New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1917-01-17
The Earl of Denbigh's
Famous Group Comes
to America
A MASTER OF
COURTLY ART
Forthcoming Sales of ORR
entail Objects and Mod
ern Paintings
by ROYAL CORTISSOZ

their own upon Newman Paddock, the
home Of the Earl of Denbigh, in Leices-
tershire, may now be seen at the gal
lery of Lewis and Simmons in New
York. They make an exhibition OF un-
usual interest. having a dual value.
/ These portraits possess. in the first
/ place, the charm of so many souvenirs
/ OF the period Of the Stuarts, period
of romantic grace If ever there was
I one. The observer could not but de-
/ light in them. considering them mere
/ ~ as portraits. But they have further,
/ for the student of painting, the slgnli-
/ icance of a great tradition. Trad
/ ton, TO be sure, is nowadays little
/ out Of fashion Yet for that very rea-
| son master tending to revive its IN
/ fiuence is only the more welcome. IL
/ would be a good thing il whole squad
Tons OF American portrait painters
could be persuaded to visit this show
/ and 70 Think over its lessons, though
we would not be too optimistic as to
F the result. Has not a superb version
of one of these portraits, the full
length Of James Stuart, Duke of Rich
mond and Lenox," been hanging for
years in the Marquand collection at
the Metropolitan Museum? And we
have seen mighty few signs of it's max
ing over American portralture.
The explanation is. perhaps, simple
enough. A secret like Van Dyck's is
/ doubtless incommunicable. Neverthe-
1 less he well illustrates the balance
I that can be struck between the things
that arc Unborn and the things that
can be taught. He was, 70 begin with,
ms much devotee of tho brush, pure
and simple, as any modern tcchnician.
[ Observe the manipulation of pigment
/ in the Portrait of Lady" the full,
rich impression of comely be-rutfed
figure. seated in a high backed char
after the immemorial custom OF Elem
ish portraiture. There you have IN
mistakably. the pupil OF Rubens the
virtuoso. modelling the face and hands,
painting the sitter's handsome cos
tome. with the gusto that seems 10
have developed in the Low Countries
with a special warmth and robustness.
Observe, too. the draperies in the small
profile Of Queen Henrietta Maria,
where the same skill is exercised but
with infinitely greater delieacy. Ihere
vas nothing that Van Dyck did not
know about "art for arts sake the
solving Of problems through sheer
manual dexterity. But this was only
the beginning Of his work. he used
the facility the gods gave him. The
rest--save for one priceless element
to which we shall return--was all dis
cpline. .
IL is enchanting 20 note his fidelity
TO a certain standard through the quite
varied motives Of these portraits. IN
the full length of the Duke he is all
for courtly elegance, touched with the
grace of sentiment supplied by the
sitter's hound. In that Of THE Ouch
ess of Richmond and Her Dwarf, Mrs.
Gibson" he employs a lighter touch IN
the design. giving it more ease, more
gayety. The portrait of a nameless
lady. the sitter with the ruff, is essen
TALLY simple in mood. The King and
Queen. Charles and Henrietta Maria,
he paints with precisely the serene
dignity BETTING their exalted state.
But in them all he is exquisltely care
full as to the placing of mis- igure, I'M
peccable in drawing, the colorist who
is also the man Of taste. The nnsi
impression one receives is that OF con-
summate polish, of high bred con-
science, Of the artist subordinatlng his
personality. as a matter of course, 10
The we'll established rules Of the
REfneIlG game. hilus tAuaAAg VI NpNiHNt
his personality pushes its way through
the fabric Of what we must call, for
want of better phrase, academic
fnish. What would have constituted
manner, in the case of lesser artist,
constitutes with a man Of genius Ike
Van Dyck the supreme accent OF style.
II came to him at his birth. But
who shall say that il was not fostcred
In it's growth by those ponderable
. qualities at which we have glanced!
II would be grotesque 10 ask the Amer
lean portrait painter to try 70 borrow
q formula from Van Dyck, 70 emulate
his generally formal. immobile type OF
composition, his restrained key of
color. To do that--even if IL were pos
sible-would be TO seek an effect hardly
congruous with modern life. On the
other hand, he could surely suffer no
harm from submission TO the classical
shirt in this painter, the spirit OF
dependence upon the fundamental laws
of art. One reason why these portraits
are 50 beautiful is that they are so
magnifcently right. The principles
guiding a whole school we're not man
acles to Van Dyck. lie recognized IN
them the best supports fot his freedom
THE late Otto II. Baeher was long
nanion Of Duveneck and Whistler IN
Venice. he formed his art under their
influences. and especially under that Oh
tbe latter Some Of his plates are TO
/ tbis dav prized by collectors as AKIN
/ IN Whistler's own. As a painter Bacher
u,oe less successful. but produced work
~ some interest. Examples Of IT may
| be seen AT the Walpole Galleries, where
about fifty Of his canvases are TO be
sold at auction on the evening or Jahu-
arv % They show an odd development.
In his earlier period, when he was
naintirp pictures like his ELIAS Hotel,
/ Cross Roads, Buckeye State ne prsc-
tised a kind of prosaic realism, possess
ing scarce a hint OF artistic quaIlIy'
Later, and especially in Venice more
picturesque themes appear 10 nave
stimulated him TO better. though ho'
vet very impressive, workmahshtp'
Then, in the American years oil ms ne.
he interested himself IN problems OF
light. out of doors. and while his nudes
nainted at this time are more clever
than they are lovely, his landscapes
how real progress The winter scenes
particularly are full of atmosphere, ski
fully and even subtly rendered. The
afternoon Glow" is charming frag-
ment. Similarly persuasive are the
Chambers Woods from Ny Window,
"The First Snow" and the Winter
Landscape" He was sufficiently apt
craftsman when he painted his Gala
Manzoni. Chioggis," back in the elgh-
ties. When he did the studies just
cited he was sensitive artist. There
are some pictures by other men in the
show which repay attention, notably
sparkling Venetian subject by the late
Robert Blum and water color by