NEW ZEALAND ART UNION ASSOCIATION.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXII, Issue 7405, 13 August 1885, Page 3

NEW ZEALAND ART UNION ASSOCIATION.

Mr. A. E. Macknechie delivered a most interesting and instructive lecture on "Turner, the Colourist," at the lectureroom of the Auckland Institute last night. There was a very large audience, and the lecture throughout was listened to with the deepest interest, whilst the photographic views of the great master's most striking pictures, which were thrown on the screen by a strong limelight by the Rev. J. S. Hill, helped happily to illustrate the lecture and add to the interest of the audience. Mr. Macknechie, after a brief introduction as to his made of dealing with the Bubject, asked from whence Turner drew his great genius. In his youth he had no Art Gallery to instruct his mind, no masters, and his parents had no talent. His father was a humble barber in Covent Garden, but yet with a strange prophetic prescience whenever asked what ne was to bring his son up to, his answer was that he would be a painter. He afforded his son every encouragement in his power. Mr. Mackechnie gave a brief outline of the early life of Turner, his struggles with poverty, and bow overcoming all, he advanced in his art, and from obscurity rose to fame. He was admitted a student of the Royal Academy, and exhibited his first picture in Somerset House, in 1799. He was elected an associate, and three Jyears later received the full honors of the association. He need not recount his after life. The artist's life was seen in his work, and it was so with Turner. His pencil and brush were seldom absent from bis hand, and the date of his pictures showed where he had been at the time. He was a most prolific painter, and left no portion of thel'art) untouched. He laboured incessantly at his calling, and bis industry was unbounded. Alluding to Turner's skies and cloud-colouring, the lecturer stated that his memory was phenomenal. He painted what few artists had attempted, the glory and strength of the meridian sun. [None were'more true to nature than his sea pictures, but they were not studied from the shore. He loved to be on the sea, loved it in all its changes, and he summed up its features and changes in his wonderful memory, reproduced them and presented them in his pictures to the world. The cloud and sunshine, the storm aud calm wore alike truthful to nature, and in these he equalled, if not surpassed, Claude of Lorraine. But it was in tempest that his genius towered over all painters. He stood unrivalled and alone. Of his pictures it was said that the Slave Ship, the Academy picture of 1840, was the best, and Mr. Mackecknie quoted Ruskin's criticism on this picture, which for sublimity and graphic force is a word picture that has seldom or ever been equalled. In a previous lecture he had impressed on young students to study nature for themselves; but he would point out to them that that was not the highest form of art. He would like to see copies of the works of great masters in their Art Gallery, and these could now be procured through the munificence of Mr. Mackelvie. (Applause.) Three years ago, when proposing a vote of thanks to Mr. Mackelvie for his munificent art donations, he suggested that they should have a portrait of Mr. Mackelvie painted by an eminent artist and hung in their Gallery, so that students might see what manner of man he wax, for the works of art by which he would be surrounded would show hia mind and love of art. If in time to come they had in Auckland some master of the art he would, by producing a portrait best acknowledge the indebtedness of artists to this friend of New Zealand, and gratitude must indeed fail when they ceased to remember and honour one who had so richly endowed them. The lecturer then suggested to arc students a number of subjects for pictures of New Zealand, with suggestions as to how they should be treated; as, for instance, the taniwha rising from the lake, the tattoo pattern, with the tohunga submitting it for inspection, the false omen with the aged tohunga. These would be expressive of the customs and superstition of the native tribes. Thou there were such subjects as slaying the makutu man, the kaioga after a battle, the land of the tapn, &c. Such subjects were endless, and would be prized in future ages as presenting the features and characteristics of the natives as they wero first known to the early, settlers. He pictured what Turner's treatment of the pink and white terraces would have been in glowing terms. He then sketched Turner's personal appearance. He was short of stature, stout, and bow-legged, unwilling to express himself in words, but his expression was in his pictures. His disposition was retiring and contemplative, but through hia pictures he expressed himself with unrivalled power. His great feature was his truthfulness and he was a thorough master of light and shade. His sense of colour, or colour sense, was intense, and much of his excellence lay in those qualities. Mr. Mackechnie then referred to the death of this great man in obscure lodgings. By his will he left £140,000 (which was afterwards reduced somewhat) to found an asylum for poor and decayed British artists, and many of his pictures, which could not be purchased from him for money, he bequeathed to the nation on the sole condition that a suitable gallery should be provided for them. This I had been done, and they were now objects of

admiration to all art critics. The following photographic views of some of the great artiste's paintings were then exhibited by lime light, Of course they could only be regarded as outlines, presenting indeed the features and scenes, but devoid of that richness and wealth of colouring which form the principal characteristics of all Turner's paintings. The photographs, we may add, were taken by Mr. Stewart, the Secretary of the Association, and the pictures were lent by Mr. Way mouth and Mr. Alhin Martin. They were selected with a view of showing the varied characteristics of the, great artist— " Wreck of the Minatour, " Mercury and Argus," "Petworth Park," " Regulus Leaving Carthage," " Arundel Castle," "Grand Canal, -Venice." "Crossing the Brook, " "Ancient Italy," "Fishers Putting to Sea," "Hannibal Crossing the Alps," "A Country Blacksmith," "J. M. W. Turner," "The Sun Rising in a-Mist," "The Fighting Temeraire," " The Shipwreck," " Bligh Sands," "Stranded off Yarmouth." The pictures were effective and striking, and were on the whole well presented on the screen. At the close, the Chairman proposed the thanks of the Association to their Secretary, to whom they were indebted for a great deal of the interest of the lecture. Mr. Stkwart returned thanks. A cordial vote of thanks was then accorded to the leoturer, who, in responding, said that his object in giving those lectures was to present to the students such thoughts of yreat artists and their works as presented themselves to his mind, but principally to bring the Society together so that they might have a potential voice in matters relating to art. He trusted they would be consulted by the City Council as the Art Gallery progressed. With reference to the bequest, they had as one trustee Mr. Albin Martin, an artist himself, and Dr. Campbell took a great and intelligent interest in arts and art studies, so that they were not likely to fare badly at their hands.