Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1889-02-16

and fro, the lords and ladies mipgling and
Intermingling in dance and promenade, are,
at the wave of magician's wand, one and
all suddenly struck into statues-motion-
less in pose, and dead in silence. lip, limb
and haDd stayed just where The fall of the
wand found them. 1t was strangely inn
pressive effect. Looking upon this noble
picture, so clear and brilliant in light, yet
so soft and balmy in atmosphere, with It's
boldness in touch and completeness in fin
lsh-this realized dream of what the
imagination painted of that great scene
when the fail of the silver hammer upon
the golden spike set bells pealing and can
non roaring from the Atlantic to the Pacific
shores of the Union-something is sug-
gested of momentarily suspended action
OF that hush of perfect silence that mighty
preparation just before the stroke of q
great event TO be ushered in by blow OF
the sledge upon the last spike necessary TO
the completion of the greatest engineering
feat of The age; work that lifted UP the
distant East and the distant West aud set
them face TO face at last in fraternal COM
muning, each at the threshold of the 9TH
ers door.
TWO OTHERS.
There are but two other pictures b
all compare with this and resemble it in
the grouping, in the open, of great masses
OF people and the preservation of individ-
ual characteristics in face, figure ana COS
tume-"Derby Day" and Frith's Railway
Station" But in neither of them was
there presented a landscape so barren of
artistic aids, devoid of any comparative fig
ures or objects inequalities of ground, |
cloudess skies, dead-fla Iuin.eresiing
plains, cut OF which must be evolved inter-
est and life that would command attention, |
and herein lies the greatest art in this pic /
ture, the working out OF the realistic effect |
Mr.. Hill got close to nature; he transferred |
her very breath to canvas and created the |
triumph o. historical painting in this |
epoch. He has embodied the poetry and |
dramatic action of the scene in the picture. |
There is nothing more admirable in this |
beautiful transference by the brush of art
10 the canvas than the vitality given TO the |
silent, expectant figures. THERE'S nothing !
more skiilful in the painting than the ideal |
EN- bodlment of the characteristics of the |
men as disclosed in portraiture. 1t is
mastery work in its feeling; feeling per-
vadss every part of it. and while it is tab |
leaux, it Is the reslized fancy Of what the |
throbbing activities of such scene would |
be.
THE PEcULIARITIEs OF THE PICTURE.
While, as we have said, the artist had the |
minimum OF material and the least inter- |
estlng OF landscape upon which TO work, |
he had in the grouping, drapery and Incl |
deDtals OF tie driving of the spike many |
details upon which TO impress ihe seal of |
his skill, and he has not failed to do so. |
The costumes of the figures, the perfect ease
with which they are worn, the attention IN |
detail 10 plait and seam, all speak of fine |
conception of right disposal of dfapery. We |
Invite attention also to the fact that IN this |
noble painting there is presented to the |
behoider the marvellous combination of ex- |
quislfe figure painting. and the most re- |
markable of landscape painting; two capa-
cities seldom found in one person Here |
we have an example of figures in Landscape |
and their disposition, upon both of two |
great schemes, on the lines of which all /
painters must proceed-tbe placing of the |
figures in graceful and diminishing circles !
or in pyramidal groups. We do not know |
and cannot learn of any other work in |
which this has been so successfully done |
as in this. We are impressed, also, by the
MAsTERLY UNITY
That pervades the whole work, and the |
skill with which the interest of the scene is |
heightened by the betrayal in the attitudes |
and countenances of the figures Of the re-
lation each bore to it, and notably is this |
developed by comparing the figures and |
countenances CT the chief actors srd those |
of the merely curious. We are, iu viewing |
this work, to keep constantly III mind
that, indeed, which The picture will not
permit us 10 forget-that the subj sct was |
devoid OF poetic inspiration it was noble |
in its patriotic suggestion. grand in its me- |
chanical triumph, but in It's figures and all |
else, commercial and bnsiness-l;ke The |
artist, however. has, by the riiaglipg of |
the original representatives, OF tie plains. /
ho
aud busy mart. given TO himself room !
for suggesting the romantic by way
of contrast. Hence, the picture strikes
every beholder as historic in recording
peculiar meeting Of civilization U poa this !
continent, and in fixing upon canvas the
opening spectacle of new era, in which
the pioneer conditions depart and The say
age retires before the advance of commsrce,
scholarship, science and discovery.
PoRTRAITuRE.
AT the risk of returning to an already
suggested thought, we invite the beholder
TO agsiE take note of the skill with which
Mr.. Hill has treated the portaiture Of the
picture. He has escaped the fxedness and
preparation of the portrait proper and re-
tanned all the fine essentials of figure paint
ing in great group without loss of indi-
yiduallty in any one instance. As has been
so well said
The painters difficulties increase as he multi
plies his figures. He must place them in new
attitudes, give them greater variety of ex-
preston and yet harmonic them all with his
central motive. The treatment Of even a single
figure requires ease and accuracy of execution
To unite these qualities in portrait is severe
test OF skill, since there is likeness known and
endeared to many which has to be preserved
with all its subtle expression, ard yet there
must be none of the rigidty of set feature or the
stiffness OF pre-arranged attitude. The more
whom there IS demanded more refinement of
taste, and profounder mastery OF composition.
Everything that hampers him in his effoIt to
express his thoughts beyond the absolute re-
quirements of art clogs his imagination, and
puts him Ill at ease. 1t is a further cause of
embarrassment II he is obliged to group his
figures within straight lines, and arrange them
according TO an absolute plan IL order TO Illus
trate an historical incident. AL the difficulties
herein indicated Mr.. Hill has had to meet
and overcome, and they are such as few artists
have encountered.
Finally, we wish to impress upon all
who view this superb example of landscape
and figure painting, how successful Mr..
Hill has been in producing the glowing
light that baihes his foreground, and show
ers upon the snowy tops of the distant
mountains. No artist of whose works
we have knowledge had more difficult
task IN the treatment of atmospheres, and
none have achieved greater triumph than
is testified TO by this picture. So, then,
this grand painting embraces two great sue
cesses. one in light and landscape. the
other in figure painting and portraiture 1t
is an achievement of which Claude Lor-
raine, ths chief of landscape painters, was
not capable. He never pretended TO copy
nature-his painting was the reflex of his
imagination playing upon the beauties of
nature as he saw them. with perfect aban-
don. The figu es in his landscapes he sell
dom executed, trusting that task TO friends.
Here we have the landscape and the figure
effecss and the portraiture by the same
hand, aud that Of modern master of
whom California has reason to be proud,
and whose work the State should for it's
historic character, enshrine by possession
SET IN FIRE