New-York tribune., 1918-05-05
The Free, Untrammelled
Artists
Artists

Allled Artists of America, just opened
at the Fine Arts Building, is not
merely display of pictures but the
affirmation of a principle. No iurv
OF selection functions here The con-
tributors send what they choose, and
what they send is hung. They form
an organization that is in no wise
revolutionary, they stand for no mere
trlcious "isms," but it is reasonable
to assume that some special interest
should attach to their proceedings.
that juryless exhibition should
somebody have something uncon-
ventional and arresting to say for
itself. The truth is that while this
Is a pleasant enough collection it ia
not, on the whole, of any outstanding
merit. The same rule works out here
that works out in most exhibitions.
When man of personality, of genuine
talent, takes part in the enterprise he
commands sympathetic attention
Those who are mediocre continue to
leave us cold, making no particularly
winning appeal because they happen
to have come into view without the
aid of jury.
The Allied Artists, as a BODY. have
from the start won certain consid-
GRAFTON through their sincerity. their
freedom from eccentric pose. But this
mas not relieved them from the obli-
cation to make their shows worth while
by the only really authentic process,
the process of showing frst-rate pict-
ures. There are altogether too few
OF these at the Fine Arts Building.
The landscape men do very we'll, and
some of them are we'll above the av-
erage. Mr.. Griffin's color makes him
an especially welcome participant
His glowing Corner of Venice" is
beautiful thing, and he has, by the
way, amongst the smaller sketches
which make feature of the show
some uncommonly good drawings.
There are admirable landscapes also
by Mr.. Ernest Albert, Mr.. Edmund
Grecon, Mr.. Ernest D. Roth, Mr..
Charles Basing, Mr. Guy c. Virgins,
Mr.. Cullen Yates and Mr. George M.
Bruestle. The figure work throughout
is on a sadly prosaic level. The best
OF it is only moderately accomplished.
This, we may be told, is enough. But
Is 1t? If a society of artists is to
stand by itself, making an exhibition
OF its own, addressing itself to the
public as in some sort entitled to spe-
cial attention, it ought surely to rise
above the commonplace. That is pre-
cisely what this exhibition in it's
length and breadth fails to do.
The Society of Independent Artists.
another organization which has freed
itself from the supposedly crushing
weight of the jury system and has
much wider scope than the Allied
Artists, being accessible to every
group, no matter how "advanced," has
for second time prepared an exhibi
ton. For the first one, held a wear
ago, the Grand Central Palace was not
thought too large. This year Il store
at ITO West Forty second Street has
been found sufficient The collection
Is, nevertheless, quite large enough.
containing more than thousand
pieces. From out of this mass it might
be possible to detach fifteen or twenty
paintings which possess a reasonable
measure of interest. We come upon
Miss Mary Foote'S charming Portrait
of Madame Yorska," upon Mr.. John
Sloan's cleverly painted interior. "The
Cot.' which contains some delightful
tone; upon few tolerable things by
George Bellows, E. S. Hergesheimer
and three or four others. The rest is.
frankly, bore, The divagations Of
the cubists and kindred freaks have
long since ceased to be amusing. There
is picture here, a study of nudes
more or less in the manner of Cezanne.
by Mr.. Manuel E. Amador, which sur-
gests in its title the trouble with the
whole show. 1t is called ATTEMPT at
Rhythm" Nothing could be mora
exact 1t is an attempt, and only an
attempt AS an exhibition of such
tentative, uncertain crudities this one
has perhaps an interest for those who
make it and for their friends. But to
the disinterested observer the feeble