The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1899-10-04
OUT AND ABOUT.

Miss Jeanne Lea Southwick writes to
The Spy as follows:-
There has been held in Boston tic
past few days state exhibition o.
drawing in the public schools, under the
direction of the state board of educa-
tion,' Frank B. Hill being chairman of
the committee in charge. 1t is note
worthy exhibition in that it is the first
one of the kind-that is, state exhibit
tion-held for many years. If / am not
mistaken, the previous one was some
20 years ago, in the infancy, so to speak,
of this work in the public schools. The
infreQuency Of such exhibitions is all
the more reason for special effort TO be
made, not only to send work to the ex-
hibstion, but to encourage the grade
teachers, as well as special teachers OF
drawing, to visit and study the exhibit
OF the two, 1t is, perhaps, more
important for grade teachers to visit
such an exhibition, as in the majority
of schools the teaching of the dra wing
is done by them. The fact that Wor-
cester was not represented, so far Is /
was able to discover, in any way was
a surprise, not only to me, but to ev-
cry one who spoke to me in the exhibit
ton, and there was general desire tc
Know what was the matter with the
Worcester drawing. 1t hardly seems
possible that an invitation was not sent
to Worcester, and If it was sent, why
was 1t ignored? Does our superintcnd-
ent OF schools not consider drawing Of
sufficient Importance to take any
trouble for such a cause or has the fall
ing off in the quality of the drawing in
Worcester the past two or three years
been SO great that 1t was deemed mad
V1Sable TO show it in competition with
work from other Soafi0pc of fha cfo r,
The latter reason is certainly not true
OF the evening drawing school work, as
Two supervisors who saw that exhibit
ton in Worcester last spring told me
the work was the best evening work
they had seen and far ahead of any
evening work at this state exhibition
There was, some seven or eight years
ago, very large exhibition of drawings
and other school work at the Boston
high scohol in connection with an edu-
cational conference. Worcester had
then the largest, and it was said in the
papers at the time the best, exhibition
OF drawing that was sent so it's absence
now is particularly noticeable, and has
excited much comment
1t is interesting to note the change
which comes in this line from year to
year, and to see how when one sheen
jumps over the wall the rest Jump Wild
l.. L
a very level head to withstand the in
huence of fads and to strike a happy
medium, selecting what is good in the
new and holding fast to the best of the
old. AT this previous exhibition seven
or eight years ago, the fever of paper
cutting was at its height, neither quail
ty OF paper Tor color was considered
anything would do, and the more tile
better. Today paper-cutting has van
n oe%H4 s,z.1 L.. L ~
whole, there being a few stray samples
which somehow or other seem out IN,
the cold today, and one wonders if the
great things to be accomplished by its
aid failed to materialize. In its place
however, is mass of work in water
colors; of drawing proper we see very
little, and I am free to confess that
While the color work is almost univer-
sally good in the lower primary grades.
II IS equally bad in the grammar grades
and positively shocking in most high
school work.
THE exhibition as a whole impressed
me as hysterical; one might say much
OF the work looking as though done
With no serious intention and certainly
with most Indefinite idea of what was
| being aimed at. The impress of Mr.
BOWS methods are seen at every turn,
but of most desultory nature, the
principle underlying his theories not
being grasped at ALL Much work Of
this nature looked like what one would
expect under the direction Of a person
VINO was in the condition of hen with
Its head cut off. This was particularly
noticeable in such things as the blue
arrangements, presumably LANDSCAPES.
IN the Brookline exhibit and in some
drawings which l noticed, for instance,
In Braintree, where evidently the idea
was firmly fixed that large circle had
something to dowith a spray of flowers.
SO the circle was put on to the paper
regardless, giving the effect of a full
moon few inches behind the spray
In many schools. When it came to sim
PIE common drawing of everyday OBJ
Jects they were almost universally
wrong, so far as the simple underlying
principles of the drawing an ellipse
and the conveyance of parallel lines
were concerned. 1t was refreshing to
see some really good work with a GER
tain unity Of purpose apparent and a
gradual Improvement from start to fin-
lsh, like the work done in the Boston
schools and to g. limited extent in NAL
zen, Newton, New Bedford and Spring
held, and most exceedingly well in
Chicopee. The work from the latter
place being next to the Boston exhibit.
the most interesting of the school work
eet1ASh as d WuOlS, anu also the ONLY
place so far as I noted where oil paints
We're used, there being some good land
scape and still life work done by high
school scholars in that medium. OF the
several normal school exhibits, that of
tltchburg was good, especially in its
black and white arrangements Of
decorative nature.
In connection with this exhibition.
there was room full of work done by
III dAVs NJ. n
ance, showing his theory of teaching
drawing. This work was without ex-
ception beautiful in arrangement and
especially fine in color. One can fore
see, however, the weird effects which
will be springing up all around in con-
sequence of Tom, Dick and Harry or
perhaps would better say Anna, Edith
and Mabel, trying it on" so to speak,
in their schools, without having the
faintest conception of it's underlying
theory or practice After all, one is
impelled to ask why is drawing taught
in our public schools. Is 1t for the
amusement of the children or for its
educational value? If the former
would it not be better to dismiss spe
cial teachers Of drawing entirely and
let the children get all the fun thew can
out of 1T without wasting public money.
If the latter, why is pernicious teach
ing tolerated? What should we think
of an exhibition of music where every
child, without exception, sang out of
tune and where the discord was worse
in the grammer and high schools than
in the primary grades?'
Mrs. William T. Souther gave an in
formal luncheon at her home, 20 Main
street. yesterday afternoon. in honor
of Mrs. Willard Fuller of Cleveland. o.
who is Mrs Southers guest. Those
present were Mrs. Winslow Lincoln
the Misses Paine, Mrs. H. D. Skinner
Mrs Emma d. NeWland and MIRO nj