the striking merit of
this group, which unites refinement, delcacy,
purity, and gracefulness of idea and modelling
wi tn freshness of pose, action, and grouping
tn at constitutes it not merely an original work
of bes classical feeling, but done in the full
spirit and sympathy OF the nineteenth century
Rsthetically and morally consid-
cred. In looking at it we feel art has gone mp
ward, not toward Olympus, but into fresh,
pure, limpid atmosphere of the natural world
of to-day, spiritually refined and made poeti-
cally human, carrying with it enough of the
8sthetical symbolism of Grecian art and its
devotion to beauty to make its meaning as
clear at first glance las its exceptional lowell
ness of form and movement. A young maiden
just budding into perfect womanhood, of
sweetest, pensive beauty, and that delicate,
blonde conformation and temperament which
disting uishes the finest American type of yir-
gin, with sufficient regularity and play of fea-
lures to escape being generically classical and
to be positively individual, with closed,
dreamy eyes, and limbs relaxed in gentle half
slumber, visions of undefnab'e
happiness, thrilling and giving indescribable
languid, lot voluptuous, grace of sinuous life
to her body and limbs, is seen rising from a
bed of roses and flowers, some of which still
cling to her limbs, reluctant to let her go, eand
partially hide one foot. She floats upward as
lightly as an air bubble, like a soul escaping
from its prison house of flesh, with gentle,
and downward between her raised and crossed
beautiful arms, which form framework for
it, like birds nest in ia sheltered niche, her
light tresses, agitated by the upward motion,
tossing and ripping over her shoulders and
breast. Resting on the back of her head is the
prettiest baby Cupid fancy ever conceived;
little 2'year-od darling, with the shrewdest,
brightest, liveliest features, in which inno-
cence and mischief are equally balanced and
and sparkling joy now predominating
He is rising skyward, too, but wide-awake and
for with one hand he lifts ON high
the end of the net, the other dimpled arm
clasping it to his breast, with which he has
caught up and entangled the sleeping maiden,
and which Grapes itself like flowing stream
down her back and round her legs in gentle
folds, adding grace and movement to the con-
tours and upward action. All the lines and
gradations of curves are beautifully felt and
carried out without any tour de force, giving
an undulating, ascending movement full of
repose, to the flexible, impassive form
Of the virgin, intoxicated with her sweet con-
ceits, which contrasts deliciously with the spir-
ltual spring OF the Cupid as he scars aloft with
his lovely prey. His pose and position suggest
thought. They portray the exhil-
arating sense OF the unanalyZable happiness
which floats in the brain of maiden as she
feels the first throbbings of chaste loves imag-
innings and OSCILLATIONS of joy without ques-
tioning, and abandons herself to the pleasant
dream. 1t is not pagan sentiment not renais-
saint, but emphatically modern and naturalis-
tic, put into clay symbolism veritable work
of art, which fulflls, in its plane of invention
of delicate, poetical fancy, the highest condi-
tons OF creative thought and original express
sion.
But little remains to be done to complete the
model ready for casting in plaster. to await
buyers commission to put into marble. Who
ever secures it, if the cutting correspond to the
perfection OF the modelling, will secure mas
ter-plece OF american sculpture, and by far
the finest ideal statue that has ever gone to
America; beyond, in exquisite conception and
treatment, anything l know of modern Euro
pean sculpture. This is enthusiastic praise, hut
stand by my words, and all the more ioyfully
that the genius here shown is that of modest
art-inocuated son of Maine, from Portland, %
years old only. E. Il. Thaxter by name, who, it
seems. from infancy up has been possessed by
a passion OF art-invention, which, amid much
and want of means, has at
last led him to the material accomplishment of
the above idea, which for two years has been
brooding in his mind.
The scope of his genius-I use the term
in the sense of an innate creative
art faculty, which indicates commingling of
the pure, classical, renaissant and modern ele-
menfs into fresh, harmonious forms-is varied
and characterized by simplicity and force, as
well as keen sense of the beautiful. What
Thaxter may succeed in doing in the maturity
of his powers and experience, remains to be
seen. But the indications of new strong ar
tist do not rest solely on his cloves First
Dream" There is portrait bust of youth
which recalls Donatello's feeling for simple
rifles, which, for graphic realism and express
sion, the apotheosis of decrepit ugliness. would
have charmed Miss Cushman; while for grace
full ornamentation, his large terra-cotta vase,
modelled for pottery company in Maine shows
a fine appreciation of classical forms and orna-
mo ntafiO huf M GU n
and composition. This tall vase-I judge by
its photograph-waS lost in Maine, where
there are so few to appreciate its exquisite
form, and reliefs, with the spirit
and elegance of those Bacchanti that dance
around its lower part in rhythmic joy. the
nesting loves amid the vines, and the refined
opposite details of every part, put toget er
with an elegance taste, and instinct for classi-
cal art that would have made him famous in
Paris, Rome, or Berlin, at one bound. What
there may be to amend in any of his work l
have SEEM is in little matters, that increasing
experience in his profession will of itself rec
tify.
Comparing Mr.. Thaxters work with that
the great American sculptor Horatio Green
ough Mr.. Jarves says
Such is the caprice of Dame Nature in these
subtle matters, raw lad reared on the wild
coast of Maine, out of sight and hearing of all
art, by sheer force of intuitive inspiration and
will, in brief moment, places, as it were.
in perfected accomplishment, centuries of
distance between himself and Horatio
Greenough.
Thaxter, too, shows himself quite capable of
contesting with the clever Italians their SUI
premacy in the present run of mere "pot boil
ers,' or those subjects which best suit the
ephemeral taste of the day in what may be
called picture-sculpture,t the motive being more
adapted to the former than the latter art. He
has little group consisting of young miss
of 6 or years of age, who has her pet kitten
held fast to her b east with one arm while the
other hand is boxing her ears for having over
turned birds nest in the bushes at her side
and killed the mother bird. The expression of
angry, pathetic humanity in the childs face,
and the shrinking, guilty., partly humble and
party ferocioussf bok of the cat as he receives
the blows. and all the little details are admir-
able and full of spirit; not fluttering away into
mock sentiment and mere dexterity of cutting,
as is usually the case in this species of sculp-
ture. But Mr.. Thaxter's countrymen should
see to it that in future he has motives to work
out that will try his full strength and do him
and his country greatest honor.
1t would be grand thing if the namesakes
of the young artist, the Thaxter heirs, should
permit the old City Building to be removed !;
that the city should sod the enclosure and
place around it neat iron fence; and that the
money contributed for soldiers monument
should be given to this Portland boy to exc
cute handsome memorial of our defenders,