Evening star., 1923-09-06
The North Window
BY LEILA MECHLIN

| The Corcoran Gallery of Art has in
Iaugurated the opening season with
special exhibition of paintings by
Mrs. Johanna Hailman of Pittsburgh,
an artist who Is not particularly well
known in Washington, but whose
work for some years has been con-
spicuous for merit. One of the first
paintings by this artist that the
writer saw was a flower painting.
the individuality and beauty of which
still linger in memory.
! Curiously enough, it is in the field
OF flowers that the greatest progress
land the most notable contributions
have been made by American artists
In the last few years. Never before
have flowers been painted as beauti-
fully, as artistically as they have
been painted in this country in the
last five years, and when this is said
! it takes into consideration the very
beautiful paintings of fiawers pro-
duced in centuries past in Holland
and in France. Perhaps because of
this advance In flower painting, the
older paintings of flowers have come
lagain into vogue. Reproductions of
the old Dutch flower paintings are in
great demand and their decorative
quality is appreciated for a consider
able period. How remarkably inter
eSting they are, too, those great
punches and bowlfuls of old fash
Toned flowers so perfectly and so
lovingly painted, with accuracy of
jdrawing and detail, but at the same
time with full comprehension of the
fdiotates of art These works are in
(. Fi.3h rin in nh in
ure conventional, but for that reason
iperhaps all the more serviceable for
decorative purposes.
X
The French flower paintings are,
of course, of more exquisite sort;
such, for example, as the two works
of roses. the other of a pink flower
livery similar to phlox. The French
painted every petal with the utmost
precision, and as rule their color
schemes were rather pretty and high
in key; but there was always some
thing artificial about the flowers
themselves, and to the lovers of
flowers they seemed soulless.
/ The modern Dutch water colorists
revolted from this mode of flower in
depreciation and went TO the other ex-
treme. disregarding to a great extent
form, and presenting, through the use
of shaded color and atmospheric ef-
feet, essentially spirit.
x X
| There were some beautiful flower
paintings of the modern Dutch school
in the Waggaman collection, and
ssome of our own local painters, nota-
Bile among them Miss Clara Saunders
and Miss Mary Godding, have pro-
duced extremely charming works in
this style. 1t was in this style that
the late James Henry Moser directed
his still life class at the Corcoran
Gallery of Art. and remarkable were
the results obtained under his tute-
lage by the students. Flower paint
inss of this sort are essentially in as
pect ephemeral. suggesting the per-
ishable quality of the flower, its
fragrance. it's fragilty.
In the Phillips Memorial Gallery is
an exquisite painting of roses by j.
Alden Weir which possesses these
same Observation-Disclosures work rarely
beautiful in tone, and a masterpiece
! which would proclaim its merit set
amidst any famous collection. John
La Fargo occasionally did a flower
painting, and did il well. but his
paintings had more OF the substance
and a little less of the spirit, They
were invariably decorative and tone
full, but they seemed to use the flower
tor a purpose rather than make it of
major Importance.
The modern most recent flower
paintings are first of all brilliantly
colorful and secondly most direct in
treatment. They have form and sub
stance, and yet in some miraculous
way preserve the spirit of the flower.
The daisy is no longer modest, but
shouts its charm. The Garden fa-
vorites commingle. despite riotous
color, with enchanting briIliancy of
effect. 1t is the splendor of flowers
that modern art is proclaiming
Miss Hailman was one. of the first
to strike this modern note, and she is
today one of a company of really
great flower painters. among whom
instantly come to mind Maud Mason
of New York, Maude Drein Bryant of
Baltimore. Laura Coombs Hills of
.<ewburyport, Mass. and half a dozen
Philadelphia painters. to name only a
few. Laura Hills. who is foremost
among miniature painters uses for
her flower paintings pastels. and COM
bines them with still life in a most
attractive manner.
| At the annual meeting of the Gar
den Club in Newport this summer an
exhibition made up exclusively of
flower paintings by distinguished
american artists was shown at the
Newport Art Association, under the
auspices of the American Federation
of Arts.
How diverse again is the way in
which the Japanese and Chinese ar
lists have interpreted flowers, using
line rather than color, emphas sizing
outline rather than the third dimen-
sion. and always emphasizing decora-
tive effect. Exquisite examples of the
art of these great oriental painters
are to be seen in the Freer collection
A number of American artists are fol-
lowing more or less in their footsteps,
for example Robert w. Chanler, who
has done most interesting designs,
both of flowers and animals, for
screens, and Theodore NJ. Hawley who.
has made exquisite studies in line
and tint in the Japanese method of
garden flowers; nor should the re-
markable water colors of flowers by,
Mrs. Charles d. Walcott of this city
be forgotten, for, though primarily of
! scientific interest, they are extremely.
cleverly rendered and artistic in eff
feet.
OF interest to print collectors and of
general significance is the following
paragraph from an essay on lithog-