New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1916-02-05
Pageant Given by ArChi-
tectural League in Van
derbilt Galleries.
SECRET GARDEN
OF INSPIRATION
Dancing Nymphs, Bull Fight and
Thunderstorm at Fine Arts
Academy.

A gold and blue fairyland Glowcd
last night in the Vanderbilt Gallery Of
the Fine Arts Academy, in West Fifty
seventh Street. created for the fete
Of the Architectural League, on the
evening before the galleries are open
TO public exhibition. A festival in the
Latin Quarter Of Paris could not be
more gorgeous than was the pageant
in this Secret garden Of inspiration
presented before more than a hundred
famous painters. sculptors and archi-
tects and notable guests.
After the presentation of the medals
Of honor. the artists, in their brilliant
gowns OF red, blue and green, and the
guests Of the league gathered in the
garden. designed by III. Van buren
Nacgoniele. Luis Mora and other
artists. In the centre Of the room,
walled in by lowered hedges and lily
ponds, stood a Greek altar. Overhead,
under a blue sky, were softly tinted
, lights, and against background OF
trees and sky lowered the golden prize
statue of Daniel Chester French, u ne
Shirt Of Life" At the other end,
, fanked by the columns OF pergola and
outlined against moonlight view OF
q New York. wss Augustus Lukemsn 5
/ beautiful reclining figure OF Memory.
In this peaceful scene nymphs and
/ Greek girls danced 10 stringed music
until a violent thunderstorm broke
with terrific racket out OF the cloud!ess
! cheesecloth sky. IL was very real
2 fhfVlv clad
nymphs and the artists and guests fed
into the second gallery. along with a
pair of frightened doves which had
been liberated from their cage under
the altar b. a dancer. Here there was
staged bull fight with an enormous
black velvet bull, little horses AMI a
real toreador.
Marion Justice, inside the bull. was
realistically slain by Luis Mora, the
daring toreador, to the heartless
laughs of the audience. The same bull
has been slain at other artist gather
ings. but he died none the less reals
tically for being accustomed 10 H.
Then the artists, nymphs. sculptors,
painters and architects descended from
their pedestals and Sd fox trots
and one steps quite IKE ordinary
human beings.
The medals Of honor were presente
to the winners by the president OF the
Architectural League, Grosvenor Al
terbury.
The gold medal Of the league was
awarded to Cass Gilbert for his sue
cess in solving the problem Of render
ing the skyscraper artistically beautl-
ful. and in particular for his Wool
worth Building. The medal for sculp'-
ure was given to Herbert Adams aad
for painting to Miss Violet Oakley, for
her mural decorations. In his prologue
Mr. Atterbury said:
AS a peopl- We Americans are but
laying the foundations Of that sense Of
love and beauty that will some Gay
gIorify the structures Of our rnal ma
tionality To-day we artists and
craftsmen are toiling in the caissons;
TO few OF us will be given even 20 hear
the hammering OF those comrades who
will some day work far up aloft among
the mighty vaultings. The fate Of
/ irony has given US. the mos, practical
and commercial Of civilized nations,
the duty OF keeping alive and guarding
the fame upon the altar OF art
Among the guests were Mr.. and Mrs.
Vincent Aston, Mr.. and Mrs. Walter
1 Damrosch, Miss Anne Morgan. Mayor
and Mrs. Mitchell. Edward Robinson.
director Of the Metropolitan Museum Of
Art, and Mrs. Robinson; Robert ".
De Forest. president OF the Mctropoli-
tan Museum: Charles Dana Gibson, So
ciety of Illustrators; =. Q. Adams,
/ Municipal Art Commission; Borough
President and Mrs. Marcus VI Marks,
Miss Ida NJ. Tarbell, Efrem Zimbalist,
Mr.. and Mrs Theodore Rousseau. Or.
and Mrs Nicholas Murray Butler and
Miss Butler