New-York tribune., 1899-01-15
A CHANGE OF woRLps-

OrdnulS IN England.
CHANGE OF WORLDS
To go from the Rembrandts OF the Academy
TO the Burne-Jones collection at the New Cal
lery is to pass from a world Of simple realism
to another world OF ideal beauty With his mas
terry OF chiaroscuro and refinement Of skill In
centrng light upon figures and features Rem
brandt painted with sturdy independence and
amazing naturalness the muchanto. rabhn
maidens, wizened crones young soldiers and old
burghers Of his day precisely as they were He
had wonderful talent for impartng pctur
esque effect and spirited action 70 groups OF
portraits like those OF the Might Watch" but
his art was essentially realistic and his studies
were with life in the prosac Dutch world
around him. Sir Edward Burne-Jones created
a world OF ideal beauty and worked and revelled
in II. There may be controversies over his skill
as a draughtsman and his charm as a coOrist
but his senstiveness 10 beauty and his original
ty and imaginative power in reproducing the
dream-world OF his thought cannot be ques
toned.
The New Gallery under his Transforming
touch is now transhgured into House Beauti-
full The visitor falls under the magic spell
soon he enters the central hall and sees the
gorgeous tapestries designed by Sir Ed
ward Burne-Jones and executed under the direc-
tion Of Mr.. Morris for stanmore Hall. These
six tapestries represent the Quest Of the Holy
Grail" and, with their splendors Of color and
fascinating beauty of design, carry one at once
into that realm Of romance where the painter
dwelt with serenity of mind and pensive melan-
choly For. bright and glorious was his ideal
world IT was also tnged with sadness. Let the
visitor go among the drawings and designs Of
bon nd hal search
early works in oil and water-color Of the south
room. OF revel among the pictures Of the mid
die period in the long west room, or see In the
north room the later works. including Arthur
in Avalon" the effect upon his mind is always
the same It is beautiful world Of romance
b,,t there is a haunting sense of sadness every
where.
Mr.. Conyns Carr, in the course Of an admira-
bic If unduly controversial preface 10 the cata-
logue. quotes an interesting passage from a ie'-
ter which he received from the painter twenty
six wears ago II is Sir Edward Burne-Jones
account of the influences which affected and
directed his art career. 1t runs In this way:
think Morris's friendship began everything
for me everything that afterward cared lor,
we were freshmen together al ENe'rl, w"
7 left oxford I got TO know tossetI' WINS
friendship 7 sought and obtained. lie is. you
know. the most generous OF men 70 the youils
couldn't bear with young mans dreauI vi
sensitiveness and Conceit as ne pore VII" H''llV
He taught me practically all ever learNeu %
afterward l made a method Tor myseH 20 sun
nv nature He gave me courage 20 commit my %
self 10 imagination without shame thlhg oolh
bad and good for me. II was w aus Hluch H
later who compelled me 20 try 70 draw better
7 quarrel now with Morris about art. lie Jour
neys 10 Iceland and TO ltaly-whch Is d sS.n syn,
holland 7 quarrel, too. with Rossetu. II couiGI D
travel backward think my hearts desire Wou4d
take me TO Florence in the time Of Botucelil
The pictures and drawings have been ar
ranged with apparent delberation for the pur-
pose Of illustrating the painters own commen-
tary on his art The earlier works in the south
ROOM beautiful as they are. are detective N
drawing and have the impress OF isossetus ID
nuence Gradually he made method Tor MN
self to suit his nature. In the west room he has
committed himself In the plenitude OF his pow
ers 10 Imagination. and. while the coloring IS
less opulent than in his earlier Rossetu studies.
the draughtsmanship improves steadily under
Mr.. Watts's influence. All his great WORKS eA-
con, the "Brar Rose" series are mere Inc
Hours" THE Wheel Of Fortune Laus
veneris." king Cophetua and the bessar
/ Maid" The Mirror OF Venus" The Depths oi
.h0 cao g" The Mil" Love Among the Ruins, -
The Golden Stairs" and lie Chant q amour
are on the walls TO justify Rossettis remark as
] OrTDf
nic.ure is a painted poem. then say that IN the
n.no1e history Of art there has never been a
nainter more greatly gifted than Burne-Jones
with the highest qualities Of poetical lnVen-
/ ton"
We, vbua his pictures were painted poems
and ron,ances. he was constantly Journeyins
toward Italy and yearning to be with Botticelli
Tho visitor who leaves the dream world of the
Neu, Gallery and hastens TO the National Gal
,erv where superb examples Of Bottceli are "a
no saen perceives instinctively the significance
/ - the nainter's longing for medi8val Florence
/ There are 225 pictures. drawings ana sketches
&, the collection-a splendid revel or romance
and color Every resource Of the painter ar
&c illustrated and the cumulative erect ol al
this wealth Of imagination is fairly oVerpo"ef-
,np In the north room are the later "orks' III
/ Guiding the Perseus series which Is o"heu "S
NJ Arthur Balfour. and the huge canvas
/ mA-.b,r in Avalon" on which the painter la
bored for eighteen years. and which ought u
ha nurchased by the nation for the Ialt 1al
low II is practically finished although Slr I'd
wa-d Rurne-Jones fanced that some Oh '"'
heads needed retouching. The King sleeps IN
cloister. with the courtiers maidens squres ahc
+rrn,peters around him, watching lor Signs o
awakening Il is a great Work, beauuIul II
color delicate ana Weh-DaidlDeu III
and fairly pulsating with inventive power
was the last glimpse OF the dreamland OF beauty
which the dying painter could have and II was
saddaned by the thought that something re-
rnained undone and that no hand save MS OWL
could give the final perfectng touch' 20 s'e'P'
among knights OF his own crea'loh inns N''-
among English poet-panters and on earth ther'
will be an awakening nevermore ~
TRJBrTE TO CAPTAIN TRUSLOW.