New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1893-10-16


Canova had genius. The artists were doubling MS
genius twenty years ago in Italy, and now few
artists call him man of genius Precisely the
same fate has overtaken Allston himself. 1t Is
the testimony Of "The Life and Letters Of wash
ineton Allston," by Jared b. Flasg, n A.. that
the American painter great man to MS
contemporaries Leslie, fellow artist in Eng
land. described one of Allston's pictures as
worthy 10 rank with the best works OF faui
Voronese" Among Colerdge's marginalia there
occurs reference to Washington Allston a
painter born to renew the sixteenth century.
Perspective contributes much to the fixing OF an
artists status. Aside from the fact that your
truly great artist is never born to re-
new past century. but TO express the
genius of his own, it is obvious that Coleridge
was too close TO the friend he loved next to Words
WORTH according TO his account, to Judge
him fairly Aston had his vogue at one tlmc,
early in the century 1t il gone now and has been
gone for a long while. He was born in Charles
ton in 1919. In his young manhood he met with
orr old miniaturst, Malone, and in his company
proce, ded 10 London They arrived there in sol.
REYNOLDS and Gansborough were both dead.
Romncy had only more year III which to live.
The tradition OF the splendid maestra of the Eng
lsh school of pOrtraiture was sustained by Law
renee alone Much they admired the latter,
the artists then dominant in London were III no
way qualified TO emulate the buoyancy and dis
tinction of his style. Benjamin West was the
president of the Royal Academy. Allston Tell
upon the generation of that ambitious but futile
PAINTER His time was the time Of Fuscli, Hay
don, Leslie and Mulready English art has
known no moro barren period. Fertile enough
in ideas, the school was without the power to de-
,elop them effectively on canvas. Hayden ami
Fuseli built up their stately compositions ana
failed to breathe into them the breath of life
The prevalent tone is concisely expressed in one
of Allstons most important works, the Dead Man
Revived by Touching the Bones or the Prophet
Elijah" This painting. which is now in the pos
session of the Philadelphia Academy of Fine Arts,
awarded prize of 200 guineas Ivy the British
Institution. where it was exhibited in London
West in speaking of it added He tAllston has
commenced where most Of us leave off, Ii Is
rifacimcnto of old Italian Inspirations: not
direct and literal adaptation of Italian motives,
but plainly an old master of the Bolosncse school
at second hand, a far away echo of the taracci
whom AllstOn admired. The picture suited English
and American taste, at a time when taste was
satisfied with q conventional and extremely hol-
low kind Of art. The taste of the present day is
lnull'T'nI 10 AllSl"U IL IL pdilltT, 'N''ph upon
the rare occasions when he appears the author
of portrait like that Of Colcridge in thr Nj
tional Portrait Gallery. or like that Of West in
the Boston Museum. In these he exhibits an at
,raoti,e style. though not one OF especially force
fdl individuality, an excellent technical habit and
a good deal of penetration.
Mr. Flagg's porly volume can do nothing TO
place Allston upon the pedestal in the Pantheon
of Art which once was his beyond dispute Whnt
it will chiefly do will be 10 win respect for Ais
ton as a man. and to interest readers in his ex-
pcricnccs as the friend of interesting men. He
knew Coeridgc intimately, and the long list Of
his acquaintance included Irving. Lamb, West.
Leslie, Morse, IIorato Grccnough and II. H..
Dana While the record of his Intercourse with
these personages does not happen 10 furnish many
quotablc paragraphs-he himself not cpl
crammatic correspondence ahounds IN evidence
of the esteem in which he was held.
Mr. ~ Ponce de Leon has written and has pub
ishcd under his own imprint an illustrated quartz
on the portraits OF the discovcrcr of America.
He entities it The Columbus Gallery" and with
in the limits imposed by it, ~ pages he
contrves to marshal Amazing number Of
paintings. statues. medals and other counterfeit
rrc-cntmcntS of tic navigator. Mr.. De Leon in
cludes great deal too much in his volume which
is. by the way. very poorly made. The quantity
of obscure modern portraits which he Tcproduccs
and mentions is far too large for a book OF scri
Gus prctcnsions. The systematic review of the
old portraits recognized by the critics. the Jovan,
the Yancz, the Lotto and the rest, is all that the
book contains which is Of any interest, and the
interest in that is slight.
Another recent volume OF research il the hand
somcly published treatise. odd Sword Play"
compiled by Mr.. Alfred Hutton. This brings
within the reach Of the modern fcnccr AN expo
stion Of his art a. il practIsed III the sin
teenth, seventeenth and eighteenth centuries Mr.
Hutton offers scarcely any remarks on the general
history Of his subject, but dcvotcs himself TO it,
purely practical bearings. With the assistance
Of the numerous plates reproduced from Italian
and French authorities, the text aims AT enabn:
the swOrdsDlan to really profit by the expert
ercc of his predecessors. Ii il emphatically a
work for students of fence, lesson book pure and
simple.