The Savannah morning news., 1900-07-15
B.H.LeVy &BrO.

surroundings borrowed from the Paris
of the present time.
Constants ''VictOria" Is Ghost-LiI<e,
Then there is misunderstanding por-
trait of Queen Victoria. in royal robes and
crown, seated on the throne. This. while
one of the most pretentious, Is one of the
most inefficient of acknowledgements
works. The figure of the Queen presents
| the appearance of an overfed ghost. II
emphasizes the least attractive features
| OF the monarch's personality in its out
| lines. 1t lacks substance and gives no
| suggestion whatever of the Queen 5
womanly character and dignity. The fig
ure is entirely subordinate to the archi-
tectural details and gorgeous adornments
of the throne In color the composition Is
monotonous.
One painter alone, in the French sec
| ton, stands head and shoulders above his
! fellows-Dagnan-Bo uveret-who was very
| inadequately represented at Chicago, but
who is seen here at his best. His LA st
Supper" is the most impressive picture in
the French section. In conception, in
composition, in color and in all artistic
qualities it is one of the great pictures of
our time. The Conscripts' -bought by
the French government few years ago
works shown, and this picture ranks
among the masterpieces of art.
In the French retrospective section
representing the past hundred years of
painting in France-whicIh is in another
part of the Art Palace; one finds excel
lent representation of nearly all the men
who have contributed toward making
France famous In art-including, of course,
the men of 1890"
,~Ica IL h. ~ .
the United States section of fine arts is
one of the most attractive of all the Sec
tions-not excluding that of France. This
may seem a broad statement, but il Is the
truth.
The first impression of the visitor upon
entering the American galleries is of rest
fulness. The walls are covered with a soft
gray-green material having the effect of
brocade, and the pictures are hung with
liberal spacing-only two rows above the
line and in no way crowded. The dra-
peries fauteuils, and so forth, conform in
coloring to the scheme of the walls, and
the result gives a decided feeling of relief
after the heavy, conventional red-draped
galleries crowded with pictures from line
to cornice in most of the galleries of the
other sections.
Six American Galleries.
There are six galleries in the United
StAes section, adnld ra bly, located at the
head of the great staircase at the south
west corner of the rotunda of the Art
Palace, and it is safe to say that these
galleries contain such representa- ton of
contemporary American pictures as never
before has been Assem- bled together. While
a number OF our painters of the first rank
are not represented-as Tryon, Dewing,
Mowbray. Colman, Wyett Eaton, Ryder
and q few others. the works shown dis
play practically the highest achievement
of the exhibitors, and have a general char
acter of seriousness and dignity. and de-
gree OF individuality not characteristic of
the general exhibit Of any other section
The most noticeable work shown in this
section is John S. Sargents portrait group
of Mrs. Carl Meyer and her children, rep
resenting a handsome young woman in
a pink dress, half reclining on a light
oolored tapestry covered soft, over the
back of which her two chidren-a boy and
a girl-are leaning. Ar,isticaily. there is
no finer work chan this in the exposi-
ton. do not believe there is another
work in the Art Palace containing so
many of the qualities which belong to the
work OF a great painter. Such a pic
ure like the same artists portrait OF
Mr.. Wertheimer-which hangs in another
gallery-may be mentioned along with the
great works of Velasquez and Frans
Halls. The portrait OF Mrs. Meyer and
her children is carried further than most
OF the work Of Mr.. Sargent. with which
the public is familiar, and shows the mar
velous ability OF the painter in finishing
so as to satisfy the most exacting demand
for realistic detail, while yet preserving
the breadth of handling that goes with
enthusiasm. Mr. Sargents portrait OF
the president of Bryn Mawr College is
another fine work.
James MacNeil Whistler shows three
important pictures: A portrait OF the art
ISL portrait Of n lady in black and gray.
and an exquisite portrait OF a lady stand
ing nv q mnnted-plece. with her head re-
asc,ed in a mirror II would require
nearly a column TO mention and comment
briefly on the noteworthy work OF other
American artists shown
Nearly all the American pictures shown
here have been exhibited at the academy
or society exhibitions at Philadelphia, Chi
cago, Phtsburg, Cincinnati and 81. Louis,