The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-03-10

then, II you must know, ] WAS born in
Amity, johnson county Indiana. village
mat contains vast population OF sixty or
seventy souls both good and true. It's Local
ton Is directly across Sugar creek from
JoiiitZ. This unromantic. but anliable,
sweet and jolly start in life has at last
landed me in Metamora. the home Of Andy
Miller. the miller and old man Rothrock,
who does not go to the extremes of wearing
a red coat, but covers his house with thai
luminous color Salt creek is heze Pepper
Town not far away. so there is some spice
in Hoosier life after all. Let me see.
am not prepared to say when-but never
mind that; it Is in the future. ] attended
school in country towns, spending most OF
the time trying to draw and paint At
tended college for two years From 1872 to
1874 was in London. and commenced ser!-
Gus study of art in branch of the South
kensington school. From 1850 to 1887 / at
tended the Munich Academy under BeneZur
and Loefftz. Ny home is in Muneie Ind,
where / paint portraits and landscapes.
Mr.. Adams would rot tell his age, but as
he is a bachelor we forgive him and re-
turn to his work which tells the story of
how much comfort he finds in nature. A
critic says of his paintings at the recent
Indianapolis exhibition: Mr.. Adams has
ten canvases. The Individual note is strong.
The line which separates his work from
that of Mr.. Steele or Mr.. Forsyth is clear
and decided. His work is more ex-
than the others, but when the mood
is so beautiful there is no occasion TO ma
fault on that account AS one walks
back to the SOFT rich, passionate color or
Mr. Adams's work The old Canal Near
Metamora is the sharpest clear est and
cember Freshet' is a picture one will al
ways remember in connection with this art
ist. 1t is hardly fair to speak of a collec-
ton of pictures after a single view. Time
and circumstances have so much to do with
ones impression. Last night the Dusk or
eV ennesS in this years exhibit of Adams
work that makes concentration on any one
picture all but impossible. The head study
is not among the best of Mr.. Adams's por-
trait work. One finds no fault with the
model, however. The Portfolio Club, OF
this city, owns the gem among all the head
studies which have come from his easel"
w. Forsyth has sent us some excellent
water colors and three oils. In one, of the
recent exhibitions he was represented by an
interior, quite different from his usual style.
1t is picture of a young girl sitting on the
garrett floor looking over trunk of old let
tiers. There is touch of the past in this
glimpse of the present, with its suggestion
of memories. Mr.. Gibson says of his last
work: Forsyth seems to have brought
himself together as never before. His ex-
allied view of nature has never been ques-
toned, and hitherto he has Represented her
in superb way; but never with such self
possession, such directness of purpose and
at the same time with such refinement. In
seeing has verged on the brutal, and has
shown some Spottiness But not so here.
There is now a refinement in execution and
at the same time a positive gain in color
gether. 1t is difficult to gain one and not
suffer in the other"
Mr.. Forsyth was born in Ohio, but has
lived since early childhood in Indianapolis,
where he began his studies with John w.
Dare. pupil of Jerome, in 1879 He spent
several years in Munich; exhibited at the
Royal Academy and won a medal. We
know him best not by his interiors, but
those luminous landscapes wherein every
thing is touched with the golden hue of sun
shine.
This group of Hoosier painters has recent
ly presented several valuable paintings to
the public schools of Indianapolis. and are
thus daily lettering and upbuilding the sur
roundings of the people. Whatever there is
of an awakening toward better knowledge
of art in that fair city is largely due to
the genius, the courage and the self-sac-
rif1ce of the Hooster painters, and although
the seed cannot all fall upon stony ground,
some Of it must have done SO, for at the re-
cent exhibition by these men in Indianapolis
but few pictures were sold. Yet the city
boasts of very large art association, whose
purpose is the encouragement and promo
tion of art. Do tile members of this asso-
citation study the history of art until they
are blind to the genius of their own men?
If so, there is something radically wrong in
the application CT art knowledge as we un-
derstand it, and 1t would be better by far to
throw aside art histories and adopt the
banner of Buy Pictures which has been
unfurled from the mast of the Chicago Art
Association.