ART EXHIBITION.
| MR JAMES COOK'S WORK. I SIGNS OF GENIUS APPARENT. It needs courage and a considerable degree of faith in one's ability to launch out with an exhibition of paintings when one is so young an artist as is Mr James Cook, but this faith was fully justified yesterday j afternoon by the remarks of those who ! viewed sixty-seven of his pictures at j the Art Gallery. ; Mr Cook, after a course at the Canj terbury College School of Art, studied ! abroad* for two years as holder of the ! Sawtell Scholarship, and for a third year on his own account. The work on view has been done since then. Quite apart from the pardonable pride which Christchurch connoisseurs feel in the significant success of this promising voung painter there is real merit in Mr Cook's work. He himself is so unassuming—indeed dubious —about it that it is apparent he does not quite realise what potentialities lie latent within him. It is early yet to talk of genius, but his works show traces of something near akin to it. Could he have managed to open his exhibition in one of the great centres of art, it is not unlikely that it would have (attracted more than ordinary attention. iLis work was highly commended by those who saw it yesterday afternoon and justly. The Arts Society bought two pictures straight away and it was not long before the red stamp began to appear en several others, for the public"realised they were getting something which would adorn any home at a very moderate price. Those who go to the Art Gallery during this next week and expect to see a masterly treatment of intricate subjects will 'be disappointed, for Mr Cook has be<;n wise and has chosen the simplest subjects. The success of the paintings lies in the fact that he has executed them in such clean and bold lines and has invested them with such charm. A simple subject is the best if it is well painted. Most of the works are oils of a moderate size, while there are also pencil drawings and water-colours. The pencil drawings are remarkable. The craftsmanship is good, and there is a wealth and correctness of detail which one does not always expect to find in this genre. The "Old Town," Vaison-la-Romaine, one of the most pleasing of them, was ono of the two chosen by the Arts Society. "Ghent" and "Bruges," two scenes from the Low Countries, are as good, and will make a special appeal to those who love a pencil drawing. There are several other pleasing Continental scenes. A different type in black and white is a character study, "Bonne Mamma." The oils of both Continental and New Zealand scenes are interesting. Nowhere has Mr Cook overdone the colour effect. There is nothing flamboyant about them, and one feels that they are just right. "In the Old Beguinage," Ghent, is in the best taste, and this shows, as many of the other Continental scenes do, a pleasing effect of light and shade and delicate nuances of colour. "A Showery Day in Ghent," "Les Angles," and "Avignon and the Rhone" are others that stand out as having something significant about them. It is not hard to pick out the scenes from New Zealand landscape, because the artist has appreciated so well the difference in colour in New Zealand and Continental landscapes. One oil that will excite first attention and then admiration is "Rocks, Kaikoura." It is one of the best of the collection, and has already been sold. Another scene, "Evening, Hapuku," will be readily recognisable as from the Kaikoura country. Another scene of Avignon, this time from the Palace Gardens, has been executed by Mr Cook in water-colour. This was the other one chosen by the Arts Society. Probably the most distinguished water-colour in the collection is "Le Pont d'Avignon." There was a good attendance yesterday afternoon, when the exhibition was opened by the president of the Canterbury Arts Society, Mr Cyrus Williams. It was agreeable to think that this young artist had attained such a degree of perfection, he said, and it was also pleasing to think how he had been aided in his study by the Society for Imperial Culture and Mrs Sawtell. However excellent the coloured works, were, the pencil drawings were equally so. Cheers were given for the young artist.
Permanent link to this item
https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/CHP19290615.2.140
Bibliographic details
Press, Volume LXV, Issue 19646, 15 June 1929, Page 20
Word Count
732ART EXHIBITION. Press, Volume LXV, Issue 19646, 15 June 1929, Page 20
Using This Item
Stuff Ltd is the copyright owner for the Press. You can reproduce in-copyright material from this newspaper for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 3.0 New Zealand licence. This newspaper is not available for commercial use without the consent of Stuff Ltd. For advice on reproduction of out-of-copyright material from this newspaper, please refer to the Copyright guide.
Acknowledgements
This newspaper was digitised in partnership with Christchurch City Libraries.