Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1889-11-24
ART NEWS AND NOTES.

are played. N. A. JENNINGS.
ART NEWS AND NOTES.
A CRAYoN portrait of James Morrison. sher-
if of Allegheny county, 100 years ago may be
seen at Gillespie's.
AN etching by H. M. Rosenberg after Miss
Jennie Brownscombe's painting entitled "Pre-
pairing the Bridal Veil" is shown in the Giles
| pie gallery.
A SMALL painting, in oil color, the work OF
| Miss Jessie Moore, is shown at Youngs. The
style of the work is rather suggestive of its
being copy, as it is much better in conception
| than execution.
AT Boyd's fine picture Of a well-known
resident of this city is exhibited, executed by
| Mr.: E. FaTieon, a young and very talented
artist from New York and nephew Of the au-
thor, b. l. Farjeon, at present on visit to this
| city.
The picture known as Morning." by Carrot,
was sold recently in New York for 500. At the
same time work by -Diaz went for S72a, and
one by Rico for Sl20. When works by these
artists have been shown in Pittsburg they have
been valued all the way from 81 QUO to $4,000
Can 1t be that the locality has something to do
with the price, or are New York buyers salts
fed with poorer works than those in this city
demand?
THE description of art pottery known as Irish
Gently, and is being extensively manufactured
in the United States. The American product
is fully equal to the foreign in quality, and the
designs and decorations are of a very similar
character. A distinguishing feature of this
ware has been that the motives for decoration
have SO largely consisted of forms of life, both
animate and inanimate, from the bottom of the
sea. The plain ware is of delicate, almost
creamy, white, slightly translucent and in some
respects resembles the finer grades of china.
Of Eho
Of Pittsburg artist, may be seen at Mayors.
1t was executed by Mr.. D. B. Walkley, and
will compare favorably with any of the foreign
works of the same class which have recently
been exhibited in this city. This painting is at
once one of tho most vigorously handled and
most highly finished works that Mr.. Walk
ley has yet produced. This picture is
named 'The Mower" a title which
clearly indicates the character Of the
work. In the immediate foreground is
seen the figure of a man busily engaged in
sharpening scythe. This figure is unconYen-
tional as regards posture, and still more so
in the matter of costume, which fact is proba-
bly, attributable to the work having been exc
cuted directly from nature. In place of the
customary garb of varying shades of brown.
this figure is depicted as wearing clothing OF
cool blue-gray tone of color, stained and
weather-beaten, color that it IS extremely
difficult to make harmonize with the various
tones of landscape; but this is a task which
plished. The landscape portion of the work
has been very effectively handled. 1t shows
stretch of level meadow of clear green color,
leading the eye into the distance where its
tone is pleasantly contrasted with the darker
color OF a belt of trees The sky In this picture
is feature that deserves special notice on ac-
count of its peculiar luminous quality and very
pleasing color. Near the horizon there appears
a bank of dark-toned clouds. with bright
streak showing beneath it, and the sky above
flooded with light. Altogether it may be said
AZ A1aFT nr11u af ~
best of Mr.. Walllley's works, but it is also one
of the best paintings which has been shown here
this season.
EVERY production made by the hand of man
bears evidence of the mastery of mind over
matter, but in the graphic arts this fact may
observed more readily than elsewhere. The
great disparity between the end attained and
the means employed, the immense gap filed by
the human mind, which brings form and color
out of chaos, and produces thing of beauty
with the aid of the meanest materials, is here
more clearly apparent than in other work the
result of human thought and endeavor. One
cannot contemplate the materials of art with
out becoming impressed with their comparative
worthlessnesS and insignifcance. 1t would lie
difficult to imagine anything less suggestive of
poetry or artistic expression than a sheet of
white paper and stick of charcoal, and yet in
the hands of clever artist very wonderful
effects are produced with these simple mater
ials. The very natural feeling common to un-
pictures must be made of very rare materials
was strinkingly illustrated by the ques-
tion asked by the countryman who. upon
being told hat a certain picture worth 500
was made with charcoal, inquired what they
made cheap pictures with. 1t is the same
throughout all the graphic arts; but few of the
materials have any great value in themselves, a
noted exception is the color known as genuine
ultramarine which, being made from the laps
laZuli is somewhat expensive pigment, and
consequently one that is very seldom used 1t
note 0f
the material bears but little relation to its
commercial worth, and some artists would
more readily dispense with this high-toned
product than some of the colors made from the
most common earths, such ochres and
umbers. But whatever may be the nature of
the materials used in painting. they re-
duced to the same conditions, viz: that of a
fine powder, and applied in mixture with some
suitable medium such as oil and varnish for oil
color painting. and watev honey and several
varieties of gum for water-colors. However
the wonder is not that art works can be pro- |
duced with commonplace materials, but that it |
is possible to create. such effects by any means !
and with any material whatsoever, for in |
view of the end sought to be at |
tanned, all means alike seem feeble. Just |
think tor a moment what task it is that the |
painter sets himself to perform TO represent |
upon the single fiat surface of his paper OF can
vas the combined effect of all the myriad diff |
ferent surfaces and textures of nature as each |
presents itself to his eye at given moment of |
time. Imagine for an instant the difficulty of |
representing upon canvas the appearance of so |
many different objects, not as we know them
to exist, but under many and varied conditions,
governed always by atmospheric effect and by
the laws under which we exercise our powers
of vision. In the power to which gives to one
portion OF single nat surface the appearance
of tree or a flower close at hand, and causes
another portion of it to resemble a noun
tain many miles away, there is something
as nearly akin to new creation as it Is possible
for man to produce. We are so accustomed to
seeing the wonderful effects which may be pro-
duced with colors that we scarcely realize how
truly remarkable some of them are, and yet it
is certainly true that if some of us had never
seen these works, we could never believe that
such results were possible. Take the single in
stance of a representation of a pool of clear
water, which affords view Of the ground be-
meath it. Here the eye secures the impression
of two distinct surfaces-that of the water
itself, and Of the ground which it covers-and
this impression is received by the eye resting
upon a third surface Of a character totally
from either of them. All things con-
sidered, progress in art has been very great
and the only cause for wonder lies in the fact
that such great results have been accom- plished |
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