Perth Amboy evening news., 1922-04-17

free mood with no thought of paint
ing to please the public or to make
a sale. One artist sketched in fresh
colors a fawn and kid dancing
gaily. Another painted the head of
a Persian cat looking out realisti-
cally from its background of mot
tied color. Still another painted
a dim landscape in soft, dark colors
fading into the blurred frame of
paints.
But among them all. Corot's un-
decorated palette is the greatest at
traction. Now, when his work brings
fabulous sums and when his palette
is treasured as a priceless souve-
mir. it is difficult to imagine that
this Mench painter was for years
unappreciated by the art world. At
the salons his pictures were badly
hung so that the light was either
too glaring or too dim for the pic
ture TO attract any attention. Once,
the artist tried standing in front of
his neglected work-a landscape
that would draw crowds at any ex-
hibition now. He reasoned that if
some one appeared to be interested
in the picture, others would be at
tracted to come and look at it. FL
nally a honeymoon couple strolled
up.
The groom said: THAT is not bad.
I think there is something in that"
And Corot's heart leaped with ap-
probation
But the bride, whom Corot de-
scribed as the softest and gentlest
little person, drew him away with a
shudder and said: 1T is frightful.
Come on" And Corot ends the
story-"And I said t o myself. Art
thou satisfied? Thou hast heard
the opinion Of the public"
Troyon. too, the master painter OF
cows, vas unappreciated in his day.
One story says that when s. jury OF
artists voted Troyon a decoration,
official ar. circles were aghast. The
Minister of Fine Arts shook his
head resignedly when he saw Troy
ems name on the list of artists who
were to receive decorations.
1T appears decidedly that I know
nothing about painting" he la
mented as he unwillingly put his
signature to the order.
COrot Regarded as Radical
1t seems strange that these nine
tenth century artists were regard
ed then as radicals who dared to
break away, from tradition and
paint nature as she seemed to them
rather than as she had always been
painted.
One OF their worst crimes was
that they chose to paint in straight
forward manner the forests. peas
ants, and farm scenes Of France
when every painter was supposed
to be stopped in the classic atmos-
phere of Greece and Italy.
The amazement of the French
public at the Franch landscape
was something like that OF u own
modern public when 1T discovered
recently that novels descriptive OF
mid-western life might be taken
seriously and that all American lit
erature need not bear a New York
stamp. People nowadays are less
volts than they were in the France
of the mir eteenth century. Artists
and public alike held out strongly
against Millet with the toll worn
peasants. Troyon with his endless
studies of cattle, and Corot with
his French forests which bore little
resemblance to any reasonable Ital'
ian Landscape.
The source of inspiration fol
these artists, and a number of 9th
ers who were non-conformists hkt
them, was the Little french vlliag'
of Barbizon where they worked a
their painting. From their associa
ton with this village. a group o
painters came to be known as tn
Barbizon school, and also as "th'
men of thirty" because it was abou
1890 that the Barbizon schoo
came into prominence.
In 1926 two painters got lost II
the forest of Fontainebleau, ant
wandered to the village OF Barbizol
where they spent the night with
peasant. The next morning the,
were so snraptured over the peace
full beauty Of the remote hamlet an
the entrance to the forest nearb,
that they Immediately bargaine'
with the peasant for board an
lodging and settled down to paint
The fame of Barbizon as an idea
artists retreat spread, AMI in a fey
seasons the peasant host had to con
vert a barn into an inn to house hi
eager guests. In the rush season 70
outdoor sketching artists ever slep
on a large table for the privilege o
getting up at five o'clock or Garlic
anc rushing out 10 study the sunris'
in the for est. Corot tells wildly o
ont at three o'clock ans