New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1915-04-17
THE BLAKESLEE
OLD MASTERS
Salient Works in an I'M
usual Array of all the
Famous Schools.
PARE GROUP OF
EARLY ITALIANS
TIA Possessions of a Dealer
Whose Business Career
Fostered His Taste.
Rv ROYAL CoRTISSoz.

10y often. who IS lnilmte.y more OF a
.,,o;sseur than the man to whom he
.,ns picture. Yet even in these cir
-.,anees the distinction wilt per
-. on other grounds. The collector
-, 20 please himself. The dealer
,,rs 10 sell. aud hence Is apt TO have
:, his premises a stock which can only
!. described as miscellaneous, an cpl
10. which may embrace anythinS-and
-, infrequent!y does.
When the late Theron J. Blakeslee
,,-sn his career as a dealer, il was
81, cue. inevitably, TO be miscellane-
m. and il took him years to modify
~. state. But that he did modify it.,
"a in a very admirable manner, is
.,ssrlv evidenced by the old masters
,sjch we're yesterday placed on eXhib!-
ZION st the American Art Galleries
II. sale Of these pictures. which is to
h. held in the grand ballroom Of the
Plaza on the evenings Of April 81, %
,,d %, could hardly have more in
,srssing significance if it were to
rsrk the dispersal Of some celebrated
rrivste collection.
Mr.. Blakeslee's career covered re-
-arksble period in the development Of
American taste. There was a time
vbsn our amateurs were all for the
Sslon picture and the world we'll lost.
Then they turned TO the Barbizon
srbool. and later TO the lmpressiOnists.
In more recent years, since the old
masters have come into vogue, there
have been some curious doings in the
market. At the outset of the new
movement the Dutch school predomi-
rated. and some glorious masterpieces
we're brought 10 this country
Moreover. whether in the Low Coun-
tfies or elsewhere, collectors like the
l,te Henry c. Marquand. whose pict-
urss count so heavily in the balance at
The Metropolitan Museum, chung stead
.sstly 10 high aesthetic principles
Their successors were not invariably
50 well instructed Too many of them
rave themselves up, not 10 tradition,
tut 10 g fashion.
This was the moment for the rise Of
the decorative portrait" of old
French or English origin, and this, too,
wss moment when Mr. Blakeslee was
very active We can recall a perfect
procession Of these portraits passing
through his galleries, some of them
fne. some Of them not so fine. But he
vas all the time strengthening his own
taste. In the long run he became a
dealer. with the fair of the collector
Visiting his place one day not long be
fore bis death. with the expectation OF
seeing some English pictures. the first
Ting We encountered was a lovely can
u' By Noretto da Brescia, now, we
believe in the collection of Mr.. John
e. Johnson, in Philadelphia. The cpl
soje was Characteristic. Mr.. Blakeslee
rad learned TO deal, as a matter of
course in that kind Of thing.
The Italian paintings in the present
exhibition make an extraordinary
group. 1t is true. as DR.. Siren notes
IN his preface 10 this part Of the cats-
logue, that none of the most famous
masters Of the Renaissance is repre-
sentsd but the minor figures TO be
Ieckoned with include some delightful
types. They are Primitives like Jacopo
eel Sellsjo. Parri Spinelh, WHALE da
Bologna, Glrolamo da Treviso. Clio
yanni Boccati, and the obscure wearers
Of such designations as the Master of
me San MlnlatO Altarplece or the Mas
itr Of the Oriental Sash. II is for
Italian pictures of precisely this sort
mat mn al hr rr~,Aof,r1 80 .,
courageous dealer. courageous enough
and discerning enough TO acquire works
nat are merely beautiful. The names
are Of little consequence. The paint
ing IS not by any means. in every case,
mastery. But IL is that exquisite
painting, so full OF tenderness and
grace, so deyout in spirit and 30 dis
Uhguished IN deS On, which makes the
carly Italian school a centre of q kind
OF subliminal fragrance. We are in no
wise disappointed because the "Por-
'aIt Ct Lady by some late fifteenth
century Tuscan, supposed to be an
mage Of Petrarch's Laura, is not at
al great painting.
IS enough that it is a lovely little
PANEL perfect memorial of the ordi-
nary artistic aspect Of its period And
some Of these Italian paintings. minor
.aough they may be. come very near
me enjoyment Of q higher status
through the pure quality Of their
Vnstn' witness. for example, the MA
eOhha and Child' by Girolamo da Ire
$50 That ls really glowing speci-
zen OF early Venetian work. One
Nlgs TO see it pass into our Museum
gIoup.
me collection embraces some later
aNers. There is handsome bit Of
selnung m the "Susannah and the FL
1b' attributed, rather more hopeful
man persuasively, 20 Titan. There
good Marieschi, so good as 10 be
"hy OF his master, Canaletto, and
may note also the sparkling imita-
poh OF Tepolo by Giovanni Battista
' siu0nL But the oldest Of the Italian
NyIure' are the best.
~. a. me Spanish category there is a
..Sop"ea Of the head and shoulders Of
.Tlsen Mariana Of Spain" by Velas-
, ..l IN the Prado The attribution is
y" convincing, but, whether by Mao
some other disciple, this is q bril-
-g;sy painted portrait The Goya.
rag CHARLES III Of Spain" is a mas
,peee' great piece Of characterize
eau. , made fascinating through deli
Cy ,y nrm draughtsmanship.
"golo Coello and MaZo are repre-
;,.eu oy portraits Of certain mild
Ss ,aesL Appropriately grouped with
nv are three excellent examples of
\, rNoman artist Zuccaro. who worked
no. s!snd One or two German paint
cs Of some value appear. portraits by
,ahaeh and Sigmund Holbein. but the
,.pOT'ant works from the Northern
gnvO's are either Dutch or Flemish.
,,se han conspicuous here is the
i"Sas Alteration of the Magi," by
tins, lie painted the subject many
,,. ss, but there is no sign in this Of
t'IiIhg perfunctory about his brush.
- Is one Of his maior performances