New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1893-11-19
THE CHRONICLE OF ARTS.
EXHIBITIONS AND OTHER TOPICS.
THE DoRE GALLERY-A CROWDED CALENDAR
SOME LITHOGRAPIIs BY wHIsTLER-clIARAC-
TERIsTICs OF GREAT MEDIocRIrY
OUR DIpLoM, IN TIE WORLDS

TERIsTICS OF A GREAT MEDIocRIrY
OUR DIPLOM, IN TIE WORLDS
FAIR At CHICAGO.
While public attention is beginning to direct itseaf
toward the galleries. 1t may be well TO revert
to an exhibition that has been open for months ana
Is apparently be established here with some
thing like permanence The Dore gallery looks for
ward to of prosperity inferior only to that
which 1t enjoyed for many years In London FER.
haps these expectations may be realized II Is not
likely. Dore had certain qualities distinctly valu.
able to an artist and In the sphere to which hs
genius dedicated itself by instinct, in the sphere
of Illustration. he used them to good purpose. He
had imagination. intelligence and pronounced
though rather disordered feeling for the poetry II
nature and literature. lie could design skilfuny.
He drew with the utmost facility. and his drawing.
though not in the least distinguished. though die.
figured by the mannerism Of n curly. indetermI'
nate outline and often loose and sprawling. was
generally respectable. and at any rate expressive
of his meaning Finally he had to walt for
idea. and he worked with stupendous energy.
His illustrations therefore, the whole, spon.
taneous. These are his merits. II he had confined
himself to Illustration. comparatively little would
ever have been said about his defects. But the
latter were increased and intensified when he ex>
changed the pencil for the brush. and they cannot
be condoned. His color In his paintings is opaque,
couded by his prediction for black and white.
unified in a harmony calculated TO charm by ito
own sensuousness; II IS in short. color lacking In
depth, in transparency In intrinsic beauty, IN any
OF the elements which would make 1t artistic. In
painting the nude he Is uniformly dull and ieathery.
His brush work is no better. Take any piece OF
modelling In any Of the huge compositions.
thoroughly theatrical in spirit which ill the gallery
uptown and you will find It shallow. unrsilned, in.
sufficient In the baldest sense and even In this
it is sometimes lamentably poor. as, for ex-
ample in the infant lying conspicuously on the
staircase in the Moses Before Pharaoh or the
bosom of the woman I'm the lower left hand section
OF this picture. In every detail, whether In the
modelling of surface the deneation OF outline.
whether in the expression OF texture or OF atmos-
phere, his handling the personal method of ex.
ecutIon. has neither learning nor pquancy OF style.
The nle1nabe fog Of meiiocrIty is over it all.
The epithet Is harsh but 1t fits. AS painter.
Dore, through his lack of systematic training.
through his imperfecy developed coloristc faculty.
through the meodramatic tendency OF his taste and
through the absence of breadth in his treatment OF
form. remained till the day Of his death gigantic
mediocrty. The English public liked him. He was
interesting in his matter and for his manner they
had criticism, because II to them OF no
special consequence To the American public, with
a wider education In these matters and more OF
natural taste for good execution, his manner is OF
decided consequence. and it Is improbable tlat he
will gain any following here. No artist Of Dores
gifts and reputation approached so many tre>
mendous subjects and left them more fiat stale and
improbable to the lover of greatness and beauty
In art
The galleries are now all in their best estate.
At the building of the Fine Arts Society is the exc
hibition OF the New-york Water Color Club
which is reviewed another page. The Amer
lean Art Association shows the pictures by Cazin
the French landscapist. which were discussed yes
terday At the Knoeder gallery are some Amer.
lean family portraits" by T. Chartran. The Zorn
exhibition continues at the Keppel gallery, col'
lection Of paintings and prints OF more than ordi.
| nary interest Apropos OF Zorns pictures 1t may
be mentioned that the intention of the criticism In
this place last Sunday say OF his nude
studies as had been said OF all his other works,
| that they not imaginative That the sentence
relating them averred that they were imagis
native when 1t struggled into print was due to .
| typographical accident We have received the an
| nouncement OF the Boston Art Clubs forty-ninth
exhibition 1t opens January, 49, 1894 Information
concerning 1t may be had from Thomas Allen.
chairman of the Committee on Exhibitions, at the
clubhouse. Dartmouth and Newbury SITS.
| Mr. Whistler's photographic experiments have at
last resulted in some completed prints. Six Of them
may be seen at the Wunderlich Gallery They are
sketches of buildings and scenes whict are TO be
ascribed in all probability 10 some French provin-
cial towns In Of the 18th ogra9hs an outdoor
market is drawn, in two others the picturesque old
half-tmbered house familiar in the South figures.
and there is a delightful view, In fourth, taken
from height and showing the roofs Of the build
| ings. Only two of the prints are touch.t with
color. and in those few passages of red. green and
yellow are introduced with t." reserve ard simple
sugcestiveness characteristic of the artist in all
his works. The colored plates have the Interest
of showing how effectively Mr.. Whistler handles
the medium of expression he has last taken up, with
what a subtle and sure sense OF relations he has
reinforced the black and white lines of his de-
sign. But the principal charm Of all th"se liiho-
graphs. colored and uncoored. is the which
belongs his etchings. the charm of exquisite
draughtsmaHshp investing commonplace subjects
with beauty. All his personal touch IL in them.
The quality OF n Autograph Is something like that
| OF pencil drawing. only richer, more oily. and
like pencil drawing ii preserves to the full the
artists individuality. Whis,er's individuality is so
strong and unique that it survives in q
photograph. With these autographs there Il port
folio Of Photographic plates after twsntyfour of the
pictures Whistler exhibited in Loncor carry IN 1892
They include the Carlyle. the portrait of the artists
| mother. the two fine 3ortrll,s which were at the
Worlds Fair the "Nocturne In Graz AMI Cold
Chelsea sHow"-a night scene OF nhartom-like
bcauty-and several other famous works with rnusi-
cal appelatons. The beauty of the originals Is as
matter OF course diluted by their 'ransli Ton into
! monotone ana on such a small scale buf utre re-
mains surprising amount o: genuinely hustle
Whistler himself gives some idea by signing each
plate with his name and with tie ",ilknown
J butterfly To return 10 prints FOR moment, We
may mention that at the Wunderiich eall,ry there
Is an excellent new engraving by 4. Stodart after
I.awrences graceful drawing of Fanny Kemble.
There are also two-score or more dry points by
Helleu the French eteher to whom allusion has
lately been made in this place. This is the ,araest
collection Of them which has been brought for.
ward In this country, and it gives adequate
account of Heeus irt. lie Is impressoai.tc IN
the choice Of his subjects and in his treatment OF
them. He rcproduces the fugitive movements OF
feminine models. sketching them they glance
oyer newspaper. they dress their hair. or as
they remove walking coat. His line Is pure origi-
nal very animated and strong. The extremely
s,ignt substance OF most or his designsthe merest
| glimpse OF a fgure-may sometimes leave an i'm.
| preston OF superciaty. but a matter OF fact
he has good deal of truth i'm his work truth ca re-
| fuly studied and rendered with precision.
reproduction Of the Worlds Fair diploma de,
| signed by VIII II. Low and adopted by the Com.
mssioners has recently been published The space