New-York tribune., 1900-12-24
LONDON ART.
ANOTHER RoMNEY ExHIBITIoN-wArpa
CcLoRS IN PAIL MALL.
London- pscamh.

eva4
so large measure Of public patronage thai -
experiment has been repeated this winter A. -
Grafton Galleries The second eollecfior a
cludes half a dozen OF more OF the work, =
viously exhibited: but IL Is largely a su1r5-
mentary show. drawn from the private zaIIar,--
In England These treasures Of old time uortrais
ure not yet exhausted for Mr.. Barr,nv,o-
Nash who has displayed zeal end intslliga,c.,-
bringing these ROmneys TO light promise.
third exhibition after Christmas. The second e,1
lection is not so large the first one. but /. =,
cludes seventy-eight works. and Is varied ba,w
tiful and interesting. Some OF the best are sro.
the private gallery Of Mr.. Tankerville Chambs-'
layne. NJ p. who owns the finest group OF Par
neys in England. There are examples OF Po,u
ney's early methods. when he was strongly n
iuenced by Italian painters Among these tz a.
beautiful portrait Of Mrs verelst now IN "a
possession Of her great-grandson. Harry veral.,
1T is truly classical work. fine in color ard
graceful In pose This portrait, like most of .ha
other works in the three galleries. has never
been exhibited before.
There are fewer portraits OF the fascnati,,
Lady Hamilton than there were last spring hr.
there is most interesting group. Mr. Pierrspon,
Morgan again allows the public to admire tba
charming Emma as she reads paper which nrs-
sumably records one OF Nelson's victories ana
Mr.. Tankerville ChamberIayne produces anew tba
lovely "Bacchante Leading a Goat" which was
once in the possession OF Sir William Hamilton
The famous Bacchante once owned By Sir
Joshua Reynolds. and repeatedly engraved. is
one of the gems OF the collection Another
charming study Of Lady Hamilton is in the char
acter of Cassandra. with dreamy eyes, figure
finely posed and arms well rounded. and with
the blue scarf exquisitely painted Nine Ls
Bruins portrait OF Lady Hamilton Is again ex
hibited, but nobody except Romney could paint
his favorite model. Indeed. IL is hard for the
visitor to this gallery believe that any painter
could rival Romney in painting women He
seemed to fall in love with every woman who sat
for portrait and 10 bring out the best that was
in her in pose. feature or expression. His devo-
ton to the sex never failed. for even in his
latest works. such as the portraits Of Mrs. Teet
wyche, Miss Margaret Durham and Mrs. Trench
he succeeded in investing women with all the
resources of dignity. high breeding. beauty and
grace. One Of the most beautiful faces in the col
lection is the portrait of Mrs Robert Trotter in
a blue hat. which has always been a public
favorite.
Romney could paint men solidIy and we'll An
excellent example of his work is the portrait Of
David Hartley. in which there is nobility Of
character befitting the son Of philosopher. A
more famous portrait is that Of John Wesley
which has been engraved many times for the
adornment Of the walls of Methodist households.
Possibly it is a weaker face than John Weseys
in life. but the piety. benevolence and
sweetness of nature which characterized him are
clearly revealed. One of Romney's most elabo-
rate works is Newton Discovering the Prism"
which is owned by Mr. Tankerville Chamber
layne- The philosophers face. painted from
cast taken after death. is remarkable for dig
rr[-
casts the refraeted rays upon screen behind
the table at which he is seated and two young
women are interested spectators of the scientific
discovery. The group is well lighted from the
side. and is painted with animation and spirit
in Romney's grandest style The portrait OF
Edward Nevinson has stately dignity. and there
are other fine examples of ROmney's strength
and dignity in painting the famous Of his
time. His heart, however. was not in his work
when men were sitting for their portraits.
When young men AMI boys were his subjects he
invariably made them soft and almost effem-
mate His portrait of the second Earl Grey.
afterward Prime Minister. presents the face Of
a comely youth without promise of real strength
of character and the portrait of the fifth Earl
of Essex is light graceful and almost girlish in
beauty. Many Of these portraits have faded,
but traces OF the painters supreme art in
posing the figures naturally and in painting the
faces with distinction of style are never absent.
The contrast between new and old time por-
traiture is most marked when one goes from
collection like that seen at the New Gal
lery to these Romneys at the Grafton Gallery.
The artists of the day seem to be bent upon
painting clothes and reproducing fashion plates
rather than to be deeply concerned with pre-
senting men and women at their best So
cd up ha n
tie portrait the details Of the costume. the
hangings and furniture. the screens and orna-
ments and the toning of the background. that
no power is left in reserve for the subject ITSELF
in it's strength or nobility of character, Us
grace Of pose or carriage. or the beauty and
subtle charm OF face or expression. Romney
did not waste his resources upon accessories
which would distract attention from the sub
1ect itself. Costume with him was always
subordinate to womanly grace and charm; yet
1t was managed most artistically, the beauty OF
the woman being enhanced by the simplest ef-
fects OF drapery and head dressing His pOr-
trait OF Mrs. Jordan the Romp in a Country
Girl lent by Viscount Falkland. while less
vivid than other equally well known Romneys.
is perfect in grace. simplicity and lOveliness His
pair of "Serenas Reading is potent in fascina-
ton. and his portraits of Lady Forbes and Miss
Honora Sneyd are admirable for grace OF pose
and lack Of seIf-consciousness.
Romney's women never seem to know that
they are being painted. and. while their COS
tunes command admiration for picturesque ef-
feet, they are apparently unconscious OF being
we'll dressed In seeing group OF ROmneys on
lockers are not impressed with the fact that
they are Witnessing styles and fashions OF
bygone period. but rather with the conviction
that he lived at a time when decoration N