Chicago eagle. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1889-19??, 1897-07-10
Mr.. LEYENOECKER'S 0REAT sue.
CESS,

Mr.. Adam Ortscifcn. the widely
known and respected Vice President
Of the McAvOy Brewing Company. is
Justly proud Of the success of his
nephew, Mr.. Joseph G. Lcyendecker,
the young Chicago Illustrator and win.
ncr Of the Century's cover design com.
petition, who has just returned from
Paris. having spent eighteen months
Of close study In the famous Julian
Academy Of Arts. Nothing short Of
the strong demonstration Of his native
gifts as an Illustrator ana designer.
which Mr.. Lcyendecker gave to the
public before his departure for the
mecca Of his craft. could account for
the popular interest which attaches to
his return and to the influence which
the pilgrimage has exerted upon his
art.
The versatility and vigOr Of Mr.. Ley.
endecker's work had received the rec.
OgnItion Of every Chicagoan who main.
tnined even remote interest I'm the
progress Of local illustrative art. and
conservative critics have watched his
short career with the conviction that
no worker In his line ever went out
from this city with the promise Of
greater achievement thnn he. His
training has not been Of the academic
order. About six years ago he enter.
cd an engraving house In the capacity
Of errand boy. All his leisure mo.
nents were spent In the artrOOm Of
the establishment. eagerly watching
the artists mt their work.
Soon he began to try his own hand
with the pencil. pen ana brush. At the
end OF six months he was designing
labels upon the wood blocks and lit.
tie later he was given more important
work. The strength md originality Of
his productions displayed maturity
beyond his years and attracted the ut.
tentlOn Of artists ana the preference
Of the patrons Of the house. His even.
ings and vacations were spent In con.
scientiOus ana persevering study ut the
Art Institute. and his progress was
thorough and rapid. But. In the main,
he Ind been his own teacher and the
practical workshop was his school.
The Impressions Of the great Parisian
art school and Its student community,
the Quarter Latin, gained from the
viewpoint Of one 10 uninitlnted az Mr..
Leyenlecker In the academic side Of
art. yet 10 richly qualified to observe
and enjoy, IRE Of unique interest to
ChicngOans.
II had few prccOnceivcd notions"
said Mr.. Leycntieckcr, ''Of what the life
In the school and Quarter Latin would
be like. wished to find surprises
and did! One Of the first things
which came to me, and which had not
counted upon. was a strangely lost feel.
ing-lOst among u whole crowd Of fel.
lows who had done something worth
while. II was like beginning all over
again. with no friendly credit marks to
your score Of the past. But l soon
found that the men were good fellows.
hard workers and as appreciative as
they were critical.
ut doesn't take long to discover TINT
style and dash will not make draw.
Ing or painting 20 there as It will aa
illustration here. Serious wOrk-get.
ting right down to the foundation prin.
ciplcs-is the demand which In laid
upon every student over there. II
learned anything II was that a picture
IL really valuable for the thought be.
hind It. There was little talk of hand
ling ana OF the catchy tricks of the
trade. and much emphasis upon u deep
and serious significance In everything
| attempted. As went to study color
and composition, worked entirely In
oils, with the exception OF u few rough
pen sketches Of the school and the de.
iightful bits Of color which are charac.
teristic OF the Quarter aud Its peculiar
life.
''There IL no examination, no showing
OF previous work In order to gain an
entrance to the school. There are sew.
eral branches Of the Julian Academy In
various parts Of the city, but attend.
Ell the main academy In Rue de Ora.
gOn. which IL presided over by Jean
Paul Laurens, Benjamin Constant,
BOuguereau and Baschet. As I en-.
tered the big room, In which $50 stu
dents were assembled, my attention
was politely called to five huge pla.
cards, notifying the nOvcau, or new
man, that he IL expected to stand the
treats for the crowd.
"Of course ut once signified my de-
sire to comply with the printed re-
quest. In II twinkling the fellows
formed In line, each placing his hands
upon the shoulders Of the man In front
Of him. Then, with lockstep. we
marched out of the academy to u
neighboring cafe ana each member of
the party refreshed himself with his
chosen beverage. That IL the kind Of
an Introduction the newcomer re-
ceives ut the school, and II IL typical
of the bohemian spirit Of the place.
''Three models pose ut the same time
In each room, and the new pupil takes
his materials and begins work upon
the subject which most attracts him.
But some time In the first week the
professor comes around and takes a
first look ut the beginners study. That
Is an important moment, for II the
teacher does not approve Of 1t the nOu-
veau Is assigned to work from casts
instead of from life.
'"The mornings are devoted to class
study from models and casts, and the
afternoons to composition work. The
subject OF the composition Is annOunc-