The New York herald., 1921-05-08

his best as recent viSitors 10 ~the
know. He was sometimes bored with
and tired Of his sitters, just like any
oIher fashionable PAINTER.
In the heyday of his career, doubt
less, pressure was brought to bear
anon him to paint the most insuffer-
able specimens. Who does not re-
call the prosperous winter in which
The delightful rumor ran through all
the Fifty-fifth street studios (then
he most fashionable) that Sargent
had arrived from London to do six
tecn portraits in-was it sixteen
weeks s?-for $1,000 each. But you
can very we'll believe that he did not
paint Mrs. Bloomfield Moore in such
!; businesslike manner, nor for such
y paltry sum.
Mrs. Moore was the type he found
paintable. Sargent was not particu-
larly deep He liked surfaces. he
liked his feminine sitters to give the
effect Of social ease, and he liked them
best when they were surrounded by
considerable glitter. At the time that
Sargent painted Mrs. Moore there was
,tlsidcrable Madrazo oFortuny- -Boldini
business in the air, and Sargent
nlded to it ct times as whole-heart-
olly as Chase did. Sargent got the
glitter easily Perhaps glitter is easy
10 get. but at any rate Sargents real
command over the brush is never so
1a ciluaY
things or watch chains or gold bro
cade to do. His high lights at such
times are touched in with genuine
hravado. and bravado can be attractive
in art.
After the lapse of these years 1t Is
amusing to note that the artist
dropped his bravado when drawing the
lady's face. 1t is so carefully and re-
spectfully painted that it gives the ef-
feet of lacquer. which was probably
not the intention. The face IN the
nearby portrait of Miss Katherine
Lane. by Charles Hopkinson. is much
more alive with color Sargent. or
course. was not colorist He relied
rather upon values, drawing and brush
prestidigitation. Mr.. Hopkinson's work
Is more dllNt Will tOlOl al hhR "aJ
through. It is rather fun to glance
back and forth from Mr.. Hopkinson's
work to Sargent's noting the inde-
Unable something's that have come
into tho later work.
Mr.. Hopkinson has taken OH stature
lately in the public opinion. due 10
the marked ease with which he
eclipsed all the other painters OF the
official war portraits. 50 that for the
moment he occupies the top place.
Certainly there is no other in the
present company of portrait painters
who stands up TO Sargent in the way
lie does. Not that he reaches the
same height. Sargent started out in
Youth with some successes that made
him fashionable at once. and all the
vay through he was backed by fash
ion. Fashion only heard of Mr.. Hop
lSinson this winter, after he had got
well along in his career. and there is
no telling how he may survive popular
favor. Fashion makes and breaks.
Not every artist can stand il. In the
end it was what broke Sargent. for
lis work as a portrait painter seems
to have finished.
IN the gallery il was said that the
men all agreed in liking the portrait Of
Miss Josephine Lane but that the
women did not. This is something,
10 doubt. for psychologists to work
upon. Probably the men, most OF
whom at the private view were artists
merely looked upon the work as good,
straightforward, fresh painting, or II
they thought of the protagonist at all
as a human being, thought of her as
being good fun" and a desirable ac-
guaintance.
The women. perhaps. were afraid OF
her smile. Women, it is said, lack
humor and are afraid of it in others
The famous Mona Lisa, you know
who smiles so slightly that really IL
should be called a smirk. came down
through the ages chamIqoned only
by men, Or perhaps the women OBJ
ject to the defenceless position of the
arms. "women and birds" says James
stephens, who knows the sex thor
oughly. should always be upon
guard" But I must confess to being
poor psychologist and really do not
know why there should be two opin-
ions in regard to this portrait
other portraits Include a cigar cut
study of Leopold Stokowsli, tie mu-
sician. by Leopold Seyffert: a portrait
oc Bradley Gilman by Philip l.. Hale;
a head OF an old man, by Robert
Henri; Mrs. Rodman wanamaker. by
Mary Foote; Richard Farmer. black
smith, by Earl Stetson Crawford; tho
Archbishop Of New Mexico. by Ran
dali Davey. and the portrait OF ~
d." by James Earie Fraser.