N.Z. ACADEMY

Dominion, Volume 27, Issue 9, 5 October 1933, Page 11

N.Z. ACADEMY

Notos on the Pictures

OUTSTANDING EXHIBITS

(By

A.R.T.)

The annual exhibition of the New Zealand Academy of Fine Arts, which was opened by his Excellency the Governor-General last evening, provides abundant evidence that New Zealand talent flourishes courageously and promisingly, and on lhe whole it is a very excellent show.

A highlight of considerable brightness in the present exhibition is lhe Portrait of a Man” on the screens. How few people armed with a full box of coloured crayons could present so icmarkable a drawing, let alone a wonderful likeness. Most efforts, I a j n sure, would be unworthy of so grand a title. H. Linley Richardson may be congratulated upon this flash of brilliance. . . The outstanding portrait in oilsjbis year is undoubtedly that by Mrs. Kelly of Sir Arthur Dudley Dobson. So gracefully painted a portrait as this can only lead the onlooker to believe that here is a person of wisdom and experience faithfully recorded. One can also marvel at the skill and cleverness of painting which produces a thought in the mind of the critic that here is a man incapable of any ill thought concerning his fellow beings. Another portrait upon the same wall displays unusual skill in painring and presents a “Portrait of a Girl” by I. M. Copeland. Infinite charm is here presented, and importance may be attached to an achievement, which sorts out the qualities of beauty as removed from mere prettiness. Self-portrait in Oils. A self-portrait in oils on the opposite wall by F. R. Alexander displays skill and sound knowledge in equal proportions, to which people of real discernment will give due praise. Archibald F. Nicol, from whom one expects accomplished essays in paint, equally pleases with a satisfying P or " trait of George Harper, Esq., the hand of the master being much in evidence if care be taken critically to analyse the brush strokes. There is a definite and. self-imposed demand placed upon the artist who arranges inanimate objects in juxtaposition and earnestly endeavours to give them life through the medium of paint. How often does a dreadful "stillness” creep into pictures labelled under this austere heading. John. Weeks illuminates the main gallery this year with a jumble of objects admirably painted. How few people could make lively pattern and lovely harmony out of a crumpled paper, a few apples, and other oddments. The artist in this case succeeds admirably. Chrysanthemums In a window, the light streaming upon them, prove that Jenny Campbell, too, is capable of surmounting a self-imposed difficulty with consummate case. Other highlights in the exhibition are a happily-curtained and carpeted Jiving room by Marion E. Tylee, exquisitely painted, and D. K. Richmond’s glorious little study of a single rose, whose name is “Isohel.”

Other Works of Importance.

Somewhat reflecting the Italian primitive. a conventional composition of importance is Lois White’s spacious canvas, which enlarges upon a classic theme. There are here to be found some lovely passages of painting which In no way isolate themselves from the general scheme of aji ecstatic return. Upon the same south wall will be found two pictures of equal importance. Jenny Campbell has painted a Cornish village admirably—a lovely jumble of houses, any one of which most New Zealanders would be happy to occupy for a week-end at least. In contrast to this scene of quietness and tranquillity, Rowland Hipkins presents on an important canvas a tragic theme — the remnants of a shaken town In the immediate foreground, and the new city of Napier emerging in pristine freshness beyond, a poignant note in the composition being an aged tree fern stump, from which springs a stately set of pale green fronds. A landscape of importance will be found in the centre of the north wall, its elements being simple to a degree. An icy cold stream in shadow, and interesting geological formation, is caught here and there by early morning sunlight, the whole being bathed in reflected light from a luminous sky. Tlie artist is C. S. Lovell Smith. Of great interest, too, is Christopher Perkins’s unconventional portrait of a learned and much-beloved professor, which aims high and becomes upon acquaintance less satisfying, than the drawings of brilliance which the same artist exhibits. Vigorous wood sculpture by F. O. Llpscotnbe Is equally worthy of an initial notice because of the sound craftsmanship which it displays.

(To be Continued.)