Evening star., 1950-07-16

The Phillips Gallery recently
opened large exhibition compris-
ing an admirable selection of ap-
proximately 80 works from its COL
lection of American paintings.
1t compliments the American por-
traits at the National Gallery,
and the American historical
paintings at the Corcoran, for
emphasis is on esthetics in the
Phillips show. At the same time,
1t includes works with historical
interest as well. and has a range
Of about rs years.
Some of the gallery's best
known paintings (in the American
f1eld) are on view again: others
have the unfamiliarity Of newly
acquired works. Because of the
limitations Of wall space, the
Phillips Gallery necessarily keeps
most of its collection in storage,
and many Of the works in the
current sele0tion have been seen
so infrequently that they will not
be remembered by most visitors.
There Is no effort to be strictly
chronological in arrangement; but,
generally speaking, paintings of
the same periods are grouped to-
gether. Choice works by the
United States "old masters" !"
Homer. Eakins and Ryder, are in
gallery A. Here are Eakins' su-
perb portrait Of Miss Van Buren,,
two enchanting small coast scenes
by Ryder. little gem. Moonlight, +"
by Blakelock; one of Inness' large
Italian landscapes, a Whistler
portrait and an interior with
figures by Chase.
Rebels and Innovators.
Artists who were rebels and in
novators early in this century are
represented in gallery B. George
Luks' Blue Devils Marching on
Fifth Avenue" is an outstanding
document of World War I; John
Sloan's night view of the a."
dramatizes. a nearly extinct fea-
ture OF New York City. and
Jerome Myers "Tambourine"
catches the ephemeral joys of East
Side children. Here, too, are George
Bellows and Rockwell Kent, while
elsewhere on the second floor a
typical laughing head of q child
by Henri, a tapestry like land
scape with figures by Prendergast,
and several "jeweled" landscapes
OF the Hudson River by Lawson,
give the period around World War
l strong representation. It is good
to see Glenn Coleman again. in
one Of his haunting portraits of
dlsintegrating old New York,
In galleries D and E are a num-
Der OF other early works, Hassam's
washington Arch in Spring,
$780," recalling one of New York
Clty's best periods; j. Alden Weir's
Visiting Neighbors" and serene
landscapes by Twachtman and w.
l.. Lathrop. Robert Spencer's
Evangelist" is a vivid piece of
Americana. Early and late works
OF Marin, a far-reaching landscape
by Marjorie Phillips. gay circus
scene by Clifford Beal, strong
water colors by Burchfleld and a
self-portrait by Harold Weston
bring us up to the present time
in conservative trends. Louis
Bouche's End of the Worlds
Fair" is an ironic reminder of
1910.
Contemporary Works.
Abstractions by Dove, Tomlin,
Crawford, O'Keeffe, Sheeler and I.
Hlce Pereira give gallery c a radi-
cally contemporary look, which,
continues down the stairway and
IN the print rooms, interspersed
however, with such objective and
realistic works as Hopper's GAP.
r S~~SAA1A6 q SAGy, 1tAl1CI , DGduCl-
ful s"Charleston" and Karfiol's
In Our Shack" with its breezy
view OF the sea. Artists connected
with the Phillips Gallery and
other Washington and Baltimore
artists who frequently exhibit here
are represented.
This exhibition will remain all
summer, as will a memorial dis
play Of abstractions by Augustus
Vincent Tack, whose nine large
paintings fill the main gallery on
the second floor. These have been
seen for longer periods at the
Phillips Gallery, but make a par
ticularly handsome appearance as
now arranged. The visitor gets a
feeling of soaring mountain peaks.
lakes. rivers and limitless skies.
x X X y
Whyte July Group