, 1889-01-23
The Verestchagin Exhibition.

A richer, more inspiring artistic feast
has not been offered US in this genera
ton than the Russian painter Yassili
VereStchagin has set before US III the Gal
leries of the American Art Association.
Handsome in themselves, and we'll design.
ed for elegance and comfort, these spacious
galleries were never seen to such adv all
tage as now, when Mr.. Verestchagin has
decorated them with a truly sumptuOuB
magnifcenCe, controlled by a noble taste,
to serve as a harmOnius setting for his
pictures.
Many attempts have been made in our
city to decorate piCture.galleries on the
occasion Of public exhibitions. Owing, no
doubt, to the lack OF experience on the
part of our artists, as well as tU u miSta-
ken economy Oh the part of those who
have controlled these affairs, the results
have been, in every case, 50 far AS We cah
remember, marked 10y II certain childish.
ness, a want of adaptation to the purpose,
the decoration uneaSily forcing itself on
our attention, 80 that we saw the decOia-
tion and The pictures, first one and then
the other, whereas We should have seen the
pictures and only felt the decoration. Mr..
VereStchagin being a Russian, and all bis
pictures relating to Russia and thu East,
he has relied almost entirely on his mag.
IIlGCllt OOIlCCllpl - al Jugs " INC
decoration Of these rooms. The effect Sjs,
az would be judged, extremely quiet and
resting to the eye, while the pictures are
allowed to exert their full influence, not
merely undiSturbrd 10y their surroundings,
but helped by them. Not helped by them
rs we often see pictures helped by skill
1ully arranged artificial lighting, but ~ -
man is helped to do or say his best when
he is Ill company perfectly cOngenial to
his tastes. Although our business is with
the pictures themselves. and nor with the
decoration OF the rooms thar contain them,
we shall hope to be exCuSt d for calling
attention to the two large carpets that
serve AZ portiereS to the f 1T room and
to the stairway leading from it to the up
per galleries. These carpets We're copied
for Mr.. Verestchagin by the inmates of
Russian prisons from old models, and
while the nobility Of their design and the
harmony of their colon = must strike every
observer. their owner says that their ins
f~eriority in brllliancy of COlOuriDg to their
originals il such that were these hung by
the side of them the old would be taken
for new and the new wOnid appear to be-.
old. Some idea of their size and weight
matters, it is true, of no particular impOr-
tance-may be gathered from the simple
tact that it needed sixteen men to bring
one of these carpets from the street to the
room in which they hang. Another .por.
ton of the decoration that is to be- enjoy
ed for itself is that of the small Octa gonal
room on the second floor, to be used dur
ing the season of the exhibition as a music
room. No pictures are hung in this apart
ment it's only contents are Il piano and a
divan. The walls are entirely covered
with rugs, which are draped over the two
dOorwavS.and over the window, while the
ceiling is turned into a tent roof made Of
slawlS. The general effect is sober, we'll
relieved by rugs of somewhat lighter tone
than the rest.
The pictures that make up this exhibit
tion may be divided into three classes: the
religious subjects ; the landscapes, inelud-
ing the architectural subjects and the
historical compositions. All of these are
in the highest degree interesting according
to their kind, but there can be no dispute
as to the fact that the stir made in Europe.
by this exhibition has been excited by. the
historic and religious pictures. Beautiful
and almost perfect in their execution. as