Evening star., 1938-05-08

| into the front seat of an automobile
beside a diminutive driver.
It is the New Mexican subjects
which Mrs. Adams treats most sum-
marily, and in which the resemblance
TO the work of Marin is most marked.
These are literally artists notes done
in pure color-and very pleasing color,
| often of jeWel-like quality-but in
! eXplicable as of time and place. The
! medium is apparently handled very
wet. or applied to paper oversoaked.
| for the outlines are not only blurred
but fuzzy and the fiat areas are dead.
But to produce works of this sort is,
it should be remembered, not so easy
| as it looks. and in this particular
genre Mrs. Adams succeeds exception
ally we'll. Certain gifted and SYM
pathetic persons may be able to read
such transcripts with ease and utmost
pleasure, but to the average observer
it is not unlikely the question will
arise-why, if one brings back so little,
should one travel so far in its pursuit?
Art Work of Negro Children on
ETn2OI1On IN Cn1tQTen
Art Gallery.
THE Children's Federal Art Gallery,
Ninth street and independence
avenue. opened yesterday afternoon
special exhibition of painting and
clay modelling by Negro children. The
work comes from Florida, Maryland,
Virginia, New York and the District
of Columbia, and for the most part
has been done in w. P. A. Federal
Art Project classes in the public
schools.
This exhibition. which will continue
until May 25, and be open to the
public every afternoon, is sponsored
by the assistant superintendent Of
District of Columbia schools, Garnet
Wilkinson; the president of Howard
University. Mordecai Johnson: the
dean of the department of fine arts,
Howard University. James v. Herring,
and members of the art staff.
Lithogrdph By Wengenroth
! Issued By American College
Society OF Print Collectors.
THE American College Society Of
Print Collectors has just issued
to its members a lithograph by Stow
Wengenroth, entitled Wharf at Well
fleet" its sixteenth publication. This
is of interest because of the merit Of
the work and also on account of the
recent appointment of the photographer
on the Purchasing Committee of the
Library of Congress under the Pennell
bequest
Lithography has, partly through
Pennell's influence and advocacy, come
back into favor as a medium of artistic
expression in recent years and much
good work has been done in this field
by contemporary printmakers, At the
top of the list in this country stand
today Wengenroth and Barker, both
of whom have essentially advanced the
art through their individual UNDER
standing of its potentialities as we'll as
limitations
Wengenroth was born in Brooklyn
in July, 1906. He went first to the
Friends School in Brooklyn. then to
the Art Students League. New York.
and successfully studied under such
excellent teachers as Wayman Adams.
John Carlson and George Pearce En-
mis-. His first lithograph was made in
l931-"Fish Wharf, Eastport"-issued
in an edition of II prints. He is now
represented in the leading print COL
lections. and, couple of months ago.
was elected to membership in the Ma
tional Academy of Design.
That Wengenroth has mastered
his medium none can doubt. This is
testified not only by his work, but in
a book that he has written on the
subject of lithography. The care that
he gives to each subject that he
transcribed is evidenced in the fol-
lowing quotation with reference to his
methods: Il make very careful stu
dies from nature, working on a large
scale. painStakingly noting all the
important details with well-sharp-
ened pencil AS 1 work arrange and
rearrange the composition so as to
make it harmonic with what I want
to say in the completed lithograph.
Then go over the pencil sketch with
an almost dry brush charged with
black water color In this way can
make a preliminary study which
comes closest to being what want
the finished lithograph to be-"
The charm of Wengenroths 1.-the
graphs is largely derived from his
handling of light and shade. the ef-
feet he produces of clearness and vi
sion and the beauty of his textures.
With these magic qualities even very
homely subjects will be found to have
an unbelievable loveliness. All of
which is demonstrated in Wharf at
Wellfeet.
Senefelder Club of London
Exhibits at Arts Club.
THE subject Of lithography is espe-
cially pertinent at this time as
the Arts Club Of Washington has
opened this week (but too late for
review an exhibition of prints by
members of the Senefelder Club Of
London which includes in its men,
bership the leading British lithog-
raphers.
Joseph Pennell tells Interestingly
Of the organization of this club In
"Lithography and Lithographers," of
which he and Mrs. Pennell were Joint
authors. It was Whistler's exhibition
at the Fine Arts Society in London
Continued on Page F-8)
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