The sun., 1916-12-17
By HENRY Mcbride.
NHE news that an Independent
Society OF American Artists is

7HE news that an Independent
Society Of American Artists is
= about to be. or possibly by the
time these words are printed. has been
formed has a Significance that will not
be lost upon those who envisage seri-
ously the present status Of American
art.
Just what platform Of principles
has been adopted by the new society
IL not known at this writing. nor who
the officers are. but 1t Is understood
that the Paris Salon des Independents
10 to be duplicated as nearly as the
changed conditions Of this country will
allow. That Is to say there are to be
no juries, and each contributing artist
who pays a small sum can do as he
likes with the wall space allotted to
him.
In Paris the scheme has had the
most brilliant success. Practically all
Of modern art history centres around
the independents. In long article
In these columns last winter II was
pointed out how impossible 1t is for
any academy, whether royal or dem
ocratic, to be a proper guide for the
young. and the subject need not be
gone into again. did not quote then.
a. I might have. for 1t was in my
possession. a list Of the comparative
honors achieved by the two rival
French societies. the old and academic
0eaux Arts and the new 1ndcpendant.
In thirty years the Societc des
Artistes Independents has revealed or
consecrated: Angrand. Anquetin. Bon
nard, Cezanne. Lucie Cousturier. Cross,
Maurice Denis. Van Dongen. dEspag-
nat. F1andrin. Forain. Van Gosh.
0uillaumin. Henri Matisse. Laprade.
Methey, Odilon Redon, X. z. Roussel,
Van Ryselberghe. Seurat. Signac, Tou-
louise -Lautrec, Vallotton, Naltat, Vuil-
lard. LebasQue and Rousseau lie Dou-
anier.
During the same time the Academic
Ass Beaux Arts awarded tho Grand
PSix de Rome to the following paint
srs: Pinta. Athlete. Lebayle. Dam
ser. Thys. Laurent. Devambez. La
vergne. Lavalley. Mitrecey. J. A. Le-
roux. Dechenaud. Laree. Moulin. Gi-
bert, Laparra. Roger. Sabatte. Jacquot-
Defrance. Sieffert. Guetin. Montcha-
blon. Roganeau. G. p. Leroux, Billotey
Aubry. Lefeure. Bodard. Dupas. De
0astyne and Birondon.
This list. compiled by Felix Feneon
points a moral that must be sufficiently
plain even to him who reads as nc
runs. The Independents have had the
advantage of the Beaux Arts. OF
course. In not being Obliged to award
hoN nj
on record their Official favcrites OF
each year. They do not have officia
fAvorites. Had they official favorites
they would have achieved rs long q
list OF silly mistakes as tho BeauS
Arts. no doubt; for to err is human
An Independent society guards against
the frailties Of judgment to which the
flesh Is heir simply by opening wide
its doors to every one. to those whom
II considers weak as we'll as to those
whom 1t considers strong. and otter
after year or two OF acquaintance Il
reverses its opinions and considers
those strong whom II at first thought
to be weak.
American society along Independent
lines We too may hope to make his
tory. Certainly things have beer
extraordinarily stagnant during the
last fifteen years or so. Why. ever
our best academician. Mr.. Sargent, anC
our best impressionist. Miss Cassatt
were forced to live abroad in climates
moro congenlal to their talents. Blu
now all that Is changed. All OF oul
young artists have been returned L
US because Of the European war, ant
they are beginning to take cognizanc,
of our artistic possibilities. There ar,
innumerable indications Of their ac
tivities showing above the surface. Th
Independent Society will bring then
entirely into the light.
Before I close this too brief notic
(there will be more anon) ! must an
swer In advance the eXpostulator!
reproach that I shall receive by tn
next post. Each time that / pen
modest plea for freedom in art mat
ters, such as the above, l get a viru
lent letter saying that / am seeking
to destroy institutions. How essen
tally unjust this is only my mos
faithful readers can know.
seem to imply in the commen
upon the BeauX Arts prize winner
that institutions always reward medi
ocrities and that hence geniuses shoul
not enter schools. On the contrary
have no objections. But there Is thi
to be remembered about the tutelag
Of geniuses. that the genius invariabl
uses the institution for his own end
and that the institution uses medioc
rifles for its ends. The genius seldor
gets any harm from the school: in fac
the paltriness OF the teaching
usually an assistance to him In helpin
him to find himself.
"The Soil" q Magazine O
Asnneican Arf