The times., 1899-08-27
THE MOUNTAIN PICTURE
A Subject No Longer Popular With
the Artist.
The Public, Too, Has Abandoned Its
American Painters of Scenery
of Rugged Type-Church. Mo-
ran, Bierstndt, Hill, and sontag

discarding of mountain scenes as subjects
for pictorial art OF alate one rarely sees
mountain pictures in nr the studios of the
better class of painters and very rarely in
the exhibitions.
Simple subjects with very little in them
in the way of objective interest seem to
be the fad. The artist who attempts to
paint mountain pictures takes his reputa-
tion in his hands and walks on dangerous
ground. In art as in other things, people are
| like sheep. Let a school of advanced paint
ers declare for some particular class of
subjects or methods and after time every
body discovers that that particular thing
is real art-and they proceed to accept and
praise everything done in the name OF this
suddenly popular school. Crimes without
number are commiteed under the wing of
this new school, and the serious and schol-
arly artist, who recognizes the sham, is
distressed to see people make the same old
display OF ignorance by affecting 10 like
these poor pictures. these sham examples
on which has been placed the stamp of ap-
proyal OF the new school The truly cath
Ollie painter, who worships at the shrine
of nature. night and morning. and who,
/ though he be never more confident of the
line of work to which he is especially de-
in any field of art work however remote it
may be from his own.
To examine into this question and learn
if possible what is the matter with the
mountain picture, though it may seem
quite as unnecessary as it seemed to that
company of Americans when the En-
giishman wanted 10 know of Mr.. Depew
what was the matter with the famous ap-
pie, one must go back to the paimy
~, 1ta;, ,I.1
ty years ago. There were at that tin e
five Americans who We're pre-eminent as
painters of mountain scenery. and they
were easily the leaders of American land
scape. They were Frederick E. Church,
Albert Bierstadt, Thomas Moran, Thomas
Hill, and w. l.. Sontag There were many
others, but they are not to be named with
these. Church was to landscape what
William T. Richards is TO marihe art in
America the one conspicuous example o.
an artist who accurately portrayed, at cost
OF infinite labor the mnutest detail
which it was possible for the eye
to detect. Church's knowledge of nature
is profound. as can be seen in his greatest
picture, The Falls of Niagara owned
by the CCrcoran Gallery. This is the only
picture by Church which the writer recalls
that is other than mountain picture.
The Heart Of the Andes is his most IA
nous reproduction of a mountain scene.
Church has had no followers, and II still
living is completely lost sight of so
far as recent work from his brush is pub
Iicly known. This is substantially true
also of Hill, Bierstadt, and Sontag. Bier
stadt's point of view was much the sane
as Church s. His best work was not deli
cate as Churcn's, but was strong and
forceful.
Fine Example of Bierstadt.
The Mount Corcoran" in the Corcoran
Gallery is fine example of Bierstadt's best
period
Hill did Bierstadt subjects-namely the
Rockies and Yosemite Valley-but Hill, to
the last degree, was a poet and had the
true painters instinct, according to the
latest Interpretation of the artists point
of view. He brought to his mountain sub
iects an artistic sense quite as keen and
poetic as that OF either Wyant or Innes.
That he did not become as widely known
as the two masters mentioned, is doubt
less due to his subjects and persistent res
idence ON the California coast The Penn
Academy of Fine Arts owns a splendid ex-
ample of Hills work. Moran is the one
man of the five who still exhibits and
| whose work continues to hold a command
| ing place in the art OF today. No land
| scape painter ever SO thoroughly mastered
| the geological facts OF his material In
that respect Mr.. Moran's work is unique
| His Yellowstone Pictures,' as they are
called, at the Capitol are wonders in theil
way and truly great paintings. There are
probably no two landscape painters in
America whose destruction would leave the
country SO poor and whose place it would
be SO nearly impossible to fill They are
the most conspicuous, artistic, and popular
mountain pictures, both with artist and
| layman, in this country and it is a real
satisfaction to know that they are in the
possession of the Government. It is 8
matter of wide regret that Mr. Moran is
not represented in the Corcoran Gallery
! which is fast becoming the American
"Wai-halla, for these Yellowstone pic
| lures, place him with the very first OF
! American landscapists, and perhaps nC
! painter is so distinctiyely American The
! writer has never ceased TO regret that Mo.
! rams Mountain of the Holy Cross ex-
| hibited at the Corcoran Gallery some years
| ago, was ever permitted TO leave that In.
| stitution. This picture possessed splendit
| parts, was a glorious piece of color. ant
| had also those elements which make
| picture popular with all classes.
Though Sontag's fairgrounds never es.
capped conventional, Artificial and per-
| functory look there is one aspect of the
! Blue Ridge Mountains which no one ap-
! parently ever saw so truly or painted a!
we'll. This is their blueness and the effec
of drifting fog after a midday shower. Too
much cannot be said in praise of Sontag, a.
to his rendering of this peculiar quality o
these mountains. His drawing and compost
ton have that accurate naive quality which
one expects in photographs. but there is al
| ways something about these composition:
| which convince one that they were Son
! tags own impressions of nature. This Il
very high praise, but his ability ito catci
effects that could mot exist beyond a few
seconds of time reveals the painters per
feet knowledge and appreciation Of thii
aspect of the Blue Ridge. 1t must be said
however, that only when the scheme o
color remained blue and white" Sontal
painted 1t well-his attempt to paint higl
and low tones were never successful. Th
work of Sontag Is full of individuality ans
genius.
1t is necessary to be explicit, and ful
measure of praise is given Sontag for he i
an American master-but the writer doe
not believe that few masterful works
sufficient reason for breathless admiration
of indifferent canvases from the same hand
hand.
The School Obsolete.
The writer regrets that he can recall n
great example OF Sontag's art in any G
the public galleries of America. Thes
painters of mountains are spoken of in tn
past tense, for with the exception of Mo
ran, they are no longer considered as be
longing to the American school of today
They are distinctly has beens." and so
the mountain picture. The tide has Sc
toward the lower picturesque, and 1t ma
be well. This tide sprang from deep de
sire Oh the part of the artist to display hi
power to make the commonplace beautifI
and reveal his sonahaprpeeiation CT sui
tie beauties which exist to the inspire
painter and where theduninitiated see onl
commonplace scenes or even ugiiness.
/ A weak teehnitician, blind to the rel