Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1884-03-15
ART NOTES.

Arrangements have at last been made for
the long projected Reception by the Washington
Art Club, and the entertainment will take place
| next week. Instead rOf limiting the affair to
| single evening. as heretofore the plan has
wisely been adopted of appropriating several
| evenings for the exhibition. Thus. on Monday.
| Tuesday. and Wednesday evenings the rooms
will be reservedi for guests holding cards Of invi
| tatlon. who will be formally received by repre-
| sentatives of the Club, while on Thursday and
Friday. day and evening. the exhibition will be
| open Tree TO the general public. Owing to the
! limited ACCOMMODATIONS of the Club this is by
far the most satisfactory course possible. 1t is
understood that all the members OF the Club
have been exerting themselves to make an
| appropriate showing ON this occasion, and there
Is every reason to believe that the exhibition
| when made will be alike interesting to the
public and creditable to the artists
- Mr. V. G. Fischer has been appointed Hon
orary Secretary for Washington of the newly Or
gained American Union. In addition to its an
nua distribution of paintings by leading Ameri-
can artists. this association publishes an Illus
trated monthly which is even now recognized
as the sem-ofiicial medium OF communication
between the artists of the country and the gene
raj public. Each number is accompanied by an
original etching in addition to its other numer-
Gus illustrations
- Max Weyl has sent over to the coming
Spring Exhibition at the New York Academy of
Design two landscapes. both of which. unless
we greatly misiudge. are likely to add to his
| reputation In that city, where he has already
!ouhd market for quite number OF his paint
| 1hgs The larger of the two represents view
on and from Anaostan Island. looking south
ward and is in warmer tones and brighter c0lOrs
imam ne commonly adopts, and will therefore. we
thlhk, DE more acceptable generally than his
| work in his usual lower key. The other. a
! smaller canvas. is a spring scene. and is we'll
marked 10y the clear atmosphere and tender and
| grateful colors which characterize that delight
ful season Both for its treatment and theme
this little bit can hardly fail to be a popular
feature of the exhibition.
- Mr. Montague. whose studio is In the new
Y NJ. c. A. building, on New York avenue, has
lately sold several of his paintings in black and
white, to which reference was made in this COL
uinn some time ago. OF these, Lake of the
| clouds was bought by Mr.. George P. GOff
| conway lntervae" passed to Mr. Curtis and
Mount Washington was taken by Gen. Bur
dett Offers have been made for several Others
out MI. Montague is for the present inclined to
keep most of his finished work together until
the time draws nearer for giving up his studio
TO go upon his usual summer sketching tour
- Mr. VIM. L. Matthews, the portrait painter
mas returned to the city, and proposes to remain
mere for some time, if he can fnd a suitable stu
dio room, which, so far. he has been unable TO
| do. Mr.. Matthews spent most OF the time while
absent IN ONO. where he had commissions for a
| large number of portraits.
- On view at Barlow's may be seen number
OF the paintings by Miss Martha ] C. Beckett and
MISS Bertha Won Hillern which won so much
praise from the press of Boston, Philadelphia
and Baltimore when exhibited in those cities
during the past few months. They have already
attracted much attention here as the produc-
ions OF couple of most enthusiastic and ener-
getlc ladies who are thoroughly in love with
| nature and ambitious to transfer to canvas some
OF her many and varied charms. The pictures
| are uneven in merlt.-the best being those por-
| traylng interior wood-Scenes without accesso-
rles; but on the WHOLE and in view OF all the cir
cumstances under which it was made the col
| lection must be regarded as one interesting to
observers and creditable to the artists.
| - The present season has been an unusually
discouraging one for picture sales. None of
| the collections offered here during the winter
| produced anything like satisfactory results. but
the starvation has by no means been confined
to Washington. An excellent collection was Of
Tered at st. Louis the other day. which brought
| only loss to the owner on nearly every canvas
| sold. substantially the same is the history OF
the winters sales in Boston. New York and
Ihadeip ilia-tile attendance being small and
bidding dull in almost ali cases. Whether these
results are to be attributed to hard times to
falling OIL in interest in art or to the fact that
most collectors prefer to buy at private sale or
directly from the artists. is not easy to deter
mine Probably all the reasons suggested enter
INTO the case to some extent But the fact re-
mains that nearly all the sales during the sea-
son have been practical failures SO far as pecu-
mary returns were concerned.
Several paintings of considerable interest
have recently been placed on exhibition at the
COrc0ran Gallery. One of these which attracts
much attention as well for it's quality as a work
of art as for the fact that it is the work of
young Washington$an. is La Mdrcellerie by Mr.
Games K. DOnOhO, which was exhibited in the
Paris Salon in 1882, and last summer in the in
ternatiOnal exposition at Munich. At both
places it made its mark, and was greatly liked.
particularly by artists. At Paris it was honored
with place ION the line" in the main room. if
we mistake not and at Munich it was also well
placed. 1t possesses some excellent qualities.
both in the foreground and in the trees which
constitute the close shut in background, but
it lacks interest for want of distance and sky.
and the feeling continually asserts itself that in
size the canvas Is out of all proportion to the
Importance or necessities of the subject it illus
trates. Another recent addition is a large cattle
piece by the late Henry c. Bispham, who was
favorite pupil of Won Marcke the great cattle
painter AS whole it is a mertOrious and
pleasing picture, strong and well balanced,
albeit rather muddy in color and trifie defec-
tive in drawing in one point. A larger painting
than either OF these, and more important and
interesting, as we'll in treatment as theme. will
pc paced OH view III the Gallery Ill O few DAYS.
1t is by Benjamin Constant, the celebrated
French painter so well known for his great sue
sess with oriental scenes and characters. and
was the picture selected by the artist to repre-
sent him at the Paris Exposition of 1873. where
it won for him gold medal. The title. ''Mo-
rocco Prisoners in the Desert" sufficiently sur-
gests the subject, which is treated with all the
artists well known power, technical skill and
fidelity to detail
1t will We feel sure. be a great pleasure to
many people in Washington to know that the
fine collection OF paintings by modern masters
belonging to Mr.. W. I. Walters, of Baltimore,
together with his magnificent gathering of ORR
entail objects, will be accessible to the public
each Wednesday during this ana next month A
nominal fee Of fifty cents Will be charged for
each admission to the @ailery-the fund thus re-
allied to go to the treasury of the Poor Associ-
alton of that city. In this liberal action MIR.
Walters becomes public benefactor in double
sense first, in providing for lovers OF the fine
! arts an opportunity not often enjoyed for graft
flying and cultiyating an elevated taste and
second in directly and largely aiding a most
worthy charity. Where so much Is done. and so
admirably. it seems ungraciOus to suggest fur
Their concessions; but it is to be regretted never
theless that the gallery cannot be conveniently
kept open two days each week Instead of one
since i'll that event twice as many people would
be delighted. and the fund thus realized for the
poor would be just doubled But as it is all
praise and thanks are due to the generous
owner of the gallery; andno person in Washing
TON who is able N visit foil