Evening star., 1943-05-30
The Art World
Gifts for National Portrait Gallery
Bv Leila Mechlin.

Gifts for a Nation
By Leila Mechlin.
OF 73 paintings recently acquired
through gift. by the National Gal
lery of Art, % it is stated, by offlcia
announcement, are intended for {
National Portrait Gallery, provided
that such an institution be estab.
lished within the next 20 years. JUS
what this will mean is evidenced by
the group of works now on exhi.
bition in the National Gallery, Sc.
1ected from the more numerous
recent acquisitions.
It is in portraiture that the early
painters of America excelled ano
just why this should have been, is
hard to understand, for 1t is per-
haps the most difficult branch OF
art, unless, perhaps it was that
portraits were wanted and the
painters sincere and unselfconscious
Certainly they painted. and as well
as they could. what they saw, using
their art to further an end-that OF
perpetuating likeness and personal
ity.
Earliest Painter.
The earliest American portrait
painter represented in the collection
given at this time to the National
Gallery of Art, by the A. w. Mellon
Educational and Charitable Trust, is
by Robert Feke, who, it is stated
appeared at Newport, R. II about
1926, when he was 81 years of age
and painted there, as we'll as in
Boston, New York and Philadelphia
until 1748 At that time he went te
Bermuda for his health, and there
died in 1850.
He is said to have taken several
sea trips on one of which he was
captured and taken to Spain. But
his birthplace is given as Oyster Bay
Long Island, and the paintings BY
which he is represented here a,
Bowdoin College. Harvard Univer-
sity, the Redwood Library, Newport
and elsewhere, show him to have
been a competent artist His por-
trait here in the National Gallery is
OF Williamina Moore of Philadelphia
who married Franklin's friend, DR.
Phideas Bond, of that city. 1t is stiff
and in a measure severely proper
but not without dignity and distinc-
ton.
Some Of this stiff propriety is also
to be found in the portrait of Jane
Browne, which was painted by John
Singleton Copley, in Portsmouth
NJ H., in 1856, while he was feeling
his way to proficiency, and under
the influence of his step-father
Peter Pelham, mezzotint engraver
the Smiberts and not improba bly,
also Feke, whose works he must have
seen.
Cobley and Vest.
1t was through the persuasion OF
Benjamin West, that Copley went
to London, in 1774, there to become
one Of the outstanding painters OF
his time. A self-portrait of West
In the National Gallery collection
shows him to be what he most GER
tainly was, kindly. generous-heart.
ed man. To him every young Amer
lean artist of that day was deeply
indebted-for instruction, encour-
agement, introductions.
Copley and West were both borr
the same year-1737-and botf
lived into the following century
Copley to 1915 and West to 1920
Through them a dominant British
note found its way into the art oi
America Of the latter half OF the
18th and first of the 10Th century.
Gilbert Stuart was one of the first
OF the American portrait painter:
Of this period, who although in.
f1uenced by his American colleagues
in London, insisted upon standing
on his own feet and developed 8
style essentially his own. The Ma.
tional Gallery collection is almost
unbelievably rich in Stuarts paint.
ings of which it now includes nc
less than a.
Through these the entire devel.
opment of his art is illustrated by
such outstanding examples as the
portraits of Sir Joshua Reynolds
Luke White, the famous Vaughan
Washington, Dr. William Thorn
ton and Commodore Thomas Mac.
Donough, to mention only a few
OF the many 1t is seldom indeed
that such excellent opportunity can
be found for first hand study of the
work of any one great artist.
Work of Thomas SuNy.
Second only in numerical repre-
sentation is Thomas Sullv. six OF
whose portraits-among them those
of John Quincy Adams and Andrew
Jackson-are included in the re-
cent gift, and presumably reserved
for a national portrait gallery
Sully, whose dates were 1783- 1872
was suave but uneven painter
He is seen at his best in his portrait
Of Maj. Thomas Biddle-an excel
lent work. vital and significant, in
the painting of which he was as
sisted by his son, Thomas Sully, jr
Some of these portraits. now to be
regarded as national possessions
were painted here in Washington
j. r. Lambdin. pupil of Sullys
came to this city in January. 1882
to paint the portrait of Chief Justice
Marshall, by which he is here rep
resented. In his journal he tells OF
calling upon his prospective sitter
and being received with great cour-
tesy and kindness. The request
for sittings, however. was met
rather staggeringly, with the state
ment that his only available time
would be before breakfast. IF,
said the Chief Justice. you car
come here by o'clock in the morn
Ing, I will sit for you until g." To
this Lambdin agreed, and, he added
II was always punctual."
The portrait of Nathaniel Haw-
thorne, by Emmanuel Leutze, which