The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1884-07-05
RusK1N AND THE ART STUDENTS.
He Confesses that Women Can Paint and
Tells Them How to Do 1t.

He Confesses that Women Can Paint and
Tells Them How to Do 1t.
Talk with Ladies' Art Class.
aOne thing necessary to high and noble per-
lection in art is that artists must be good and
pure in their lives. Some people may tell you
this is not so, because there have been artists
who have not been moral in their lives who yet
have painted great pictures. This is true in a
way, for men with strong constitutions and the
artistic faculty have done great work but they
have never attained to the purest and best emf
nence. There are different ideas of morality.
A man may be moral and yet do great many
things that would be disapproved of by Mrs.
Grundy. But what mean by amorallife is one
directed by good and honest purpose. You
must have a kindly, loving heart and large sym
pathy.
For more than five and twenty years Of my
life would not believe that women could paint
pictures and all history seemed to be on the side
of this conviction. One learns vaguely of a
daughter of Titan who painted, but one never
sees anything she ever did But was wrong in
that established conviction of mine; women can
paint
The students, being, as have said before, all
women, TO whom the Professor was talking, could
not resist the temptation to applaud.
ss0f course, he went on, there was Rosa
Bonheur to correct me, but she only developed
in her art a woman's somewhat morbid love of
animals coupled with some Landseer-like talent.
Landseer studied and loved dogs, but Rosa Bon
hours feelings for animals were, / think, more
akin to the menagerie keepers love. Landseer
was not so much an artist as one who studied
dogs and knew their ways. Rosa Bonheur paints
in 4 clever gray French STYLE and IN mastery
kind of a way, more pleasing, perhaps, than
mastery. / knew a young lady with a great
talent for painting animals She studied Lon
don cab horses, and went down into the cellars
and studied rats, and she kept a furious parrot
and lot of dogs, and made herself generally
disagreeable but it all came to nothing. But
coming back to the question Of woman's capacity
in art, let me confess that am quite subjugat-
ed, converted my ideas entirely overthrow by
Mrs. Buffers Miss Elizabeth thompson
Waterloo At first / thought she
might only have woInan's love
for cavalry officers and cavalry chargers but
after had seen the picture and knew her. saw
great many Of her sketches, and found her to
be great artist, and have now the profoundest
admiration for her. Since she made a name we
have had several women artists, all distinguished
in their different ways-Mrs Allingham, Miss
Greenaway, Miss Alexander and Miss Trotter
There are many clever, brilliant girls who take
to art from ambition, but their place is rather in
society or on the stage than in the studio. Am
bition to shine in the theater or in society is not
the disposition that makes an artist You should
have the disposition of nun and too much
sense to become one | never recommend girls
not to get married though think marriage need
not be the mission of all | think painters
life is very happy one, even if you don't make
much money or obtain great fame Most girls
think it very nice to be married. but should
think to be an artist is quite as happy a life
The greatest joy in life, it seems to
me- IS when you feel that your pen
Gil is obeying your will Women, above
all, should have infinite patience Men might
be impatient and do good work-women never.
For instance, Rubens and other great artists
often painted furiously Women were meant to
endure and put up with everything; that is their
mission. At the same time, ! think some Of you
may well find something else to do beside-or as
well as-maling buildings and sweeping up other
peoples messes.p
Questioned as to making notes and sketches
Of visits to picture galleries. the Professor said
When you 60 into q gallery, always come
perfect one, but it win be better than anything
you can carry away in your head Do not think
Of light and shade think Of shadow simply as
darker Or lighter colors Do not trust 70 char