The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1903-04-12

actual period to meet the requirements
Of the case. 81 duo idem faciunt non est
idem, and it is quite possible that that
which in an old master fills me with de-
vout and holy thrill would seem a pro-
fanation to me in modern painter p"
These words, written as l have said in
1920, anticipate some, of the criticism
which has been aroused by modern real
istic treatment of sacred subjects and hint
also at the difficulty which the painter
encounters when he dares to present a
theme in a manner not at one with the
convictions of his time. One of the first
of the modern Germans to break away
from the pseudoidealistic treatment of the
religious subject was Edward Won Geb-
hardt, whose pictures began to attract
notice in the early sixties. He, however,
simply went back to the inspiration of the
old German and Flemish pictures. and
painted the men and women of the Bible
in the costume of the fifteenth century.
| Accordingly his work marks no period Of
| progress; yet he painted so well that 1t
seemed as if one of the old painters had
risen from the grave. and directly his
| influence strongly affected the new move
ment. I'm substituting as Mather says,
| angular old Nuremburg and old Flemish
| figures for the handsome, athletic men
formerly introduced as fishers and apos-
| ties he accustomed the eye to notice that
there was something truer than noble
lines and aristocratic pose Realistic
force took the place of ideal vagueness."
Even as early as 1851 Mcneil had pro-
duced a brilliant Autograph In which the
| boy Jesus is represented as an intelligent
| young Israelite, delighting a number of
| Polish Jews by his wise replies. This
was entitled Christ in the Temple" With
! another rendering of the same subject
| Max Liebermann made a sensation in
! 1879. The power of both these pictures
! lies in the vivid naturalness of the groups
and in the variety and shrewdness of the
| character drawing. Their interest, in
deed, consists In the study which they
represent of various types of the Western
| Jew, a motive much too narrow to help
the movement practically, besides being
| quite devoid of the religious significance
| of Gerhardt's treatment.
Still Mcneil and Lebermann accom-
plished this:-They set the Christ in the
midst Of persons similar in type to those
who took part in the original incident in
the temple, and thereby pointed one d.
/
curacy. The two painters who stand forth
/ most conspicuously in this direction are
Holman Hunt, the Englishman, and lis
sot, the Frenchman. Both visited the
East and made the closest study of the
! topography of the country. the type, cos
tunes and habits of the people, in order
| that they might be able to reproduce as
nearly as possible the actual character
on. &,
Tissot. whose previous reputation had
| been based on his clever studies of Paris
ian life, and especially of the Parisienne,
/ represented scene after scene of the Bible
story in a series of water colors. extra
ordinarily skillful. crowded with figures,
each a separate characterization and
| forming altogether a collection of re-
markable historical interest. You prob
ably saw them when they were exhibited
in this country. and viii remember their
amazing cleverness and the reality Of
suggestion which each conveyed. But
while they made one realize the happen
/ ings of the incident they did not impress
upon one its religious significance.
/ 1t is IN this respect that Holman Hunt.
I whose pictures began TO apear in the If
| ties, represents so much more important
a factor in the progress OF the art. His
/ work is profoundly religious I'm the
/ whole history of art there are no reli-
! giOus pictures in which uncompromising
nsturalism has made so remarkable an
! alliance with pietistic depth of ideas"
/ Such pictures as The Light Of the World
/ in which the Christ. carrying lantern
/ knocks upon a door overgrown with vines
/ to seek lodging for the night: or The
! Scapegoat'' where the ram upon which
. has been laid the sins Of the whole peo-
I pie has come TO 4 stardstiH. faint unto
death. in the desoIation OF the wilderness:
or The Shadow of Death that scene in
I the carpenters shop where the Christ
/ naked but for a esthern apron rests FOR
a moment and stretches His arms. while
the evening sun. streaming through the
window. throws the shadow OF His figure
upon the wall in the form Of cross
these and others Of his works are SER
mons IN paint; sermons Of profound sig
nifcance; far greater. indeed. as sermons
than pictures. Pictorially. they fall short
Of the realism OF light and atmosphere
and Of the due relation % every part %
the whole position 10 the other parts and
10 the whole tha; are included IN the
realism for which the modern painter
strives. Hence they could not satisfy the
technical aspirations Of other painters.
though they se-ved to inspire their I'M
sgiuation.
The first &c try and reconcile the deeply
religious motive vith the ssncerest kind Of
artistic realism was the German. Fritz
van Th1e- he fought his way through
the Franco-Fru<Staa war a. an officer II
the Saxon cavalry. and after leaving the
service sfudics II Paris under Munkascr.
the painter % Christ Before Plate.
Witch IL the best known and probably the
most Important u al the modern exam
pies Il the spectacular unrsalistic sacred
pictures Bat The Influence under which
he vent n Paris. the che naturalist,
ard he returned - Munich 20 i1trod1cs
TIE new doctrine % AT Ia 80 he er-
hfhste5 IRE -s1Ee- Little Chatrea 20 Come
Unto Ne which IS Tow n tire Lse7s.c
Museum
Il rais@d storm % criticism whtch
ignored the fact that Uhce was c1iy DO