The times., 1899-04-02

recently in old masters. The half-length
figure OF a girl in black, with blacl. hat
standing before a dark green curtain
playing a mandolin is very harmonious.
The flesh tints are low. rich and satin like,
while the dark shadow across the
face hints of Rembra ndt's school.
These pictures are well worth studying
for the purpose of learning what delight
subdued color is. and how crude. clean,
pretty flesh painting in a full light becomes
; tame by comparison. This woman is
playing the mandolin-not posing simply
and one has only to look long enough to
be sure she is playing those tender things
that recall memories of moonlit nights and
water that rippled to the oar in half for
gotten days-these pictures are brimful
oil sentiment.
Mrs Thomas Hovenden sands the most
ambitious picture she has yet shown at
the society full length of young girl
in brown dress seated in a rocking chair.
She looks up from book that rests upon
the arm of the chair II is one in the first
rank 'of beauty the society has to offer this
year. 1t is finely drawn and most skillfully
painted, with fidelity TO the method and
teaching of that greatest master of all
American storytelling painters, whose de-
voted pupil she was But for the drawing
of the hand and evidence of struggle with
expression about the mouth this picture
might easily have borne Thomas Hovend
! ems name.
There is a tiny little picture OF black
smith at his anvil. painted by Lesley Jack
| son, of Loudoun county, Virginia, that is
not only charming in color. drawing. and
J all those nice little qualities which go to
make up really first-class picture, but
! there is naive, easy atmosphere about il
! that places Mr.. Jackson with Senseny anil
| Warner as the young men in sight of whom
I great things may be expected in the near
! future Mr.. Jackson's Two other contribu-
I tions support well the excellent first rank
1 occupied by The Blacksmith
The name of Glenn Madison Brown must
| also be added to those above. They make
! a promising quartette which il is a pleas
| ure to applaud. 1t is a great thing to be
( young and be so well equipped at the be-
! ginning of ones art career. Mr.. Browns
Dick Swiveller and the Marchioness is
/ the most satisfactory sort of illustration,
well drawn, good in color and handled with
/ lightness and delicate appreciation of
! humor that is unusual. 1t is not merely
! a tinted black and white, 1t is a painting
full OF rich, wellInanaged color. shadowy
and mysterious, vet possessing all the de-
tail the most eXactng critic could ask for.
The work of Mrs. Cassaday Davis is al
| ways interesting. whether ii be corner of
some Zuni Pueblo, which n jury turns
| down because they do not think IL is true.
unwilling Ia accept unimpeachable tech
nique and the fact that it was painted from
nature II is well to remember that a
landscape may be true TO nature and not
look like an ''Innis. "A Navajo Boy end
"A Negro Boy both painted by Mrs. Da-
Wis, are so widely different looking pic
lures one would never dream that they
came from the same hand-one is Virginia
and the other is Arizona. Mrs. Davis has
painted them both with skin and COM
mendable conscience, that portend greater
things eventually for her than some OF
the more popular of the fraternity whoss
pictures grow more and more alike every
year.
! With few notable exceptions here this
repeating ones self shows plainly that il
is sapping the vitality from the men who's,
pictures at some of the Society's Annual.
in the past ten years gave promise of suci
! n brilliant future. Ii is never too late Il
go back to nature, repent, and start again
Miss Bertha Henson has a road through
forest with a bit of masolry in the fore
| ground upon which child Is sitting Thi
bit OF work is so sincere that though tn