New-York tribune., 1909-03-21
THE HORSE FAIR. "
Rosa Bonheur'S Masterpiece in the
MetrOpolitan.

Rosa Bonheur. whose famous picture of The
Horse Fair is reproduced in pictorial supple
ment to-day. won a commanding position in field
of art which is cultivated by many but conquered
by few. The animal painter stands peculiarly in
need Of rich technical resources The subjects TO
which he is devoted far from appealing to every
one on their merits We are all supposed 10
love a horse a dog, but thousands OF human be-
ings go through life without caring two straws
about looking twice at COW It has BEEN per-
haps, with conscious or unconscious reference 10
this fact that some painters of animals have sought
to invest their models with human traits. They
have felt that they could not always be sure that
even a horse or a dog would attract their public
So you f1nd Landseer. Tor example taking pains to
involve the animals in Of his pictures in some
more or less anecdotc and humorous posture Of
affairs Decamps. In France. had a passion for
painting pictures Of monkeys. turning these Great
uTes 10 purposes Of satire. He dressed them up in
the clothes Of men and represented them as exam
ming painting with the airs and graces of con-
noisseurs otherwise occupied after the fIshion
of thinking beings He happened TO be a very
brilliant painter. bur more often the who
cages in pictorial jokes Of this sort concentrates
himself the Joke alone.
The painter OF The Horse Fair" had no taste
for artistic hunor In her work the stress is laid
simply and solely upon the truth Of nature In this
she is worthy coun tryvvoman of B4rye that great
sculptor whose small bronzes OF various wild ami
mails among the most remarkable products
Of modern art. Rosa Bonheur devoted her brush
lowed by Barye. She lifelong student of the
horses. oxen. deer and other animals she was wont
paint. and The Horse Fair is perhaps the finest
proof OF her insight into the charact OF her sub
tects. These horses and ponies are superblv por-
trayed. Study the picture closely and you will be
struck bv the Individuality Of each animal In II.
You will he struck, too. by the skilful manner IN
which the schne is AT once naturally and very ar
tistcaIly conceived. The horses move with abso-
lutte nformality toward their destination. yet the
arrangement OF them all Is governed by a sense OF
design. Very handsomely introduced. too, IS the
mass Of trees in the background Rosa Bonheur
had, in fact, keen feeling for landscape as well
as for animals and in her pictures Of the latter
they are always provided with admirable surround
lngs She produced a great quantity Of work. from
the "PIoughng in the Nivernais.' which first made
her celebrated. the large collection Of studies
which was sold in Paris not long after her death
In 1899. OF all the paintings that bear her sigma
ture THE Horse Fair Is the that is best known
70 the world large. When she executed il in the
sos being then still young woman. she could
not sell II even for the modest price Of $4,000 u
tiuately however. she disposed Of II for $4,000 70
the London dealer, Gambart- He brought II TO
this country and Commodore Vanderbilt paid
s55.5oO for II. presenting It 10 the Metropolitan
Museum Of Art