The times., 1899-12-24

/ masterpieces OF WOTld-Wlde reputation at
Fischer's to those of the Ninth Street stores.
where the art is of less certain pedigree
but still art and hand painted" It is the
fashion to protest against this low art pro
duced by the acre at sweatshop prices BY
men who would be doing better work if the
public taste demanded IT, Ii is worth not
| ing here that the raw and glaring pastel.
the worst Of all the shoddy trade pictures.
has about run its course as did the cheap
superficial trade etching. There is comfort
in this reflection.
From time to time low grade art viii
swoop down on the town in one form or an
other ike a pestilence. to the great discom-
| fort of the earnest painter, who is working
long hours, contented with small returns
and striving to be sincere. 1t is probabie
| that like the poor" bad art will always
| be with US, but there are seasons of pros
! perity when the poor are less in evidence,
and so there are times when bad art is III
comparative retirement
These limitations of better pictures aping
! good art in everything save the quality Of
| the work are from time to time exploited
| by some dealers. The popularity Of these
| pictures is shortliyed. It lasts only until
the price is cut so low that it discloses
their factory origin. Then people become
ashamed of them The climax was reach
| ed here last winter when a nomadic auc-
! tioneer. occupying temporarily an unrented
! store in prominent part Of T Street, un-
! loaded three thousand water colors in a
! season. This fact the genial merchant re
vealed to the writer with the observation
! that it was his business TO furnish the
| people what they wanted if they were will
! ling TO pay he fair profit be eXacted. He
| was quite right and all his work was not
really bad. Indeed, some Of it was skill
| fully painted. but none of it was entirely
! true and sincere, while the better things
| he displayed We're obviously decoy ducks
| employed mainly to give respectability 10
the purely shoddy things, which sold at
such low prices and in which the profit
was enormous in proportion to the price
paid the producer.
Some OF the local artists complained
The wisest of them quietly ignored the
whole thing and went on with their own
work courageous and patient and this
patience was only broken when some rich
and influential person asked the earnest
painter for his opinion Of some hand
somely-framed trade picture from this
auction collection.
This art is a kind Of whooping cough OF
measles which comes TO cities and must be
borne with resignation. Fortunately, the
city is not likely to have the same thing
twice Good art is like the North Star; it
| never waveTs. The writer recalls yividly
! how, In the revival of water color and etch-
ing twenty years ago, some Of the older
artists who painted only IN oil were sure
that the days Of oil painting were num-
| bered. The foTlorn state OF these pessi-
mists was pitiful. They should have known
that good art is eternal, and it is only truly
bad art which sinks into oblivion like a
stone thrown into pond Only those who
paint bad pictures, write their names in
water.
The earnest man may not reach the
highest things but his enjoyment of his
art will be complete. When posterity shall
| come 10 single out the few names of those
who made the closing days of this nine
teenth century famous, It matters little if
ones name be among the elect or not, Art
were & poor mistress If that alone were
the goal Of ones ambition. The joy Of the
doing, the revelations Of beauty, the finer
inner meaning OF things. the kindliness of
heart and the measureless peace of mind
which comes in the pursuit of art for its
| own sweet sake-these are the compensa-
tions which make the life of an artist
the most desiF9ble and favored OF any.
America viii long be remembered as con
! tributing to the worlds art the first work
! of permanent value since Gilbert Stuart
| laid down his brush. That the century
! should not be distinguished here at home
! by any work of permanent inpeTsoual art
! value till its closing quarter IS one of the
| curious and unaccountable things in art
! history. Stuart, il not always the peer
/ of the best English and Dutch masters,
| Ur9c a claep eapopT from him 10 Car-
gent is long step, with few names be
! tween which may hope to stand the test
! OF time. OF the whole line, perhaps El-
| liott will last longest among the portrait
/ painters. American figure painters have
| only recently learned to draw so the long
| line of men who painted up TO 1876 must
be set down as doubtful II is not easy
| to think Of them as drifting out of sight
estimabIe men who painted stories which
! were not without attractive qualities, but
/ the truth must be told. none is likely
| to live beyond a period to which his
/ interest historically can carry him.
/ Almost the first OF the story tellers
I who, after the early things OF Winslow
/ Homer, brought his work 10 a point Of
! commanding artistic excellence. was
| Thomas Hovenden. His "Iu Hoe SiguO Vim
! ces'' and The Sword Sharpener," which
| were shown at the Academy on his return
! from France. won him place at once as
| a painter Of the first rank The French in
| fueuce later gave way to that true art at
/ mosphere which depends more on tone and
| impaired TO his later work those qualities
| which are so 7 lied in the best early
! Dutch and English art of which Dow,
! Moreland, and Nilkie were leading mas
! ters. These stories Of Hovenden viii last
| long for their human interest, and will in
| time be treasured for their splendid tech
! nical and color qualities. Time Will give
! them a tone that shall rival the Dutch, and
! apologies Will never need TO be made for
their drawing. Hovenden's Breaking
| Home Ties" viii probably be better known
at the end Of the twentieth century than
| it is today, and there can be no higher
praise.
In landscape the names Of Innis and
Wyant, linked together as are the names
of Rosseau and d'Aubigny will stand Out
as marking a noble epoch in American art
/ history. With Wyant and Iunis American
/ landscape art made a definite and lasting
! impression upon The worlds art The
work OF these men viii influence future art
at home and abroad. II is interesting 10
note how landscape art has developed in
! America since the formal work of Doughty
and Cole No country in the latter half OF
! the century has made such progress in this
| branch OF art as has America, nor has any
country been more prolific. Our landscape
painters have been quick TO exhaust every
method ever hinted at by foreign schools,
/ or invented by our own. Every method
| every subject, has been treated, and whi e
the names of Keusitt Clifford McEntee.
and Bierstadt, may remain prominent for
a time, Thomas Moran is the only one OF
these landscapists who IS likely 10 survive
and hold a place through the coming cen
tury. His art is individual and unique,
and probably will, though less likely to in