New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1889-12-09
AN ARTIST ON ART.
AN ILLUSTRATORS NOTES ON rEN-ANDlNh
DRAWING,

PEN DRAWING AND PEN DRAUGHTSMEN .I BY
JoseOh Pcnncli. Illustrated PIP. JIG. No"-
Macmillan g. Co., 1881
After earning general recognition as an Illus
traitor. Mr.. Joseph Pencil has puohSneu III
elaborate book wherein there is persistent unuei
tone of complaint that illustrators receive no
recognition Aside from the repeated eAhioi"on'
of ill-tempcr the decided parti pris Oh 'nc
artjst-author and bis tendency TO dogma'ic ASST
tions and sweeping generalzations, this DOCK oners
n study of modern illustrative work whicn VIII
y. fonnd 70 be timely, suggestive and useful
Mr. Pennen begins by assuring his readers tn"c
- only the writing on art by one who has technical
,,nowlo1oe Of IL is of practical value" and he
goes on TO declare that the principal crItlcs Oh
tho dav hold their own estimation OF conteu-
norarv and earlier art to be the only rlght one
while il is the tendency of many modern
writer's 10 SO enlarge upon the divine mission
as 10 belittle contemporary art and to ato2c'her
ignore technique, which Is as great to'uay as ia
any former time . But am not without noi"
that the pen drawings published here VIII sno"
MANY who are pleased TO call thenlseNes p
draughtsmen that they are without ,ne i"
idea of the aims. objects and limitations " Wv
art as well as bring to the nouce vi anna 80
collectors critics and print-selers hea'hE,
vigorous fourishng art, which Is Deihg uc'eiop
and improved in all its branches, anu o"e' n0'''
inc whatever TO their fattering care or ehcourase
men,n We presently find MIR. Pennel recorui"s
his own introduction TO " new WORK ny "'''"s
NJ some photographers or other repfouuo'ion' VI
drawings by Fortuny. which must nave CONC ,.O"'
sorno ono Of the abused print-sellers; but slight
sN,,.is,onoies M this kind are not uncommon
To tho ilus.ratsr Mr. Pencil says: You should
- n,ouder IN illustrate the greatest magazines OF
.ho world thus appcaling to millions OF readers
,bor 20 have your drawings buried in the port
toEos of few hundred collections. For be-
,;oro that in these days artists who show thelr
xrorl, n the people through the press are uoing
nc did the masters of other days, VINO spoke W
the people through the Church
H. was surely unnecessary for our advocate "
cool, TO fortfy so good case by eXaltlng fortuhy
and Rico at the expense OF Remorandt anu van
Dvck. by constantly repeating inc hhchneS'u
oibes at criticism. and by complaining "iao
modern pen-and-ink drawing Tor lliuS'r"Aoh
hos received no consideration. His cause is
GOOD one since the development of illustrative
work within twenty years, the artistic wortl anu
practical value Of pen-and-ink illustrative "orh'
and the tendency TO imitation ana detetIorauoh
which follow this or any great commerclal oeihdnu
like the demand for etchings, are all matters
n
That such persons have remained in ignorance
of rhis development and of the lndlvldual Worh
of illustrators is a supposition so at variance
with facts that the reader, at times, can hardly
+a,,e the author seriously Mr.. Pencil holds thaO
men in future times will look back 10 some OF
tho non draughtsmen of to-day not only the
carly but the great masters of the art, as PANT
,rs now look back to Titan and Velasquez, 10
Rembrandt and Franz Halls The pen drawing
of the old masters is declared TO be undeveloped
in comparison with the work OF today SIMPLY
because with them there was no call Tor 10 as
work apart II was quite perfect Tor the PURPOSE
they wished il to serve" ms purpose "ds
chiefly. as Mr. Pencil points out 10 reailze
suggestions and notes Of action and movement
There are also drawings which were carried OUT
70 sufficient completeness. Mr.. Pennell, whose
watchword is technique" insists that THESE
drawings save in few cases, are Valueiess
for studv Of techniouen Now, the technique
of pen-and-nS drawings made for process re-
production may be held in the highest respect
and at the same time something may be SAID or
felt regarding the personality expressed in the
drawings of certain old masters Through phOtOg-
RAINY many of these drawings have been popular
lied and their worth as the immediate expression
of great artists who certainly realized the Nalue
of the line certainly remains apparent 10 those
who regard art as something more tEan craftsman
ship. Mr. Pencil compares drawings by Titan
and Lalanne Durer and ROssctti Van Dycll ana
Dcsmouins, always to the advantage OF the mod
erns. The old masters might have been repre-
scented better than in Mr.. Pencils selections
from their drawings, but this is really OF little
consequence 1t is refreshing to come upon
such perfect freedom from certain conventional
beliefs and at the same time ii Is apparent that
the authors want Of cathocity restricts the value
of his observations And even within purely
professional limits some Of us, while remember
ing the modern origin of pen drawing as
separate art, will wonder whether " for work
of to-day the student would learn more from
Whistler than from Rembrandt
When we come to the new revolution ID pen
drawing led by Fortuny, Verge, Rico and
Madrazo in SPAIN Mcneil and Dietz in Ger
MANY. and Lalanne and De Melville in France,
WE find. as might be expected from Mr.. Pencils
own work with the pen that his warmest sympa-
tbjes are with the Franco-Spanish designers.
or this revolution, which materially aided
by the new methods of photO-engravng, Mr.. Pen
nell seems to consider himself the first recorder.
lie re- CARDS Mr. IIamerton's Graphic Arts as
indicating inadequate realization OF the slgnh-
canoe of this new kind of pen drawing, ana doubt
less he would say the same OF Mr.. llamertOhs
articles upon book illustration, which have been
republished from the Portfolio But it is per-
fectly true that there has been no account OF THIS
movement so comprehensive as that offered by
Mr. Pennel But it is surprising to find Mr..
Pennen asserting that the Spanish leaders, with
The exception of Fortuny, ." are absolutely un-
known" Madrazo and Rico are not unfamiliar
names in this country, and even Mr. PenncH
presently contradictS himself by speaking OF
drawings by Rico in New-York. 1t is surprising
again 10 find our author, still in an unhappy
frame of mind, declaring that black-and-white
work has been prsstently ignored by critics
and artistic associations. especially in England and
America Yet we have the Salmagundi Club,
the exhibitions of drawings at the Groer Cub
and elsewhere, repeated exhibitions of Century