Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1898-04-02

Mr.. Chnndlee. MIR. Gill.
unites with the charm Of color in render
| ing this canvas which one enjoys nnger-
| ing over. Another good portrait Is the
| likeness which Anna Lee has made OF her
sister. The resemblance is admirable, ana
the work has an unaffected simplicity ana
grace.
! Will H. Chandlee appears to very good
| advantage this year, his spring motive be-
ing executed in a light vivacious key that
is entirely in keeping with the subject.
There is a pleasant delicacy OF color in this
| pastel, and it expresses the joyousnsss OF
| springtime. There is much artistic feeling
| in his gray day subject, and also In little
moonlight motive.
| Although there Is no reason to suppose
that Robert Coleman Chiid's sunset land
| scape with the flaming red sky is in the
| least an exaggeration of nature, it is one
| of the things which would probably be con-
| sidered inappropriate subjects according to
the exacting canons Of good taste, and on
| derives far more pleasure from the nttld
Gloucester scene, showing some rocks on a
| gray day, which is a very carefully studied
| piece Of work.
jana Brigham Child has a large past
called Siegfried, and subject which ha4;
excellent decorative qualities, but in which.
she has perhaps dwelt with too much care
| upon the details of costume. Mrs. Child
also contributes a small portrait which Is
| an unmistakable likeness.
| Edgar Nye has nothing very new to say
this year, but he expresses himself with
| ease anu with his usual delicacy of cool
colorir G. Atmosphere is never wanting in
his work, and there is usually a certain
largeness Of conception and impressive
| breadth iE his landscapes. He paints ma
tuIe little too much in one mood, and his
| danger lies in the direction Of monotony.
| He should avoid the substitution OF an
| ideal beauty for the reality of nature,
even though the precedent has been well
| established.
| R. NJ. Shurtlef, on. Of the few outside
| contributors, does exactly that in his wood
| interior, and, while the work has an unde-
| niably pleasing quality, 1t Is a little arti-
fetal.
! Ernest L. Major, an old-time Washington
| boy, who is represented by suavely paint
ed head, is an artist not usually seen in
| cur exhibitions now, and Bladen Snyder
| is another. The latter's contribution is
street scene in Europe, painted In SEMI
| impressionistic way which gives brilliant
| effect of sunshine and a strong appearance
| of reality to the scene.
Edward L. Morse is a newcomer, but he
is rapidly teccming known here as a capa-
| BILE painter of portraits. He exhibits sew
| eral strongly handled heads of which the
| old salt is perhaps the most interesting.
The large portrait of DIR. Elmer Gates
exhibited by w. Haskell Coffin has so
many good qualities that one cannot help
! wishing it entirely satisfactory. The fig
| ure is painted boldly, the face Is full Of
| life ard expression, and the pose doubt
| less characteristic, but it lacks all subtlety.
| It shows no appreciation of delicate rela-
| TONS and, while the strength and life
likeness of the portrait give great prom,
| Use for the young artists future, it still
| leaves something to be desired.
Wilhelmina Nichols shows an attractive
little study Of a baby playing with a kit
ten, which is by all odds the best thing
that she has done in a long time The
| ladies will pause ever 1t and say that 1t
| is ''just too cunning for anything" but 1t
deserves more serious appreciation tn an
that, for it IS a thoroughly sympathetic
| delineation of childhood.
| Anna Sands sends her pastel called Jes-
sica. somewhat pensive head, to which
the accessories Of costume, as the quaint.
/ small cap aid in giving truly Shakes
| pearean quality. 1t is subject more
|
| Near 1t hangs a strong oil by Mrs. Hoven-
| den.
| Catherine Critcher, Maud Newman, Eliza-
beth Bell and Mrs. Doubleday are among
| those who show good work in lortraiturQ
| and in other lines. Lucien Powell, Helen
! Nicolay, Mary M. Hyde, Miriam S. Rune5
| w. w. Christmas and number of others
show interesting canvases.
| Passing into the ante room, where the
work in black and white is shown. one is
Immediately struck by the burnt wood
decorations by William Fuller Curtis. The
art Of the poker etcher' is comparatively
new in Washington. and its development
elsewhere is rather recent, so that works
executed in this medium are bound to
! claim attention. Mr.. Curtis expresses HIM
self in this medium as easily as i'll any
other, and his taste for the decorative
well fits him for this work. In his Mis-
| erere' he reaches a very high plane, and
his symphony" is also markedly good.
The department of black and white has
always offered a tempting field for those
who. as Oliver Wendell: Holmes puts it,
perform little on the lead pencil" and
sketches have been sent in, but this year
very little work was contributed, and it
was all Of a high quality.
One of the interesting features of this
rcem. and the most novel feature Of the
exhibition. is the collection Of clever carl
catures by Felix Mahoney. He has set
down on paper all the best known members
of the Society Of Washington Artists, and
the nkenesses are unmistakable. They are
| very laughable, and yet Mr.. Mahoney's
pencil has caricatured them in such a gen.
tal, good-natured way as to give no offense
even to the most sensitive.
| Hattie B,lrdette is present in savera, ~
her characteristic decorative subjects,
which are always 50 popular. The profile
head in charcoal is noticeably good, and
Miss Burdette Is also represented in the
main gallery by striking color study.
/ Prof. Alexander Melville Bell. modelled
by Carl Heber, is another striking work,
and it is handled In a broad way that is
wonderfully telling. Mr.. Heber works with
~ e~