The Washington herald., 1907-02-07


American artists at the Corcoran Gallery
OF Art last night, Washington has started
a movement which should. and probably
will. result in the establishment Of a great
national salon, which viii prove an in
spiration and an impetus to American ar
lists everywhere.
It was a great artistic as well as a great
social occasion. Yesterday was press
view and vanishing day, and the gallery
was closed to the public. At o'clock last
night came the opening private view and
reception. which was a card affair en-
tirely. The invitations for last night in
cluded all exhibitors, the President of the
United States and Mrs Roosevelt the
members of the Cabinet, the heads of
governmental departments members of
the diplomatic corps. the members Of
both Houses of Congress. and many of
the leaders of Washington society.
The doors were opened promptly at 8
o'clock, and at that hour the string Of
carriages extended from the New York
avenue entrance of the gallery clear
around in front OF the War Department in
Pennsylvania avenue.
President Roosevelt There.
President and Mrs. Roosevelt arrived
early and entered by the Seventeenth
street entrance. They were unaccom-
panied, and after shaking hands with the
directors who were waiting 20 receive
them, they were shown around the ex-
hibit By the president OF the gallery.
Charles c. Glover The President seemed
to take a great interest i'm the pictures,
and admired especially Sargents portrait
of John Hay. The gallery was crowded
soon after the President arrived. but it
was understood that his visit was. in a
way, informal, and he only stopped his
examination of the pictures TO shake
hands occasionally with personal friends.
Many members OF the Senate and House
of Representatives also visited the eX-
hibiJiOn, and Washington society was out
in force The place was brilliantly light
ed, though this did not enhance the values
Of some of the pictures, and this, with
the music and the brilliant costumes Of
the ladies', made the scene an inspiring
one.
The CCrcOTan Gallery was beautifully
decorated for the event. The staircases
we're lined with palms, and the orchestra,
behind a bank of foliage. played not so
loudly as 10 make conversation q trial
The diplomatic corps was largely repre-
scented and more than one brilliant uni
form added color 10 the scene.
The Juries of Selection.
Ii was the pictures that attracted most
attention. however. The whole space Of
tie upper floor is devoted TO them and
all except the one room. which contains
the collection of Senator William A.
Clark's English. Dutch, and French mas
JeEpieces, almost without price, was de-
voted to the exhibit
The committee in charge of the eXhi-
btion is composed of f. b. Mcguire.
chairman; \. J. Parsons, John NJ. VII
son. and c. Powell Minnigerode, secre-
tary to the committee
The juries of selection We're: For New
Eork-Irving r. Wiles. II. Bolton Jones,
and Louis Loeb; for Philadelphia-Hush
J. Breckenridge. Thomas p. AushutZ and
John Lambert: for BOstoE-Edmund c.
TarbelI. Thomas Allen and Hermann
Dudley Murphy; for Washington-Rich-
ard \. Brooke, Max Weyl, and c. H. l.
Macdonald.
The jury Of awards and the hanging
committee was: Irving r. Wiles, Edmund
q. TarbeH. Hugh H. Breckenridge, Ralph
Clarksou. and Richard n. Brooke.
The Impressionists.
Tt may be said that, generally speaking.
the hanging committee accomplished q
difficult task wen. though it must be con-
tossed that it was a bit hard on the i'm
pressionists. massIng together the bright
puppies. yellows, reds, and greens of this
school in gallery f. so that they make
riot of color and seem To fight with
each other for notice. 1t was perhaps
unfortunate. too, that these Impression
istic pictures were so placed in the small
est gallery that it was hard to get far
enough away from them There are some
artists, however. who think that the far
Their away one gets from these pictures
The better
At any rate the impressiOnistic school
is represented by some striking exam
pies, one might almost say exaggerated
examples. The most eXtTavagant OF these
pictures is Newman CaTIs Woman in
Green No 146, a picture that might be
described as something that never was
on sea and land" Here is a lady with a
bright. green dress. seated on magenta
sofa. her yellow arm resting ON a purple
cushion and whose naked shoulders make
her look as if she was seriously ill., Some
irreverent youugster, pointing this picture
out last night TO the lady accompanying
him. was unkiud enough to quote Gel
lette Burgess
II never saw a purple COW,
] never want to see one
which, while a trife unkind, really
seemed 10 express the general opinion
about the picture
Art Of America,
But on the whole the exhibition might
well make one proud of America and its
artists. Not that the pictures. some four
hundred of them. can be said To be typ
icaIly American. If there is a distinctive
American school it would be hard to dis
tinguish in this exhibition. though. Of
course, the work Of john s Sargent,
John ". Alexander William NJ Chase,
George Wharton Edwards Henry 3. Full
Ter, Albert Herter Spencer Baird Nichols.
and Frederic Remington has qualities
which are unmistakable.
But of the subjects. not even the land
scapes, are altogether American The
Fencing Master by George L. Vcsper.
might as we'll be Flemish as American.
James u. Smillie has gone 10 Normandy
fer his, THE Cliffs and r. W. Van
Boskerck has found his inspiration i'm
the same country
If anything the exhibition is strongest
in its portraits. though none OF the por-
traits took prize. The first prize, given
by Senator W, A. Clark. S1O0e. accom-
panied by the Corcorau sold medal. went
TO Willard L. Metc8lf of Boston. for his
picture, May Night. No I66 of the cata-
iogUe- The second prize. given by Mr..
Charles &. Glover. $500 accompanied bv
the CoreoTan silver medal, went to Frank
". Benson of Salem, Mass. for his
Against the Sky" No. 223 of the cata-
logUe. The third. the Y. @. Fisher prize,
SEQ. accompanied by the Corcoran bronze
medal, went to Edward W RedfeId. of