FRENCH AND MODERN ART.

Horowhenua Chronicle, 25 July 1929, Page 7

FRENCH AND MODERN ART.

MISS CADELL'S CONCLUDING LECTURE. GROWTH OF SPECIAL STYLES NOTED. The twelfth and last leetuie in_the series given before the Levin W.E.A. class by Miss Cadell, 8.A., on "The History" of Painting in Europe," dealt with French painting and modern movements. The origins of painting, said the tutor, were similar throughout Northern Europe, but it had been noted that in Prance, after the 15th century, thJ invention of the printing-press and various foreign influences elbowed out the delicate craftsmanship of mediaeval times. Francis I. was indeed a munificent patron of art, and it would be remembeVed that Leonardo da Vinci and other Italians of the period were employed in France. CLAUDE AND POUSSIN. The earliest French artists of wide renown owed their training to .Italy. Claude (1600-82) was born in Lorraine, but at an early age went to Rome, where he spent most, of his life. He devoted his attention to portraying the bi-auty of light, but out of consideration'for the prevailing taste ho inserted accessories of architecture and figures, for the drawing of which h-; had little skill. Claude excelled in conveying the effr et of atmosj. here, and it was this trait which later landscape artists had admired and observed. Nicolas Poussin (1594-1665) was a contemporary, who also believed the natural scene to have a value beyond acting as a niera background for figures. Poussin, however, was a fine draughtsman, with a classic sense of design, as might be seen in the grouping of "Shepherds in Aready." These painters found they could follow their calling more happily abroad, for the reign of Louis XIV. produced no pictures of note. The wails of Versailles were covered with decorations, but, though large in extent, these were limited in theme and style. BOUCHER AND FRAGONARD. Under .uouis XV., rather less pomp and a little more individuality werj permitted; yet the paintings of Boucher (1703-70) and Fragonard (17321806) merely supplied aristocratic demands. Boucher depicted .Madame do Pompadour in exquisite raiment, and the voluptuous doings of Greek gods. Fragonard created marvels of daintiness in surroundings of elaborate rusticitv. ORIGINALITY OF WATTEAU. Antoine Watteau (1683-1721),. although he did not turn from the artificial aspect of the age, imparted to his expression of it a talent so delicate and so original that he brought a new distinction to the art of his country, ilis childhood was lived in poverty and he had to endure much drudgery. As a young man, he was employed by a painter of ornaments, who was also a guardian of the Luxembourg palace. His sojourn there had a profound influence ou Watteau, for he was able to roam among the trees of the royal park and to saturate himself in the study of Rubens's paintings. In th|is way Watteau "Arrived at' the point of preserving in his small canvasses all Rubens's admirable breadth, while achieving a masterly originality of grouping." "L'embarquement pour Cythere," in the Louvre, was a fine ex ample of Watteau's poetic conceptions in an age of ornamental prose. A crowd of gallant youths and exquisite maidens are about to embark for the legendary isle of perfect love. Watteau showed his power alike in the drawing of the figures grouped about the garlanded statue of Venus on the right and in the effects of atmosphere in the trees sloping down to the edge of the water, where the ship might be faintly seen. In his work Watteau revealed a science of colour harmony which was far in advance of his age. He had discovered a method of painting which was as successful as it was original. He would cover his canvas thickly with pigment, and on this he would proceed to chisel out his detail. Figures, landscape and sky were then built up by a series of minute touches, which gave to his pictures an effect of sparkling liveliness. His division of tones and his marshalling of complementary colours proclaimed Watteau a fore-runner of the prismatic colouring of the more scientific painters of the 10th century. Literary comparisons with pictures were apt to be fallacious, but Watteau's art was akin to that of the Caroline poets, in his choice of subject, in his perfection of accomplishment within a small com ; pass, and in his wistful insistence on the ephemeral nature of existence. GREUZE, CHARDIN AND MADAME LEBRUN. In the 18th century in France, as there were great gulfs between tho aristocracy and the rest, so was there a sharp division between the painters patronised by the nobility and those who ministered to humble requirements. Greuze (1725-1805) painted some scenes of village life and achieved some reputation by his studies of girls' heads. The artist who expressed the concerns and..feelings of the people was Jean Baptiste Simeon Chardin (16991779). Like the Dutch masters of the previous century, he never wearied of simple domestic thenics. His pictures had the same quality of faithful work-' manship. He did not, however, imitate Dutch art, for his own genius was both individual and national. There were some line examples of his painting in Glasgow, among them "The Pancake Maker"' and "Lady Making Tea." With all the painstaking care that Chardin brought to his work, the effect was never laboured; in fact, the most remarkable qualities of his art were the grace and subtle charm with which a commonplace scene was invested.' The opposite schools of painting were submerged by the catacylsm that overtook France towards the close of the 18th century, but Madame Vigee Lebrun (1755-1842) dissociated herself from France and continued in the tradition. of the painters to the monarchy, as might be seen in the wellknown., portrait of the artist and her , daughter, in the Louvre. DAVLD'B REVIVAL. OF CLASSICISM I After 1789 it wa.s inevitable that

everything which had been favourer! by immediately preceding generations should be east away and that other objects of veneration' should take their place. Jacques Louis David (17481825) studied in Rome in his youth and became absorbed in the antique. His pictures of classical subjects were well received in Paris, and when, after the Be volution, David became virtual ly Dictator of Fine Arts, it was natural that he should turn men's minds to the classics for fresh inspiration. He himself concentrated on formal composition both of portraits and of ceremonious groups. One of his most famous works was the portrait of .Madame Reeanrier, in the Louvre, and a picture of historical value was the Consecration of Napoleon 1., in Notre Dame, where Napoleon was shown in the act of placing a crown on the head of Josephine. The prodigious extent of David's influence was due to force of circumstances rather than of genius. To him was due the revival of a taste for the classics that penetrated north-west Europe, and Prance owed to him, besides, the foundation of a tradition of fine drawing. INGRES;' TECHNIQUE.

Draughtsmanship was brought to a rare perfection by Jean Dominique Auguste Ingres (1780-1867). During the most troublous years of French history, a period of shattering vicissitudes, Ingres was in Italy, "drawing to learn and painting to. live." Ue was impressed by the purity and precision of drawing of the early Italians, and to emulate them was the desire of his life. When he returned to Paris in 1824, Ingres soon became the leader of the classic school of painters and proved himself to be a master of figure drawing. Hi's studies of the mule were the pictures that most surely upheld his fame, though his portraits wenmasterly likenesses. One'of his most famous paintings was "La Source, in the Louvre, a lovely study of a young girl. It, was, perhaps, in Ins numerous drawings that Ingres' quality was most perfectly revealed.

DELACROIX BRIGHTENS COLOI'K. In due course there came a reaction to the ideals of the classical school. Respect for form was not abandoned, but there was a general passion further (discovery?. Delacroix (17981863) proved himself to be one of the world's great colourists and bud the foundations of the new handling oi : pigments, which was to be the great technical triumph of 19th century painting. Delacroix obtained his result? not onlv by the happy choice of individual hues, but by the science with which he knew how to set one colour against another, so as to accentuate the brilliancy of each and secure a glowing harmony. A journey to Morocco further increased his knowledge, as he was able there to study the effect of very brifliant illumination on colour. THE BAEBIZON SCHOOL. As Delacroix was leading the way to new movements by his studies in the science of colours, a band of artists formed a colony in the village of Barbizon, set, in the forest of Fontainebleu. There they retreated to paint Nature as she appeared to them, unnoticed by the public and uninfluenced by prevailing taste. Corot (1,7961875) interpreted landscape in his poetical way. He delighted in the effects of early morning and evening. with delicate colouring and subtle effects of light and air. Occasionally he painted small figures indoors, and these studies showed a precision and illumination that rivalled the best Dutch work. Other members of the Barbizon school were Theodore Rousseau (.181267), famous for his majestic paintings of trees, which seemed to penetrate the stalwart character of the subject; Troyon (1810-65), who loved to draw cattle and could skilfully express the full glory of a summer morning. Daubigny, who depicted with tender feeling the placid beauty of river scenes. Jean Francois Millet (1814-75) devoted his talent to the study not only of the countryside, but of the peasants who toiled there. He was himself of peasan stock, and his inherent sympathy with his subject, was shown in his pictures of farm labourers. "The Sower" revealed, too, Millet's under-

standing of an almost monumental simplicity of design. The Barbizon painters were scantily appreciated during

their lifetime, but their work was lasting and they spread abroad the seed which had first been sown in England by Constable and Cronie. Their influence' helped to bring about another harvest in Holland, where Josef Israels, Mcsdag, Bosdoom and Matthew ami James Maris, among 'others, revived the glories of the 17th century. THE IMPKE.SSJ.O-. JSTS. The lecturer spoke briefly on the achievements of the Impressionists and those who came after them. Deiaeroix, she stated, began researches into the science of colour, which were to have tar-reaching results. These studies were pursued with so much skill and success that the school who were called the Impressionists had at their fingertips all the technical lore, which could assist in setting down the effect of light and atmosphere. Broadly speaking, the aims of the school were: (1) To record the general impression that, a scene first made upon the eye, before attention had been drawn to separate details; (2) instead of mixing colour on the palette, to apply small touches of pure colour in justaposition, so that the brilliance of vibration of natural lines .'.hould be reproduced in a fashion unattainable iby the method; of preliminary mixing of paint. The effects obtained in this way by Manet, Monet, Pissarro J.ml other masters were brilliant and striking, but as facility in the new technique came alarm was felt by some artists lest the technique should become an end in itself, making art superficial and ephemeral. To counteract Hits tendency, Paul Cezanne, the great painter of the 19th century, sought to convey mass as well as atmosphere, by his touches of colour. His aim was opposed to the surface atmospheric achievements of th'i Impressionists, and was directed to restore (o painting a sense of solidity and a feeling for grand design. He was a man of lofty ideals, never satisfied with his work, which, in its simplicity and power, was supreme in his time. CUBISM. An exaggeration of Cezanne's principles led to Cubism, which, at its greatest extreme, was a rendering of abstract forms and patterns. Cezanne '} genius, however, was a crystallisation of all the knowledge of art tint* had increased through the ages, tempered by a magnificent technique. In conclusion, the lecturer said that the survey which she had given had of necessity been cursory, but the numerous illustrations that had been shown convoyed better than words an idea of the development of the art up to the present 4«, y. AN OPPEK TO STUDENTS. At the end of the course, various students inquired how they might procure reproductions of pictures that had appealed to them. The lecturer offered to communicate Avitli galleries in London and Paris with a view to obtaining postcards and prints if students would let her know what they wished for. As a speedier means of satisfying their desires, she suggested that if at least twenty members of the class were willing to guarantee 4s each sle> would obtain from Sydney a set of portfolios of international arl reproductions. She thought that, out of the 120 copies therein included, there would be something for all tastes; and naturally, if more than twenty orders were forthcoming the cost would be proportionately cheaper.