TEE SOCIETY OF ARTS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume L, Issue 15308, 22 May 1913, Page 5

TEE SOCIETY OF ARTS.

ANNUAL EXHIBITION.

TO BE OPENED TO-DAY.

AMONG THE OIL PAINTINGS.

The annual exhibition of pictures by the Auckland Society of Arts' will be formally opened this evening by His Excellency the Governor. The ceremony will take the usual form of a conversazione for members and their friends at the gallery, and the general public will be admitted the next day. ■'.•■'■'" ■';■■;'•■;;..'■•"

The exhibition is smaller than it has been in the past, but the walls of the main gallery. are, nevertheless, covered to a reasonable height with pictures, and some have been accommodated on a stand set out on the floor. Very few have been placed on the stairway, and none in the lower lobby. The photographic room, containing pictures exhibited by the Auckland and Onehunga Camera Clubs., and the Dunedin and New South Wales Photo-, graphic Societies, is well filled. It may be said, of course, that the exhibition might have been improved in general quality by the exclusion of a number of pictures which are of small interest and indifferent quality, but there are some works of outstanding merit. A considerable number of paintings are of an impressionist character; although such works are not likely to be generally appreciated their inclusion extends the variety and interest of the exhibition, and there is still some way to go before the " cuboid i school," which has latterly aroused so much criticism in the older countries, is reached.

A valuable contribution to; the artistic records of the Dominion is being made by Mr. C. F. Goldie, whose aim is to preserve upon canvas the characteristics of Maori types which are now very rapidly disappearing. He shows some excellent examples. The chief of them is No. 18, "The Cannibal," a portrait of an old man of remarkable appearance, fast travelling towards the end of his days. Among his larger paintings is No. 104, "Memories," an old Maori woman' contemplating with the characteristic abandon of the Maori the disappearance of her tribe. Fine old faces are recorded also in Nos. 6, 49, 71, 75, and 100. No. 43, "Hinemoa," a portrait of a young Maori woman, is less animated than is usual in the artist's portraiture. ' Mr. W. Hounsom Byles exhibits several pictures, of which the most interesting are "The Bull Fight" (No. 28) and "When You Do Dance" (No. 130). The former, quite a .small painting, is full of vigour and movement. ... The charge of the bull, the rearing of the picador's tormented mount, and the forward rush of the man on foot are excellently worked out. In the second picture, also a small one, there is a fine delicacy of colour in the painting of a theme quite classic in its ■■: setting. His "Spanish Fiesta" (No. 1) is more crude in colouring and general treatment. 'The Bather"; (No. V 108) is a striking picture of a girl in a simple bathing costume, admirably treated. ' The largest and most prominent canvas on view is" Our Dreadnought" (No. 118), an 'unfinished work by Mr. W. Wright, in which the battleship, while hot yet accurately finished in some respects, "is an admirable feature. The general effect of the picture, which includes numerous small craft, is very good. A better painting is "Evening Glow" (No. .29), the central interest of which is a big ship being tended in the Waitemata by a tug. !' The;treatment of the tinted evening sky.' and especially of the ship reddened by "the sunlight, is very handsome. ' Mr.; Wright shows a number of other paintings, ; which are .all marked by the application'-of-rich colour; he has made commendable attempts to fix little domestic episodes in Maori "life.

Some Southern Exhibitors. ; - Mr. Richard Wallwork, of Christchurch, is the exhibitor of a considerable! number of pictures, the most striking of which is a portrait of Mrs. Wallwork (No. 74). The colour-scheme of the picture, is delightful, and the' pose is very happy. ■ The face may be thought by. some to lack softness in lighting and modelling, but the portrait' as a whole is a very pleasing one, and easily the most attractive work-; he has in. the gallery. "The Awakening of Soring'', (No. 53) is a pretty, if not strikingly original, picture. Among the artist's other ; pictures is a ; striking J sketch, ;;£ The Buccaneer" (No. 55). / " A>New Zealand Beach Idyll" (No. 58) shows a boy about to bathe , walking out of a little glade among big boulders to , the beach. *; >' Mr. H. Linley Richardson, of Wellington, exhibits among the oils two .rather remarkable pictures. No. 22, "Out for a Walk." shows a little child beside some tall flowers. " A Quiet Evening" (No. 146), while unusual in the medium employed, is also noticeable for the introduce tion of romping children into a quiet landscape. '.. ;.-. - ;■; '■ ' '[ -' ■

Mr. W. Menzies Gibb, of Christchurch, shows a few pictures! characteristically quiet in treatment. ■", Coming to, Anchor, Sydney" (No. 7), .'is a placid seascape, with a schooner just dropping the head of her mainsail. " Sunset" on ; the Rakaia" (No. 45) shows in its delicate evening tints the qualities- which this painter frequently achieves.

Mr. Kennet Watkins has produced a very striking picture in "A Maori Idyll" (No. 138). The chief characteristics of the work are the excellent treatment of-■■; the expanse of water, the glorious yellow show of a kowhai tree in bloom in the immediate foreground, the latter, indeed, occupying a large part of the picture. The Maori canoe below the tree is delicately painted, and the work is generally excellent. This is the artist's -only picture on exhibition.

A very attractive picture is "La Jeunesse" (No. 72), by M. E. R. Tripe. The face of the girl is very pleasant, and the tone of the picture is very good. Miss Amy B. Dawson shows a Very finely-conceived picture, " The Coming Storm" (No.* 87); The title gives no idea of the picture,; for it shows a team r of artillery wheeling suddenly ;as ; ; if : to action. The painting might be thought' to be a little vague, but the impression of movement and activity is' wonderfully well conveyed,; and in' this respect it is one of the most satisfactory pictures in the collection. ' V; • New Zealand Scenery. - A number of paintings by Mr. C. Blom—No. 46, " Line's' Crossing, Waimana River," No. 79, "Waimana Gorge, Evening," ,No. 93, No. 109, No. 147, No. 150, and No. 160—all display typical New Zealand scenery. Most of them give glimpses of New Zealand .bush. Mr. Blomfield has in some of these pictures, especially in No. 150, succeeded remarkably well in handling the ferns and other typical vegetation, with something of the detailed accuracy that is needed to convey the character of ; the native forest. Mr. D. Seaward, A.R.C.A., is among those who have taken a Maori subject, and his No. 58, deals with " Toheriri and his Merc." It is a very vigorous piece ofwork, displaying a rather gruesome episode in Maori warfare. The same artist also shows Evening at Wanganui" (No. 83), a landscape from a fine view-point, cleverly treated in a low key in greens and greys, and a portrait. .'■'■[ :■.■;.;\":

Mr. E. ; W. Pay ton ~ has shown half-a-dozen pictures, all of New Zealand scenery, and marked by careful painting. v

Mrs. A. E. Kelly (Christchurch) exhibits, among others,, " The Green Cloak" (No. 77), and "A Caprice in Coral and Grey" (No. 127). The former is a broadly treated figure study, the green cloak itself being finely coloured. • No. , 127 is notable for its unusual tone; obtained by the use of much-thinned colour, arid is an interesting piece of work. Her other exhibits are landscapes, of an impressionistic character. No. 12, carries a.'fine impression of -wind; introduced by the : movement of clothes, which a girl is hanging out to dry. , ■■<■ Mr. S. L. Thompson l has • a * number- of canvases hung—Nos. 68, 117, 122,' 152; and j 159—a1l - of ; .which are characterised by; J " r .; a

"impressionism," and most by the-use of expanses of strong colour.'Sis'"Cabbage ' ' Patch" (No. 122) is an extreme example. Over 180 Oil Paintings ~, a , tf Mr. T. L. Drummond has,several canvases— 2, 13, 37, 81, 82, 114, and 135. '-M The best is " Eainclouds" '(No.- 21, "in which the sky is the best' 'feature..'.. ,A : broad landscape below, with a-Maori canoe and a whare giving relief," are pleasing. His other pictures might'' bel' thought irregular, and some rather harsh in treat- ■■■:■'■:■ ment. .'»' .'- '■ '■ ■■'".' The only . nude study exhibited- "is- by Mr. G. E. Woolley, No. 14, and is a-back view of a girl model. The colour and drawing are good, andJihe picture "is-a.-.'. V, study, showing careful.; work and good feeling...' ''"■;■■.'..' " : ;,. ; vV''f!\-'';, : ' ■: Mr. J. M. Madden's ••"Night '!' Fowl" (No. 16) is a clever little 1 picture; "arid his "Hamlets, Heather, Gorse T and Sea" (No. 25), is. a very pleasing landscape,-"full of delicate colour, and well arranged.--" r Among the Jess prominent pictures which are worthy of attention is Miss Eva, R. Mouldey's "Summer" (Nov* 47), a- very pleasing painting of a girl' in a-hammock. '■'.■!■ The composition of the picture', arid the light falling through, the foliage upon -the figure, are admirable. .■-'-, Mr. Arthur Lloyd has sent' in a typical ' seascape, " On the Shoal", (No.--56)../This is a shipwreck picture, and shows! evidence of the care with which:'•'• the painter has studied the sea as a pictorial subject,-■'--Mr. F. Wright- is among the landscape * \ painters who have attacked the New-2ea-land bush for the sake of its characteristics, and has, in Nos. 11l and 124, made care- . ful pictures, with plenty of delicate atmos- /; phere. There' are, besides the 'pictures'noted, I a large number of 'others, the. total num- ; ber of oils shown being 161. "■'•■■" ■ '' •: