The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1903-10-08
IN
HISTORY
OF ART
Or. \. H. POwsrs Of Boston
Begins a Seriss Of Lectures
Under Auspices Of RiOdS
Island WCmaA'S Clubs.


A very large and fashionable audience.
made UP OF the literary and society
people OF this city. filed the ball room
OF the Trocadero TO overfowlng yester-
day afternoon. when the FIRST OF a series
OF u lectures on Florence and the
Florentines in the history OF art" was
delivered by DR.. II. II. Powers Of Bos-
ton, lecturer OF national reputation and
m art critic OF acknowledged supremacy.
As IL quite generally known these lee
lures were arranged by the art section
OF the Rhode Island Woman's club I'm CO.
operation with Miss Caroline Earring
ton and cards OF Invitation 10 subscribe
10 the course were issued 10 a large num-
Ger OF representative women OF this city
and Its envirous with the result that the
sectures promise 10 become not only in
tellectual feasts for people OF cultivated
tastes, but social events as we'll
The lecture of yesterday was not CON
nned entirely TO the feminine portion OF
society for number OF well known ar
lists and members OF the clergy were
present
The lecture was somewhat introauctorv
oo those which will follow and was ad
mirabiy illustrated by scores OF beautiful
views.
In opening his talk the speaker dwelt
briefly on the history of Florence and
described It's location as the views OF the
city were thrown upon the screen Step
by step the lecturer led his hearers into
the historic places OF the CITY showing
the ancient buildings. which Dante gazed
upon nearly six centuries ago.
lne beautiful valley of the Arno with
tne city In the midst was also pictured
and vividy described
Continuing. Or. Powers called attention
10 the fact that history tells us little
OF Roman Florence. but II tells us much
OF mediaval Florence and OF the Gus
toms OF medfaeval Florence the speaker
dwelt at some length
Continuing he explained the two great
factions which existed in Florence in the
thirteenth century. the Guelf and Chi
belline supporters representative OF the
papal and imperial authority
Leaving the historical portion Of his
lecture DR.. Powers turned to the second
division, or the revival OF art in Flor
ence
In this connection ne said. In part
And prosperity brought art as Il always
does No people ever has art until IL
gets rich and no people IL ever long rich
without having art
But even 80 n makes great differ
ence how the wealth comes. and what it's
influence is on the life of the people m
the wealth comes from plunder as II did
in the case OF Rome. art never rises very
high. nor does IL develop good taste; but
~ wealth comes from uanufacture es-
pecfally In the old artisan sense. which
brought such training TO hand and eve.
the development of art is immense
In Florence these conditions were |
richly fulfilled II Is difficult for us To |
understand the progress in art made
during this early period. the 18th century
the more especially because we can hard |
iy bring back 10 us the condition of |
art before that period
The so-calied Byzantine art a mis- |
nomer for the stereotyped and iifeless |
art OF the mIodle ages Is interesting only |
In contrast with the art that followed /
n. II Is characterized by momontonous /
eonventionality and an intricate sym |
bolism alike. unfavorable TO real ar |
ustfc expression. The conventionallty |
means simply that the artist copied the
work OF other artists. deviating a little
At nrst but at last getting completely
out OF touch with nature. The symbolism
means that art took upon itself TO toll
stories or express ideas often completely
abstract.
The important thing was not that q
picture should be beautiful, but tnat X
should be perfectly Ineligible. and so the
ngures tend 10 become like letters I'm the
alphabet. not beautiful things but things
that can be easily identified Art becomes
less and less emotional. therefore and
more and more symbolic, n kind OF hie-
roglyphics OF a weaker sort. In a wopl.
original as the feudal system under which
Il lived. With new Efe In other things
there came new life into art
The first name OF Importance. how
ever, Is not that OF Florentine, but OF
a Pissn. one Nicolo. whose origin is OBJ
scurs''
At this point in his lecture the speaker
dwelt at length upon the sculptured art OF
Nicolo and that OF his son Giovanni In
the third division OF his lecture the speak
Or dwelt at length upon the revival OF
that famous painter OF this period, Gin
abue. OF him he said:
THE great Cimabue has the credit OF
having broken the bonds OF medieval
tradition. This Is not at once apparent
TO one who looks at his famous figures
IN the Rucelai gallery in the famous ola
church OF Santa Maria Novello in Flor
ence.
ITO US IL is stiff. unnatural and Byzan-
tine enough. Even when we compare II
with the earlier work I'm the academy
the differences are at first sight trifing
take one for the other. But IL we no.
tee the earlier pictures moro carefully
we will see that Il has no perspective
He is quite unable 10 get subjects
into the background. because he does not
understand the fact that the lines OF
vision converge and should be so repre-
rented on his canvas. We find too
that the whole is controlled by the most
absolute symmetry. Angel matches angel
even 10 the tip OF the head throughout
this Madonna faces us exactly and the
drapery falls In precisely similar lines
from the symmetrically placed knees
In the last picture of the Madonna all
this II changed
The Madonna's chair is turned slight
ly sidewise and the back legs are seen
farther up as they should be. a little
thing. but that means that the law ~
perspective has been discovered some
thing that medieval art did not know.
The great principles that make Flor
entine art glorious have all been dis
covered IN the interval between these
two pictures; perspective a. against nat
surface work. freedom as against pro-
crustean symmetry.
"These are the great achievements of
Cfmabue. They are principles applied
with 30 much conservatism. that we
scarcely notice them at first. hut nothing
r. palmer than that the artist II con-
rclous OF his discovery and his Legacy
10 ME eresfer pupil WIS Invaluable"