N.Z. SOCIETY OF ARTISTS

Evening Star, Issue 21828, 18 September 1934, Page 5

N.Z. SOCIETY OF ARTISTS

AROUND THE PICTURES I, THE LANDSCAPES IN OILS. The majority of pictures in any New Zealand exhibition are usually landscapes. The present display in the Pioneers’ Hall is no exception to this rule, although probably tlve percentage of figure compositions, drawings, and other works is higher than usual. There are good reasons, however, why landscape is the favoured medium of expression; and the chief one, which is certainly justification for the prevalence of such is the exceptional beauty and unending variety of sea and bush and sky and hills in this favoured island dominion. Other reasons include the lack of academic art school training by many New Zealand artists, the lack of opportunity for figure study, and, on the part of some, the lack of ability to produce truly original work of any other kind. In the present exhibition one is struck immediately by the forceful and personal work of Sydney L. Thompson, who for many years has pursued his studies in France. In No. 241, ‘ The Green Chair,’ the play between orange and blue-green tones, the pleasant feeling of warm sunlight and cool shadow, and the carefully-arranged shapes of lights and luminous shadows produce together a dominating picture that draws attention and holds it, satisfying and delighting the mind. No. 242, ‘ Evening Shadows,’ full of powerful warm colour, cleverly relieved by cool blue, is equally forceful but less sympathetic. Both are fine examples of direct painting. On another wall a welcome group of works by W. H. Allen show some of the work he has produced in England. They are all smoothly and finely finished, yet broad in general feeling, interesting in technique, and contrasting widely with the foregoing artist. No. 8, ‘ The Avenue,’ a richly verdant picture, cleverly unifies a clump of leafy trees that might easily have been confusing in masses. The depth and richness of these trees are eminently satisfying. ‘ Summer in England ’ is a picture brilliantly lit, with fine atmospheric quality. No. 7, ‘ Otago Landscape,’ is a well-designed work, full of variety and interesting in technique. Three smaller works, full of interest, each cleverly painted and refined in colour, complete an outstanding group on the walls. Louise Henderson shows only three paintings, but in these, as in her needlework exhibits, has produced a distinguished group, delightful _in colour and full of fine feeling for paint. Each is a joyful harmony of colour, and the three are of such uniformly high standard that one could only waver between the three to choose the best. B. N. Field, in his two landscapes, shows that fine, sensitive feeling for colour and quiet harmony that has always identified his work. No. 92 is the more unusual, but most will find tho greater satisfaction in the quieter greens of No. 93. An interesting and live group of paintings by Basil Honour are of very even quality. Each shows good arrangement, a feeling for rhythm, and a sense of cool light. Nos. 116, 119, and 111 are well-conceived _ colour schemes painted with satisfying effect. But perhaps No. 120, ‘ Evening in the High Alps,’ stands out by its brilliant sky and luminous blue shadows on the snow. The largest, No. 111, is.rather less satisfying in cohesion. Near tho door is an extremely sympathetic group of works by Rodney Kennedy. The two landscapes, 134 a and 134 b. show a rhythmical unity lacking in better painted pictures. The colour is sensitive and restrained. Such pictures repay more than a hurried glance, and are keenly satisfying to one who looks for more than mere naturalism in a landscape. The paintings of J. D. C. Edgar are well grouped, and present an interesting variety of work. Of tlie landscapes, certainly one of the most charming is No. 80, ‘ Lowborn Ferry Farm. It has colour and pattern that satisfy and delight the eye. Simplicity, broadtreatment, and fine atmospheric qua!ity distinguish No. 84, 1 Sunlight and Shadow,’ while in the ‘ Central Otago Landscape,’ No. 82, the cool blue grey of the rooks contrasts finely with the warm orange tussocks hills. All the landscape exhibits in this group show unity of colour and a high standard of technique. . , , , Of the five landscapes painted by Harry V, Miller, probably the most satisfying is the ‘ Bay Cliffs.’ No. 190, which has a dignified and unusual design, while the colour is good. The quiet harmony of ‘ Silver and Green contrasts with the more brilliant * Landscape in Green and Mauve, 1 with its intense greens and contrasting red-dish-purples ; and the ‘ Lawrence Landscape,’ more decorative in character, pleases with its harmony of yellowgreens. Quiet but pleasing colour is a merit in this group. James Cook has a dignified and restrained group of paintings, of which the ‘ Old Houses on the Canal,’ painted with the palette knife, is most brilliant. The others are low in tone and rather sombre in colour. The landscapes of *T. A. Johnstone are most successful in their skies. Indeed, No. 129, ‘Dawn. Pembroke.’ has a skv that literally gives forth light. The ‘colour of the foreground is less satisfying. The fields in No. 130, in warm, sunny tones, are more pleasing. Two welt-arranged and rhythmical rock and sea studies, Nos. 168 and 169, are from tho brush of L. G. M'Culloch. His rendering of bush and fine flowing lines of design make ‘ The Creek,’ No. 165, a landscape of interest to artist and layman alike. The feeling of sincerity in this artist’s work shows also in tlie paintings of Ngaio Marsh, whose ‘ Hills,’ No. 163, give some of the ruggedness of New Zealand country. Two small landscapes by Eve Poison are happy and warm in colour, No. 205 appealing with its fine open sky, while No. 206 has a sense of movement and atmosphere. The pair of Hawarden landscapes by Francis Shnrrock are quiet in colour, the greens having fine value among the reddish purple of the hills. Cedric Savage shows one landscape, in which the foreground is finely simplified, bufthe clouds are not in sympathy. ‘The Bridge,’ by Marion Tylee, is an interesting work, possessing fine proportion and pleasant colour, 'the group by Cora Wilding is very uneven m quality, the landscape. No. 268, showing a simplicity and arrangement that places it far above any other of her works shown. Landscapes by V. Macmillan Brown arc of a pastel-like softness, unrelieved hv definite accents, except perhaps in No. 44, where two trees dominate a fmo colour scheme of warm browns and greens. No. 43. though soft to the extent of being “ woolly.” has a finely naiuted distance, and the colours are beautifully unified.

In No. '62, ‘ Waipoua Forest,’ Jenny Campbell paints a difficult and confusing subject, trees and undergrowth, with mastery, producing a pleasing picture. ‘ Gasworks,’ by Rita Cook, is a

dignified piece of painting, contrasting with the work of Phyllis Drummond Sharpe, whose paintings are uneven in quality. No. 222 has a feeling of atmosphere, but No. 221 is insipid in colour. The paintings of Kathleen Salmond show a definite development along certain lines. Her little ‘ Evening Landscape ’ is a pleasant and luminous work; and is more successful than the larger and more dominant No. 228. No. 22, ‘ Hills and Hummocks,’ by Margaret Anderson, is pleasant in colour, and is probably the best of her group. Two small landscapes, Nos. 211 and 212; by Edgar Seelyc, are joyous in colour and full of brushwork. In our next article we will deal with the oil paintings of still life, portraits, and decorative compositions.