Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1944-11-26

The National Gallery of Art has
assembled and Is showing at this
time an exhibition of French prints
drawings and books of the 18th CEN
fury, which cannot fail to delight
both connoisseurs and the general
public, who look to art for sheer
beauty in expression as we'll as
technical proficiency. These most
rare and exquisite examples of an
art essentially fine occupy the gal
lery of transient exhibitions, whefe-
In, during the past year and more,
a series of collections of paintings
and drawings pertaining to war &C
tivities has been displayed.
The contrast is striking-from the
grimness of mortal combat to the
gayety of life, keyed to high pitch
unmindful of the future. Incon-
gruous as this may seem. our in
debtedness to this era of mirth and
folly is artistically considerable and
not to be overlooked. From it we
have derived, as Malcolm Salaman
has pointed out in his monumental
work on French Color Prints of
the 18th Century," legacy of
dainty art and delicate craft which
carries with it the fragrance of old
time graces of mind and manners
UNNECESSARILY charming.
As the stream of art moved across
Europe from the East it took on vari-
GUS forms as of the time and the
thought of those countries through
which it passed and tarried in pass
ing. In Italy it was religious and
monumental; in the Low Countries
1t became more personal, while in
France it concerned itself with
beauty in all of its manifestations
touching life, no matter how trivial
From first to last, however, standard
was upheld; whatever was produced
evidenced tastes as well as skill and
It is this quality, together with evil
dence of consummate artistic craft,
that gives to the current exhibit
ton here in our National Gallery
distinction and authenticity-im-
portance.
Color Prints
French color prints of the 18th
century are for the most part i'm
pressions from engraved plates
line or stipple engravings, mezzo-
tints, aquatints and, in some few
instances, etchings. The color is
applied before rather than after
printing and the three-color process
employed. This process was first
used by printmaker of Frankfort,
Jacob Christoph LIE Bon, who trav-
eled extensively and spread the
knowledge of its adaptabaity. Three
identical plates are engraved. each
for the printing of a single color
blue, red and yellow, superimposed
one upon the other. In some in
stances there is fourth for black
All depends upon the skill with
which this coloring and printing are
done, and because of the attendant
difficulties, as a rule, only very few
impressions were made, which ac-
counts to an extrent for present
scarcity and value.
LIE Bon's best-known work was a
portrait of Louis XIV and it was
in the field of portraiture that the
color print first won distinction. A
typical example in the collection
now on view is portrait OF
Marie Antoinette engraved by Louis
Jacques Cathelin, in TITS, after a
painting by Fredou, which is full
of youthful charm Following, to an
extent, the style employed so eff
fectively by Nanteuil in the pre-
ceding century, this work is espe-
cially typical of the era it repre-
sents-an era of art in fashion
probably never excelled.
Outstanding Works
The breadth of effect obtainable
through the adaptation of the three
color process to engraving is fully
demonstrated by comparison of the
portrait of Marie Antoinette with
that of "A Young Girl With
Rose" engraved by Demarteau after
Boucher, which has essentially the
appearance of drawing in colored
crayons, an effect obtained by skill