THE GULLY – RICHMOND LOAN EXHIBITION.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XXXIII, Issue 270, 28 November 1899, Page 2

THE GULLY - RICHMOND LOAN EXHIBITION.

THE OPENING CEREMONY. As stated in yesterday's i-sue there was a good attendance at the opening of the Gully-Richmond Loan exhibition of paintings in the Suter Memorial Art Gallery The Bishop of Nelson, one of the trustees of the Suter bequest, said that the trustees p ssessed in the Gallery an advantage of wliich they felt compelled to make the best possible nse. The suggestion that had led to the present exhibition was, he s»id, a very happv one, the two artists having made made their homes in Nelson for a considerable time. It was also a happy suggestion that the two near-st relatives of the deceased artists should re naked to open tbe exhibition, (applause.) He thanked those who had lent the pictures aud those who had given their assistauco, and then called upon MrsGuliy (wHow of the 1 te Mr John Gully) and Mrs A. S. Atkinson (sister of tbe late Hon. J. C. Richmond) to open tho exhibition. Mrs Gully said thai it gave her pleasure to aee so many pictures on the walls, and she hope! that the exhibition a oold not only affotd pleasure to m ny, but would also prore useful from an educational point of vie w. Toung people might take encouragement when she toll them that her lute husband was almost entirely self-taught, he having had only about a dozen lessons from a very inferior artist He had to travel 14 miles to get these lesson--, and the same distance on the ret rn. As a boy he left school at 14 and worked in a foundry from 5 a.m till C p.m., winter and summer, there being no half-holidays in those days. He thus had very little leisure to devote to the art he loved, whilst in aft«r life he was at a, similar dUjdvan'age, as h's lime waa taken ap by other duties. He devoted, however, evpry spare moment to the art, and during the last ten or twelve years he gave himself up almost enlirely to it. She supposed that there w.s not a twentieth part' of Mr Gully's pictui-03 in the room. A great number went to England, and some of them were very favourably criticised by Sir John Gilbert, who said they were all beautiful. A great many also went to Australia and were well recei vel there, lho late Bishop Suter was a kind friend and patron of her late husband; and Mr Bichmond and Mr Golly were also true friends, ofton having travelled, sketched, and worked together. No.h:n„' t'.u refore could b' more appropriate tban that the works of both artists should be asaociated with the Su er Memorial Art Gallery.— (Applause). Mrs Atkinson said that Mrs Gully's remarks left very little more to be said. Mr Richmond was also entirely self taught, and there was no reason why other young people, with a love for ert, should not succeed in tbe same way. There were many who fancied that they could cot succeed unless they had home advantages ; but it was jnst ts well not to acquire mannerisms, but to stu'y nature in a natural way. Her brother had a real love of ihe art, and employed ell his spare time with it. She also spoke of Mr Richmond's pencil sketohes, which were generally admired and considered quite remarkable. - ( Applause. ) AMONG THE PICTURES. The exhibition of pictures by Messrs John Gully and James Crowe Richmond, (two of tho best well known artists in the colony) was opeueel yesterday afternoon by the most honoured representatives of the two families with whom they were respectively most closely connected, viz Mrs Gully and Mrs Atkinson. Of the late John Gully personally tho present writer lias beon too short a timo in Nelson to know much, but as an artist ho must be nidged by the work he has put forth. Ihe most hurried inspection of any of his chief pictures will show tlie genuine artistic tusto which so greatly distinguish-' ed the late artist's whole work. In J-iew Zealand, where the rugged, snow-covered mountain, monstrously impending over tarns of unimaginable beauty, alternates with the calm peaceful plain covered with its waving yellow and green crops, tho artist, both in oils and water-colours, has a raugo of subject unsurpassed in any country of tho world. Where is the artist mind which could not fail to be impressed and inspired by the frigid magnificence of Aorangi in winter, or of Egmont using in his stately well-shaped cono from the fertile flat surrounding him ? What wonder therefore that we have coming from the brush of ono man livin<» practically apart from the artistic atim> ■sphere of the" western world works of such grandeur, as those now being shown in tlie Suter Art Gallery ? There can be no greater testimony to tho merit of John Gully's work than tho popularity he still enjoys amongst educated people in Nel son, aud the manner in which even the smallest nnd most insignificant of his works are prized by their fortunate owners. There are undoubtedly weak points about this artistic work, only visible to and noted by artists themselves ; but where can be foimd a man whoso wor"-j are without fault, the more especially when, as in this ease, so ftn. removed froin the influence of men who eould show him where lie erred r John Gully's work will bear inspection as favourably as, and perhaps more favourably than, many other water-colour artists who enjoy the best of colonial reputations. There can be no doubt that he comes easily within the first rank of water-colour artists in this colony, his only rival, so far as the writer is aware, being L. J. Wilson, of Pvmodin. - * As for' tho lato Mr J. C. Richmond'* pictures, they are for the most part sketchos more or less unfinished, and go more to show what this artist could have done had he devoted more time to furbishing up his work. The idea and combinations of colour are often distinctly good, and the promise they contain was that of a man who with opportunity eould have attained to a first place in the line of water-colour artists. It is intended herein to give a brief account of each picture of prominenco as it meets the eye on wandering round the bnilding, without singling out for special noto the masterpieces. Tho advantage of this am-ongement will bo apparent, for if in an exhibition like this if wo single out the best pictures, tho narrative dwindles in interest as the pictures of superior merit are picked out Moreovor, Mr Gully's work, of which the exhibition mainly consists, is of an even character throughout, and the superiority of tho one picture over another is moro ouo of taste than anything else. There are, it is estimated, about • 150 pictiu-cs by Mr Jolin G\*Uy,>-*4 jibo'iif »|) by Mr ,T. 0. Rich-popd I uiid they both cover the whole period of artistic life through which the two artists lived The Trnstecs of the Suter Art Gallery owe a debt of gratitude to those residents who, possessing these valuablo piptpres, hfive' sp kipdly lent then* for the purpose of making the exhibitioujaa poraplete as pos, sible. It is extremely doubtful whether there has ever been in New Zealand aa complete or good a show of water-colour . pictures as are here exhibited. Every picture— and there aro two hundred of i them— with ono exception, is a water- ! colour, varying in sizes from that of a ! half-piate photograph to the majestic! for water-colours — canvasses so greatly I prized by their owner and admired by all. 1 However, to get on with the descrip- ] tion. Entering the door, if ycu go rigfit |

—^-^^— — — — -— — -^» - 1 ,- ,— M - over to the place where they dispense tea and coffee— by the way, the coffee, as t supplied to this scribe by the f air damBels of the waiting room was of a most excellent brew, and the. tea is probably as 1 equally good— you will see a screen with ] a number of pictures affixed to it. In i the cetnre i3 a frame containing two sketches, which . for the enthusiast have i considerable interest. These are the 1 earliest sketches extant of the late John ] Gully, one in oils— the solitary exception 1 referred to— and the other in water- ' colours. Here we have the first preserved . attempt of the youthful artist in 1836 to reproduce, by |the most difficult process i known, the likeness of Nature as she ap- i pears to the human eye, in all the colours recognised by art. The attempt was not ambitious, nor - the result astoundino-ly marvellous. In fact.it is an edifying contrast to step or look across to one of the noble pictures on the walls from the same brush, and observe how the scope of the artist had widened and his knowledge and skill broadened before he produced them. From the screen turn back towards the south-east wall, and you have gono from one extreme to the other; from the artist's earliest to his latest work ( 1882)—" Te Anau." It is a magnificent canvas, and the lasting pity of it all is that the painter did not have time allowed him to finish his work. It stands now to-day a monument to hi3 name, and, even in its unfinished state, is one of the masterpieces of his life. Prom what we have been informed, we should imagine it to have been John Gully's favourite picture ; he always wished to be able to finish it off, bat at the last he had !to drop his palette — all too suddenly. Certain it is that had he lived to complete it, it would have been, if not the crowning achievement of hi3 life, at least one of the most conspicuous of his works. The scene is one of Lake Te Anau, with the blue mountains which are so characteristic of Maoriland in the background ; one arm of the blue expanse extending away from the middle of the picture to the back-ground, while another winds away across the picture, being only visible through the gaps in the foliage which occupies the fore-ground. A splendid •picture indeed, whose only defect is the unfinished foliage whioh prominently occupies the foreground. Going back to the entrance, on the left (coming in) we see three prominent pictures by Gully, one of " Milford Sound," another, just above it, of " Lake Manapouri," and a third, near by, of " Cosmos Peak." All are fine pictures, though the grandeur of the scenery in the first more impresses the eye than in the last two. A small picture just near the door, "Guards' Bay," is also well worthy of inspection, being a quiet, effective painting, with good mountains and clouds. Next come two pictures by J. C. Richmond, of scenes near Collingwood, which form a pair of wnat are perhaps the most finished works of the artist. "Mount Rochfort" is a good picture, and the companion picture " Coal Measures, Mount Rochfort," gives an idea of what the country is. " Southern Lake " (Rchmond) is an unobtrusive littlo painting of some 'mertt and much beauty. " Mount Vesuvius," also by Richmond, depicts the safetyvalve of Europe lying quiescent, though the smoke he belches forth forms a ring through which the sun gleams. A pleasing Swiss architectural study by the same artist is the " House of the Reding Family," and alongside is another study of an architectural nature representing a portion of Lake Como. " Algeria" (Richmond) is a quiet little sketch of the African city looking down at the gates of the town and the harbour. " Mount Egmont" has two views, from the sea, and from the heights, both fairly good, though in the former the water seems unnatural, and in the latter there is no atmosphere apparent. These of course may have been conditions prevailing at the time of painting. " Totaranui," also by Richmond, is a pretty little study with more natural water effects. " Tropics by Moonlight " is a peculiar picture, which should be viewed from a distance to be seen to best effect. This also applies to the picture further along, " Rewa River, Fiji," which depends also on the contrast between the glaring yellow of the sunset and the sombre green of the tropical vegetation, the combined effect of which is admirable from a distance. " Sygenstein " (Bavaria) is the title of a sketch wherein trees predominate, the outlook showing fields of waving grain, the details on the hills of the mountains in the distance being also good. "■ Mount Egm'ont" Again, eoin.es in, for notice', this time from Mr Gully's brush, and from a different point of view. It is a pretty and wellexecuted sketch. The sketch " Blank Ocean and Mere Sky " (Richmond) also depends on vivid for effect. The clouds are natural and good. " Glen j Sannox"and " Ida Gully " (Richmond)' oare interesting geolgical sketches, which tohugh rough, could not be much improved upon. " Te Anau " ia another from the Richmond brush, [and amost successful picture. It is small when compared with the more ambitious canvas near which it is placed, but is nevertheless one of tho artist* s best efforts. "On the Avon (Christchurch)" is another sketch of Mr Richmond's wherein the central willow comes out well in. detftU, Another good sketch of this! artist's ig that on the screen facing the " annex," entitled "Lake Gleams," Switzerland. There are also numerous other sketches of Mr Gully's, some of them early ones, on this screen. " Tongariro and Ruapehu," with the unnamed picture nest to it, and " Golden Bay," on the" screen near the front door, arc also worthy of inspection. This is only that portion of the wall between the main entrance and the " annex." A description of other pictures will follow in due course. The following have kindly lent pictures for tho exhibition :— Mosdames Morgan Cooke, Lee, Blackett, Burnett, W. Atkinson, Gully, Grace, Hunter-Brown, P. Cooke, Chatterton, Oldham. L. Gully, Misses Cock, Curtis, Messrs Atkinson, Maginnity, Fell, Holloway, H. V. Gully, Hamilton, Sclanders, J. H. Cock, Ambrose Moore, Catley. Johns, Atniore, R. Catley, Sharland, Hugh Gully, Maurice Richmond, Dr Boor, Rev. F. W. Chatterton, Dr Hudsod, and Rev. J. P. Kempthorne. A largo number of people visited the Gallery during the afternoon and evening j and when the excellence and completeness of the exhibition is more generally known, many more will be sure to put in an appearance.