Evening star., 1916-12-24
NJ.
CoRAN OF OR TTsp PERMANENT COLLECTION.

In accordance with its established
custom. the Corcoran Gallery of Art
has made extensive purchases from the
current cotemporary exhibition of oil
paintings for it's permanent collection.
The pictures thus acquired are The
Japanese Screen" by Robert Reid :
/ Boat House Winter. Harlem River"
by Ernest Lawson, awarded the second
w. A. Clark prize and Corcoran sill
yer medal; The Seamstress." by
Joseph de Camp; portrait of the Art
st." by Sidney f. Dickinson: "The
Brass Kettle" by Dimes Garrison;
Moonlight on a Calm Sea-" by Emil
Carisen: Dawn" by Haley Lever, and
The House Maid" by William NJ Pax
ton
These pictures were selected not only
because of extraordinary merit, but in
asmuch as they either represented
painters heretofore unrepresented in
the gallerys collection. or illustrated
certain tendencies in cotemporary
American art, which are of sufficient
significance to warrant permanent rec
ord.
The Corcoran Gallery already pos
sesses an example of the work of Rob-
in biue-sray gown seen in the reflect
ed light of an open fire. The japanese
Screen is, however, a mature work
and in quite different vein. Whereas
the young woman in the freight is a
clever technical performance, it has
neither the pictorial quality nor finish
Of this later work. Rarely has more
beautiful and chaste nude been paint
ed than the fl cure of the woman seen
'P"inst the Japanese screen.
There is grace in line bEaIty n
color. suavity in expression, which
lift this out of the realm of Il mere
technical performance and place it
among the real works of art. Robert
Reid. 1t will be remembered, is pri-
marily a mural painter with keen
sense Of decorative effect. not ham
pered by tradition, but fully conscious
OF It's value and of the relation of
the present to the past. His work has
extraordinary individuality. he has
always been one to lead, but by acade-
micians and those who are opposed to
the academy it has been declared
sound.
The landscape by Ernest Lawson re-
ceived the Endorsement of the jury by
being singled out for award. 1t is an
interesting example of the work Of
this well known landscape painter who
has allied himself to a great extent
with the Impressionistic school and has
chosen to seek loveliness in rather
homely, commonplace themes
The Seamstress," by Joseph de Camp,
is something more than a clever paint
ing The figure of young woman
seated between the table and the win
dow, silhouetted. as it were. against
the light is admirably Interpreted, and
1t is the art of this Interpretation
The theme in itself Is not strikingly
attractive, but the painter has seen
and manifested It's charm
william NJ Paxton's House Maid" is
likewise an interior, but of a very diff
ferent kind. Mr.. De Camps painting
is largely study in light in which
he subtle relations of values are deli
cately adjusted. Mr. Paxton's picture
is direct and straightforward piece
of stiii-lifc painting in which a figure
takes its place as a fine bit of color
and form. The observer is not inter-
ested particularly in the house maid
save as she supplies a unit in a pecu-
liariy attractive composition
The works of some Of the early Dutch
masters are recalled and to the best of
these this is not an unworthy second.
Some may object that the story is too
completely told, but in this day Of
sloven expression, Indicative both of
careless thought and immature skill,
such work this is genuinely re-
fr@shing and its purchase for the per-
nnanent collection of a public gallery
gives strength to the conviction that.
no matter = hat the tendencies of the
time. this kind Of art will endure
1t is interesting to find among the
purchases work by Emil Carlson and
his son. Dimes Carisen. who is still a
scEoolhoy. Emil Carlsen was born in
Denmark. and has in his blood the DAN
ish love of the sea. AS he interprets
il. no ever it is not vast and deep and
powerful, but mysterious. aluring
lovely, whether the skies are blue or
& ay. whether the sun or the moon is
shining, Mr.. Carlsen paints almost en-
tirely in tempera. and is not only by
temperament and heritage the artist
but by striving aud eX9erience a master
craftsman. Each canvas is most care
fully prepared. and his paints scientifi-
cally pat on 50 that his works will last
for all time. why do you take so much
trouble?" a fellow painter once asked
him. when you cannot be sure that
the work viii he a success?"
"Recause | cannot be sure" was Mr.
CarlScn'S reply.
Dimes Carlsen is the pupil of his
father, and. like him, skillful tech
nician He has on extraordinary sue
cess with apparently little effort but
he is not spoiled by it. nor is he less
boy because he is SO much the artist
Haley Lever is an Australian by
birth but for a number of years has
made his home in this country. His
paintings. made in st. Ives England,
first brought him to attention in Amer
ica, and within the last two or three
years he has won many awards and
honors. His work is apt to be radical.
| his tendency being to simplify cypress
sion. and to disca d all but the essen
tials in composition. But Mr.. Lever
knows what to leave out. and he paints
with individuality.
Sidney Dickinson is in exhibitions of
this kind, a comparatively newcomer,
but his portrait of himself purchased
by the Corcoran gallery shows him to
be by no means a novice, inasmuch as
it Is full Of intelligent artistic feeling.
X X
In connection with this exhibition
Gallery haS n