The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1883-05-05
THIRTY YEARS OF CULTURE
High Art in Indianapolis-It It's Growth
and Development.
How the Chrome and the Florentine Marbles
Came Ln-What Becomes of Old
Paintings-Picture Dealers.

A. L. Hunt, the auctioneer. who has, during
the past thirty years handled more paintings
and statuary than any man In the State, was in
conversational mood yesterday, and the sub
ject was the growth of the love for the beauti-
ful, in this city, 1t has come under his Observ-
ant eye. Mr.. Hunt. makes claims to being
even an art amateur. What he has done and
what he has seen has been. as the Shakspeartan
revival IN Cincinnati, purely in tho way of Dusl-
ness-art for revenue only.
"You should have seen the paintings sold in
this city twenty-five years ago." he remarked to
the reporter paintings they assuredy were,
for they certainly not pictures. There
were no art stores here then, but periodically
say every four five years-dealers from the
East would come here with paintings, and l
would be called on to sell them at auction.
High old art it was landscapes done with a
whitewash brush and mop. The frames were
elegant, aud, then as now. often sod the paint
ing The finest frames in those days were fire..
quenty beveled pine boards covered with gilded
wall paper. But sincerely believed in them as
ranking well up with the works of the old mas-
tiers when sold them Every now and then
in some OLD parlor one of these masterpieces OF
departed age starts up before my astonished
gaze.
THE DAYS OF THE sTATUETTE.
81 well remember when the highest and most
refined Il will not say aesthetic for the word did
not belong to that day. OrnamentatiOn of our
parlors was greeneared red-eyed plaster rab-
bit at one end of a mantelpiece and u parrot OF
the same material and similarly enibellished at
the other The oonch Shell flOurished about the
same time.
FOLLOWING the rabbit and parrot came u
higher branch of The art. Plaster of paris left
the zoolOgical and archaeological fields and ap-
peared in husts of Clay, Webster aud Jackson,
and other statesmen aud heroes. Napoleon
Bonaparte was u favOrite with the Geniuses who
moulded gypsum After the lapse OF u few years
the Florentiue marble man came aud filled our
parlors with statueutes of Innocence Three
Graces' and Dancing Girls of CanOva.' These
were, and still are, mertOriOus works of art,
though the small figures do not get the high
prices they demaded and received in those DAYS.
saw an 'IDnocence the other day that sold
nearly twenty-five years ago for $40 The
OF Whlch these 5tatuettes Is made is
round IN Italy and whom first quarred
It is as soft as cheese 1t is then
that It is worked by skllfui woTkmen artists, IN
TACT though they only get from 20 10 50 cents a
udy similar stone Is found IL this country,
near Grand Rapids, Mich. [ look, before five
Years are gone, 70 sell Carrara marble sLatuettes
IN thus city NJ $500 apiece"
i'm enthusiastic now on pictures and statu-
airy, but was just enthusiastic in the days
when sold the plaster parrots and Curriers'
prints. The prints were very popular, and Pve
sOld thousands of them, DO believe. The favor
ties were Little Samuel at Prayer the Cruel
nxlOn aud the Madonna aud Child
ADVENT OF THE CHRoMo.
"The chrome followed the photographic prints
and the Oil business Tho photographic prints
were all bad. no art about them,
glaring, gnudy, InharmonlOus coors, and
that was all. The drst chromos were
OF Prnng, OF Boston, and GoupIl, of Paris, which
had skill and merit, being positive copies of
works OF arr, and astis;cally correct. The
chrome shOuldered aside The bad oil painting,
sent it from the pariOr TO the dining -rooI where
IT. gave encouragement to indigestion. These
chronos sold high in those days. A while ago a
gentleman brought Ia pair had sold him
twenty years aSu. One was u picture OF the Mat
tethorn, the other Of Lake Constance. He paid
me S22 apiece for them. sold the pair tue sec
ond time ut 81 30 apiece. Some of these old oil
paintings and chromos have gone through my
handS at least half il dozen times, and recognize
them AS old acquaintances every timo they APP
pear.
THE VALUE OF PICTURES.
"Its difficult to tell what painting or chrome
is worth. should say il is worth whatever value
the purchaser may put upon it. [ remember
once selling the late Mr. Hume a picture called
'rhe FIRST Snow "a copy of u celebrated picture
in the Berlin gallery. He had bid SIS for it
and it had been knocked down to INN. He
didn't like lt, RfIerthougAt and closer inspec-
ton, and took it off his hands and hung 1t upin
my own parl0r. The late Elijah II. Fletcher saw
IL and wanted it. He 0fared me 5 lbs for il, but
II was not temptation enough TO induce me to
sell; l liked the picture, aud the money offered
couldn't tempt me TO sell it,
81 nave sold more than $4,000 worth
OF paintings IN this city in one evening
that was fifteen years ago IN the
flush times-and as much as thousand
dollars in an evening of FlOrentine marble stat
uary. The Florentine mnrble work was always
hmm arhF h..P.n hU linn 1tstxrn
American dealers with II. The paintings that
were brought here every few years were brought
by roland q McLrughin, of Boston; Mckay, of
Philadelphia, aud levy Brothers, of New York,
These dealers either went themselves or sent a
competent ngent to Europe each year to visit
studios and galleries and other places where
good paintings could be bought ut moderate
prices. Many OF these purchases were of stu
dents who were learning, ana were bought at
very slight advance uppn the cost of the paint
and canvas. These paintings they shipped 10
the cItles over the country and sold at anctiOn,
These picture merchants do not come as often
rs they used 10, as every city OF any size has its
own picture houses.
THE ADVANCE IN CULTURE.
"There are pariors in this city that think I
have stocked with pictures four or five times.
The buyers were well pleased with each pur-
chase, but as wealth accumulates their taste and
dscernment improve, and they want something
better and better AS the new favOr1tes come in
Mt the front door tho paintings that have had
their day In the pariOr move to the rear, and
after serving in the siting-runIn and dinn groom
are finally taken of to the atile or used To cover
up stove holes. Thirty years ago Curriers' prints
aud ths plaster of paris fruit pieces (and how
Enthusiastically rcd tne apples were. aud how hill
tOusly yellow the lemonsl were fully up to our
conception of the beautiful, But there is one
satisfaction in selling paintings. No matter
what their purchaser pays for them he is never
dissatisfied with his purchase Once his, select
cd by liscleverness and appreciation, their merit
appearing TO the pnrchas'. 90 be his individual
dSeoyGfy, he will never allow any depreciation
OF his masterpiece. TIA his dog, and he stands
BY it,"
Amusement Matters.
The '.Maid of Arran" combination opened q
brief engagement flor the breyity of which may
we be truly thankfully at the Grand Onera-house