FINE ARTS

Evening Post, Volume CXVIII, Issue 78, 29 September 1934, Page 7

FINE ARTS

EXHIBITION OPENED

LORD BLEDISLOE'S ADDRESS

STANDARD OF PICTURES

The annual exhibition of tho Now Zealand Academy of Fine Arts was fornially opened last evening by his Excellency the Governor-General (Lord Blodisloo) in the presence of ;i large attendance of citizens. His Excellency was accompanied by Lady Blodisloe. Mr. D. A. Ewen, president, of the academy, said that once again they were honoured by the presence of their Excellencies, This further evidence 01 their sympathy with the aims of the society was highly appreciated. It was with very great regret that members had learned of tho approaching departure of their Excellencies from New Zealand. "We all realise," said Mr. Ewen, "that we have had most invaluable assistance from your Excellency during your residence among us, and when you leave us the cause of art, in this Dominion will have lost one of its most ablo and staunch supporters, and one who has ever been ready to help those who are its devotees, and who are endeavouring in a world all too commercialised and materialistic to sustain and to foster the ennobling and refining influences of the more aesthetic aspects of life. We rejoice, however, that tangible evidence of your Excel loney's interest will ever remain upon the foundation-stone of the National Art Gallery and Dominion Museum. May I express the hope that you and her Excellency may one day revisit us and be able to v^iew the completed edifice." Mr. Ewcn then drew attention to the general excellence of tho water colours, the two portraits by Mr. Sydney L. Thompson (of himself and his wife), the portraits by Mr. Archibald F. Nicoll, of Christchurch, of Professors T. H. Easterfield, J. Eankine Brown, and Hugh Mackenzie (loaned by the Victoria College Council), two portraits of Maoris by Mr. H. Linley Bichardson, and ono of Mr. J. H. E. Schroder, by Mrs. A. Elizabeth Kelly, of Christchurch. His Excellency the Governor-General (Lord Bledisloe) said: "I am thankful in undertaking, at your request, Mr. President, the task of again opening your • exhibition. I am thankful that there is not an immediate prospect of opening another art exhibition in the course of the next fortnight, because I am bound to say that my knowledge of art being very limited, although my enthusiasm is unbounded, I should find it exceedingly difficult to continue to propound any views upon art, either in this country or elsewhere, on art worthy of your serious consideration, and still less of your assimilation. "It is with profound regret that I entertain the consciousness this evening that this is probably the last occasion upon which I shall have the opportunity of assisting in the opening of your periodical art exhibition. I think, if I may say so, that your president was a little bit too modest in his assessment of this exhibition. Although I have only personally had the opportunity of cursorily glancing at it, I am bound to say that it appears to reach a distinctly higher all-round standard than any exhibition that I have had the pleasure of inspecting during the time of our sojourn amongst you. '"AVhatever may be said with regard to the modernist pictures which I think are very ingeniously grouped together in one place, and their intensive contemplation by those who appreciate that form of art, there are to be found upon the walls of this building some rather striking portraits. I can only wish that the standard of landscape portrayal by your more active scenic artists, bearing in mind what magnificent and varied scenery you possess in New Zealand, could rise to greater heights than it appears, judging by your local exhibitions, you have hitherto reached. And I cannot help thinking that a distinctive school of art will arise—possibly stimulated by the magnificent art gallery which is being constructed so rapidly in our midst in this city—that, apart from Maori portraiture, the specialist line which New Zealand artists will follow in the days of the future, will be that of accurate portrayal ot the atmosphere which surrounds and is characteristic of your unrivalled and varied scenery. PORTRAIT PAINTINGS. "You have'here, as your president has indicated, some rather remarkable portraits, and if anyone were to doubt whether New Zealand is producing today really capable and prospectively eminent portrait painters, I think those doubts will be removed when you come to look at some of Mr. Archibald Nichol's work as illustrated by these three eminent professors who aro no doubt socially familiar to us, and some portraits of Maoris; and including, amongst others, the pictures of Mr. Sydney Thompson, pictures of himself and his wife, and the picture of William Trethewey by Elizabeth Wallwork. At any rate, it must bo quite obvious that you have portrait painters of some distinct calibre amongst you, not all coming from the capital city of Wellington, but perhaps more largely associated with your enterprising rival Christchurch. At any rate, I for my part feel in a hopeful mood tonight as I glance hastily round these walls, and I feel pretty confident of the new enthusiasm which is undoubtedly developing in this country in relation to art, in its various manifestations, that New Zealand is going to hold her owu in maintaining a recognised place amongst the artistic territories of the world in days to come. "During the last year several important developments have occurred which must bring satisfaction to the minds of many of you who are working so zealously to promote art in your environment. One of these, and perhaps the chief, is the fact that you are really at last going to have a national art gallery that is worthy of New Zealand and of its capital city; and my only hopo and prayer in relation to that is that you will do all in your power to influence those who administer that gallery to restrain sternly the temptation to allow third and fourth-rate specimens of art to enter its walls. EMPIRE LOAN COLLECTION. "Another interesting and epochmarking event has been the holding of the Empire art loan collection exhibition at four different centres in tho Dominion on its way to Australia. It was right that that collection should visit New Zealand first; and it was, of course, an enterprising New Zealander, a partner of your own, sir, who initiated the idea of such a peripatetic collection of modern English pictures, with a view to the overseas Dominions getting some of the advantages that we in the Old Country enjoy from the plethora of artistic riches which surround us in a city like London, and, indeed, in many cities, such as Manchester. I hope and believe that with the amount of enthusiasm that has been displayed with regard to this interesting collection, and I hope that a similar enthusiasm will be displayed towards it on the other side of the Tasman Sea—that an art loan collection will conic to bo a periodic entcrpriso in days to come. "Another interesting, development which I believe is largely due to the enterprise of Mr. Nelson Isaac of this

city was tho holding of an exhibition in Juno last, of arts and crafts, and with pressure on tho word crafts, including a largo number of specimens of craftsmanship executed in this country. It is quite obvious that that is an exhibition of a type which is worthy of further development. I venture to hopo that that typo of exhibition will become more common and will receivo more encouragement in tho Dominion than it lias done in the past, because there is a very marked development on the Continent of Europe, which ought to be reflected here, in the direction of making the common things of life far more artistic than they have been in the past, so as to prevent what has been an unfortunate factor for at least 200 years, of preventing art being isolated in one water-tight) compartment of social life, and of domestic and industrial activities being found in separate water-tight compartments. Surely what we want more than anything, else is to ally art and artistic taste to our domestic life and industries, and thereby make life—particularly those in humble positions in life—happier and more inspiring than it is at the present time. ART OF ETCHING. "In this gallery wo have had exhibited the work of an obviously capable New Zealand sculptress in the person of Miss Margaret Butler, and we have also .viewed with pleasure the appearance in national gallery exhibitions in London by several New Zealand artists, including Mrs. M. E. R. Tripe and Mr. Goldie, pictures accepted by the Royal Academy." Reference was made by. his Excellency to the black and white work m the Empire art loan collection, and he remarked that the art of etching was advancing by leaps and bounds. Attention was drawn to the excellent work of W. Roberts and G. L. Broekhurst. He alluded to a tendency which existed in some quarters for work to be done in a sketchy and superficial manner, and he could not help saying that that applied to some of the younger artists here. Might he venture to say in regard to training that the old masters' advice to young students was that they must be able to walk before they ran; that they must learn to draw before they paint. Many had been too free with the palette before they had mastered the principles of drawing. Genius would carry one a long way, but genius, with training behind it, would go much further.

His Excellency concluded by declaring the exhibition open, and he expressed the hope that it would be a source of delight and instruction to the many who would visit it.