New-York tribune., 1920-11-14
AUGUST DAY
(From the painting by Leon Kro at the New Society

Mr. Luks-the gift to make black or
gray ring upon canvas.
Are we asking, we wonder, too much I?
To make paint beautiful in itself is,
one must admit, the rarest Of accom-
pllshments. One must be content, peg
Laps, when the medium is at least
landed crisply, deftlv. with a certain
easy efficiency. There is plenty of that
sort of thing in the show There is
Mr. Robert Henri's semi-nude "Chinese
Jacket which for delicate precision of
touch is, we verify believe the best
thing he ever did in his life There
are some clever bits Of painting done
in the West by Mr.. Randall Davey
There is an engaging example of the
facility of Mr.. Irving r. Wiles in his
souvenirs" These things may not be
enchanting, but they are we'll done. We
make the same reflection in the pres
ence Of the little nude, First Pose"
by Mr.. Guy Pene du Bois. He has
been too absorbed in his technical prob
lem to give much thought to what we
may call the aesthetic issue in his COM
position. He has not made a beautiful
picture. But he has made an uncom-
monty effective essay in workmanship,
piece of really adroit and solid paint
ing. The modernists, the younger.
more adventurous group, come off
rather better than might have been G.
pected. They move US to allude again
to that effort which we have noted On
the part of contributors to send Of
their best. Mr.. Henry L. McFce has
Lever done before so persuasive thing
as his "Portrait of Painter" and Mr..
Samuel Halpcrt is equally above his
average. Mr.. John Sloan is hardly to
he reckoned among the modernists, but
he is, on the other hand stout oppo-
nent Of convention. He has often L
disconcerting way of landing upon
ugliness. On this occasion, in his
"Bleecker Street, Saturday Night" he
has some passages of fine painting
Convention creeps in of course. 1t
Will get in where SO we have to
have in this exhibition the incongruity
of Mr.. Frederick c. Frieseke's pretty
Peace" 1t is too pretty, too man
nered, by half. But this, as we have
already shown, is not the characteristic
note of the show. We turn now to the
open air men and find them all doing
spirited, unconventional work, good
work, full of light and air. There is
cne new sensation provided, by Mr.
Paul Dough herty He has been in Spain
and the south Of France, and on the
coast has painted his est Jean de Luz"
Ii is as though he had opened door
on previously unexplored world and
lad found an inspiration there, jolting
him out Of an old habit of color and
even of style. The painting marks u
stride ahead for him. So, too, has Mr..
Elmer Schotield done in his gray "Land-
acape" something unaccustomed, with
enhanced vitality and interest. There
are capital pieces by Clifford Beal and
Reynolds Beal, Rockwell Kent and
Ernest Lawson, Van Perrine and Hay
Icy Lever. Mr. Jonas Lie sends curl
ously disappointing marine. We are
surprised, because he has another pic
ture on view elsewhere this week which
is infinitely better. There is one pure
iy decorative contributor, MIR. Robert
". Canler. represented by three panels
grouped under the title of "Phantasy"
He has painted birds, fowls and reeds
against backgrounds of gold as he has
tever painted anything before, with
letter sense of design and firmer
touch.
The black and whites and the water
colors make little collection by them