Evening star., 1940-05-12
Noted Plaque
is Given to
COrcOran
Saint.Gaudens Gift
Accompanied by
Old Tapestries
Bv Leila MechIin.


sessions the Augustus Saint-Gau-
dens portrait in relief Of former
Attorney General Wayne MacVeagh
and his wife, and also nine impor-
tant tapestries of the 18th and 18th
centuries, previously lent by Mrs.
Farrar Smith, who, before her mar
riage, was Margaretta Cameron
MacVeagh.
The double portrait Of Mr.. and
Mrs. MacVeagh was modelled in a
first-floor studio in what for many
years was known as the "Art Stu
dents League Building" at 808 Sew
enteenth street NV. This was In
1902 but the writer well remembers
knocking nnidly at the great sculp-
tors door and being graciously per-
mitted to see the work In process
of execution. For her it was, indeed,
a red-letter day, and the memory
Of Mr.. Saint -Gaudens' gentle man
ner will always remain.
About this same time, Homer
Saint-Gaudens tells us in his
"Reminiscences his father did
several portraits, like this, In which
two sitters are represented facing
each other.
such a task" he says. presents
unusual technical dificulties. as the
conventional profile medallion Is
modelled only to be seen with the
light coming over the shoulder
while this more ambitious attempt
had to be constructed so as to look
we'll in any light. Nevertheless. the
problem fascinated the sculptor. and
he returned to it three times"
These were his double portraits OF
Mrs. Charles Carroll Lee and Miss
Sarah Redwood Lee. Mr.. and Mrs.
Richard Watson Glider. and Will
liam Dean Howells and his daughter.
In the plaque, which has now be-
come a part of the permanent col
lection Of the Corcoran Gallery, Mr..
and Mrs. MacVeagh are seated at
opposite ends of settee, Of straight
back and simple design, Mrs. Mac
Veagh to the right with her pet dog
in her lap, and Mr.. MacVeagh to the
left, holding book In his right
hand. Both have their free arms
on the back of the seat, in charac-
teristic pose. Back of Mr.. MacVeagh
is the trunk of pine tree, the
branches OF which, across the top,
frame in the panel. It is a charm
ing composition. carried out with
consummate skill. To quote again
from Homer Saint -Gaudens. this
time a paragraph taken from the
foreword by him to the catalogue OF
the memorial exhibition held first
In Pittsburgh and later in the Cor
coran:
Among his various portrait COM
missions (done about this time).
that for the MacVeagh family
absorbed him the most. The sculp-
tor had often dwelt upon the strong
magnetic power of the female sex
as contrasted with the domination
of the masculine intellect, and
therefore here delighted in giving
rein to his theories. Yet all por-
traits held his attention, since he
thoroughly enjoyed the peculiarities
of his sitters. attempting habitually
to shift his mental attitude to that
Of the person beside him, whether
It was hyper sensitive woman or a
rugged man.
Merits as Sculptor.
Great as Saint -Gaudens was as a
sculptor of monumental works, he
was still greater, some believe, as a
sculptor working In low relief. The
Adams Memorial in Rock Creek
Cemetery is a world masterpiece,
filled with mystery and profound
significance; but no less spiritual, in
their expressions, are his portraits
In relief of his son, Homer, when
a baby in his high chair, or of
Robert Louis Stevenson on his in
vaid's couch, or of his colleague,
Bastien-Lepage, with palette and
brush in hand, not to mention those
other outstanding medallions of the
Schih children and the plaque Of
Miss Violet Sargent.
It Is these and others-in the
company of which the MacVeagh
plaque belongs-which, when seen
In the Saint -Gauden studio at
Aspect. Cornish, N. H., bewitch
the beholder and send him, or her,
away fascinated and marveling.
SO light is the sculptor's touch. so
sympathetic and understanding,
that there is something ethereal
in the way the images slip in and
out Of the material from which
they are wrought.
This peculiar genius of modelling
In low relief, which was Saint
Gaudens' supremely, is exemplified
in the MacVeagh plaque If one will
carefully examine It, There are
no hard edges, no sense of cutting
away; yet the modelling is as firm
and assured as 1t is subtle. Although
It is cast in bronze. the touch of
the sculptor seems discernible, and
despite the fatness of the surface
and the shallowness of the model
ing, the personalities protrayed are
vital. We commonly speak Of
"atmosphere" in painting, but
here 1t is found Enthusiastically in
work of sculpture from a masters
hand.
The Corcoran Gallery is fortunate
In possessing not only this plaque,
but a portrait bust in marble of
DR.. David j. Hill by Saint Gaudens,
and also a full-size plaster cast of
his famous statue, "The Puritan"
the original of which is In Worces-
ter, Mass
Woven in Belgium.
OF the nine tapestries included
In the gift from Mrs. Smith, five
are of utmost interest and import
ance. These are in q series woven
in the early part Of the 10th century,
in Belgium, presenting sequence
Of religious themes. They repre-
sent "The Protagonist in the Guise
Of the Young Jesus" "The Passing
Of the Old Dispensation and the
Entrance of the New" Christ En-
throned with the Virtues" "The
Death OF Judas Maccabeus" and
Christ Sitting in Judgment" Each
Is feet square and woven with