OTAGO ART SOCIETY'S EXHIBITION.

Otago Witness, Issue 1880, 2 December 1887, Page 10

OTAGO ART SOCIETY'S EXHIBITION.

Second Notice. The gallery in Moray place has been excep* tionally well attended every day during the past week, and there was as usual an extra large nauetcr of visitors on Saturday afternoon and evening. A very satisfactory proportion of the pictures arc now ticketed "sold/ and the number is increasing daily. There are many paintings besides those referred to in our previous notice which demand a word of comwent. Among the regular contributors to the annual •exhibition whose works have nxft yet been mentio»ed are Mr James Peete and Captain Temple. Both are well represented. No. 206 (" Terewera •Creek") is a good example of Mr Peele's work, depicting a pretty sylvan scene with a wealth <oi luxuriant and varied foliage, j which the artist has managed most skil- j fully. Nos. 139 snd 147 are companion j piclwtes from the same brush ; but the latter — J a view of Mount Alexander, West Coast roadis decidedly the best. No. 218, " Mount Grey after a Nor'-wester," Mr Peele has painted a | nice foreground, and his composition is Remark- j ably good ; but the mountains seem to have been j brought very close, even allowing for the trans- \ parency of tho New Zjalaadalnjo.iphere. Captain Temple in his oil " On the Rangitata" (No. 32) ban essayed a somewhat bold atmospheric eSeoc with a considerable degreo of ; success ; biit his view "On Lake Wakatipu " j (No. 128) is even more meritorious, being res- j markable, lor its truthful colouring and careful < drawirgr. Mr F. Brooke Smith has , Rental ' pictures hung, all of which display ptomise. Hsb Na. 221 (" On the Hauroto rt ) is a nicelyey.ecuted piece of painting, although a little conventional in style. A great deal more might be written about tbf> works which Mr Goiildsmith sends in oil and water colours. His most fmportant piece has been already referred to ; but among the other specimens oE his skill .must be mentioned No. 208, "Lake Wakatipu from Kinloch," a beautifully-teeated 2andscape in which tho snow-Clad peaks ace shown reflected ia the still Waters of the { lake, and there is a finely painted bush fore- ' ground. No. 30, a water Colour study of silver birches, is an excellent piece of tree painting ; and in fact everything sent by Mr Gouldsmith is worthy of attention, if only for the breadth of style and ye. 1 !; rare judgment that is shown in all . his work, Mr A. H. O'Keefe, an artist who has been making rapid progress in portrait ahd figure painting of late years, has besides the iiosds already mentioned a vety cleverly managed lamplight effect dono in oils. It presents an interior shrouded in darkness and the figure oE an old man reading by a single lamp. The lightiEg seems Very accurate, the glow falling softly yet brilliantly upon the page of the book j and one-lsxlf of the reader's face. It is an effietcti *ihat has often been tried bafore, yet it is nevertheless an ambitious attempt fo?f o? a ytmng artist, mid Mr O'Keefe has reason to be proud of his success. Thopicturo by reason of its position «an best be seen in the evening. We have noticed one or two of the most prominent contributions by Mr L. W. Wilson, but there are several smaller pictures from his brush which all display the artistic taste looked for in h'.s work. No. 220 is a wonderfully pretty morning effect in Dusky Sound. The sun "must be near the hor'raon. Its light is already visible upon the water^ the clouds are tinged with its reflection, and the most distant of the peaks is blushing red. Mr Power is exhibiting plentifully, and his pictures are always pleasant to look at even though the spectator may disagree with his style. The big canvas sent by this artist, which is Uung " on the line," is a view on the SH verstream — a really Arcadian scene as depicted by Mr Power. The little vistas of bush landscape the babbling stream, tho peasant's hut With its curling smoke, and the trees standing out against their dark blue background are all very charming to look at. But there is really more than one picture upon the canvas, and Mr Power's work, ■delightful as it may be in a small sense, would be improved by more boldness and breadth of style and less attention to the minutia of composition. His "Bushman's Memories" (No. 185} is another painting thoroughly romantic in subject but also thoroughly imaginative in treatment. Mr W. Menzies Gibb contributes several oil paintings, of which 136, " Cosmos Peaks," is the best. There is a welldone foreground of still water with cattle deeding among the flax. His bush scene (No. 157) is a well-drawn picture of a forest clearing. Mr Handel Gear is best vapresented by a couple of well-executed heads h\ crayons : the small landscape ho sends being little likely to add to his reputation. The president of the Christchuach Society (Mr Boetham) sends one or two landscapes, of which 164 is the most noticeable; and Mr Blomfield has several pictures hung, of which No. 148, although not faultless, shows considerable merit. The turbulent creek cascading through the gorge is in many respects a clever bit of work. Mr J. Gibb's " Morning off Cape Brett " is a somewhat startling effect. _ The day is dawning with an angry flush, which throws the huge rock in the centre of the picture into sombre relief. The reflection upon the waves is particularly good, and there is much to admire about the work. Mr Corbetfc has several pieces hung, one of which has special interest as a figure study, showing the " Herd Laddie " in the act of tackling an opponent; at draughts. Mr Howorth's " Squally Weather " (No. 15) is & meritorious water colour, gloomy in tone, as it depicts a stretch of stormy sea washing ft line of gleaming r6cks. Miss Mnxwcll sends a couple of little paintings, of which 168 " Evening from Vauxhall Turnstile " (wrongly named in the catalogue) is the best. There are indeed several younger members of the society who bid fair to gain prominence in forthcoming exhibitions, while the work of most of our well-known artists fully sustains their reputation. We subjoin the conclusion of our first notice, which was crushed out of last issue: — Earlier mention might have been made of Miss F. M. WimperiJ, who sends some really beautiful flower panels, some of them painted upon a gold ground — a very happy idea from a decorative point of view. Miss Sperrey uanuob fail to obtain attention for several heads she sends, noticeable for her usual breadth and boldness of execution. No. 223 is perhaps her best. Miss Park, also skilled in portrait painting, has a cleverly painted interior, which, although showing some doubtful drawing, will win great approval on account of the central figure—a skilful piece of painting, and a marvellous likeness. Messrs Porretfc and Brooke Smith send works not without merit, but which leave room for improvement, especially as regards drawing; Bishop Nevill sends one or two tasteful little water colour landscapes; and there are one or two comparatively new contributors whose work fihows decided promise. Foremost nmong th«f.e is Mr A. H. O'Keefe, who has a couple of heads remarkable for 'originality and artistic spirit. Mr J. Morris, jun.,too, shows a sketch of groy wintry sea, surmounted by heavy banks of clouds, so good in tasto and execution as to promise him considerable success in oil colours. There are a number of other works

i which deserve and will receive ittishfcton In a subsequent notioe» , . . . . , . , The drawing for prices m the art unioh took place onftidSn with fWlojnngj Jffe First prifce, £10, Mr G. «• « os gf 0 ' fourth, ITS! ftdlaway; fifth, £5, Professor Packer; sixth, £s, Professor Sale ; seventh, £4, MrMunro; eighth, U t ?r Spencej mnth, *8, Mr W. Wilson ; tenth, £8, Mr Churchward. We are pleased to notide that a good number of pictures haVe ftebh sold.