Evening star., 1937-07-24

pdHtllslS. laguafS, deer. elephants
horses, bulls. dogs. rabbits and A tor
toise.
For the most part they represent
struggle, the prevlng of one wild craa-
ture upon another. fierce and terrible,
but superbly composed and profoundly
convincing. The bloody scenes from
Wild life the sculptor could never have
witnessed. but so vivid was his con-
ception that we accept it without oues-
ton as TO truth" Here. as we'll
known critic has remarked. is evidence
OF Baryc's power of Imagination.
Primarily he knew his subjects
socondarlly he was both artist and
craftsman, He could visualize an
animal in any possible position he
knew its anatomy, and he utilized his
knowledge with Consummate art. It
is not merely the truth of Barye's
works which gives them prominence
but manner of their Interpretation. 1t
is the way they are done, the passion
behind the knowledge. which gives
them immortality. And whence came
this power and inspiration? Bonnat,
the famous French portrait painter,
after praiSing Baryes great technical
knowledge, once said: But what I
don't know. and would know, is what
took place in his soul From what
source did he draw his instinct, divina-
tiOn-Of eternal truth?" That is the
conundrum which has never as yet
been answered
his production. Barye had, as
Chandler Post has pointed out. double
historical Importance which is hard to
over estimate: He first made animal
life a principal subject for sculpture,
and he was one of the first to treat his
subjects with impressionistic technique,
gaining authority for it by the achieve
ment of his genius" At glance. these
sculptures suggest reality, but examine
them closely and one will see that
much has been eliminated in order to
heighten effect. In them you find the
essence of art
And how lovingly they seem to have
been wrought and with what infinite
pains! AS warrant of merit. or at
least. tender of good intention, each
piece is signed, from the tiniest paper
weight to the large candelabrum, from
the jolly upright bear to the impressive
groups found above stairs.
The roguish little bear in this COL
lection has story all of its own. 1t
was stolen from the Corcoran Gallery
once upon a time, and for years there
was no trace of it. Then one day
box came by express addressed to
the director and. being opened. out
came the little bear none the worse
for its long absence. Where it had
been no one knows. But it is now
kept in a glass case, lest again a
Wanderlust seize it.
But what of those american god
children" of Barye's? Foremost among
them in point of time and acknowl-
edged Indebtedness is the late Edward
kemeys, who has often been called
the American Barge" Kemeys. like
Barge, was an animal lover, but his
character was less stern, and a GER
tain Winsomeness in himself found
its way into his sculpture He pre-
terred to study his subjects at large
in their native haunts. and in his
works their savagery found seldom
expression. His are the Still Hunt"
IN Central Park, N. Y: Panther and
Cubs Metropolitan Museum New
York; Lions" in front of the Art
Institute, Chicago. and Coyote" in
the Corcoran Gallery of Art.
OF later date we have Roth and
Harvey and Proctor, to the last of
whom we are indebted for the
Jaguars on the Piney Branch Bridge
and the buffalo on the @ Street
Bridge to Georgetown Younger still
and almost exclusively "animalers."
are Albert Laessle of Philadelphia and
Anna Hyatt Huntington of New York
both of whom have made large con-
trlbutions in this field-Laessle in
sculpture Of type essentially new
and yet following classical convention,
Mrs. Huntington through creations as
studied as were those of the great
French master and as artistic in ex-
preston, but never cruel.
With the exception Of Kemeys these
"god-chIldren" are bound to their
god-parent, not as pupil to master,
but rather through fraternal bonds.
slneleness Of vision, oneness of ideal.
Barye was Of France in the stirring
days during and preceding the second
empire, when, in art, classic influences
were waning and new forces gathering
strength; an age of color and adven-
ture. One writer likens Barye to
Balzac, and undoubtedly both re-
fiected the feeling and thought of
their time. They were both roman
tlclsts in the truest sense.
RARYES work strongly Influenced
sculptors Of his own day IN France,
among them, most notable Fremiet
and Cam. The former rivaled Barye
IN the naturalnesS Of his work, but
not IN It's saVagery. More often than
Barge he introduced in his groups.
man, and when he represented strup-
gle 1t was Of man for supremacy. But
fremet attained his greatest dis
JUNCTION mot as an animalier" but
through "a series Of superb equestrian
statues from the middle ages and
renaissance of which Jeanne dare
vas one, Cain followed Barye more
closely IN style and character. profit
ing by the vogue he had created. but
never equallng him in strength or
dramatic content
Ihefe are some rare pieces in the
walters collectlon--Such As the Qroups
produced for the dining table of the
Duke Of Orleans-which are not
oupIlcated in this Collection-put in
the long run, there is little to choose
among them In both instances the
representation is remarkably salts
factory and complete.
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