The Montgomery advertiser., 1902-03-09

[
 fair citizens, Mrs. Robert Lee Honour. oi
 "the committee of interior, decoration ? (whose chairman is Mrs. Louis D. Sy.
 monds) to catch the stately beauty of the
 magnolia grandifora and with subtlesi
 art to transfer 1t to canvas, as the very
 original and striking decoration which | greets our eye as we enter the portal oi
 the woman's building at our Charleston
 Exposition. The friexe spreads ite gar
 lands of alternate magnolia blossoms and
 leaf clusters. as If with welcoming arms inviting us to enter.
 The magnolia grandiflora-sometimes called the big laurel-is lofty and mag nificent evergreen tree. Its blossoms have a ,calyx of thres sepais, a corolla in | spikes arranged in cones and opening at | the dorsal sutures
 The artist has kept throughout the de coration in both color. and form the true | colonial spirit. The ivory-tinted blossoms accord well with the colonial blue of the wall and ] ivory woodwork. The old wainscoting- the dado-has been filled with the same motive conventionalixed, the colonial wreath and torch.
 Very beautifully and thoughtfully have the magnolia leaves, with alternating leaves of waxy green and rusty brown. both face and back. been used in place of the colonial wreath. Its seed pods as conventionalized torches. If we watch the bursting forth into flame of the pod in the late summer the appropriateness of this treatment will be understood.
 From tinted ceiling to polished floor we are impressed with the perfect harmony that exists. which is also carried out in the furnishings. including high-back CO., lonial chairs. old mirrors. metal scones
 <~f& ak- frSA
 Although Mrs. Robert Lee Honour is not herself native of this State, her ancestors on both sides were Caroiinians.
 The family records in this country date back to 1885 and in the Old World to the Saxon Kings. That Mrs. Honour has adopted Charleston as her home. that she is one of us at heart, will be shown by her free will offering of her services to the woman's building.
 Mrs. Honour received her first art in- struction under Achilles Perelli. the we'll known sculptor of New Orleans, where she lived for some time. She subse- auently removed to Baltimore that art loving city, which always extends its hands to sister Southerners.
 There several delightful years of her life were passed. There she had the honor of making bas-relief portrait. of General Richard Bailey Winder of Vir- ginia. latterly of Baltimore. She was portrayed him in the Confederate uni form and old slouch hat. which appeals to al those who have memories. It was spoken of as the strongest bit of model ling that had been seen in that city for some time.
 Mrs. Honour has received valuable as- sistancc from Mrs. Samuel Gaillard Stoney, who has here shown what she might have accomplished had she chosen art for her llfework.
 The Old World now looks to the New to express it's own life and ideals. Why should not this come from the South Of these United States. as in the past 1t came from the south of Europe?
 Thought to be healthy. should be fol- lowed hv action. Beautiful motives lie at our very door. Let us make 1t possi- ble that loving hands may point the way. Isabel Cohen