Virginian-pilot. (Norfolk, Va.) 1898-1911, 1899-04-22

tistic career into three periods or man
Eers-W the frlo, or cold manner; 90
the calido, or warm manner, and (3) the
Vaporoso, or atmospheric manner. Ex-
cept for the fact that his earliest works
would be called cold and hard, owing
10 MS masters influence, and that he
uiu not acquire the vaporoso effects un-
III some years after his return from
Madrid. there seems hardly any ground
Tor q chronological succession or these
manners They were possibly used
side by side as mannerisms. 1t has been
suggested that his scenes of low life,
depending OH realism Of detail were ma
turaliy expressed by the sharp, clear
trio eiiects; the dramatic mysticism of
MS sanity visions were best suited to
his calido manner, and the scenes from
the world of Imagination, the misty
realm OF the beyond, such as the I'm
maculate Conceptions" and Holy Fam
iiies." were best interpreted by the far
away, VaporoSo effects.
AS for the influence of The past on
Murillo's style, there is not a trace Of
the classic tradition in his types or in
his drapery, such as the Italian schools
preserved until the advent of the Ca
racci; neither is there IL trace in his
religious personageS OF the traditional
Christian types which had been shared
schools. When Murillo shows the in
fuence of other painters it is that of
men who were his contemporaries or
antedated him but slightly. The earliest
among these was perhaps Andrea del
Sarto, with whose coloring, hazy tones
and soft outlines he was In special SYM
pathy; he shows it in such works as the
Virgin and Child with ST. Elizabeth
and John" in the Louvre. Next came the
Venctians. and especially Titan. in
such pictures as the Senator Reli. ling
His Dream TO Pope Liberius:" then Van
Dyke. in his Conclusions" and his
Death of Santa Clara; I.ibera, in his
Release of st. Peter from Prison;
Guido Reni. in his "Magdalen"; Velas-
qucz, In his ''St. Anna Teaching the
Virgin" and his 'St. James and the
Beggars"; the Caracci, in his "Immacu-
late Conceptions" In many ways his
management of chiaroscuro suggests
Zurbaran and CaravaEgio, as we'll as
IHoera; his cherubs have the cuteness
OF those Of the Bologncsc school. and
in his bourgeois naturalistic treatment
Of the Holy Family" &c. &. at ST. Pc
terSourg) we are reminded Of Rem
brandt. But whatever may be the traits
OF other artists that our love of dissec-
ton may lead us to perceive. we feel
that they do not affect the groundwork
OF Murilo's artistic productions; his
individuality is strong ana clear
Let us define this artistic individual
ity In comparison With previous Span
ish artists he was remarkable for soft
of composition, for mellowness of color
Inequalities which had not prevailed
In a school that had as a. Tufrtcnded to
heavy contrasts. dark colorng and
clear. hard outline. Entirely exceptions
NJ was he in the soft. warm, glowing
atmosphere in which he placed his fig
urcs. especially in the celestial and Wis
ionary scenes. made only more striking
by the contrast of dark shadows he sell
dom totally abandoned. Still 1t cannot
be said that his coloring had real depth.
even whore 1t was softest in its effects:
its tonality was distinctly superficial
and light.
His faults in the conception and treat
ment of his subjects We're those OF his
hge-ot exaggerated and cfrcminate
scntmentality. His "Immaculate VIr-
gins" their heads thrown back in arti-
fetal ecstasy. are akin To Guido Renrs
effusions of the same sort. His saints
making love to n little nude cupid sup
posed to represent the Divine Child
seem to us ridiculous. both in the idea
and object of their worship. But what
may appear PROCLAMATION OF religious
sentiment at one period may hut movo
TO picty in another. For one thing. we
know that Murillo's piety was real