Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1918-11-05
Pictures of War
nv Frederic J. Haskin

and end tho very best that America has
to offer in artists 70 the front, the wnr
will no over. and this nation will have no
r,ctoyial record Of iteat !east, mono that
can compare with those OF other nations.
This IL the opinion voiced by Joseph
pennell. famous American artist and
Illustrator, M he sat in the office oi The
Secretary Of tho Navy the other day, wait
,up for permission To sketch new war
invention. Mr. Pennells work IS ~ we'll
known in Europe as it is here, and IN the
heo;nn,no Of the war, the British Govern
ment employed nm I'd sSshNh 'eo Nai i"oS
war industries.
When these remarkable sketches were
exhibited in this country, they created
sensation, and the artist was immediately
asked to serve on the Pictorial Publicity
Section Of the Public Information Commit
tee. which .o far III the greatest honor That
the government has paid an American
artist. As a member Of this COMMITTEES,
Mr. pennclIl has been touring the coun-
try. making sketches OF our mnnition
plants. our shipyarsis, our aeropIane lac
tories and our cantonments but uie
government has not cent Mr.. fehheh 10
he front as did the British Government,
OUR BEST Doa'r 90
The policy of the government ls to send
In France only artists Of draft age. Nhtnr-
,llv this excludes our best American
talent men like sargent, liassam, WEIR,
Davies and Penncll, who are all over ~
wears old
s'The British. French and Italian e,6y-
crnments have had no such peculiar
scrunles !" saws Pcnnell They 40 not
measure an artists value by his ahIiity
10 hike long distances or shoulder gun
but nv his talent and experience here rs
Paul Renourard. for example a man ~
wears Of age up at tho front with TN
bat on making marvellous sketches
SARGENT our American Sargent hss also
reeentlv been sent to the front by the
British Government, u ~ reported
All the military leaders vino nave
figured consplcuously IN the war are y
ine their portraits painted by weii-kho"n
artists who have been especially assignee
to the work by their governments.
General Pershlng portrait IS now Deing
painted, but by frcnchman, ho1 an
American
Don't GET : cHtScE.
The fcw Young American artists VINO
have been sent 10 France ny the American
Government, arc serving ~ me ehgineei
CORDS and do not ENJOY the inocIsehdelt
status that has been accorded the Artl71S
of other nations In short IN the opinion
of our artists, the government mas a,'so
lutely failed 10 appreciate the tfefiieil4oh'
significance Of talented portrayal q .ile
var To be passed on to the future genera
fions of Americans photograph, nov,
is something that any American bureau
crat can appreciate orr
Ae one Government official sald, II
Won can get anything ~ complete ana
accurate rs that III q photograph y "a9
tho photograph pf q hattlesfip Which he
held IN hls hand Ill b. hanged 7 see
why tho government should bother WIN
anI. of these touchy artists, Who tAke
week to complete a sketch of one g'ln' ana
rnlsc 4 terrible row # somebody comes
along and morcs =
Tins il a good illustration Of the popular
.,ttItufIc toward the artist IN war feopc
do not stop to consider that photography
Ubile remarkable, does not last II the
history of the Egyptinu dynaStlesf me
olary of ancient Greece and Rome, anu
tho snl.ndor of the RENAISSANCE Aad
merely been recorded by the camera y +
doubtful If the twentieth century "n'lid
have known anything about them. l. =
i the wonderful art Of these PERIODS tildt
/ recalls them for US. Even the african
BushInan and the primitive aaihahi'ii
now practically extinct races-haFe acil'sF l
eel immortality IN their art IN theiI
+ pottery. their decorated implements ana
their queer pictures on cave waits me
| hova iaft lneffaceabie record 0l theI
existence.
THINKING FOR 4 THOUSAND YEARS.
Rnt viii the world, thousand year,
from now. ever know that the lniteC
States Of America took an active part =
the Enron n War According 70 Josepf
| Pennell. It will not, unless i dIseoVeT'
the fact from the pictorial recordssoi oth'l
nations.
The indifference OF this nation toWaro
its native talent Is also unfortunate fol
another reason. Present indications poin
to a tremendous competition IN art pro-
nets after the war. With all their our
dens Of war. France and Great brltait
have found the time to appoint art com
missions. TO subsidlze art schools ana Z
assist rising artists III every possible way
after the first wear, these two govern
ments called their artists back from thf
trenches and placed them where theu
lives were not endangered. Even Ter
MANY. with the lowest record o. eX
emDtions from military service, has man.
aged to keep her artists at home " nile
the artists themselves have not aIways
been pleased with this policy, 1t show;
that these nations place high value upon
their art
Moreover. the sketchiugs and painting:
of European artists have been grouped il
collections and exhibited all over thu
world. Several OF the have been exhibited
In our large American cities, and have
made a deep impression upon the public
Ii is not unusual TO hear an AmeucaT
business man refer to some sketch O
that English artist, McBey, or some
vivid picture by '.Steinlen that guy they
call the Aiillet of the trenches 1t i
possible that the business m n has alsl
seen Joseph Pennells war sketches but ht
usually mistakes him for an English
man He is also aware of the fact tina
Charles Dana Gibson is in some wa,
connected with the COVER nent-but tha
is all.
ONE SILVER LINING, ANYHOW.
Nevertheless, with all these discourag
ing factors, the outlook for American ar
and American artists is brighter than
has ever been before. The war has no
changed the artists style, declared Nh
PenneI, ''as several prophets have pre-
dieted that it would; but, it has give
him a wide range of subjects that are c
tremendous interest to the public, Sine
the war. people have started gong to tn
art galleries They have BECOME vitalt
interested in the things affecting ou
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