Evening star., 1936-08-22
SUMMER ART PEAK
Impressive Exhibits in New England and
Other Vacation Places Come From an
Unusually Lively Period.


sisted exclusively Of water colors. and
included works by the best contem-
porary water coloriSts, such as Wood
bury, Kent, Heitland. Hilda Belcher,
John Whorf and Clifford Beal. Four
Washingtonians, in addition to Mr..
O'Hara, were represented therein
Robert Franklin Gates, Janice Hol-
land, Richard Lahey and Barbara
Macfarlane.
A Washington artist, Miss Elizabeth
Sawtelle, was prominent among those
exhibiting at Ogunquit this Summer.
Miss Sawtelle is a pupil of Woodbury.
and has made distinguished place
for herself as water colorist. 1t is
understood that Miss Sawtelle pur-
poses spending the coming year
abroad.
Among all the Summer art exhibi-
tions, by present report, the exhibi-
ton at Ogunquit has the largest rec
ord of sales. One does not hear much
of the w. P. A. Government art prof.
ects in this part of the country, and
that sales have increased normally,
and art activities generally been re-
stored would seem to indicate re-
turn to conditions prevalent before
the depression, when such matters
adjusted themselves through the time
old channel of demand and supply. In
any event, the outlook is happier.
At Old Lyme, Conn, there is not
only Summer, but an all-the-year-
round colony of artists, the majority
of whom are outstanding. The Lyme
Art Association has its own gallery,
a charming building designed by the
late Charles Platt. architect of the
Freer Gallery in Washington. Here
in both a Summer and an Autumn
show are set forth, the latter opening
this year on August 26. This will en-
brace the work of the more than 200
members, and will include oil paintings,
water colors and work in black and
white. Winfield Scott Cline, formerly
of Washington, is a member of the
Hanging Committee. The attendance
at this gallery this Summer has been
IS per cent greater than last
1t is in Old Lyme that Willard Met
calf painted May Night" owned by
the Corcoran Gallery of Art, prize
winner in an early Corcoran biennial
and a much-prized possession. This
is a picture Of the historic Griswold
house which stands back from Old
Lyme's main street. half hidden by
great horse chestnut trees. Metcalf
painted these trees blossoming, and
the facade of this old mansion with
it's classic portico bathed in moon
light-a lasting memorial. The Girls
void house has for years been the
abiding place of artists, and the walls
of its dining room are decorated with
pictures by famous artists, painted as
tributes to its owners hospitality.
Miss Florence Griswold, now ad-
vanced in years, is still presiding
genius of this establishment. and a
strenuous effort has been made by
the Lyme artists, this Summer, to
save the home for her, through sales
and subscriptions, clearing of mort
gage-a spontaneous act Of generosity
and good will. The first house on
this site was built in 1640, the pres
ent house in 1918. The architect
was Samuel Belcher. who also de-
signed the Old Lyme church, made
famous by paintings by Childe Has
sam and others.
THERE are special anniversary
exhibitions commemorating the
establishment of Harvard University
then Harvard College-and the Colony
of Rhode Island-in Boston and in
Providence and Newport, respectively.
The Newport exhibition, set forth
under the auspices of the Newport
Art Association, places especial en-
phasis on the works Of artists who
have painted in that city. among
whom are Gilbert Stuart, whose
birthplace was near by; Robert Feke,
John Smibert, and, latterly, John La
Fargo. Loans have been made by the
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New
York; Bowdoin College, the United
States Naval Academy, Yale Univer-
sity and other institutions. The ex-
hibition in Providence is in the mu-
scum of the Rhode Island School of
Design. The Harvard exhibit. which
comprises extremely fine and rare
examples, Is shown in the Fogg Mu-
scum, Cambridge, adjacent to Harvard
Yard.
A Purchase Prize Exhibition-an
annual affair-opened the latter part
of July in Buck Hill Falls, Pa,
under the art association of that
town. This comprised 60 paint
ings by 43 well-known artists, among
whom are some of the same artists
whose works are to be found in the
New England shows-for example, AL
dro Hilbard, Gordon Grant and An
thony Theme. But here also one finds
works by Waugh, Anna Fisher, Al
bert Groll, Carl Wuermer and others.
The 1885 purchase prize went to a
painting by Mr.. Waugh-"Sunshine
on the Sea-" which, by permission of
the Buck Hill Falls Art Association, is
to be reproduced on the cover of the
"a national publication. The Pur-
chase Prize Exhibition Is an excellent
method through which small COM
munities may in time assemble excel
lent local collections.
At Wellfleet, Cape Cod, an exhibi-
ton Of paintings in oil and gouache
and water colors by Coulton Waugh
opened on August IA, to continue
until September 7. This artist comes
of a distinguished family in the art
world, and has had an unusually in
teresting career. His father is Fred
erick J. Waugh, the marine painter,
represented not only in the National
Gallery Of Art, in Washington, but in
almost every large art museum in this
country. His grandfather, Samuel
Bell Waugh, was portrait painter Of
fame in this country and in England.
Samuel Waugh's wife was q miniature
painter, and was selected to paint
Jenny Lind. Frederick Waugh's sister,
Ida, made name for herself as
painter Of tradition. So much for