The record-union., 1891-08-17
REFORM THE ART EXHIBIT.


The Mechanics Institute at San Fran
cisco has resolved to stand behind its Art
Committee in excluding from it's forth
coming exhibition all paintings" that
properly belong in the chamber of horr-
ors. This is a rule that should prevail in
the art department at the State Agricult-
ural Society's annual exposition in Sep
tember. OF course it would be more
difficult to enforce the rule here, for the
reason that every dabster and amateur
putterer makes a personal claim, backed
by the influence of a number of ad-
miring but short-sighted friends.
But if excellence in art is to be encour-
aged, and real merit stimulated and the
public taste elevated, the policy must OBJ
tain Of relegating to a distinct part of the
building all the bungling, dabbling So
called painting and drawing efforts that
are caricatures upon art. It would be best
for the dabsters and beginners if their
works were excluded from the fair en-
tirely. 1t is absolute cruelty to encour-
age those to exhibit who have no knowl-
edge of painting or drawing and have
not the ability, acquired or natural, to
draw or paint with sufficient skill to merit
exposure to public view.
Certainly, in the mechanic arts no man
agement would for a moment think Of
permitting jack carpenter, an unskilled
aspirant in joiner work, bungler in up
holstery, trifler in mechanics, to put his
exhibits on view, mingled with the work
of skilled artisans. The State Board
would not for moment entertain prop
osition to exhibit in its fine stock parades
lot of rawboned, knock-kneed, spav-
ined, broken-down and decrepit horses.
OF course 1t VIII be said that meritorious
art work need never fear competition.
and that is true. But great deal is due
in the effectiveness of an exhibition of
any kind to its harmony and to the
character that pervades the entire exhibit.
A miserable daub of lake pouring from
from the clouds, sky like buttermilk, a
portraitin violation of every artistic sense,
landscape that proves the author to be
entirely ignorant of the elemental laws of
perspective-these have not only no place
among works Of merit, but it is an insult
to artists and to genius to admit to their
class such examples of incompetency.
There is an amateur class in the art de-
partment, but the daubers and incompe-
tents have no more right in it than in the
higher class, for while amateurs are dis
tinguished in art exhibits from profess
sionals, they are not classified at all un-
less they have some merit. Indeed, it
frequently happens that a good deal Of
the work of amateurs is on par with
approved work by professional artists.
We do think, however, that the mingling
Of amateur and professional exhibits is
mistake, since it confuses the spectator,
and renders the search of the catalogue
too laborious. 1t would be better to
place the amateurs in distinct portion of
the art gallery and plainly indicated as the
amateur department. The merit of the
amateur and the demerit of the profess
sional, where they are pronounced, viii
be even more readily determined by this
method.
The desire of the society is, we assume,
three-fold-to encourage worth, to edu-
cate the taste of the people and to make
an attractive exhibit. Neither of these
ends is conserved by admitting to the art
gallery the work of daubers. Nay, it
should not be placed in the building at
all. The miserable daubs that generally
hang at the head of the second flight of
gallery stairs ought to be as rigidly ex-
cluded as would be the work of a man
presented for the cabinet department. made
of undressed lumber, and constructed as
is the coarse bunk of a campers tent.
The directory of the society should say to
its Art Superintendent this year, From
the Art Department rigidly exclude
every work that on its face proves it to
be unworthy the sunlight; place all anna
teur work distinctly apart from the main
department, since only by these means
can worth be encouraged, good taste con-
served and harmonious, meritorious
exhibit be secured. AS for the rejected
works exclude them wholly from the
building, in mercy to the public and out
of pure kindness to the mistaken people
who waste their time in attempting that
which they can never achieve. Enforce
these rules without fear or favor and we
will bear all the responsibility, conscious
that we Will take some punishment in the
present but confident that the outcome
will justify u.s."
A NOBLE PROPOSITION.
The notice given in the English Conn