AT THE GALLERY

Evening Post, Volume CXVI, Issue 83, 5 October 1933, Page 5

AT THE GALLERY

ANNUAL EXHIBITION

SOME OF THE PICTURES

MUCH OF INTEREST

The annual exhibition of the New Zealand Academy of Tine Arts, which is open to the public from today, is likely to attract a large number of visitors. Careful study of the paintings shown will be rewarded, for there is much on the walls that is of decided interest. Attention is.always attracted to the portraits, and there are several this year which are1 likely to draw favourable comment. That ,of Sir Arthur Dudley Dobson (No., §4), by A. Elizabeth Kelly, is well done, and Phyllis Lipscoinbe has achieved'a striking success with that of'Mr.-W. B. Matheson (No. 100). In his portrait of Prof. G. W. yon Zedlitz (No. 131), Christopher-Per-kins has riot painted a flattering likeness, although there is no denying the quality of the technique. F. B. Alexander's self-portrait (No. 89) is very good, and another excellent portrait is that of Mr.' George Harper (No. 93) by Archibald F.'Nicoll. Julia B. Lynch has painted Miss Nelle Scanlan (No. 5) and Miss C. Mcßrea'rty (No. 84). In the former a green coat over a blue dress makes a colourful contrast, whilst in the latter the prevailing colour is a light green. Kussell Clark has achieved success in "The Silver Bridge Coat" (No. 13). "Italian Fishermen" (No. 119), by E. J. D. Turner, is powerfully painted, and the same artist is also to tho fore with "Eve and Adam's Permain" (No. 107), a study of a girl with a.bag of apples, and with "Elizabeth" (No. 3), a small and cheerful child study. "Patricia" (No. 105), by Nancy F. Adkin, is a. very distinctive piece of painting. Christopher Perkins and H. Linley Bichardson have turned their attention to the Maori as a picturesque subject for their brush. The former in "Euth Winiata" (No. 80) has obviously taken great pains and an outstanding bit of painting has been tho result. It is an infinitely more finished production than its larger companion, "Girl Seated in Meeting-house" (N0.'79). An extraordinary amount: of detail and colour has been worked into "An Old Maori Woman" (No. 98), by H. Linley Bichardson. The old and wrinkled and muchtattooed wahine is very faithfully drawn and painted in a manner thoroughly, characteristic 'of the artist's work. Still-life subjects are not as numerous as they, often are in .these exhibitions. Amongst those that merit special mention is a distinctly modern conception by John Weeks, "Fruit and Flowers" (No.-26). Chrysanthemums in a dark, crimson bowl form the subject of. No. 123, by Marjoric Naylor, and in this some excellent work is shown. A clever, lighting effect is achieved by B. E. Chappie in "Lamplight" (No. • 127). "Marguerites" (No. 43), by Salome Coombs, is well painted. I). K. Bichmond has some excellent still-life work in the watercolour section upstairs. Marion E. Tylee and E. Ppust have each painted good interior scenes. ". MANY GOOD LANDSCAPES. , In the main gallery, whero the oil paintings are hung, will bo found many decidedly pleasing landscapes. Some of the most colourful arc thoso .from the brush of Marcus, King. In No. 115, "Wellington Harbour," with his free play of colour, he has invested the Capital City with a poster-like radiance which seems-almost too good to be true. It is a fine picture, nevertheless. One of the most effective of his several other landscapes is " Hillside Thicket (No. 33), in which the sunlight is very cleverly managed. In "Tho Paddlers" (No. 102) he' breaks new ground with decided effect. This is a bird's-eye view of a children's paddling-pool. Tho picture breathes ■warm and bright colour^ and every one of the many childish figures in the composition is very much alive. Another expert in capturing sunlight is Sydney Higgs, and his several landscapes in oils will find many admirers. The country round Tauranga has provided him with several of his subjects. Particularly pleasing are Nos. 101, 10S, and 109. "TypicaL coastal'pictures by Nugent Welch always attract attention. .Of the several in. the present exhibition, "Sea Breeze" (N0..29) is likely, to be one of the most admired. A very fine study is "The Skies' Fleecy-Towers" (No. 21), a green paddock foreground merging into a wide expanse, of sky. "Silhouettes, Palliser Bay" (No. 121) is a very restful composition by the same artist. . . ■ ■ . The subtle employment of greens and browns by Archibald F. NicoH finds full expression in several landscapes by this artist; whose work is as satisfying as any in the exhibition. Canterbury provides Mm with a variety of subjects, particularly good being, "Autumn, Canterbury" (No. 94) and "The Akaroa Coach. Kpad" (No. 86). In "Wellington Harbour" (No. 74) W. S. Wauehop, with freo use of colour, has obtained a very bright and entirely pleasing effect, the blue waters and sunny coastline of the harbour being viewed from between trees at a high elevation above Day's Bay. ; . . Mention must be made, too, of the colourful effects obtained by C. Hay Campbell, notably in "Old Farmhouse, Dawlish, Devon" (No. 75), and of the work of Cedric Savage. The latter exploits the tropics in "Kiviti" (No. 91), and'his "Sunbathers" (No. 124) is another excellent piece of work. Distinctive landscapes with a predominance of sunny brown tints are contributed :by Cecil F. Kelly and A. Elizabeth Kelly, both of whom have found Akaroa and> Lyttelton Harbour a happy hunting ground for picturesque scenery. Maurice Kerr contributes "Landscape" (No. 118),. which is very restUNew Zealand's Icold and clear Alpine scenery appeals, to W. Basil Honour, Duncan Darrock, Bata Lovell-Snntn, and C.-S. Lovell-Smith, each of. whom exhibits several pictures. The last-named has the distinction of showing the largest landscape in the exhibition, "Sunrise, Craigieburn," which is boldly conceived and painted. Work by G. E. Lewens, Mary M. White, C. T. Langcsen, Minnie F. White, W. A. Dawson, G. Eise, and lone Todd, to mention on,y a few of those who might be mentioned, should not be overlooked.' Owing to. size and prominence, apart from merit, "Port Isaac, Cornwall" (No. 51) and " Benaissance, Napier (No. 64) stand out pre-eminently. The former is by Jenny Campbell and the latter by Roland Hipkins, and both pictures reveal remarkable draughtsmanship. The latter is a colourful representation of the birth of a new Napier. Another large painting on the same end wall is Lois White's ."Persephone's Beturn to Demeter" (No. 57), a formal conception of a classical subject. VARIETY IN. WATEK COLOURS. The great majority of the pictures in the upstairs gallery are water colours, although a few oils have strayed thither. These water colours show a very marked diversity of treatment, ranging from almost colourless washes to sketches fairly pulsating with colour, one or two of which appear to be positively aggressive. Landscapes predominate ovor still-lifo subjects and are certainly the more interesting on the whole. Space will not permit d*»

tails of the 200 pictures in the upstairs gallery, but the discriminating visitor will pause to. analyse work by Nugent '"Welch, Gwen. Nelson, Erie N. Gully, Archibald 1\ .Nicoll, Russell Clarke, Ccdric Savage, T. A. McCormack, Nelson Isaac, Ella Spicer, Lucrctia Johnson, A. S. Paterson, E. Baird Friborg, G. Gould Macquarrie, R. J. Waghorn, D. K. Richmond, tho late E. Murray Fuller, Ann P. Hewitt, John L. Moore, Esmond .Atkinson, J. L. Palethorpe, H. Linley Richardson, Olivia Spencer Bower, M. O. Stoddart, D. Vallance Young, D. H. Jones, Betty Rhind, and E. S. Hope, to mention only some. Aquatints, etchings, wood-cuts, and similar work occupy the screens, and of this work there is much more than usual. Maud Sherwood's prints and work by F. C. Lipscombo is of special interest, but there is much else too which will repay close scrutiny. Tho architectural section has the customary patronage; jewellery and enamel work is exhibited by several artists in this line, and some splendid examples of wood carving and sculpture and of modelling.arc. also shown.