davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1913-02-09

Colonial, are all simplicity. Within
reigns luxury, proclaimed not merely
in matters Of structure, but in schemes
of decoration TO which every school,
every period, brings its share In OBJ
jects of furniture and decoration. The
historian of manners who arises in the
future to discuss the envelope" Of
twentieth century American life will
have his work cut out for him in these
rich interiors. They express a Curl
ously complex ideal Comfort, ex-
quisite comfort, is blended with a cos
mopolitan kind of culture. There are
rooms illustrated in the exhibition,
notably some having a Colonial atmos-
phere, which are all of a piece and
stand Enthusiastically for a well-defined
point of view. But is that the point Of
view Of the owner or the architect? On
the whole, one divines the latter to be
in the ascendant, and one sees him
getting up his given interior with an
astonishing adroitness and aplomb. He
IL almost too clever. The sentiment Of
artless human intimacy is persistently
absent from his we'll balanced, costly
schemes. Even at their simplest these
appear to be ION parade" Whatever
that may imply with reference to So
cial conditions. it leaves the architect.
from the strictly artistic point of view,
with his withers unwrung. Magnif-
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1913-02-09

which can spend. does spend, and under
stands spending better than any other,
he was brought up in luxury and lived
In perfect. If refined. indulgence; he al
ways did and still goes on doing what
he pleases with a concentrated reSolu-
ton which may not be pleasant FOR
others. but which apparently * very
please for him. AS for recognition. II
takes the carelessness of the public not
to know that IL came for him very early.
that the controversies which arose IN
France after his earliest exhibitions,
and in England toward lS95-on the
subject of his Woman with the Abb
sinthe"-implied that he was great
artist; and finally that thanks tn the
annexation by the Louvre of the ca
monde collection he has five or six of
his works in the place he loves best i'm
the whole world.
Decas Is not at all To be pitied but he
may rot be enviablc There H. i'm him. in
his life and even in his work, something
hostile. "A harShness hidden under arts
tic delight which betrays some secret
sore. What the sore is we shall never
know-Degas will leave no memoirs
but perhaps ii is purely temperamental.
One could see at the Doucet sale an en-
gravcd portrait of Degas by himself. at
the age of twenty-five. which fully
promised the cross septuagenarian: the
long severe face still boyish i'm spite of
the young beard. the sulky mouth. above
all the cold eyes. are characteristic OF
that most distant of mortals. the dis
tant youth. and the piece leaves no
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1913-02-09

man interest. THE Sisters" for ex-
ample. a picture of two Dutch chiidreh
standing out of doors. is interestine
for its humor as well as for its good
drawing. its bold br never crude cones
and its all-pervading light. 1t is well
for Mr. Melchers to rest upon this Ia
miliar. everyday plane. He carries no
conviction when he paints the CHRIST
and His Disciples at Emmaus." we
have no quarrel with his reallsti;
treatment of the theme. More than one
glorious old master supplies the prece-
dent. It Is simply that Mr.. Melchers
does not rise to the height of his gre't
argument. he gives us no Overwhelming
spiritual glow at the heart of his sub
ject. Nor is the picture as well painted
as we expect work To be coming
from his powerful brush. Fortunate
ly, however. this is his only excursion
away from his wonted study of women
indoors and in the open air, types oil
repose and unassuming grace. envel-
oped in light and color. His casual
pictures OF ordinary life are his best.
and in this exhibition, which includes
old and new things. his healthy, robust
talent gives us a lasting pleasure.
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1913-02-09

Gently, as Henry James would say ne
knows what he is about. and produces
with all the ease in the world perfect
ensemble.
That we take to be the most slgnin-
cant revelation made by the architect
ure in this exhibtion. We make no
pretence of traversing in detail the
scores and scores of designs shown.
The interesting point which they all
enforce is just point OF taste. A sort
of restrained elegance prevails. Here
and there some beguiling little country
house discloses homelier mood, put
the bulk of the work has a more mum
dane quality; it is polished. sophisti-
Gated. a truthful index TO our time. II
is not surprising, therefore, that one
sees little that is distinctly fresh and
idiosyncratic. Scholarship, urbanity'
the sense of measure-these are the
traits which. rather than sheer creative
energy. characterize the school.
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1913-02-09
Current Ideas in American Ar
ChiteCture.

The collection of nearly thousahu
exhibits which the Architectural League
has brought together at the Fine Arts
Building illustrates in what we nope %
Ste EXTREMIST form the policy developed
nv this institution in the later years ol
sts existence. SO much space is given
IN the allied arts that architecture, pure
aud simple. seems on the first super
fetal examination to have fallen into
subordinate position. 1t is only wheh
the walls are closely and carefully
scrutinized that one discovers the Value
of the exhibition in its relation 10 the
art of building Then, to be sure, inc
photographs of completed work, which
take up comparatively little room
but cover wide field, are appre-
ciated i'm their full significance. Never
theless. it is in no wise capuous crlu-
cism which would suggest that the de-
partments of painting and sculpture De
subjected hereafter to a sitting process
q little more severe, and that the ar
chitects might have their designs lit
tie better displayed. Photographs and
drawings hosted far above the eye of
the spectator or crowded together in
kind of patchwork on the line some
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1913-02-09

i'm it's strength and beauty. The lady
herself is not perhaps the most radiant
image in the world. Mr.. Berenson speaks
of her opulcnt personality. IL Is a
thought too Opulent TO exert the last
spell of feminine witchery. Still, she
is very fair to look upon, there is some
thing fine about her carriage. and in any
case merely as picture this portrait
is supremely beautiful. The deep red
tones in the dress. accented by tho
pure whites in the sleeves, are ex-
quistely harmoniZed with the cool,
gray background and amid this quiet
scale the flesh tints ring with an in
comparable purity and sweetness. The
parapet raised between us and the
woman, Of light marble bearing
profile portrait of her I'm relief, brings
the happiest possible contrast I'm color
into the arrangement, and serves, too,
to invest the design with a certain
piquant originality. That design has a
wonderful poise and unity. 1t shows
us Titan fusing his grand manner
with an element Of more informal in
vention. 1t is one of the great "magis-
terlal" portraits, one Of those master
pieces of creative art in which you feel
that a painter has conceived his motive
in a flash OF inspiration and has real
lied it with equal case and power No,
1t Is not on questions OF attributiOn
that this sets us thinking; 1t speaks to
us in perfect eloquence of nothing save
Titan's genius.
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1913-02-09
A Masterpiece by Titan in New
York.

The portrait which has been placed
on exhibition at the Gimpel & Widen
stein Gallery under the title of La
Schiavona," or The SlavonIan Lady,
has been put through more than one
metamorphosis by the critics. When
Ventura published his book on the
Crespi collection in Milan, from which
we take our illustration, he gave the
work to Bernardino LiCinio. Mr..
Berenson, in an essay printed in the
first volume of his Study and Critl-
cism of Italian Art" recalled how he
had propounded this attribution. but
had afterward decided that the work
was copy of a lost original by
Giorgione. Mr.. Herbert Cook, in his
turn, went further. asserting that in
this portrait we had painting from
Giorgione's own hand. He also in
clined, by the way, to Identify 1t as a
portrait OF Caterina Cornaro.. pointing
out the strong resemblance between it
and a marble bust Of Caterina in the
pourtales collection at Berlin. DR..
Gronau, in the catalogue which termi-
mates his valuable work on Titan. in
cudes the Crespi canvas among that
masters works. citing the different
Judgments to which we have alluded
but not accepting them. Speaking az
the portrait and of the initials T. V.
which 1t bears, he says: Evidently
done under Giorgione's strong iniiu-
ence. There is no reason to doubt the
old and genuine signature Thus the
doctors have dscoursed. and to-day 1t
is to Titan that the work is pretty de-
fnitely given. Dr. Gronau's hypothesis
is. we believe, now shared by MT. Be-
renson The long debate has had it's in
terest and still touches the mind OF
the connoisseur. yet when he stands
before the masterpiece itself he is
bound to put all doubts aside. This is
Titan, he reflects, and Titan In one
of his most glorious moods.
IL is a superb work OF art. imperial
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1913-02-09

times prove confusing and even wearl-
some. losing half their effect for all
save the most patient of students. The
present system is doubtless effective
in Turing the layman into show that
he might otherwise neglect, but we
wish the League would have Inc
courage to try the experiment of some
day organizing an exhibition lor
the sole delight of the lover of aren't
lecture. II would be deeply interesting
10 see the walls hung with groups Vi
drawings and photographs spaced As
a good exhibition of pictures is spaced
w are sure that it would make It's
effect-evon upon that general pup
lie" which is supposed to demand
certain amount of decorative window
dressing-w the adventurous aid
Of book plates. ceramics and miscel-
laneous trifies of pictorial or plastic
art
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1913-02-09

doubt that Degas, as he worked. enjoyed
the idea.
The little known and deeply inter-
csting portrait to which NJ. Dimnet
refers-a portrait not engraved but
etched. by the way,-appears in M.
Lemoisne's miscellany. Another rare
plate is reproduced too. the etched
portrait of the engraver Tourny, and
among the further unfamiliar souve-
Mrs assembled in the book there are
couple of drawings, studies for the
"Semramis," dating from 1861, and
beautifully rejecting the influence OF
Ingres. Here, too, is a fine portrait
drawn in that early period, and IN the
selection from the paintings we are
shown some of the artists first
triumphs. works like the Leon Bon
nat" now at Bayonne, which are prac-
ticaIlv new for most students. Indeed,
n. Icmoisue has brought together
quantity of really precious material,
set of reproductions better than any
other we can recall save the one pub
lished by NJ Grape in "LArt ct lie
Beau" We hope the American pub
fishers will not be long in issuing their
edition
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1913-02-09
Is There To Be a Gothic Re-
vival?

For those who will take the pains to
search them out the present exhibition
is fairly rich in architectural ideas.
The first that we would touch upon Is
one bearing upon the question Of mod
ern American church building. Are
we any nearer a settlement of the
Vcxcd problem of style? That the in
dvidual architect will continue to fol-
low his own sweet will is suggested
by the design of Carrere Il Hastings
for the Whiting Memorial Chapel. in
1ic Cathedral of st. John the Divine
wherein a Renaissance motive is boldly
adopted. But the peculiar success Of
Mcssrs. Cram. Goodhue d Ferguson
who. 10y the way. have this year re-
ccived the Gold Medal for Architecture.
provokes some speculation as TO
whether we may not witness a Gothic
revival of some decisive significance
u is easy 10 theorizc on this matter, 20
argue that the Gothic tradition is
played out and To come 10 the conclu-
sion that upon the American scene II
Gus air But what is the theorist 70
say when he comes upon Gothic that
is good aud beautiful? This firm OF
Cram. Goodhue x Ferguson has got
the style into its veins. so To say. and
when you look at the drawing of the
grand pile OF their cathedral for Balti-
more, or at the photographs of their
church for Pittsburgh. with it's delicate.
lancelike little spire, romantically re-
calling the Sainte-Chapelle. YOU feel
only that they are doing what is right
and fine and rejoice i'm the thought of
their going on in the same path. One
simultaneously rebels against their
hypothesis and warns To it's results.
In sense. we suppose. they leave our
church architecture where they found
IL. an eclectic affair. But il is impos-
sible 10 ignore the fact that through
their own work and through the infiu-
ence they are bound to exercise they
are promoting a Gothic movement the
scope Of which may prove very wide.
The late III. II. Richardson had only
10 build one church. Trinity, in Boston.
to leave heavy mark on our ecclesi-
astical architecture. But his Roman
esque influence has nevertheless faded
VIII this Gothic wave prove of longer
duration?
In respect to public buildings. the
Leagues exhibition this year confirms
the fidelity of our architects to the
classical ideas which have for some
time been most in vogue. Buildings
like McKim. Mead & Whites new
postofiice for New York or like the
stately domed Capitol which Tracy &
swartout have designed for Missouri
rely for their monumental effect upon
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1913-02-09
Sculpture and Painting at the
League.

The makers of monuments carry
everything before them on the plastic
side of the exhibition, if for no other
reason than the obvious one that their
works loom so large. They race diin-
cult test. for one can hardly apprehehd
at their best. in room, against
background of drawings. great bronZes
destined for the open air. But some OF
these pieces are of an excellence which
would declare itself anywhere. Mr..
Weinman has done a fine thing in his
standing Lincoln for the state Capltoi
at Frankfort. KY. and he is both spir-
tied and impressive in his Nicksburg
statue, a monument TO Colonel Villas.
Mr.. Bitter's group in high relief for the
jefferson memorial at st. Louis. rather
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1913-02-09

text, mostly critical and appreciative,
but supplied also with some welcome
fragments of information. For the
student this Is an Invaluable scrap
book, as il were, affording n vivid sur
vey of the representative things in the
masters career.
That career has been strangely mis-
understood. especially during the re-
cent excitement over the Rouart sale.
NJ. Ernest Dimnet. writing in the Lon
don Saturday Review" put the natter
very neatly the other day, observing
that some Of the tender sympathy ex-
pressed for Degas was wasted. ana
adding: "One Of his pictures was sold
for fortune: whereupon newspaper
men whose ignorance thought him dead
and forgotten sought him on his fifth
floor. found an irritatcd old man in
bare apartment. and promptly went out
again with a few very misleading i'm
pressions." Degas has never been
.poor and lonely" The stories about
his solitary ways and his bitter Wit
point to no hardships, but merely to the
mans temperament. ON this point NJ.
Dimnet has, some things Ia say which
we cannot forbear quoting:
II IS pity that Degas should lie 20
churlish; he has lived long enough, seen
enough and fought with enough success
10 be an amiable old philosopher II ne
chose lie is only lonely when he pre-
fers to be: he is by no means poor; he
belongs TO that Partisan bourgeoisie
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1913-02-09
A Timely Tribute to the Art of
Degas.

Just at a time when the sale OF one
OF his pictures in the Rouart collection
for the prodigious sum OF $4,000 set
the whole world talking of Degas, the
Librairie Centrale des Beaux-Arts in
Paris had the happy thought to pub
fish what everybody had been waiting
for book about him. 1t reaches us In
that delightful little series, Tart de
Notre Temps" Of which, as we noted
not long ago, the Lippincotts have just
begun to give us an American edition.
These monographs do not pretend to
be exhaustive, but they are neverthe-
less very useful. The present volume
contains an interesting preface by NJ.
p. A. Lemoisne, and for each one of
the forty eight excellent full-page IL
Illustrations there is a brief chapter Of
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1913-02-09

the more personal note. Witness the
charming facades designed by Carrere
& Hastings for the jewellers, Black,
starr & Frost. and the shoe dealer, An
drew Alexander. In these two build
ings and in the art gallery for the
Knoedlers this nrm contributes richly
to the architectural betterment Of Fifth
avenue, and does so within legitimate
bounds. over and over again in the
show we have encountered evidences
of the same vitality and judgment, in
the Little Theatre" by ingalls, &
Hoffman, in the Institute Mccall
Apartment House by Walker d Gill
lette, and so on through a more than
respectable list.
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1913-02-09

landson, a collection rich in fine exam.
Piles Of his vigorous technique and hh
full-bodied humor. Upstairs the Amer.
lean Society of Miniature Painter.
holds its fourteenth annual exhibition
and sustains the high standard which
It has erected in recent years. Mr.,
Fuller and Miss Hills are brilliantly
conspicuous. as they always are, but
never hitherto have they been sur.
rounded by colleagues so evenly com.
potent. 1t is a thoroughly cred,tabIs
exhibition.
Prince Pierre Troubetskoy, at thu
Reinhardt Gallery. shows some eight or
ten recent portraits. mostly of woman
He is deft in his treatment Of IN.
lightly elegant type Of the day, a fac,,.
painter, with some sense Of charact.,
and a good deal of animation. III.
portraits are pleasing. The gallery a,
the Berlin Photographic Company /.
the scene Of q remarkable memor,.y
exhibition Of the works of TIA
late Robert Blum. At the Folsom
Gallery there are paintings by De wiu
Parshall. Marines by Paul Doughertv
are at the Macbeth Gallery. Paintinra
water colors and pastels by Theodore
b. Modra may be seen at the Haa.
Gallery. The Mcdowell Club is show.
ing pictures by Alethea Hill Platt
Helen Watson Phelps, Charlotte B.
Conan, Ruth Payne Burgess and sew
eral other women painters. The Ger.
man Association for Culture is exhibit.
ing at the Yorkville branch of the New
York Public Library a group Of paint.
ings and sculptures by Henry MosIer
Albert Groll, Max Peinlich and others
A collection Of engraved portraits is on
view at the Keppel Gallery, and at the
Braun Gallery there are etchings in
color by George Ritleng, Anselmo Bucci
and others. The American Art Gal.
leries are filed with the rich treasures
Of the Borden collection, the pictures
and books which are presently to b
sold. r. c.
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1913-02-09

unfortunately framed. is very success
full in characterization, is well com
posed, and is doubly welcome in its de-
parture from the type of monument
most familiar in this country. There
is an agreeably novel quality, too. in
Mr. Athens bronze door for the Green
hut mausoleum. 1t is suave grace
and pure sentiment that appeal in
Mr.. French'S Kinsley memorial. and 1t
is likewise for its lOveliness that we
turn to the McMilln fountain mod
elled by Mr.. Adams, shown previously
at the League in plaster. on small
scale. but now making its strength and
beauty felt through the bronze. Mr..
MacNeill captures us on the threshold
of the exhibition with handsome fig
ure forming part of his Soldiers and
Sailors Memorial at Albany, and photo
graphs illustrate the merit of the work
as a whole. There are several large
monuments that tell to good purpose in
the show, and there are many smaller
things that are fine, headed by Miss
Scudder's fountain for the Rockefeller
gardens.
The sculptors give. in the main,
better account of themselves than is
given by the painters. In photographs
and drawings mural decorators like Mr..
BIashfield and Mr.. Cox make sound,
workmanlike contributions. We note,
too with appreciation the set OF photo
graphs of decorations for the Hotel
McAlpin sent by MIR. Gilbert White
And there are, as usual, a number OF
clever bits of painting. II must he con-
fessed. however, that in this wing of
the exhibition there is too much which,
even If clever, has no very lively IN
terest. Only one of the numerous dec
orative schemes invites any particular
comment, the "New York Central Con-
struction," by Mr.. f. ID. Marsh, and
that, while doubtless Of value as rec
ord. fails to demonstrate an instinct in
the artist to extort beauty from the
commonplace With a grateful glance
at perhaps two or three things, the
Decorative Panel by Mr.. Valiant,
the two panels for frieze by Mr. w.
r. Benda and Mr.. II. w. Faulkner's
Spanish panels for the Hudson River
steamer Washington Irving" we will
ingly enough take leave Of the paint
ings.
In O. room by themselves several
graduates of the American Academy In
Rome exhibit their works. Mr.. r. i.
Williams, the architect in the group,
shows some splendid drawings, espe-
cially a number developing reservations
of antique Roman edifices. The sculp-
tor, Mr.. Paul Manship, positively
startles us through the spirit and skill
with which he has caught classical
inspiration; he is almost uncannily ma
ture, a craftsman who should go far.
Mr.. r. p. Fairbanks, a painter, SINH
larly reveals a lot of ability, and like
Mr.. Manship, needs to beware Of satu-
rating himself too completely in the
lessons of the past. His big canvas,
called Lyric Ode" is admirably done,
hut is a shade too near the mode Of
Alma Tadema.
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1913-02-09
The American Home, New
STYLE.

The striking thing about the private
houses in city and country is con-
trast traceable not only TO private and
professional taste, but to the modern
only describe as fashion. Outside, in
more instances than it is possible to
enumerate here. designs in various
STYLES. Italian Renaissance, French or
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1913-02-09
A Charming Colorist, Mr.. Carl
MelcherS.

In the flood Of exhibitions-.and the
flood Is terrifc-Mr. Carl Meichers
holds his own as serenely as though he
had the town to himself. One OF the
pictures in his show at the Montross
Gallery r. called "A Room Full OF
Color" and the title might be applied
to the room in which his paintings
hang. 1t is his color that constitutes
his charm. that and a certain quiet,
wholesome outlook upon life which
causes his figures to possess some hui
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1913-02-09

Ted-How are you getting along WIN
that new girl Of yours?
Ned-Fine! When call now she dossrt
light half the gas Jets she used to-
Judge.
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1913-02-09
A Group of American Portrait
Painters.

Four exhibitions are accessible at the
Knoedler Gallery, the number oil them
an eloquent comment on the fury with