Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1938-12-11
Bv Leila Mechlin.

Too few people take advantage
Of the very interesting and excel
lent small exhibitions that are held
fortnightly in the Arts Club of
Washington and are with compare
lively few restrictions, open to the
public At present there may be
seen there water colors by S. Peter
Wagner, etchings by Roi Partridge,
and a few works in sculpture by
Fausta Mengarini Corte-a con-
genial trio. Mr.. Wagner's water
colors fill the gallery and make a
brave showing. They are colorful,
strong even to boldness. and very
direct in treatment. Any one with
half an eye can see that he likes
to paint and brings to his painting
enthusiasm as we'll as ability.
Despite the fact that Mr.. Wagner
spends the better part of his win
tiers in ST. Petersburg, Fla, the
pictures he now shows were almost
without exception painted in the
summer in New England-the ma
iority at or near Eastport, Me, where
Nature in sternness matches the
climate.
To the transcription of the scene
in Maine, Mr.. Wagner's style is par
ticularly suitable. and his pictures
of the coast, of fishermens houses
and of coastal life generally are ex-
oeedingly true. capt. Salts House"
with a glimpse of the sea beyond,
Is very skillfully rendered, as are
also AT the Farm" barnyard
scene with two, rather than the
traditional three, little pigs hurry
ing to join their elders at supper,
moon Time and Low Tide" and "A
Shady Lane"-all of which are sub
jectively typical. More out of the
ordinary are Last Nights Snow
and "Hopp Falls" the latter in Con-
necticut-both difficult themes ham
died with great simplicity and vigor.
Occasionally in Mr.. Wagner's work
there creeps in a lyrical feeling re-
necting his own love of quiet beauty
in effect, and recalling similar
strain in the works of his first
teacher, James Henry Moser, who
ranked high as water colorist and
for some years conducted a class
in this medium in the Corcoran
School of Art. 1t is good to see
the yelled beauty of the evening
hour interpreted side by side with
the invigorating clarity of that part
of the day when the sun is high
In the heavens.
Etchings of Rare Quality
By Roi Partridge.
Not often does one have the priv
ilege of seeing one-man exhibit
ton of etchings which uniformly
upholds so high standard as that
of Roi Partridge on the walls of the
reception room, dining room and en-
trance hall at the Arts Club. Part
ridge not only commands his med
tum, but has flair for it which is SO
unusual that it must be reckoned
among the gifts magically bestowed
at birth. His line is firm and assured,
but it can at times be very sensitive;
he uses it with economy, but also with
lavish strength. and invariably to
excellent purpose. Once familiar
with his work there is little chance
of mistaking for it that of another;
it has marked Individuality char
acter all its own. For the most part
he has found his subjects near home
and given himself to the interpreta-
ton of the landscape of California,
but some of his plates bark back
to days in Paris and in Italy, when
he was seeing the Old Worldwide
eyed and GREATNESS, because of it's
beauty, God and man made, and set
ting down so much as he could that
which moved him most deeply.
To this period belong his stunning
etching entitled Dancing Water"
which gives an unusual glimpse of
Notre Dame, but focuses interest in
the ripping waters of the Seine as
1t flows beneath one of the famous
bridges leading from the left bank
to the Cite-in fact almost to the
door OF the cathedral-a great work
which must, in a way, just have
happened,' so completely felicitous
is the result. Less pleasing and sue
cessful is the etching of the facade
OF Notre Dame, entitled Lace From
Paris" which is not lace at all but
crochet, the etcher's needle then
being not sufficiently sensitive to
create or transcribe a cobweb in
thread OF gossamer fineness. On the
other hand one of the most ponu1ar
Of all Mr.. Partridge's etchings. and
deservedly SO, is his lovely Santa
Rosita" in which he has framed an
enchanting landscape with trestle
Of vine.
But after all, Mr.. Partridge is An
etcher of the great West with its
imposing mountains and its pic
.turesque trees. His mountains have
essentially the character of these
which hem in the West Coast, flow
Ing in line, great in bulk, and bare.
or verdure- covered, always friendly,
q proper link between foreground
and sky, creating an impression of
unity. Especially successful are his
renditions of trees, willows, aspens,
jumpers, eucalyptus and others, pic
turesquely grouped as in willow
Land" or in semi solitude as in
"Three Pines"-the latter particu-
larry interesting as printed. from
clean wiped plate.
Two tiny little plates are dispro-
portionately large in interest-one
entitled Winged Victory" showing