New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1882-11-05

| collection now being dispersed az tho Kirby Auction
Rooms will have spoiled his eyes for the enjoyment OIL
these pieces which are in too many cases. only snowy
In the galleries upstairs the Avery Collection Of ORR
entail Porcelain still rcresIes tIe eye with the eay OF
the wcchosen pieces arranged in sklful way IA to
bring ont all their per'ections Mr. H. Il. Moores
small but very perfect loan Of Japanese
objects charningy supplements Mr., Ayery's moro
splendid disDlay and in tue opposite gallery, the tnse
OF Mrs Avery shown in a collection Of old spoons and
other pieces old which that lady has loaned to
the Museum The most disappointing part Of this au
tumuaIt Inhibition Is the loan collection Of pictures In
which very little TINT Is or interesting aOpears-the
fact being suppose that IL "a precisely in the late a-
tumn ael winter months that owners Of new ana val
liable pictures desire to have their walls.
still there enough pretty pictures OF average merit
to amuse an idle hour. Tho most no
tceabo among the foreign works is perhaps
the Honorius OF NJ j. Paul Laurens, exhibited two
years ago in the Salon. In the treatment OF the drdpe-
res artist slows ability, but the face OF this
swarthy child Of fourteen is without tie interest that
from a study OF character nor IA II well painted
1t Is difficult TO what object 10 be attained by
painting the portrait Of worthless boy Of whom Glib
bon says that "in the cYcntfu history Of a reign Of
twenty eight years It will seldom be necessary to men
ton the Honorius." Nearly all the pictures
loaned have been used to I'LL the walls OF
one OF tho two Western galleries In the
other single row OF Indifferent pictures Is
with tapestries OF great merit, though sufficiently
snowy.
The chief addition TO the OF the Museum is
the large work in faenco by the famous Luca della Rob
oia, which has been presented to the Institution by Mr..
Henry c. Marquand of the trustees. This has been
placed in the eastern entrance, where It oc
cupies the greater part Of the eastern wall. The
naming walspace has been usefrllly filed
with excellent photographs OF the works
in marble and faicnce OF the della Robbla family,
and the whole arangement very useful and interest
ing one FOR stu Tents Of the work OF this artist Who Oday
enjoys. after long period Of neglect, popularity
almost as great us that ne enjoyed in his life time The
present example Of the skin % this sculptor not how
ever, calculated 70 create in the minds or those who
not familiar with his works in Florence the same in
ierest that is awakened by many productions Of his Of
far less material importance II Is cold.
hard ana unympatheuc production not OF the
artists genius but OF his shop Tue composition is
of tnat personal expression which the artist often
secures, ut least I'm the Virgin and her child. The eN
ample Is monumental piece removed from the NOR
tnary chapel OF an Italian nobeman The subject Is
me assumption OF the Madonna, who rises
from the tomb and asccnds to Heaven sur
Italy as the mandorla or almond from its shape and
often called the Vesica pSeis from ts symbolic re-
semb'ance to tsh The hs.orc.legend of tho assump
ton OF the Virgin tells us that when tho Apostles
gathered about her tomb, they found it filled with flow
ers and sawtteVirgn ascending to heaven Thomas who
arrived later than The others and according to one form
Of the legend expressed his doubts to the fact Of the
into his hands the grde OF the Virgin. which
loo.ed and let al In what s called the historic repre-
the mystical rendering, the scene is repre-
scented 1t is supposed to have taken place,
while here, in Luca della NObba's work, we have the
mystical rendering. The Virgin ascends TO Heaven, but
her stand the Apostles OF the New Tes ament
but four OF the later Saints OF the Church. St. Francis
ST. Bernardno and two others Their merely mystical
relation to the event Is by their attitudes SO tar
mere mechanical execution is concerned this gener
Gus gift Of Mr. larqaud shows the art of Luca della
Robin in ts perfection. But Luca was not merely
craftsman; hc artist with pastoral sweetness
OF feeling, love for children and flowers,
and afectiOnate religious nature, all which
things make tho essentials Of his wOik-
stanniicr0us enamel the h0mey but useful invention
Of he did invent ~ which enabled him work chcaply
and put his productions In hundred places where
they never could have gone had marble been
demanded As he grew in popularity and
his works came To DO much sought for, he
became unfortunately hammered; he established |
school. md In time his feelings pctrlcd, his faces and
figures became wooden and he produced his scholars
produced, works Ike the present In which qua little
the true genius the artist, the poet, appears