Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-07-17
SOME FAMOUS VANDAIs
How Artists Sometimes Destroy Their
Own Creations

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1t Is perhaps but natural that men and
women of genius should desire that the
best of their works only should live after
them, and for this reason many a ce,e-
brated artist has destroyed his own pic
lures When Hogarth was almost at the
height Of his fame he painted an interior.
which was somewhat severely criticised by
a friend. The artist acknowledged the iust-
ness OF the criticism and when his fran.
friend had left the studio he took a sharp
knife and deliberately cut the canvas In
TWO and threw the pieces into the coal
scuttle There they found the fol-
lowing day by one of the maids. who took
the pieces home.
Some time afterward the story of the
ruined picture reached the ears of a relative
OF Hogarth's. who thereupon went to the
maid and asked her to sell him the pieces
She agreed to do SO, but when she went
to look for them one-half had vanished
Search was made and inquiries Instituted
but with no result. and the relative had
to be content with half the picture. which
is now In the possession of Hoearth,s do
scendants in Aberdeen.
HoEarth was but one OF many artists
who have in fit of discomfort DESTROYED
their own works. Jules Flammeron. in an
interesting article on the life of the late
fist had been working for many weeks on
an Ideal group symbollzing the birth of
spring when he suddenly became convinced
that his treatment of the subject was
wrong. and with one blow of his clenched
hand he reduced the graceful group TO a
mere mass of Inert clay"
Chartran. the famous French portrait
painter. once destroyed picture for which
he was to receive fI.000 The portrait was
that of American woman famous for
her beauty When the picture was nearing
completion the husband of the woman
called at M. Chartran's studio in Paris and
requested to be shown the portrait After
looking at 1t for g. few moments he de-
ciared that it was very beautiful paint
ing and that the coloriEg was superb but
that it no more resembled his wife than il
did the Empress of China.
Chartran merely bowed. laid down his
brush and then, taking out his penknife
deliberately slashed the picture into RIB
bons before the eyes of his astonished Wis.,
itor and showed him the door The SEQUEL
to the story came out later, when il be-
came known that the millionaire husband
had visited the studio for the express pur-
pose of getting the artist to make re-
duction in his price.
But perhaps the most dramatic case Of
an artist destroying his own work. occurred
in New York when Gutzon Borgium, the
weli-knewn sculptor. rose early on the
morning of October Q ana made his way
to the Belmont chapel of the Cathedral of
st. John the Divine. on Morningside
Heights. and broke to pieces his two stat
ues, colossal IN their proportions. repre-
senting the Angel of the Annunciation and
the Angel of Resurrection.
The cause OF this remarkable act was
due to the sculptor having been severely
criticised for conceiving and executing these
statutes as beautiful women. When seen
afterward by the excited reporters he said
that he felt like a murderer, but that X
was the only thing he could do under the
circumstances Mr.. Borgium took away
r{ d ard
one foot. which he intends to keep as SOU
ventrs,