Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-04-04
THE LIBRARY TABLE
BY the BOokIOver

The triple climax Of Cecilia Beaux's
autobiography, Background With Fig
ures." is her account of her painting
OF the portraits of three of the great
figures OF the World War-Cardinal
MERCER, Clemenceau and Admiral Lord
Beatty. Miss Beaux explains how she
came to paint these portraits: I'm tho
Spring of 1919 a committee was formed
of men and women prominent in our
social and financial world for the pur-
pose OF getting together series OF
portraits Of the outstanding figures of
the war; these portraits to be presented
finally to the United States Govern
ment. A group of artists, five in num-
ber was chosen to do this work. To
each artist was assigned three portraits,
to be painted for the most part abroad,
for the chief interest in the undertaking
lay in the fact that most Of the subjects
were to be Europeans of whom only
photographs were likely ever to appear
in this country. or be owned here, at
any rate, by our Government. The
secretary of the committee called on me
and asked me to undertake to go abroad
and execute three of these portraits.
accepted with full sense OF the
significance and interest OF the COM
mission. I was told that the three to
be entrusted to me we're Cardinal Mer-
cier. Clemenceau and Admiral Lord
Beatty"
Miss Beaux feared that each Of her
subjects would consider himself
victim and was delighted by the varied
and gracious personalities revealed to
her through the sittings. The cardinal
was her first subject. His portrait was
painted in large sale, with an enor-
nous hole in the ceiling where
German shell had come through, in the
Archeveche at Malines. 1t shows the
cardinal standing, with his back to
Gothic window, dressed in black
sOutane, with short cape, broad ceinture
Of crimson ribbon, long crimson MORE
mantelletta, three cornered scarlet
buretta, and gold chain and pectoral
cross. During the sittings. brief but
sufficient and generously accorded, the
artist and the clerical hero Of the World
War became for the time pleasant
companions. The cardinal asked Miss
BeauX about her earlier work. and she
told him that as a girl she had litho-
graphed fossils for scientific books. He
threw up his hands and laughed
heartily as he exclaimed, EFT vous
continuez encore" BY his orders a
tea tray was brought to her painting
table every afternoon. Just before the
was about TO depart for America he
presented her with three volumes of
his works and a photograph inscribed
"A la grande ct patiente artistic" At
that last interview came what she calls
'one of the supreme moments of my
experience" when the cardinal told her
that there are many portraits beauti-
fully painted, but that she alone painted
the soul.
OF all her distinguished subjects Miss
Beaux most feared to meet the Tiger"
She had a seat in the Chamber of
Deputies when Clemenceau presented
the peace treaty and for two hours
watched him through her opera glass.
Then, before meeting him, she decided
on her composition. He must be painted
as he appeared in the tribune, standing,
with head thrown slightly back his
arms Strengthened so that he seemed to
be holding down the desk The sketch
made from this view of him was the
basis of the portrait Her first inter-
view was arranged by the American
embassy and she went to it fearfully
Almost the first words of the Tiger" to
| her were, We'll, TO begin with, we
hate each other" She had the adroit-
ness to reply, mo, monsieur. that's
only half true" "Whereupon he threw
up his hands and laughed aloud, and I
felt that the assault was over and the
breach opened" There were not as
many sittingS rs with Cardinal MERCER
very few in fact. but they did not seem
to be needed The vision of the small
old man in dark grey suit" in the
tribune remained with her and from
her memory of 1t the portrait was
painted. She had known from the first
that "a study from memory of what
saw then, though probably incomplete
would be truer than if I attempted to
do him directly from sittings, If I ever
got them" After seeing more of him
her final conclusion was: But the
near and surface visions of the great
patriot always faded quickly. The
permanent and real presence was that
OF the tribune-the voice of France"
The last portrait was that Of Admiral
Lord Beatty, or, as she calls him,
Baron Beatty OF the North Sea" He
/ readily consented to the necessary sit
| tings when requested through the Ameri-
can embassy, but evidently looked upon
the affair without enthusiasm, as in the
line Of duty. Ests blished in a studio in
side lane off KenSington road Miss
! BeauX painted the portrait, with the
help OF sitter who was always prompt
and cooperative, as was to be expected
from one of his traditions At the first
meeting, she estimated his type. Il saw
that 1t was a falcon face; the nose
broad at the base, unbelievably fine at
the end the broWS bending toward it,
eyelids heavy and full, Large, far
seeing grey eyes. A falcon ready for the
chase" He was painted standing up
right, against the background of a
stormy sky, in naval uniform and cloak,
with his fine hands crossed on the top
Of his upright sword. A Cockney actor
out of work served as model for the
details of the costume. Even the hands
could be done for the first and only
time In the experience of the artist
from the model, from the queer bony
hands that mended the fire. They held
the sword by means of the same mech
aniSm and action, and, in some way,
Lord Beatty's smooth, fine fingers ap-
peared in the end"
In Reader, I Married Him" Anne
Green has turned out, rather soon after
her last novel, The SelbyS," another
story of irresponsible, amusing but not
altogether real Americans living in
Paris. Andrew Douglass, in spite of his
Scotch name, lacks thrift and most of
the other careful virtues. His daughter
Catherine goes after what she wants in
wholehearted way, but one wonders
why she wants the things she does
want, especially why she wants to
marry Gilbert. Caprice and good-na-
tured selfshness are the mainsprings of
all the characters
n
Atmosphere is responsible for the sue
cess of the stories of Eleanor Mercein
MRS. Kelly, the atmosphere of the
Basque country. In MAGIC: His At
fairs" she pursues farther the fortunes
of the Urruty family, the romantic
Basque tribe ruled by a matriarch, with
| whom We have already made acquaint-