The San Francisco call., 1899-10-16

with the notorious Petro Aretino, the
most corrupt man of a corrupt age, and
with all his high connections and wealth
the champion blaCkmailer of history.
During his stay in Venice he found IT,
tian's talents useful and so helped him to
the favor of various Italian potentates,
and especially of Charles of Spain. Ii
tian was perniciously and permanently
affected by Aretino in his art and charac-
ter, learning to fawn on the great and to
worship money in way unworthy of the
dignity of a great artist, and learning es-
peciaIly to prostitute his art. During this
period of his middle life Titan painted
little more than portraits, often fiatter-
ing. and alluring nudes for his princely
patrons He showed himself willing to
paint without seeing his model, as in his
portrait of Francis l.. and to give to a
woman of 30 the semblance of so, as in
the case of Eleanora GonZaga. Prominent
at this time is his portrait of "Hyppolito
de Medici'' (PittD. when Titian's own eX-
periences helped him to portray the un-
scrupulous, cruel. shifty type. A worthy
mate to it is the portrait OF 'Pietro Are
tino' (PittD himself.
Ten years after the ''St. Peter Martyr"
Titan produced another great religious
picture. the Presentation of the Virgin
in the Temple, which In its harmonious
and spectacular composition served with
. the "Eece Homo" as model to other
Venetian masters. such as Tintoretto and
was never surpassed by them. The prince
ly house of Farnese succeeded Q542) the
GonZagas as Titian's patrons, and as Pope
R1uI III was q FdTH6Se. 1ltlan was IDuS
for the first time brought into close con-
nection with the papal court. The painter
finally, when nearly 10 years old, trav-
eled beyond the limits of Northern Italy
Titan Michelangelo. The two artists rep
resented not merely an artistic opposition
of design versus color-but an opposition
of character. Michelangelo was typically
strong, independent. puritanic; Titan was
supple fawning, luxurious. There could
be no sympathy or understanding: From
the earlier Florentine masters with whom
Titan then became little better ac-
uuainted he received something; at least.
it appears as if Verrocchio were not for
eign to his "John the Baptist" Venicel
nor Raphael to his ceiling picture of
'sWisdom'' Is. Marco), nor even Mcclellan
gelo to his Adam and Eve" (Madrid), all
of which he painted after his visit to
Rome and Florence.
Not long after Titan made an even
greater journey, to the court of Charles
at Augsburg, where he painted one of
his most consummate masterpieces, the
equestrian portrait of Charles Y at the
Battle of Muhlberg" (Madrd. Titan had
now for several years reached the summit
of his ambitions. He was the favorite of
uopes and emperorS and feared no rival.
Yet he never ceased from nagging for
money and from sending unordered pic
lures in hopes of being well paid. After
the death of Charles V Titan was in high
favor with Philip II. whom he had more
than once painted while he was yet prince.
Perhaps it was the influence of Spanish
fanaticiSm gradually creeping over him.
perhaps 1t was the advance of old age. but
whatever the reason may be we see Titan
gradually returning to religious scenes
and treating them with less triviality and
less brutality. At the same time he does
not so often treat nude figures and myth
ological scenes. Aretino was dead: neo-
catholicism was supreme The Christ
Crowned With Thorns" (Munich) and the
.'Pieta'' CVenice. Bell' ArtD, on which the
master was engaged at the time of his
death. are good examples of this kind of
observation-disclosures hysteria that formed
quite a lengthy prelude to his death in
1876. during the great plague.
The significance of Titian'S art lies not
in drawing or composition, but in color
ing His drawing was Indifferent. though
Mfchelangelo regarded It as defective. His
ability to compose, at first decidedly sec
ond-rate became excellent, but his large
compositions never were his most char
acteristic pieces-as compositions. Meth
er is Titan suggestive ard inspiring in
the theme or the inner life of his pic
lures. as are so many other great Italian
artists The delight he does give US
often but not always-is almost purely
through the color sense; in the landscape,
the atmosphere, the combinations and
gradations of tone the play of light, the
inwardness of color. He shows extreme
reticence for a Venetian in producing his