Evening star., 1923-03-15
The North Window
BY LEILA MECHLIN,


would have inscribed over the en-
scum the words: These works are
for your pleasure and not for your
criticism" More than most men, he
had the right to make this sugges-
tion because his own enjoyment Of
art was intense. He was one of those
who seem to have been '+predeetined'
to be artists, for so far as his
|biographers have been able to dis
cover, his inclinations in this direc-
tion could neither be laid to heredity
nor environment. His early boyhood
was spent in Indiana at a time when
life in midwestern cities was ex-
tremely raw and unpicturesque. His
father kept shoe store and had lit
tie sympathy with his sons artistic
longings, but William Merritt Chase
was fixed in his determination to de-
vote his life to art and the hrnness
of his purpose eventually brought
success.
Because he had to make his way
against opposition and in the face OF
most trying circumstances he was
(late in starting. but he succeeded be-
Iyond his fondest hopes. He is one
Iof the really great figures of Ameri-
can art, and one desiring to know
what an artists life is at the best
cannot do better than read The Life
and Art of william Merritt Chase,
written by Catherine Metcalf Roof
and published some years ago by
Charles Scribner's Sons. Miss Roof
was at one time one Of Chase's pupils
a
Ibiographer. because. as Mrs. Chase
has put II, she had the real and
right appreciation of art and an espe-
ciaHy sympathetic understanding OF
ers standpoint. which, to again quote
Mrs. Chase. 'is the exact opposite or
the literary attitude toward art" 1t
was In every way wise choice, Tor
in this book Miss Roof has given us
not only the facts Of the artists life,
but the spirit in which it was lived,
and has made US know Chase both
as man and artist. 1t is fascinating
story. delightful biography-a book
which every lover of art should read.
y r Z
The memorial exhibition Of Mr..
Chase's paintings now on view in the
Corcoran Gallery Of Art has brought
both tho painter and the book to
rapid passage of years. for obviously
the works included in this collection
are OF yesterday; yet it was not
seemingly SO long ago that Chase
was considered a revolutionary, the
older men looking upon him as
disturbing element, an innovator-
which he was. for that matter. He
was the f1rst president of the Society
nf W. ~ tSt lNt t,h a al "a
up of the more progressive young
artists who seeded from the Ma
tional Academy of Design. 1t was
through him and on his recemmen-
Sword" and Girl With a Parrot"
were purchased for the Metropolitan
Museum OF Art He taught his pu-
pills TO paint broadly and to be cour-
ageous. for while he laid great stress
ca"1d pr, h;ds in .echneus he
great teacher. Il believe" he is
quoted as having said himself, II am
the father of more art children than
any other art teacher" and it was
him was an enthusiasm. perhaps be-
cause his youthful struggles had been
$50 great and had made such pro-
found impression upon him that he
had an intense desire TO help others.
To his pupils he was most generous.
almost paternai. following their
progress with the utmost interest and
sympathy. and. as they succeeded,
Ioftentimes becoming patron as well
as master purchasing their. works,
theirs. in manifold ways stimulating
their progress and rejoicing n il.
William NJ Chase had a passion for
paintings-in fact, all sorts of works
of art. He was not only d painter.
but a collector. and that which was
really beautiful thrilled him to the
utmost. He had. furthermore. gift
for comradeship and the roster Of his
friends and intimate associates was
one of which any man might be
proud. Currier, Shirlaw. Duveneck.
ITwachtmann and Blum were his great
friends from the Munich days on.
Sargent and Whistler painted his por-
trait and he painted Whistlers. He
lived a happy. improvident life That
is. he often spent more money than
he had. and he often bought what he
could i'll afford, which naturally led to
difficulties. but for the moment the
delight of possession was supreme
and for the morrow he never took
anxious thought.
He was ecstatic over the works OF
the great Spanish painters. He re-
joiced with the joy of "A discoverer in
the collection of Italian paintings IN
don but he hated with striking in
Raphaelite brotherhood. and he had
little or no patience with the mon
|strosities which the first postimpres-
ehaneed funlee to be in attendance at an
exhibition held in the National Arts
Club, New York. by group of post
mpressionists some years ago, when
Mr.. Chase came in; A Young man
took him about, explaining the ex-
hibits Mr.. Chase made no remark,
until finally the young man said:
Ront you shinh it is Hns Mr
his reply: provided, of course, that it
should turn out that all the old fell
lows like Eelasquez. Rembrandt, Ru-
lbens and the rest should really have
been all wrong and you young fellows
should be right
Chase's interest in still life really
began with study of the works of
Chardin and Vollon in Paris. but it
was not until 1904 that he painted
his first fish picture. That year he
was in London and. passing fish
mongers shop, he saw large,
opalescent cod lying upon a marble
slab Finding that 1t was rather ex-
pensive. he suggested to the fish
monger that he rent it for a few
hours, but as it was Saturday and a
half holiday 1t was some time before
he was able to make the ararange-
ments. When" according to Miss
Roof 'the fish was not returned on
time the fishmonger sent an emissary
to the painters studio to find out
what was going on. His report.
curiosity, for in a little while the
fishmonger himself arrived on the
scene coming In SO quietly that the