New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1889-01-17

80 ,ssntirgu bv these artists In America, 10 Is
STRANGE that no lists are appended. Perhaps me
number seemed too discouragingly large but o
martial lisb would have been no more difiicuro
than in the case of Meissonier. Moreover, some
allusions to forgeries and to other forms OF
commercial enterprise would have been germane
to the subject
Tho time from the Salon OF s4S TO the present.
ia termed by our author the period Oh ino,-
viduaLty.s period Of art largely the result
Of romanticism and the victories of romannclsm.
without reviewing the influences insDlG1'ionS
and collections of the time of Napoleon III the
commehensiyeness of the authors plan OF treat
ment NAV be indicated by the classihcations'
These are semi-classic or historic painters IKE
Flandrfn: painters of landscape with ANIMALS. as
Rosa Bonheur: Orientalists like Fromenen' New
Grecs Hamon and others; painters OF historical
genre like MISSIONER. painters OF rustic genre
ike Millet and of sympathetic genre IKE frerei
painters of figures in elevated STYLE IKE Carpanei
and Hehert later painters in historical style Ike
Immipais Moreau. Baudry; military painters ike
Protais. won, Detalle: landscape painters IKE
Harpignets: still life Yollen Desgefes: and i'm
prcssionists Manet Monet Bastien-Lepage. ID
iections to these classiications Will readily pre-
sent themselves in certain instances. but suoh an
arrangement adds to tho dehniteness OF tne
history. and on the whole increases its use1uE
ness for students even though critics object to
classification of Baudry with Luminais as histori-
cal nainters, or to the enforced union of BaStien-
Tenace and Claude Monet This last chapter
contains over 200 of the $50 pages of text 1t
yond be unfair to take the critical estimates too
ser;ouslv but on tho whole we have found
them entitled to respect as representing
the consensus Of trustworthy opinion. Some
times the author has been so much influenced oy
a purely popular estimate that she falls into
tho error of an altogether false perspective. For
exsmple il is absurd to devote thirteen pages
n Dore. whose paintings have never obtained
recoonition outside of London. when only twelve
naoes are given to Jean Francois Millet Inc
general remarks upon the impressionists are mucn
better than the efforts TO characterize individuals
But the work has been well done IN the man,
and we cannot point to any other hand-pooK
history which gives comprehensive survey
of modern art in France.
Indeed this history represents so mucn pauen0
labor which is on the whole so useiuly ap-
Piled that we are reluctant to speak OF the seri-
GUS defect presented in style OF wr1ting' some
times so involved as TO become almost unln-
telligible. The need of editing is seldom SO
forcibly illustrated. In book which Is
repository of vast number of facts errors are
unavoidable. We do not refer 10 errors when
may be merely typographical like sho' LOT
- hcs on page 14l. or Ward Brown for wall
Brown, page 2O7 or Baskerchef' for baS
kertscheff,7 rage 275.
Doubtless the dealers will find mistakes in the
dull lists of sales and prices and owners, ana
Others may be found by those eager IN the searcn.
There are sixteen Illustrations an index ana
a list of authorities and the lists OF paintings
NV tbe more conspicuous modern artists will
serve 70 furnish some knowledge of American
galleries The book is excellently made, as be-
fits its genuine usefulness to amateurs and stu
dents of art