Evening star., 1943-12-19
Bv Leila MechHn.

Much interest attaches to the
exhibition of paintings by three
well-knoWn American artists which
opened last Monday with a private
view in Explorers Hall, the Ma
tional Geographic Society, and will
continue to the end of the month
Especially notable, as particularly
timely, are the groups by Thornton
Oakley and William F. Draper, the
former picturing American wartime
transportation and showing it vital
to victory, the latter setting forth
views of the Aleutians, the conquest
of which was a long step in the
same direction, a page in our history
never to be forgotten.
Mr. Oakley's Is paintings are in
water color. exceptionally large and
colorful and strong. marking. in
deed, heretofore unrealized poten-
tialities of this medium. BY no
means, however, are they limitations
of works in oil colors, the treatment
being essentially that to which the
medium is best adapted and pc
culiarly its own. The color is laid
on in bold. broad strokes: the colors
are pure and very correctly related
one to another The subjects are in
some instances inherently homely
but the theme is so forcefully pre-
sented that the average observer is
literally swept off his feet.
Above and beyond all these paint
iflgs give to the beholder a sense
of motion-of work in progress
never static, nor as momentarily
frozen. And, strangely enough, they
thus take on an almost overWhelm-
ing beauty all their own, a beauty
not entirely objective. In showing
gasoline being loaded from great,
camouflaged towers to tank cars,
one derives a sense of titanic
achievement. This is the tale from
every angle, yet each so different
1t is a new world-in some instances
of man-made monsters, but not di-
vorced from God-made beauty.
Enormous amount of detail is pre-
sented in a picture of high-speed
locomotive being fed power at a
transformer station. but the breadth
of handling has not been sacrificed
thereby-the impression is COM
pletely unified.
Very engaging are the two paint
ings which illustrate highway trans
portation by truck and automobiles
on and on and on ceaselessly over
winding roads and high bridges in a
perpetual parade.
The super chief of the Santa Fe
flashes across the desert (from which
a great earth-colored ruddy mesa
rises,, as though shot like an arrow
from a gigantic bow, while over the
Great Divide fits. more slowly,
another train submerged by the
Western forest, but climbing, climb
ing, with its huge load Of essential
war requirements.
Finally a glimpse is given Of the
giants of the forests. now prone,
being trucked from forest to factory
to be used in the building of air.
planes, barracks, etc.
Here, indeed, is a world in action.
we'll organized and directed and as
seen by one of our leading artists
To become fully informed, Mr.
Oakley travelled across and up and
down our country, making notes,
memoriZing impressions. The water
colors were painted in his studio at
Villa Nova, Pa Complete mastery
of medium and enthusiasm for his
work made this possible.
PAINTINGS in AIentians
The paintings done in the Aleu-
tians by William F. Draper, lieu
tenant, U. S. N. r, combat
artist" at the front, are different
but no less notable. They are oils,
painted on the spot, Of these
islands, of which heretofore we have
known so little. Described as islands
made by God, but by Him forgotten,
they might seem to afford the
painter little opportunity for artistic
Interpretation; but this is not so. It.
Draper has seen in this supposedly
cruel and dreary country beauty
which is beyond description in words
His paintings are lovely in effects of
light and color his landscapes are
atmospheric, his subjects are we'll
chosen. The beauty which is of
another world is discernible even in
this outpost of civilization - the
frozen North.
Especially lovely and memorable
Is his "Aleutian Morning" the light
of the sun breaking through the
clouds, the earth snow covered. Also
1t should be noted that the figures
introduced in these paintings seem