The New York herald., 1921-12-25
Amateurs Response
To Abstract Art


Bouche of the Belmaison Galleries al
Wanamaker's. Is q striking instance OF
an amateur Of confessedN limited ex-
perience, who arrives swiftly at opinions
now shared by those who have looked
most deeply into the question of modern
art. The pictures he speaks OF are by
the most modern OF the French grouI
and are usually found difficult Mr.
Ficke's quick appreciation Of Juan Girls
and Metzinger Is especially noteworthy
He says:
81 am wondering whether It would In
terest you to know how one layman ar
rived at the conviction that the painters
exhibiting in your showing (and evil
IDENTIFY the painters not exhibiting but
symbolized by these) are saying i'm
portant things in important ways-some
of them profound things in heroically
simple ways
THE writer confesses to the limit of a
couple of casual visits to the Metropol-
itan Museum and one, recently. to pri-
vate gallery as his experience in looking
at pictures. He has never before been
moved by pictures excepting by some re-
productions of italian prlmitives and
some Byzantine frescoe paintings.
Last week. on walking into the Bel
maison Galleries things began to hap
pen. The pictures began an inner revo-
luton. 1t is almost hopeless to attempt
to transcribe or objectify my expert
ence, but 1t was rather as follows:
I've seen In gallery windows paint.
ings of young women, flooded with rich
color and light, but when / looked at
Mile. Laurencin's 'Jeune File Au Bal.
con- / realized presently that with a
few absolutely mastery lines and some
delicate color, the painter had set down
In most striking and inescapable man.
ner all that 'Jeune File means to the
world. BY the same absolute genius of
means the portrait Of Nine. Salmon
spoke In simple language the ultimate
facts of the sitter which the painter must
have felt
"The fascination OF Helene Perdriats
La Belle ct La Bette which seems to
wish to dominate ones attention the
whole of the time in the gallery. can.
not explain. 1t is a lodestone. It's soft,
rich colors and supple lines must be mas.
terly. Then. too, after feeling the mys-
terry suggested by the lady's eyes, real
lied that they were not painted in the
style of misunderstanding with
lights.
I'm Les Grands Arbres' OF Andre
Derain, one feels that its compelling and
mastery forms flow from a feeling for
whatever makes it possible for all hu-
man life to be and continue-the very
pillars Of the thing. M. Derain evil
IDENTIFY has felt all this intently and re-
corded it directly.
1T Is almost amazing that In La
Fenetre Ouverte' Juan Girls has not
painted atmosphere. but rather he gives
us the most marvellous experience of at
Ia NH
passes on the shutter has the delightful
effect Of carrying the beholder past the
shutter and the house and on along that
heavenly blue sky.
"In a Paysage' of Jean Metzinger
there Is group of buildings whose in
teresting form gives an irresistible feel
ing of perfection in structure due to the
beautifully handled interplay or reaction
Of angles. A small boat sails on the
surface of lake. The whole thing has
an infinitely beautiful and deep silence.
paradoxical in that the goldsl silence
chimes The picture represents an
ecstasy that comes only after the whole
gamut of sense and intellectual expert
ence has been passed and the artist at
tanned to state of pure being. He Is
the small craft sailing placidly on the
unfathomable lake.
1T was the Metzinger Paysage' which
pictures In the foreground a large pop
lar, an ascending road and several
houses which affected me as no picture.
visual form or musical work ever has.
After looking for minute I was COM
PEELED to stay with 1t. Its color range
was not large--but 1t was magical Its
drawing and method Of painting had a
simplicity that very quickly called forth
admiration. Presently 1t seemed to vi
brate and grow luminous. gale
seemed to blow through my rl,nd and
sweep away all small things. Then, fol-
lowing in its train with lightning like
rapidty, came piling in on me the very
essence. 1t seemed, of every emotional
experience had ever had. rolling in,
crowding one another. The experience
which had caused each did not come
back, but the elements which had made
the experiences were there in their naked
significance. Then. slowly but surely,
they seemed to flow together-to fuse
into one great reality that seemed to
fll all space. And stranger than all,
this state seemed to be actually and
directly related to the forms in that
landscape. Again paradox---the picture
tad ceased to be picture and had be-
come an experience. while this new con-
sciousness seemed to take on. N extern
sion, the forms of the poplar, the beauti-
fully built house forms and the hill
road.
"In the pictures which were what /
should call more purely cubistic felt
again that tremendous setting forth of
the qualities or elements or forms on
which all life stands. In the two pictures
of Georges Braque and the woman in
the armchair of Picasso they we're done
with consummately beautiful color.
Rather worth two hours in gallery
/ should say. =,
GEORGE DUERR FIcKE."