The sun., 1901-10-27
Mr.. ALEXANDER TALKS OF ART
THE AMERICAN PAINTER HOWE
FROM PARIS To STAI.
Al, sntages of Paris ss q Pisee is stud,
Art Needs of New Serk ln Ihs'
Re.pec, Position ef Our Art Abroad
Wonders and Defects Of New Work..


A rcally remarkable thing has happened
An American artist. after living abroad
l ten years and there achieving fame, has
( actually come hack to his native hfid.
/ bought a house in New York and declared
! hi- Intention Of r,pat rating himself
The thing j. almost Incredible. Ilm'
! j. admitted But one must believe 'h"
/ man himself And then. there Is the ho'i-e.
When a man like John W Alexander says
4 a thing he II pretty sure 81 being believed.
/ When he backs up his statement by buying
| a hot-.,. doub, il impossible
| A big four seems to develop In every
! thing. I'm society. In politics. IN railroads.
/ In American art the big four, VI one n tn
pick them cut for their international rcputa-
] lion /. mad. up of Sargent. Whistler. Ah,sy
I and Alexander. For year 'hs particular
big four has been conspicuously absent
from it, native shores. Three ~ the four
show no desire to change the status quo.
II absence makes the heart grow fonder
,hoy must hy this time love their country
With an unspeakahle affection; which prob
ahly accounts for that affection bcing
| largely un-p"ken
/ Ru, Alexander has come hick Not
that. like an ancient gentleman of the same
name. hc l. looking for new worlds 10 con
| auer That was settled loug ago. He
ha. fame and succc-S Vet he comes back.
Other, don't 30 that. - It -.,n- very
| uaturnit tha, Americans 81 tho unrNpatriai'd
/ variety should wonder what hAs fired hun
to take thi- almost unh"afd-of step.
When hr was bluntly asked why he did
| a ne answered frankly, hut while from
| ON. point ~ Wow his answer - gratifying
tn Americans il shows that the old problem
| of how to make our national art flourish
uron IT. native heath l. hy no means solved
4 have con-" la,k io America said
! Mr. Alexander for two reasons. one u
/ that there j. more work to b" done here and
! like work The other - that NV hoy
H. IL vear- old ard want him to grow ny
/ an American among Americans
III t'hadn't h~,n for the huy wnuh YOU
! have come hack 10 stay
y no. don't think 80.
will YOU -ay Just Why YOU, in common
with other suc~rs.ful American artists
/ prefrr % live abroad
-ror several reasons First. thor" -
! the very practical Cpn-id"rati N II stun -
/ There a-c plsuiy IT them Ia f6rt. TN"
can pick and chuu-.. while IN New York
A. 4. almost itrp,-sihp 60 GET a goud studio.
Iad go have ths- on" huili tor ~"
In the second place Pafi- II tull OF az
tst- and that euahi"~ the lndiNluual 10
/
lows are making Ju-l think oi " in
p,ri, VA the American Cmh alone, thnrr a."
60 artists Thcn there arr aN 'h" ffrii'h'
I English and German pai0icr~, a. Wei. a
| tr.u from all the r'-t ~ th" world " J.
stimulating and broadening 1" D. Ia ~"
nj 1T ut such conditions
Rrt tho chief .Ncu-' for American AZ
iist- living abrnad l. th" uunhcr ui gal"fl'-
iuli ot old maHt"r- and IN" ir"'lh'n'N "i
Z exhibition Part- has two great annual
/ .NhihfiuuS IN which almost loUp oau-
/ vase an, shown Beside th"-s' there T.
J constant -tIc,'rssipu ~ smaller Nair-'
including the interesting vu, man "Ni'''-
tipr- n. ari-t J. never without some
Literary men can ~ ~ and liv" hy
! them~,lVC= without great drilih'a' .IH
| their work Their atmu-phe" g,-'> WIN
, them IN IA" ShaIP oi their hhrar"-; 'h'''
| boxes of new books and the provision ni
| p.riudcal- coming along Rll the time An
/ afta-t. too. could 20 on and work IN ia" mo
! ~. of the o,.-s'rt u the t---t NoTk oi N
fellow arti-tr Could follow him theTr. -
long a. IL caurot, ~" must stay wh'r" l
can %" ~
but America l. making 10" most aston
l-hing progress toward ~attiNlug 'hN
u,-.d Tho ls.-i ut mosl"ru art c"ii"'- u,
this c,uutry Ihi- T. IN" greatest mafh"'
In th. world and n then. w"r" mor" ah'
larger cNhihitiun- uf picture mad mi'
and thu-.. brpughi here, thcr" Nulih u"
an end &" one rra' mason Tot We Nii"''
can artists continuing 10 Nv" ahi"ai
i t.ll.Vo We viii get tho~s cNhinl'inn-
Their. l. A movement nov 10 bu,ld a gallery
, whar,. really adDduaf" exhibitions can u
held II l. bon th" hands ni bu-l"t- u''
! and that l. IN" t-'~i pronl-' Tor u -"'
t,.s- Artists are not hu~ine-- men
. This gallery should h" huin between
. | Thirty-fuurth and Fifty-ninth -trci- ah'
, clos 90 tiith avenue. somehow Nv
Workers rcfu-r Ia d" drawn FAR rom 'h"
, line a. a crutrc. II th"-s cNhibni"h- car
l..n lss
/ forigu PAINTERS sending their work oN"
here, u-t a. now the br-t work uf III" wur1'
gu.s To Paris To H. shown THIS - 'lr
market. a. | -aid. and eventually "" hf'
, bound tu profit 10y that iaci.
| How l. American art regarded ahi9au
, l. II admitted that "" have an American
/ school
5 Certainly. In this country | find tina
: : propl" are apt To deny tho Amercanl-n |"
- / Whistler, sargent and the other mon WIZ
| have Hvcd a long time abroad bui "i
the other side those m.u ARE always class d
a A. Americans Ne one can deny that the
4 stand apart from every foreign school
, / Their work has an unWi-takabl" guam
| which l. tTaCsahle To their nationality
The time has gone by iur treating An"i
A ican art with contempt why. AZ w" f"i'
Exposition which on" of ~" naiipnn ~
: hihits of painting, wac ranked 10y ~" trrncl
{ a. u.1, IN merit 80 their own The Amer
I can Think of the change In the "lcN"l
, years which had elapsed since ~" pr"Ninu
sypasiiion unir,rssds Il l. astounding
u How do conditions here lpress YOU ?
- We'll, lat winter ! cam" o. America ~
: the first tim" m nv" year, and ' iinnh'
I. confess that | Wa- amazed. When N''i
nhruad I intended tu stay three Ncars
I STAYED ton. and come hack nov 10 hi
u nov world. 40 Tar a. art j. Clnt"iir'd
Alit'l" Will. ago I went down To- Plitsnurl
90 a,i ou tho IITN tur annual "Nhl n'lni
VI Anau' Jean. tho w"ll-kuoNu tTru'l
9 painter. who j. h-rr on a Wit, vt~ al-u ul
the Jury and D" vaS at "iil~h'-i aip d''
lighted tu find with What fairns-- an'
ability the pictures wcrr Judg's
= -pu YOU thiuk tt l. essential Tor an Atneri
u can artist 20 study abraadF'
" NO How cuuld I -aN that vAou ih,ul
, 81 such men a. ! Church and Mtn-l"y
- Homer | i-lieVe that they have ncNcl
= oven hern abroad Ant. ot cuur~". to''',gl
4 training l. yearly heComing le-- essential
(, i-snau-s. oar trcar,lrs- of at arr com anti
90 gruwing A. she -aIts tine cant h"lp W"
. is,iug TINT any man viii l~n"ht hy ~'uIN
+ tug over there.
"I'at dus,- not u-au that our --h'nl- ar
not t.-t a. gprt a. fhH -chuuis aaipat
u They are There are Just Two hing ~
u u,-sl "a great Culi~.tiuu 81 uld master
- and a gr',at number q cNnihition- oi ulodsri
u Art The hitter u"-d W. will -lpplN %
q TINE tui uuia-- Ne turn ow Maple