Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1963-07-14

Figure in Mahogany
Museum Of Modern
two figures and their masks
In the muted colors Of the
atmosphere.
Similar growth from
maturity to fuller maturity
can be seen in Jack Levine,
Milton Avery and Rufino
Tamayo, among others. The
early Levine, "City Lights"
is an expressionistic and
even symbolic painting Of
three men in a glowering
cityscape out Of which shines
a skull. The recent work, a
full-length portrait Of the
artists young daughter in
costume, is both an i'm
mensly sympathetic portrait
of a girl and a brilliant
demonstration Of the art of
painting, from the authentic
old master techniques in the
head to the bravura brush
work of the black and silver
costume.
Tamay0, 1850
The WPA Tamayo, wait
ing Woman" gets its con-
siderable poignancy from the
subject as well as from the
painting Of it: an undressed
woman, seen from the back,
leans over a wall against the
vast desert and the sky. His
melon Slices" 1850, uses O
completely neutral subject
yet gets comparable effects
of aesthetic-visual involve
ment from the sheer delicacy
and subtlety Of the painting.
The early Avery, Brook
Bathers," is a classical sub
ject and with this painter has
been given a distinctively
American and highly personal
turn. These are not bathers
in the sense Of the French
subject. They are three
women in a dim green world
Of the American woodland.
The later picture, water
fall" Is a complete realization
Of Avery's personal percep-
tons Of color planes In
nature, at once q fine alb
stract composition and a
convincing capture Of the
subject.
This kind Of growth is also
seen in the sculpture, espe-
cially that Of David Smith
and Jose De Rivera.
Growth of totally different
kind is also evident in the
show in works by artists who
did not so much develop and
refine what they already had
as discover something new
and different.
The early works Of Mark
Rothko, Adolph Gotlieb and
Jack Tworkov, for example.
are on the whole undistin-
guished but competent pieces
Of work within conventions
thoroughly established by
other people. Some artists are
capable Of top-flight work
within the conventions Of
others. These we're not. Their
work, and that Of Jackson
Pollock and Philip Custom,
is high-class run-of- the-mill.
The unique contribution Of
these painters was not evident
until each opened his own
mill, invented his own man
ner. That, too. was made
possible by Government sup
port of art in the sos.
Sculpture
In sculpture there is an
interesting RETREAT from the
avant-garde TO high quality
in the works Of Theodore
Roszak. Pierced Circle" in
l94l was relating hard-edged
white and yellow circles and
squares to one another as II
1t were a new entry in last
months Journalist" show at
the Modern Gallery.
The only false step In the
whole show is the pair Of
works by Burgoyne Diller.
Taken together they show
an American initiating Moil-
drian rs years ago and still
initiating Mondrian today.
Only with q fairly extensive
knowledge Of what the artist
has been doing in the mean
time Is 1t possible to grasp
the progress made.
The exhibition, selected by
Dorothy c. Miller Of the Mu-
scum Of Modern Art, is a
lovely thing in itself and a
convincing testimony Of the
worth Of this country's one
substantial venture in sup
port Of the arts. In WASH
ington today. with It's mix
ture Of frivolous and serious
discussions Of the relations
between art and govern