New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1910-01-01
ART EXHIBITIONS
The Butler Collection of Mod
ern Paintings.

not always. strictly speaking. personal Ii
is rather in his representative character
that collector will occasionally appeal to
the observe. waking In the latter vivid
sense OF fashion in matters of art Thus
IL would be plain from internal evidence, IL
rot from dates in the catalogue indicating
when ne made certain purchases. that the
late Theron II. Butler. whose collection Of
seventy-hve modern paintings may be seen
at the American Art Galleries, was adorn-
ing his walls in a period having a measure
OF historical significance. Evidently he be-
gan TO collect in the early yeu.i -, when
the important thing was to obtain clever
illustrations of sentiment, when the pict-
uresoue costume study was allowed to be
romantic. but WAS expected TO preserve An
unmistakable human interest Mr.. But
Ter bought pictures by Ludwig, knaus and
vibert by Meissonier and Gerome But
then this collector was developing new
tastes.
Like so many of the picture buyers Of
thst time. he was being asked TO interest
himself in more serious Things. and, I'M
like some of them. he took advantage Of
the rising tide that was to bring the Bar
pizon school into extraordinary vogue on
our shores From the late Samuel p.
Avery, in 1880 he obtained a little figure
subject by Miliet: two years later he add
ed TO his collection a "Laborer Resting.
by the same master, the acquisition or
which implied kind of courage at the
time. and In the same period he turned
With appreciation TO Corot, Rousseau, Diaz
and Dupre. These are the artists who lend
distinction TO the exhibition now at the
American Art Galleries. AS will pres
entity be shown, Mt. Buffers earlier pur-
chases are not, by any means. to be re-
sharp division of his collection into two
sections of chronological import inevitably
sets one to thinking on the -apidity with
which art education in this country has
progressed. There is something symbol
cal about Mr.. Buffers experience.
Incidentally. it may be remarked. he had
good luck. Take, for example, those very
souvenirs of his first adventures as col
iector, which to-day seem, perhaps,
shade old-fashioned. When he was assem-
bling them in his gallery few, If any, OF
the painters he preferred had become the
objects OF a craze. They were working to
please themselves rather than to supply
q market. Then. 100, some of them We're
still in the first flush of achievement. Wit
ness the charming "Gusrdsman" of Roy
bet II is not. of course, q great picture,
hut il is very good bit of painting, and
reverts to the sort of thing that this sue
cessfIl Partisan has done in recent years
The collection embraces four paintings by
Zanacois that polished technician, un-
timely lost, whose subjects were trivial.
but who possessed a gift of which almost
anything might have been expected. The
pieces by him here displayed. Court
Testers Playing Bowls Costumers
Shop" "A White Horse" and humorous
subject. date from the late sixties, when
his talent was almost feverishly maturing.
They are all good to see, in spite of the
fact that. his tradition has been outgrown.
snd so il is with the two dextrous pictures
by Palnaroi, and the two examples or
MISSIONER.
Akin TO these. in substance. but denoting
uefghtier resources. are the works of a
couple of French Acaden1icians represented
in the show. There are three paintings by
Cier6me, and while not one of them is pre-
-oisely beautiful, not one is without the
merit of scholarly workmanship. On an
equally learned plane. and marked not only
by greater freedom, but by a richer, finer
quality. is Bonnats pseudo-historical COM
position. 'Ribera Sketching in Rome
Besides the good color in this and the
splendid drawing. there is a curious charm.
the charm which belongs to subject and
Vet is so sllbtly blended with the note of
STYLE that you think OF the artists per
sonslity quite as much as of the Roman
Church he has sketched and the figures
gathered on it's steps Altogether. this is
z most exceptional piece of Bonnats work.
one which il would be good to see pur-
chased for the Metropolitan Museum. He
is seen frequently enough in the common
place vein of Mr.. Buffers Italian Girl"
elx n ha he
nifty to observe the Bonnat OF forty years
ago. the Bonnat OF this beautiful Roman
picture.
It is obvious. then. that Mr.. Butler made
the best of the chances that came his way.
and in seeking his once excessively pop
'ular masters, at least sought them on their
best side. But there is denying that
one comes back with a special gusto to his
Barbizon pictures They. make really
impressive group. Mllets two little pan
els, and especially the "Laborer Resting
In its broad simplicity, Immediately detach
themselves from the rest; but ii Is among
the landscapes that We find most to ad-
Tnire in this part of the exhibition Rous-
seau's "Bosquet d'Arbres' is one of his
masterpieces. one of those paintings in
which he first seiZes you through the
beauty of his composition and then deep
elS his effect by Individuality ana skill IN
detail. The picture illustrates his tighter
Kramer. The ground and tree forms are
very delicately defined and this exquisite
ness of touch becomes even more consum-
mate In the handling of the distant hori-
EN-. Yet in the luminous sky. and in the
impression which the Landscape as A whole
conveys, you see how far from pedantc
Rousseau was in his careful notation OF
natural phenomena. An almost scientific
mood of accuracy pervades the work. but
IL also brims over with poetry. The other
Rousseau, Landscape and Cattle" is like
wise rich In deity managed detail and is
a handsome affair. but exerts nothing Of
the enchantment which belongs TO the su-
perb painting just cited. The Corot, I'm
Torrent dams les Romagnes," is a romantic
scene Economically treated, a painting OF
. restrained but deep. transparent tone. and
IL is marked by lovely freshness, cspe-
ciaIIy In the heads of the trees that count
heavily in the design.
OF the four paintings by Diaz il may be
said that they are all admirable, but only
one of Them the Landscape Near Fon-
taineoleau." has a special felicity. Even
this Yields alike in respect to power and
charm beside the brilliant Landscape and
Pool of Dupre. One of the two Troyons.
the Pasture Grounds in Normandy" Is IA
enc r,gc,,,ra and favora ble alluSiDn be