OCR Text |
Show Outstanding Paintings Mark the1938 Exhibit As the Opening Nears scene that each item seems to contribute con-tribute to the unity . of the whole. In the subtle and varying shades of color one feels t'he artist's rare color sense. Marguerite S. Pearson is a versatile ver-satile artist; her portraits, figure paintings and still-life studies appear ap-pear in many exhibitions throughout through-out the country; in the National Academy in New York; , at the Pennsylvania Academy; in Washington; Wash-ington; in Chicago and elsewhere. Alice Lawton in the Boston Sunday Sun-day Post says of her: "Like President Presi-dent Roosevelt, Miss Pearson has battled courageously with aftereffects after-effects of an attack of infantile paralysis, and despite the grave handicap it has imposed upon her, has developed here great gift, her work increasing steadily in fine quality.' To see her at work and then to look upon her paintings is an inspiration, and makes one feel that no obstacles are too difficult diffi-cult to overcome if one has the spirit to achieve." H. Dudley Murphy, whose "Marigolds "Mar-igolds and Cosmos," last year's purchase picture, 'has endeared him to the hearts of art lovers throughout the state, is this year represented by two canvases. "Peonies" and "Zinnias and Marigolds." Mari-golds." They are typical of the light and charm, the perfume of freshly-cut blooms, the skilful workmanship and technique, the hot-tob'-obvious' attention to detail for which this artist is famous. Mr. Murphy, who was born in Marlboro, Massachusetts, in 1867, is a pupil of the Boston Museum school, and has studied under Laurens in Paris. He is a member of scores of art- associations, is noted as a designer of frames, and is an instructor in drawing and a member of the Faculty of Architecture at Harvard university. univer-sity. His interest in still-life and in nature's marvels as shown in such paintings as "Rhododendrons," "Rhododen-drons," a Ranger fund purchase of 1933; "Still-life," Albright Art gallery, Buffalo, New York; "Mt. Monadnock," Ail Institute, Tenn; BY MAK HUNTINGTON Opening with impressive exercises exer-cises on Friday, April 1, the seventeenth annual exhibition of contemporary American art at the Springviiie high school will be the mecca of Utah's art-minded during dur-ing the month. With the broader recognition of Springviiie as an art center of importance, which has come about as more and more of the country's notable painters are attracted to it, an increasing number of people in the inter-mountain inter-mountain region find it an event they cannot afford to miss. One is impressed immediately on entering the gallery with the extraordinary number of interesting interest-ing names on the list of contributors, contrib-utors, names that have a vast drawing power in any art show. It is to be noted, too, that the group 'of paintings representing our Utah colony offers one of the strong parts of the exhibition. One notes with interest the great number of portraits and figure fig-ure paintings in this year's show. So numerous are they, in fact that the entire west gallery is devoted de-voted solely to their hanging. The broad halls leading north and east from the stairway are devoted to the display of flower and still-life studies, while the two large galleries gal-leries on the east and south are well filled with landscapes and mfl1-in ivhilp nils, as usual, predominate pre-dominate there is more than the usual number of water-colors to be found in the landscape group. Among the newcomers this year, Ernest L. Blumeschein, an. artist occupying a prominent place among the Taos artists, will provide pro-vide discussion. Born in Pittsburg in 1874, Mr. Blumcnschein, after receiving his art training in Cincinnati, Cin-cinnati, in New York, and m Paris, spent twelve years illustrating illus-trating for Harper's, McClure's, Scribner's, the Century, and other magazines. During this period he was especially interested in portraiture, por-traiture, .but since his first visit to Taos that region and its people have occupied most of his time j and . "Tropic Castles," . in the Cleveland Art museum. Charles P. Gruppe of New York has three thoroughly delightful canvases on a smaller scale. All three were painted in Europe, and suggest the refinement of workmanship, work-manship, delicacy of color, elusive-ness elusive-ness of spirit, and quiet splendor that are characteristic of all Mr. Gruppe's paintings. "Transparent Sails," by Anthony Anth-ony Thieme of Rockport, Mass., is a valuable addition to the exhibition. exhi-bition. The glittering light on shivering water together witr the staying quality of vertical lines and solid mass at the side makes one feel the sincerity oi the artist. Rather dull, though rich and intimate, color caressing the bulky hulls of the ships at dock, the water-was'her pier, and the weather-worn building give a note of stability and endurance to the scene. A delightful joyousness in. the clear blue-gray sky and in the frank blue surface of the water wa-ter form a striking contrast to dark masses of building in the background. In all his canvases Thieme shows his typical love of the sea and life connected with it. His other entries in the show - "Moonlight" and "Eastport, Maine.".. Anthony Thieme, whose "Hauling "Haul-ing Nets," is one of the fine possessions pos-sessions in the permanent collection collec-tion was born in Rotterdam, Holland. Hol-land. He is a pupil of George Hacker; of the Academy of Fine Arte; The Hague, Holland; Gar-lobini, Gar-lobini, Italy. He is a member of numerous art clubs and has won most of the finest prizes offered to artists in America. William Ritschel has two impressive im-pressive canvases "Midnight Fishing," Fish-ing," which represents his .favorite .favor-ite subject, the sea, in one of her tranquil, mystic moods, and "The Stampede" which takes him for from the beaten path to the trackless track-less prairie. Both canvases portray por-tray the virility and originality w'hich place this artist among the first in America. Mr. Ritschel lives in Carmel, California, and highly regarded in Springviiie for his "Sea Rover," one of the finest paintings in the school's permanent per-manent . collection. Fera Webber Shear has three large flower subjects of exquisite beauty, painted with the strength and grace that characterize thi le (Continued on lnge Six) and interest. His entry, "Three Against a , Sunset Sky," is typical of the strength, the dignity, and poise that characterize all his works. The colors are strong and rich, full of vital force; the palpitating light is reflected from the sunset sun-set sky through the barren branches of the great spreading tree with a strength that is wholly convincing. Mr. Blumenschein's wife, Mary Greene Blumenschein, whose work has been well received in exhibitions both in this country and in France, has a very interesting inter-esting Indian subject "Acoma Legend." Abbott F. Graves' entry "Venezuela "Vene-zuela Flower Girls," is in a much lighter key, and presents something some-thing of the romantic, a wonderful realm of which he gives us glimpses glimp-ses flowery meadows and bosky groves peopled by youth and beauty. It is a world that touches the real world only remotely, a world of blossoms and youth and blue-gray distance rendered with exquisite tenderness. The artist has dealt skilfully with his figures; fig-ures; he has caught them as they saunter leisurely with the breath of their flowers about them. The coloring in their dresses is subdued, sub-dued, yet it twinkles in the sunlight. sun-light. A sparkle and sheen on the surface of the canvas add to the feeling of unreality in the picture. Abbott F. Graves was born in Weym o u t h, Massachusetts, in 1859. After studying in the Massachusetts Mass-achusetts Institute of Technology, he went to Paris where he worked under Cormon, Laurens, and Ger-vais. Ger-vais. He is a member of numerous numer-ous art clubs, has won many important im-portant prizes and awards both at home and abroad and is represented repre-sented in many large galleries in the cast. Mr. Graves has exhibited in the Spr'ngville gallery for a number of years and his paintings have received high praise from both critics and students. Another favorite exhib'.tor of former years is Marguerite S-Pearson, S-Pearson, whose "Snowbound" was purchased by the school a few years ago and is now in the permanent per-manent collection. Her entry this year is "Empire Period," in which (he principal f:gure is a girl, clad in an Empire gown of the sheer material which Miss Pearson paints so skilfully. There is a great deal of detail in the painting but it is so artistically included in tt OUTSTANDING PAINTINGS (Continued from Page One) iriLcrtrstinfc artist. They are "Oriental "Ori-ental Poppies," "Real LilPos," ami "Trish Kk-gance Ko.sch." Nfll Win liter Warner al.so contributes three flower canvases "DucJi Hahy," "Etched Va.se," and "Iris in Yellow Howl," all exceedingly interesting both because of their subject matter and their strength of execut 'on. Jane Free man's "Anemones," Maria J. 8 1 ream's "Larkspur and Lilies," and "Flowers "Flow-ers and Kpode," by Carl Lnwless a re. va I liable additions to this group. Among the portraits there is no more interesting piece than "Karen," "Kar-en," by Waymau Adams, a delightful de-lightful production, the broad, swift strokes, simplicity and sincerity sin-cerity suggesting the work of Robert Henri. Karen is a tcwitch- i ing little maid whose eyes twin-j twin-j klu with mischief and whose smile I wears r.ht; unconscious charm 01 I childhood. It Is said of this artist that "probably none of the younger group of portrait painters is better bet-ter known than VVayman Adams, both because of the excellence of his work and because he has paint- ' m so many well-known people." ' The first of these to win important impor-tant recognition was one of Booth ; Tarkington, which has been ex- : tensively exhibited in America, : 1 and was one of the American paintings secured by invitation for the Luxembourg Exhibition of 1919. It was later shown in the 1 nternr.vional Exposition, Venice. I ; He h;is also painted many impor- Lant American artists among Vhnm arc Pennell, Redfietd, J. C-ij Adams anl others. Contributions from various art gaik-j'cs, both cast and west, are much more numerous than ever before and add materially to the interest of the exhibit. Among these are the Carnegie hall, the Reinhan.lt, the Ricker, the Grand Central, and Macbeth galleries of New York, the Turner gallery, Denver; the Stcndahl gallery, Los Angeles; and the Vose gallery, Boston. This display from the Vose is especially noteworthy. The largest canvas of the group I is "Three Portraits," painted by Sargeant Kendall of Hot Springs, Va. Tt is an impressive canvas, representative of the best in American portrait painting. The , subject is one that cannot fail in its appeal that of a mother and her two little daughters. The pleasant effect of the figure arrangement ar-rangement is heightened by grace of tone and workmanship. The mother element is forcefully por- ; trayed in the calmness of spirit revealed in the faces a penetrating penetrat-ing peace as much of the result perhaps, of the quiet and subdued sub-dued coloring as of the subject itself. The mysterious essence we call personal charm that hovers I around the three figures is of the spirit; we feel the intimate presence pres-ence through the eloquent eyes and expressive faces. Every line in the composition, every "color element, every gradation gra-dation of tone lends to the perfection perfec-tion of the whole. Music itself could not soothe with a more harmonious har-monious melody than does this picture. W. Sargeant Kendall, the artist, art-ist, born in 1869 in Spuyten, Duy-vil, Duy-vil, N. Y., was a youthful prodigy who has continued to do good work. He entered the Art Stu-I Stu-I dents' League, New York, when he was seventeen, began his study ; at the Ecole des Beaux Arts, i Paris, at nineteen, and had a pic-j pic-j ture accepted at the salon when ! he was twenty-one years of age. Painting children is his spec-' spec-' ialty and many of his best pic-i pic-i t ures are of his own daughters. I Among his best-known works are: Beatrice," Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts; "The Seer" and 'Psyche," Metropolitan Museum, .New York; "An Interlude,"" Na-! Na-! tional gallery, Washington; and : "Crosslights," Detroit Institute of Arts, "Narcissa'' Corcoran gallery. gal-lery. Washington. ! Different in workmanship and technique, yet equally interesting from several standpoints is the figure-painting "Deborah," by Othmar Hofflcr, also a Vase gal-1 gal-1 Iery entry. Here, too, we have the , color resting on a low key, but drawn and painted with a large. ! free gesture. Striking virility and ! exceptional tenderness are har-1 har-1 moniscd in the central figure, that ; of t'ne young girl, Deborah, devoutly de-voutly clasping her bible 5n her hand. The dog, faithfully crouched beside her, has a look of eager expectancy and almost human intelligence in-telligence as he patiently awaits the order of his mistress. The setting which is the interior ot a rude cabin is rather suggested than stated in definite terms. Othmar Hoffler, who lives in Chicago, will be remembered for his canvas, "Autumn in Indiana, ' a delightful landscape exhibited in last year's show. In his canvas "Uv Where the Big Winds Blow," Wm. R. Leight presents a view of the Navajo Indian m his native environment. The artist's sympathy and understanding, under-standing, of the Indians are perhaps per-haps responsible for the note of pathos that vibrates through the scene. The fiercely straining horse, striving to reaoh the summit where are found freedom and peace typifies the struggle of the rcdman to retain 'his identity, by pushing farther and farther from the haunts of civilization. Mr. Leigh pictures the Navajo as well-formed, well-formed, alert, quick of comprehension, compre-hension, impulsive, and altogether delightful. His portrayal of the marvelous coloring under the sun's evening rays, the clarity of the atmosphere intensifying the s'heen of the sagebrush and the glitter of the sand and opalescence of the overhanging sky is most convincing. convinc-ing. Mr. Leigh was born in his father's plantation in Berkley county, West Virginia. His first training in art was at the Maryland Mary-land Institute and at seventeen he went to Munich, Germany, to study. He did not return to America Amer-ica to live until he was thirty years old. It was several years . later that he became interested in the Indians of the west and the Navajo Indian in his native haunts, and began to paint them. His Indian paintings now hang in most of the large galleries of the country. Mr. Leigh is at present pres-ent living in New York City where he is in charge of backgrounds and settings for various groups displayed in African hall in the New York Museum of Natural History. Bruce Crane's "Meadow Pool," is a painting that makes no insistent in-sistent appeal to attention, but ---12 I elude: "Sunset," by William Keith; "On the Long Trail," by Frank V. Smith, and "The Green Pool," by William Ritsc'hel. ; its presence is felt half unconsciously unconsci-ously like that of old and sympathetic sympa-thetic friends whose real value can only be comprehended after long acquaintance. This artist is especially fond of picturing the landscape in late fall or eavly winter before the snow :s heavy enough to hide the seared growths of the summer before. One critic has said that "to describe autumn as Bruce Crane pictures it is about as impossible as to implant the song of the lark into the j heart of one who has never heard it." In his sympathetic rendering of the landscape he is a worthy pupil of his great master, Alexander Alex-ander H. Wyant. "The pictures of none of our artists are more perfect per-fect in tonal quality." "Mojave Desert," by J. Bond Francisco is an attractive canvas whose warm brown shades reveal how much of feeling a landscape can be made to express. Others of the Vose group in- |