,transcriber's note3 ,bracketted lower case letters refer to notes at the end of the texta ,at the end of this text ,i have provided some links to ,internet sites which have more information about some of the artists1 some of which may have color images similar to the ones presented in this book4 ,,great ,,pictures ,as ,seen and ,described by ,famous ,writers ,edited and ,translated by ,,esther ,,singleton ,author of ,turrets1 ,towers1 and ,temples and ,translator of ,the ,music ,dramas of ,richard ,wagner ,with ,numerous ,illustrations ,illustration3 ,,fisherman ,,presenting ,,the ,,ring ,,to ,,the ,,doge ,,gradenigo4 ,bordone4 ,new ,york ,dodd1 ,mead and ,company ,copyright1 #ahii ,by ,dodd1 ,mead and ,company ,preface ,the cordial reception of ,turrets1 ,towers1 and ,temples has encouraged me to hope that a welcome may be given to a book treating the masterpieces of painting in a similar manner4 ,great writers and literary tourists have occasionally been inspired to record the impressions of their saunterings among galleries and museums4 ,the most interesting of these1 not necessarily professional1 ,i have tried to bring together in the following pages4 ,my object has been not to make a selection of the greatest pictures in the world1 although many that have that reputation will be found here1 but rather to bring together those that have produced a powerful impression on great minds4 ,consequently1 when the reader is disturbed at the omission of some world-famous painting1 ,i beg him to remember my plan and blame the great writers instead of me for neglecting his favourite4 ,my task has not been a light one4 ,a few words of rapturous admiration are constantly to be met with in the pages of art-lovers1 but a sympathetic study of a single work is rarely found4 ,general comment of a given artist's work is also plentiful1 while discriminating praise of individual canvases is scanty4 ,the literary selection has1 therefore1 involved a great deal of research4 ,from time to time the relative popularity of painters shifts strangely1 but no matter what inconstant fashion may dictate1 or what may be the cult of the hour1 certain paintings never lose their prestige1 but annually attract as many pilgrims as ,lourdes or ,fusi-,san4 ,of modern painters ,i have only included ,turner and ,rossetti4 ,it is interesting to compare the example ,i have chosen from ,rossetti with ,leonardo's ,monna ,lisa4 ,pater has admirably brought out1 without dwelling too much upon it1 the charm that is eternal in her face as well as the fantastic imagination of the great artist who created her for all time4 ,he says3 ,the fancy of a perpetual life1 sweeping together ten thousand experiences1 is an old one4444 ,certainly ,lady ,lisa might stand as the embodiment of the old fancy1 the symbol of the modern idea4 ,in a similar sense ,lilith the siren1 the ,lorelei1 the eternal enchantress1 in her modern robe1 is the embodiment of a new fancy1 the symbol of the ancient idea2 and just here across four centuries the thoughts of two great artists meet4 ,the types of beauty and women in this book offer no little suggestion to the fancy4 ,from ,botticelli's ,la ,bella ,simonetta1 and ,raphael's ,la ,fornarina1 through all the periods of painting the model has been a great influence upon the painter's work1 and upon this point nearly every essayist and critic represented in these pages dwells4 ,in many of the essays1 such as ,pater's on ,botticelli1 and ,swinburne's on ,andrea del ,sarto1 the author strays away from the painting to talk of the painter1 but in doing this he gives us so thoroughly the spirit of that painter that a fuller light is thrown upon the picture before us4 ,i have included a few criticisms by modern ,french critics1 ,,mm4 ,valabrgue1 ,lafond1 ,giron1 ,guiffrey1 and ,reymond1 recognized authorities upon the artists whose works they describe2 and ,i have selected ,fromentin's valuable essay on ,the ,night ,watch1 feeling sure that this thoughtful criticism would interest even the enthusiastic admirers of this enigmatical work4 ,i have been careful to take no unnecessary liberties with the text4 ,in the translations from ,gruyer1 ,goethe1 ,fromentin1 and others1 which were unfortunately too long to be included entire1 ,i have not allowed myself to condense1 but only to cut4 ,this is true1 also1 of the ,english extracts4 ,e4,s4 ,,new ,,york1 ,september1 #ahii4 ,contents ,,the ,,fisherman ,,presenting ,,the ,,ring ,,to ,,the ,,doge ,,gradenigo ,bordone #a ,,th,,ophile ,,gautier4 ,,the ,,birth ,,of ,,venus ,botticelli #e ,,walter ,,pater4 ,,the ,,queen ,,of ,,sheba ,veronese #af ,,john ,,ruskin4 ,,the ,,last ,,judgment ,michael ,angelo #ah ,,alexandre ,,dumas4 ,,magdalen ,,in ,,the ,,desert ,correggio #bg ,,aim ,,giron4 ,,banquet ,,of ,,the ,,arquebusiers ,van der ,helst #cc ,,william ,,makepeace ,,thackeray4 ,l',,embarquement ,,pour ,l',,le ,,de ,,cyth,,re ,watteau #ch ,,edmond ,,and ,,jules ,,de ,,goncourt4 ,,the ,,sistine ,,madonna ,raphael #de ,f4,a4 ,,gruyer4 ,,the ,,dream ,,of ,,st4 ,,ursula ,carpaccio #eh ,,john ,,ruskin4 ,,the ,,descent ,,from ,,the ,,cross ,rubens #fb ,,eug,,ne ,,fromentin4 ,,bacchus ,,and ,,ariadne ,titian #ga ,i4 ,,charles ,,lamb4 ,,ii4 ,,edward ,t4 ,,cook4 ,,the ,,coronation ,,of ,,the ,,virgin ,fra ,angelico #gg ,,th,,ophile ,,gautier4 ,,judith ,botticelli #hj ,,maurice ,,hewlett4 ,,the ,,avenue ,,of ,,middelharnais ,hobbema #hh ,,paul ,,lafond4 ,,the ,,dance ,,of ,,the ,,daughter ,,of ,,herodias ,andrea del ,sarto #ic ,,algernon ,,charles ,,swinburne4 ,,adoration ,,of ,,the ,,magi ,fabriano #ih ,f4,a4 ,,gruyer4 ,,portrait ,,of ,,georg ,,gisze ,holbein #aja ,,antony ,,valabr,,gue4 ,,paradise ,tintoret #ajf ,,john ,,ruskin4 ,,aurora ,guido ,reni #aad ,i4 ,,charlotte ,a4 ,,eaton4 ,,ii4 ,,john ,,constable4 ,,the ,,assumption ,,of ,,the ,,virgin ,titian #aai ,,th,,ophile ,,gautier4 ,,the ,,night ,,watch ,rembrandt #abd ,,eug,,ne ,,fromentin4 ,,the ,,rape ,,of ,,helen ,gozzoli #ach ,,cosmo ,,monkhouse ,,monna ,,lisa ,leonardo da ,vinci #adb ,,walter ,,pater4 ,,the ,,adoration ,,of ,,the ,,lamb ,van ,eyck #aed ,,kugler4 ,,the ,,death ,,of ,,procris ,piero di ,cosimo #afh ,i4 ,,edward ,t4 ,,cook4 ,,ii4 ,,john ,,addington ,,symonds4 ,,the ,,marriage ,,in ,,cana ,tintoret #agb ,,john ,,ruskin4 ,,madame ,,de ,,pompadour ,de la ,tour #agg ,,charles-,,augustin ,,sainte-,,beuve4 ,,the ,,hay ,,wain ,constable #ahd ,c4,l4 ,,burns4 ,,the ,,surrender ,,of ,,breda ,velasquez #aia ,,th,,ophile ,,gautier4 ,,the ,,immaculate ,,conception ,murillo #aif ,,aim ,,giron4 ,,st4 ,,francis ,,before ,,the ,,soldan ,giotto #bjb ,,john ,,ruskin4 ,,lilith ,rossetti #bab ,,algernon ,,charles ,,swinburne4 ,,adoration ,,of ,,the ,,magi ,drer #bae ,,moriz ,,thausing4 ,,marriage ,a-,,la-,,mode ,hogarth #bah ,,austin ,,dobson4 ,,the ,,madonna ,,of ,,the ,,rocks ,leonardo da ,vinci #bcd ,,th,,ophile ,,gautier ,,beatrice ,,cenci ,guido ,reni #bci ,,percy ,,bysshe ,,shelley ,,the ,,transfiguration ,raphael #bdi ,,mrs4 ,,jameson ,,the ,,bull ,paul ,potter #bef ,,eug,,ne ,,fromentin ,,cor,,sus ,,and ,,callirho ,fragonard #bfb ,,edmond ,,and ,,jules ,,de ,,goncourt ,,the ,,market-,,cart ,gainsborough #bfh ,,richard ,,and ,,samuel ,,redgrave ,,bacchus ,,and ,,ariadne ,tintoret #bgc ,,hippolyte ,,adolphe ,,taine ,,bacchus ,,and ,,ariadne #bgh ,,anonymous ,,la ,,cruche ,,cass,e ,greuze #bhj ,,th,,ophile ,,gautier ,,portrait ,,of ,,lady ,,cockburn ,,and ,,her ,,children ,reynolds #bhb ,,frederic ,g4 ,,stephens ,,st4 ,,cecilia ,raphael #bhg ,,percy ,,bysshe ,,shelley ,,the ,,last ,,supper ,leonardo da ,vinci #bhi ,,johann ,,wolfgang ,,von ,,goethe ,,the ,,children ,,of ,,charles ,i4 ,van dyck #cjj ,,jules ,,guiffrey ,,the ,,fighting ,t,m,,raire ,,tugged ,,to ,,her ,,last ,,berth ,,to ,,be ,,broken ,,up1 #ahch ,turner #cjf ,,john ,,ruskin ,,spring ,botticelli #cac ,,marcel ,,reymond ,illustrations ,,bordone ,fisherman presenting the ,ring to the ,doge ,gradenigo ,venice ,frontispiece ,,facing ,,page ,,botticelli ,the ,birth of ,venus ,florence #f ,,veronese ,the ,queen of ,sheba ,turin #af ,,michael ,,angelo ,the ,last ,judgment ,rome #ah ,,correggio ,magdalen ,dresden #bh ,,van ,,der ,,helst ,the ,banquet of the ,arquebusiers ,amsterdam #cd ,,watteau ,l',embarquement pour l'le de ,cythre ,paris #ch ,,raphael ,the ,sistine ,madonna ,dresden #df ,,carpaccio ,the ,dream of ,st4 ,ursula ,venice #eh ,,rubens ,the ,descent from the ,cross ,antwerp #fb ,,titian ,bacchus and ,ariadne ,london #gb ,,fra ,,angelico ,the ,coronation of the ,virgin ,paris #gh ,,botticelli ,judith ,florence #hj ,,hobbema ,the ,avenue of ,middelharnais ,london #hh ,,andrea ,,del ,,sarto ,the ,dance of the ,daughter of ,herodias ,florence #id ,,fabriano ,the ,adoration of the ,magi ,florence #ih ,,holbein ,portrait of ,georg ,gisze ,berlin #ajb ,,tintoret ,paradise ,venice #ajf ,,guido ,,reni ,aurora ,rome #aad ,,titian ,the ,assumption of the ,virgin ,venice #abj ,,rembrandt ,the ,night ,watch ,amsterdam #abd ,,gozzoli ,the ,rape of ,helen ,london #ach ,l4 ,,da ,,vinci ,monna ,lisa ,paris #adb ,,van ,,eyck ,the ,adoration of the ,lamb ,ghent #aed ,,piero ,,di ,,cosimo ,the ,death of ,procris ,london #afh ,,tintoret ,the ,marriage in ,cana ,venice #agb ,,de ,,la ,,tour ,portrait of ,madame de ,pompadour ,paris #agh ,,constable ,the ,hay ,wain ,london #ahd ,,velasquez ,the ,surrender of ,breda ,madrid #aib ,,murillo ,the ,immaculate ,conception ,paris #aif ,,giotto ,st4 ,frances before the ,soldan ,florence #bjb ,,rossetti ,lilith ,rockford1 ,del4 #bab ,d,,rer ,the ,adoration of the ,magi ,florence #baf ,,hogarth ,the ,marriage ,a-la-,mode ,london #bah ,l4 ,,da ,,vinci ,the ,madonna of the ,rocks ,paris #bcd ,,guido ,,reni ,portrait of ,beatrice ,cenci ,rome #bdj ,,raphael ,the ,transfiguration ,rome #bej ,,paul ,,potter ,the ,bull ,the ,hague #bef ,,fragonard ,corsus and ,callirho ,paris #bfb ,,gainsborough ,the ,market-,cart ,london #bfh ,,tintoret ,bacchus and ,ariadne ,venice #bgd ,,greuze ,la ,cruche ,casse ,paris #bhj ,,reynolds ,portrait of ,lady ,cockburn and her ,children ,london #bhb ,,raphael ,st4 ,cecilia ,naples #bhh ,l4 ,,da ,,vinci ,the ,last ,supper ,milan #bij ,,van ,,dyck ,portrait of the ,children of ,charles ,i4 ,turin #cjj ,,turner ,the ,fighting ,tmraire ,london #cjf ,,botticelli ,spring ,florence #cad ,,great ,,pictures ,,described ,,by ,,great ,,writers ,,the ,,fisherman ,,presenting ,,the ,,ring ,,to ,,the ,,doge ,,gradenigo 7,,bordone7 ,,th,,ophile ,,gautier ,this picture1 which represents a gondolier returning the ring of ,saint ,mark to the ,doge1 treats of a legend1 an episode of which ,giorgione1 as we shall see in the next hall1 has also painted in a somewhat singular manner4 ,here is the story in a few words3 ,one night while the gondolier was sleeping in his gondola1 waiting for custom along the canal of ,s4 ,giorgio ,maggiore1 three mysterious individuals jumped into his boat and bade him take them to the ,lido2 one of the three persons1 as well as he could be distinguished in the darkness1 appeared to have the beard of an apostle and the figure of a high dignitary of the ,church2 the two others1 by a certain sound as of armour rubbing beneath their mantles1 revealed themselves as men-at-arms4 ,the gondolier turned his prow towards the ,lido and began to row2 but the lagoon1 so tranquil at their departure1 began to chop and swell strangely3 the waves gleamed with sinstera lights2 monstrous apparitions were outlined menacingly around the barque to the great terror of the gondolier2 and hideous spirits of evil and devils half man half fish seemed to be swimming from the ,lido towards ,venice1 making the waves emit thousands of sparks and exciting the tempest with whistling and fiendish laughter in the storm2 but the appearance of the shining swords of the two knights and the extended hand of the saintly personage made them recoil and vanish in sulphurous explosions4 ,the battle lasted for a long time2 new demons constantly succeeded the others2 however1 the victory remained with the personages in the boat1 who had themselves taken back to the landing of the ,piazzetta4 ,the gondolier scarcely knew what to think of their strange conduct2 until1 as they were about to separate1 the oldest of the group1 suddenly causing his nimbus to shine out again1 said to the gondolier3 ,i am ,saint ,mark1 the patron of ,venice4 ,i learned to-night that the devils assembled in convention at the ,lido in the cemetery of the ,jews1 had formed the resolution of exciting a frightful tempest and overthrowing my beloved city1 under the pretext that many excesses are committed there which give the evil spirits power over her inhabitants2 but as ,venice is a good ,catholic and will confess her sins in the beautiful cathedral which she has raised to me1 ,i resolved to defend her from this peril of which she was ignorant1 by the aid of these two brave companions1 ,saint ,george and ,saint ,theodore1 and ,i have borrowed thy boat2 now1 as all trouble merits reward1 and as thou hast passed a boisterous night1 here is my ring2 carry it to the ,doge and tell him what thou hast seen4 ,he will fill thy cap with golden sequins4 ,so saying1 the ,saint resumed his position on the top of the porch of ,saint ,mark's1 ,saint ,theodore climbed to the top of his column1 where his crocodile was grumbling with ill-humour1 and ,saint ,george went to squat in the depths of his columned niche in the great window of the ,ducal ,palace4 ,the gondolier1 rather astonished1 and he had reason enough1 would have believed that he had been dreaming after drinking during that evening several glasses too many of the wine of ,samos1 if the large and heavy golden ring studded with precious stones which he held in his hand had not prevented his doubting the reality of the events of the night4 ,therefore1 he went to find the ,doge1 who was presiding over the ,senate in his cap of office1 and1 respectfully kneeling before him1 he related the story of the battle between the devils and the patron saints of ,venice4 ,at first this story seemed incredible2 but the return of the ring1 which was in very sooth that of ,saint ,mark1 and the absence of which from the church treasury was established1 proved the gondolier's veracity4 ,this ring1 locked up under triple keys in a carefully-guarded treasury1 the bolts of which showed no trace of disturbance1 could only have been removed by supernatural means4 ,they filled the gondolier's cap with gold and celebrated a mass of thanksgiving for the peril they had escaped4 ,this did not prevent the ,venetians from continuing their dissolute course of life1 from spending their nights in the haunts of play1 at gay suppers1 and in love-making2 in masking for intrigues1 and in prolonging the long orgy of their carnival for six months in the year4 ,the ,venetians counted upon the protection of ,saint ,mark to go to paradise and they took no other care of their salvation4 ,that was ,saint ,mark's affair2 they had built him a fine church for that1 and the ,saint was still under obligations to them4 ,the moment selected by ,paris ,bordone is that when the gondolier falls on his knees before the ,doge4 ,the composition of the scene is very picturesque2 you see in perspective a long row of the brown or grey heads of senators of the most magisterial character4 ,curious spectators are on the steps1 forming happily-contrasted groups3 the beautiful ,venetian costume is displayed here in all its splendour4 ,here1 as in all the canvases of this school1 an important place is given to architecture4 ,the background is occupied by fine porticos in the style of ,palladio1 animated with people coming and going4 ,this picture possesses the merit1 sufficiently rare in the ,italian school1 which is almost exclusively occupied with the reproduction of religious or mythological subjects1 of representing a popular legend1 a scene of manners1 in a word1 a romantic subject such as ,delacroix or ,louis ,boulanger might have chosen and treated according to his own special talent2 and this gives it a character of its own and an individual charm4 ,voyage en ,italie 7,paris1 new ed41 #ahhd74 ,,the ,,birth ,,of ,,venus 7,,botticelli7 ,,walter ,,pater ,in ,leonardo's treatise on painting only one contemporary is mentioned by name--,sandro ,botticelli4 ,this pre-eminence may be due to chance only1 but to some will rather appear a result of deliberate judgment2 for people have begun to find out the charm of ,botticelli's work1 and his name1 little known in the last century1 is quietly becoming important4 ,in the middle of the ,fifteenth ,century he had already anticipated much of that meditative subtlety which is sometimes supposed peculiar to the great imaginative workmen of its close4 ,leaving the simple religion which had occupied the followers of ,giotto for a century1 and the simple naturalism which had grown out of it1 a thing of birds and flowers only1 he sought inspiration in what to him were works of the modern world1 the writings of ,dante and ,boccaccio1 and in new readings of his own of classical stories2 or if he painted religious subjects1 painted them with an undercurrent of original sentiment which touches you as the real matter of the picture through the veil of its ostensible subject4 ,what is the peculiar sensation1 what is the peculiar quality of pleasure which his work has the property of exciting in us1 and which we cannot get elsewhere8 ,for this1 especially when he has to speak of a comparatively unknown artist1 is always the chief question which a critic has to answer4 ,in an age when the lives of artists were full of adventure1 his life is almost colourless4 ,criticism indeed has cleared away much of the gossip which ,vasari accumulated1 has touched the legend of ,lippo and ,lucrezia1 and rehabilitated the character of ,andrea del ,castagno2 but in ,botticelli's case there is no legend to dissipate4 ,he did not even go by his true name3 ,sandro is a nickname1 and his true name is ,filipepi1 ,botticelli being only the name of the goldsmith who first taught him art4 ,only two things happened to him1 two things which he shared with other artists--he was invited to ,rome to paint in the ,sistine ,chapel1 and he fell in later life under the influence of ,savonarola1 passing apparently almost out of men's sight in a sort of religious melancholy which lasted till his death in #aeae1 according to the received date4 ,vasari says that he plunged into the study of ,dante1 and even wrote a comment on the ,divine ,comedy4 ,but it seems strange that he should have lived on inactive so long2 and one almost wishes that some document might come to light which1 fixing the date of his death earlier1 might relieve one1 in thinking of him1 of his dejected old age4 ,illustration3 ,,the ,,birth ,,of ,,venus4 ,botticelli4 ,he is before all things a poetical painter1 blending the charm of story and sentiment1 the medium of the art of poetry1 with the charm of line and colour1 the medium of abstract painting4 ,so he becomes the illustrator of ,dante4 ,in a few rare examples of the edition of #adha1 the blank spaces left at the beginning of every canto for the hand of the illuminator have been filled as far as the nineteenth canto of the ,inferno1 with impressions of engraved plates1 seemingly by way of experiment1 for in the copy in the ,bodleian ,library1 one of the three impressions it contains has been printed upside down and much awry in the midst of the luxurious printed page4 ,giotto1 and the followers of ,giotto1 with their almost childish religious aim1 had not learned to put that weight of meaning into outward things1 light1 colour1 every-day gesture1 which the poetry of the ,divine ,comedy involves1 and before the ,fifteenth ,century ,dante could hardly have found an illustrator4 ,botticelli's illustrations are crowded with incident1 blending with a nave carelessness of pictorial propriety three phases of the same scene into one plate4 ,the grotesques1 so often a stumbling-block to painters who forget that the words of a poet1 which only feebly present an image to the mind1 must be lowered in key when translated into form1 make one regret that he has not rather chosen for illustration the more subdued imagery of the ,purgatorio4 ,yet in the scene of those who go down quick into hell there is an invention about the fire taking hold on the up-turned soles of the feet1 which proves that the design is no mere translation of ,dante's words1 but a true painter's vision2 while the scene of the ,centaurs wins one at once1 for1 forgetful of the actual circumstances of their appearance1 ,botticelli has gone off with delight on the thought of the ,centaurs themselves1 bright small creatures of the woodland1 with arch baby faces and mignon forms1 drawing tiny bows4 ,botticelli lived in a generation of naturalists1 and he might have been a mere naturalist among them4 ,there are traces enough in his work of that alert sense of outward things which1 in the pictures of that period1 fills the lawns with delicate living creatures1 and the hill-sides with pools of water1 and the pools of water with flowering reeds4 ,but this was not enough for him2 he is a visionary painter1 and in his visionariness he resembles ,dante4 ,giotto1 the tried companion of ,dante1 ,masaccio1 ,ghirlandaio even1 do but transcribe with more or less refining the outward image2 they are dramatic1 not visionary painters2 they are almost impassive spectators of the action before them4 ,but the genius of which ,botticelli is the type usurps the data before it as the exponents of ideas1 moods1 visions of its own2 with this interest it plays fast and loose with those data1 rejecting some and isolating others1 and always combining them anew4 ,to him1 as to ,dante1 the scene1 the colour1 the outward image or gesture1 comes with all its incisive and importunate reality2 but awakes in him1 moreover1 by some subtle structure of his own1 a mood which it awakes in no one else1 of which it is the double or repetition1 and which it clothes1 that all may share it1 with sensuous circumstances4 ,but he is far enough from accepting the conventional orthodoxy of ,dante which1 referring all human action to the easy formula of purgatory1 heaven1 and hell1 leaves an insoluble element of prose in the depths of ,dante's poetry4 ,one picture of his1 with the portrait of the donor1 ,matteo ,palmieri1 below1 had the credit or discredit of attracting some shadow of ecclesiastical censure4 ,this ,matteo ,palmieri--two dim figures move under that name in contemporary history--was the reputed author of a poem1 still unedited1 ,la ,citt ,divina1 which represented the human race as an incarnation of those angels who1 in the revolt of ,lucifer1 were neither for ,god nor for his enemies1 a fantasy of that earlier ,alexandrian philosophy1 about which the ,florentine intellect in that century was so curious4 ,botticelli's picture may have been only one of those familiar compositions in which religious reverie has recorded its impressions of the various forms of beatified existence--,glorias1 as they were called1 like that in which ,giotto painted the portrait of ,dante2 but somehow it was suspected of embodying in a picture the wayward dream of ,palmieri1 and the chapel where it hung was closed4 ,artists so entire as ,botticelli are usually careless about philosophical theories1 even when the philosopher is a ,florentine of the ,fifteenth ,century1 and his work a poem in terza rima4 ,but ,botticelli1 who wrote a commentary on ,dante and became the disciple of ,savonarola1 may well have let such theories come and go across him4 ,true or false1 the story interprets much of the peculiar sentiment with which he infuses his profane and sacred persons1 comely1 and in a certain sense like angels1 but with a sense of displacement or loss about them--the wistfulness of exiles conscious of a passion and energy greater than any known issue of them explains1 which runs through all his varied work with a sentiment of ineffable melancholy4 ,so just what ,dante scorns as unworthy alike of heaven and hell1 ,botticelli accepts1 that middle world in which men take no side in great conflicts1 and decide no great causes1 and make great refusals4 ,he thus sets for himself the limits within which art1 undisturbed by any moral ambition1 does its most sincere and surest work4 ,his interest is neither in the untempered goodness of ,angelico's saints1 nor the untempered evil of ,orcagna's ,inferno2 but with men and women in their mixed and uncertain condition1 always attractive1 clothed sometimes by passion with a character of loveliness and energy1 but saddened perpetually by the shadow upon them of the great things from which they shrink4 ,his morality is all sympathy2 and it is this sympathy1 conveying into his work somewhat more than is usual of the true complexion of humanity1 which makes him1 visionary as he is1 so forcible a realist4 ,it is this which gives to his ,madonnas their unique expression and charm4 ,he has worked out in them a distinct and peculiar type1 definite enough in his own mind1 for he has painted it over and over again1 sometimes one might think almost mechanically1 as a pastime during that dark period when his thoughts were so heavy upon him4 ,hardly any collection of note is without one of these circular pictures1 into which the attendant angels depress their heads so navely4 ,perhaps you have sometimes wondered why those peevish-looking ,madonnas1 conformed to no acknowledged or obvious type of beauty1 attract you more and more1 and often come back to you when the ,sistine ,madonna and the virgins of ,fra ,angelico are forgotten4 ,at first1 contrasting them with those1 you may have thought that there was even something in them mean or abject1 for the abstract lines of the face have little nobleness and the colour is wan4 ,for with ,botticelli she too1 though she holds in her hands the ,desire of all nations1 is one of those who are neither for ,god nor for his enemies2 and her choice is on her face4 ,the white light on it is cast up hard and cheerless from below1 as when snow lies upon the ground1 and the children look up with surprise at the strange whiteness of the ceiling4 ,her trouble is in the very caress of the mysterious child1 whose gaze is always far from her1 and who has already that sweet look of devotion which men have never been able altogether to love1 and which still makes the born saint an object almost of suspicion to his earthly brethren4 ,once1 indeed1 he guides her hand to transcribe in a book the words of her exaltation1 the ,ave and the ,magnificat1 and the ,gaude ,maria1 and the young angels1 glad to rouse her for a moment from her dejection1 are eager to hold the inkhorn and support the book2 but the pen almost drops from her hand1 and the high cold words have no meaning for her1 and her true children are those others1 in the midst of whom1 in her rude home1 the intolerable honour came to her1 with that look of wistful inquiry on their irregular faces which you see in startled animals--gipsy children1 such as those who1 in ,apennine villages1 still hold out their long brown arms to beg of you1 but on ,sundays become enfants du choeur with their thick black hair nicely combed and fair white linen on their sunburnt throats4 ,what is strangest is that he carries this sentiment into classical subjects1 its most complete expression being a picture in the ,uffizi1 of ,venus rising from the sea1 in which the grotesque emblems of the middle age1 and a landscape full of its peculiar feeling1 and even its strange draperies powdered all over in the ,gothic manner with a quaint conceit of daisies1 frame a figure that reminds you of the faultless nude studies of ,ingres4 ,at first1 perhaps1 you are attracted only by a quaintness of design1 which seems to recall all at once whatever you have read of ,florence in the ,fifteenth ,century2 afterwards you may think that this quaintness must be incongruous with the subject1 and that the colour is cadaverous1 or at least cold4 ,and yet the more you come to understand what imaginative colouring really is1 that all colour is no mere delightful quality of natural things1 but a spirit upon them by which they become expressive to the spirit1 the better you will like this peculiar quality of colour2 and you will find that quaint design of ,botticelli's a more direct inlet into the ,greek temper than the works of the ,greeks themselves even of the finest period4 ,of the ,greeks as they really were1 of their difference from ourselves1 of the aspects of their outward life1 we know far more than ,botticelli1 or his most learned contemporaries2 but for us1 long familiarity has taken off the edge of the lesson1 and we are hardly conscious of what we owe to the ,hellenic spirit4 ,but in pictures like this of ,botticelli's you have a record of the first impression made by it on minds turned back towards it in almost painful aspiration from a world in which it had been ignored so long2 and in the passion1 the energy1 the industry of realization1 with which ,botticelli carries out his intention1 is the exact measure of the legitimate influence over the human mind of the imaginative system of which this is the central myth4 ,the light is1 indeed1 cold--mere sunless dawn2 but a later painter would have cloyed you with sunshine2 and you can see the better for that quietness in the morning air each long promontory as it slopes down to the water's edge4 ,men go forth to their labours until the evening2 but she is awake before them1 and you might think that the sorrow in her face was at the thought of the whole long day of love yet to come4 ,an emblematical figure of the wind blows hard across the grey water1 moving forward the dainty-lipped shell on which she sails1 the sea showing his teeth as it moves in thin lines of foam1 and sucking in one by one the falling roses1 each severe in outline1 plucked off short at the stalk1 but embrowned a little1 as ,botticelli's flowers always are4 ,botticelli meant all that imagery to be altogether pleasurable2 and it was partly an incompleteness of resources1 inseparable from the art of that time1 that subdued and chilled it2 but his predilection for minor tones counts also2 and what is unmistakable is the sadness with which he has conceived the goddess of pleasure as the depository of a great power over the lives of men4 ,i have said that the peculiar character of ,botticelli is the result of a blending in him of a sympathy for humanity in its uncertain condition1 its attractiveness1 its investiture at rarer moments in a character of loveliness and energy1 with his consciousness of the shadow upon it of the great things from which it shrinks1 and that this conveys into his work somewhat more than painting usually attains of the true complexion of humanity4 ,he paints the story of the goddess of pleasure in other episodes besides that of her birth from the sea1 but never without some shadow of death in the grey flesh and wan flowers4 ,he paints ,madonnas1 but they shrink from the pressure of the divine child1 and plead in unmistakable undertones for a warmer1 lower humanity4 ,the same figure--tradition connects it with ,simonetta1 the mistress of ,giuliano de' ,medici--appears again as ,judith returning home across the hill country when the great deed is over1 and the moment of revulsion come1 and the olive branch in her hand is becoming a burthen2 as ,justice1 sitting on a throne1 but with a fixed look of self-hatred which makes the sword in her hand seem that of a suicide2 and again as ,veritas in the allegorical picture of ,calumnia1 where one may note in passing the suggestiveness of an accident which identifies the image of ,truth with the person of ,venus4 ,we might trace the same sentiment through his engravings2 but his share in them is doubtful1 and the object of this fragment has been attained if ,i have defined aright the temper in which he worked4 ,but1 after all1 it may be asked1 is a painter like ,botticelli1 a second-rate painter1 a proper subject for general criticism8 ,there are a few great painters1 like ,michael ,angelo or ,leonardo1 whose work has become a force in general culture1 partly for this very reason that they have absorbed into themselves all such workmen as ,sandro ,botticelli2 and1 over and above mere technical or antiquarian criticism1 general criticism may be very well employed in that sort of interpretation which adjusts the position of these men to general culture1 whereas smaller men can be the proper subjects only of technical or antiquarian treatment4 ,but1 besides those great men1 there is a certain number of artists who have a distinct faculty of their own by which they convey to us a peculiar quality of pleasure which we cannot get elsewhere1 and these1 too1 have their place in general culture1 and have to be interpreted to it by those who have felt their charm strongly1 and are often the objects of a special diligence and a consideration wholly affectionate1 just because there is not about them the stress of a great name and authority4 ,of this select number ,botticelli is one2 he has the freshness1 the uncertain and diffident promise which belongs to the earlier ,renaissance itself1 and makes it perhaps the most interesting period in the history of the mind2 in studying his work one begins to understand to how great a place in human culture the art of ,italy had been called4 ,studies in the ,history of the ,renaissance 7,london1 #ahgc74 ,,the ,,queen ,,of ,,sheba 7,,veronese7 ,,john ,,ruskin ,this picture is at ,turin1 and is of quite inestimable value4 ,it is hung high2 and the really principal figure--the ,solomon1 being in the shade1 can hardly be seen1 but is painted with ,veronese's utmost tenderness1 in the bloom of perfect youth1 his hair golden1 short1 crisply curled4 ,he is seated high on his lion throne2 two elders on each side beneath him1 the whole group forming a tower of solemn shade4 ,i have alluded1 elsewhere1 to the principle on which all the best composers act1 of supporting these lofty groups by some vigorous mass of foundation4 ,this column of noble shade is curiously sustained4 ,a falconer leans forward from the left-hand side1 bearing on his wrist a snow-white falcon1 its wings spread1 and brilliantly relieved against the purple robe of one of the elders4 ,it touches with its wings one of the golden lions of the throne1 on which the light also flashes strongly2 thus forming1 together with it1 the lion and eagle symbol1 which is the type of ,christ1 throughout medival work4 ,in order to show the meaning of this symbol1 and that ,solomon is typically invested with the ,christian royalty1 one of the elders by a bold anachronism1 holds a jewel in his hand in the shape of a cross1 with which he 7by accident of gesture7 points to ,solomon2 his other hand is laid on an open book4 ,illustration3 ,,the ,,queen ,,of ,,sheba4 ,veronese4 ,the group opposite1 of which the ,queen forms the centre1 is also painted with ,veronese's highest skill2 but contains no point of interest bearing on our present subject1 except its connection by a chain of descending emotion4 ,the ,queen is wholly oppressed and subdued2 kneeling1 and nearly fainting1 she looks up to ,solomon with tears in her eyes2 he1 startled by fear for her1 stoops forward from the throne1 opening his right hand1 as if to support her1 so as almost to drop the sceptre4 ,at her side her first maid of honour is kneeling also1 but does not care about ,solomon2 and is gathering up her dress that it may not be crushed2 and looking back to encourage a negro girl1 who1 carrying two toy-birds1 made of enamel and jewels1 for presentation to the ,king1 is frightened at seeing her ,queen fainting1 and does not know what she ought to do2 while lastly1 the ,queen's dog1 another of the little fringy paws1 is wholly unabashed by ,solomon's presence1 or anybody else's2 and stands with his forelegs well apart1 right in front of his mistress1 thinking everybody has lost their wits2 and barking violently at one of the attendants1 who has set down a golden vase disrespectfully near him4 ,modern ,painters 7,london1 #ahfj74 ,,the ,,last ,,judgement 7,,michael ,,angelo7 ,,alexandre ,,dumas ,while ,michael ,angelo worked upon his ,moses1 ,clement ,,vii41 following the example of ,julius ,,ii41 would not leave him alone for a moment4 ,it was a trick of all these ,popes to exact from the poor artist something different to what he was doing at the time4 ,to obtain some respite1 he was forced to promise the ,pope that he would occupy himself at the same time with the cartoon of ,the ,last ,judgment4 ,but ,clement ,,vii4 was not a man to be put off with words2 he supervised the work in person1 and ,buonarroti was obliged to pass continually from the chisel to the pencil and from the pen to the mallet4 ,the ,last ,judgment6 ,moses6 these are two works of little importance and easy to do off-hand6 ,and yet he had to4 ,his ,holiness would not listen to reason4 ,one day it was announced to ,michael ,angelo that he would not receive his accustomed visit3 ,clement ,,vii4 was dead4 ,the artist breathed freely just during the ,conclave4 ,the new ,pope1 ,paul ,,iii41 had nothing more pressing to do than to present himself in ,buonarroti's studio1 followed pompously by ten cardinals4 ,the newly-elected ,pope was easily recognized there6 ,illustration3 ,,the ,,last ,,judgment4 ,michael ,angelo4 ,ah6 said the ,holy ,father1 in a tone of firm decision1 ,i hope that henceforth the whole of your time will belong to me1 ,maestro ,buonarroti4 ,may your ,holiness deign to excuse me1 replied ,michael ,angelo1 but ,i have just signed an engagement with the ,duke of ,urbino1 which forces me to finish the tomb of ,pope ,julius4 ,what6 exclaimed ,paul ,,iii43 for thirty years ,i have had a certain wish and now that ,i am ,pope ,i cannot realize it6 ,but the contract1 ,holy ,father1 the contract6 ,where is this contract8 ,i will tear it up4 ,ah6 exclaimed in his turn the ,cardinal of ,mantua1 who was one of the suite1 your ,holiness should see the ,moses which ,maestro ,michael ,angelo has just finished3 that statue alone would more than suffice to honour the memory of ,julius4 ,cursed flatterer6 muttered ,michael ,angelo in a low voice4 ,come1 come1 ,i will take charge of this matter myself1 said the ,pope4 ,you shall only make three statues with your own hand3 the rest shall be given to other sculptors1 and ,i will answer for the ,duke of ,urbino's consent4 ,and now1 ,maestro1 to the ,sistine ,chapel4 ,a great empty wall is waiting for you there4 ,what could ,michael ,angelo reply to such an emphatic wish expressed so distinctly8 ,he finished in his best style his two statues of ,active ,life and ,contemplative ,life--,dante's symbolical ,rachel and ,leah--and not wishing to profit by this new arrangement to which he was forced to submit1 he added fifteen hundred and twenty-four ducats to the four thousand he had received1 to pay with his own gains for the works confided to the other artists4 ,having thus terminated this unfortunate affair1 which had caused him so much worry and fatigue1 ,michael ,angelo was at last enabled to occupy himself exclusively with the execution of his ,last ,judgment1 to which he devoted no less than eight to nine years4 ,this immense and unique picture1 in which the human figure is represented in all possible attitudes1 where every sentiment1 every passion1 every reflection of thought1 and every aspiration of the soul are rendered with inimitable perfection1 has never been equalled and never will be equalled in the domain of ,art4 ,this time the genius of ,michael ,angelo simply attacked the infinite4 ,the subject of this vast composition1 the manner in which it is conceived and executed1 the admirable variety and the learned disposition of the groups1 the inconceivable boldness and firmness of the outlines1 the contrast of light and shade1 the difficulties1 ,i might almost say the impossibilities vanquished1 as if it were all mere play1 and with a happiness that savours of prodigy1 the unity of the whole and the perfection of the details1 make ,the ,last ,judgment the most complete and the greatest picture in existence4 ,it is broad and magnificent in effect1 and yet each part of this prodigious painting gains infinitely when seen and studied quite near2 and we do not know of any easel-picture worked upon with such patience and finished with such devotion4 ,the painter could only choose one scene1 several isolated groups1 in this appalling drama which will be enacted on the last day in the ,valley of ,jehoshaphat1 where all the generations of man shall be gathered together4 ,and yet1 admire the omnipotence of genius6 ,with nothing but a single episode in a restricted space1 and solely by the expression of the human body1 the artist has succeeded in striking you with astonishment and terror1 and in making you really a spectator of the supreme catastrophe4 ,at the base of the picture1 very nearly in the centre1 you perceive the boat of the ,inferno1 a fantastic reminiscence borrowed from ,pagan tradition1 in accordance with which first the poet and then the painter were pleased to clothe an accursed being with the form and occupation of ,charon4 ,charon with the eyes of burning embers gathering together with a gesture all these souls1 and striking with his oar those who hesitate4#a ,it is impossible to form an idea of the incredible science displayed by ,michael ,angelo in the varied contortions of the damned1 heaped one upon the other in the fatal bark4 ,all the violent contractions1 all the visible tortures1 all the frightful shrinkings that suffering1 despair1 and rage can produce upon human muscles are rendered in this group with a realism that would make the most callous shudder4 ,to the left of this bark you see the gaping mouth of a cavern2 this is the entrance to ,purgatory1 where several demons are in despair because they have no more souls to torment4 ,this first group1 which very naturally attracts the spectator's attention1 is that of the dead whom the piercing sound of the eternal trumpet has awakened in their tombs4 ,some of them shake off their shrouds1 others with great difficulty open their eyelids made heavy by their long sleep4 ,towards the angle of the picture there is a monk who is pointing out the ,divine ,judge with his left hand2 this monk is the portrait of ,michael ,angelo4 ,the second group is formed of the resuscitated ones who ascend of themselves to the ,judgment4 ,these figures1 many of which are sublime in expression1 rise more or less lightly into space1 according to the burden of their sins1 of which they must render account4 ,the third group1 also ascending to the right of ,christ1 is that of the ,blessed4 ,among all these saints1 some of whom show the instrument of their execution1 others the marks of their martyrdom1 there is one head especially remarkable for beauty and tenderness3 it is that of a mother who is protecting her daughter1 turning her eyes1 filled with faith and hope1 towards the ,christ4 ,above the host of saints1 you see a fourth group of angelic spirits1 some bearing the ,cross1 others the ,crown of ,thorns1--instruments and emblems of the ,saviour's ,passion4 ,the fifth group1 parallel to the fourth which we have just pointed out1 is composed of angels2 such1 at least1 they seem to be by the splendour of their youth and the arial lightness of their movements2 and these also bear1 as if in triumph1 other emblems of the divine expiation--the column1 the ladder1 and the sponge4 ,above these angels1 on the same plane as the saints and to the left of ,christ1 is the choir of the just2 the patriarchs1 the prophets1 the apostles1 the martyrs1 and the holy personages form this sixth group4 ,the seventh is the most horrible of all and the one in which the art of ,michael ,angelo has displayed itself in all its terrific grandeur3 it is composed of the rejected ones1 overwhelmed by the decree and led away to punishment by the rebel angels4 ,the very coldest spectator could not remain unmoved by this spectacle4 ,you believe yourself in hell2 you hear the cries of anguish and the gnashing of the teeth of the wretched1 who1 according to the terrible ,dantesque expression1 vainly desire a second death4 ,the eighth1 ninth1 and tenth groups1 occupying the base of the composition1 are composed1 as we have already said1 of the bark of ,charon1 the grotto of ,purgatory1 and the ,angels of ,judgment1 eight in number1 blowing their brazen trumpets with all their might to convoke the dead from the four quarters of the earth4 ,finally1 in the eleventh group1 in the centre1 very near the upper part of the picture1 between the two companies of the blessed1 and seated upon the clouds1 the sovereign ,judge with a terrible action hurls his malediction upon the condemned3 ,ite maledicti in ignem aeternum4 ,the ,virgin turns away her head and trembles4 ,on ,christ's right is ,adam1 and on his left1 ,st4 ,peter4 ,they have exactly the same positions assigned to them by ,dante in his ,paradiso4 ,this immense work was exhibited to the public on ,christmas ,day1 #aeda4 ,it had cost eight years of work4 ,michael ,angelo was then sixty-seven years old4 ,several anecdotes relating to this great picture have come down to us4 ,it is related that the ,pope1 scandalized at the nudity of certain figures1 a nudity which ,daniele da ,volterra was afterwards charged to clothe1 sent word to ,michael ,angelo that he must cover them4 ,michael ,angelo replied with his usual brusqueness3 ,tell the ,pope that he must employ himself a little less in correcting my pictures1 which is very easy1 and employ himself a little more in reforming men1 which is very difficult4 ,it is said that ,maestro ,biaggio1 master of ceremonies to ,paul ,,iii41 having accompanied the ,pope on a visit that ,his ,holiness made to see ,michael ,angelo's fresco when it was about half finished1 allowed himself to express his own opinion upon ,the ,last ,judgment4 ,holy ,father1 said the good ,messer ,biaggio1 if ,i dare pronounce my judgment1 this picture seems more appropriate to figure in a tavern than in the chapel of a ,pope4 ,unfortunately for the master of ceremonies1 ,michael ,angelo was behind him and did not lose a word of ,messer ,biaggio's compliment4 ,the ,pope had scarcely gone before the irritated artist1 wishing to make an example as a warning for all future critics1 placed this ,messer ,biaggio in his hell1 well and duly1 under the scarcely flattering guise of ,minos4 ,that was always ,dante's way when he wanted to avenge himself upon an enemy4 ,i leave you to imagine the lamentations and complaints of the poor master of ceremonies when he saw himself damned in this manner4 ,he threw himself at the ,pope's feet1 declaring that he would never arise unless ,his ,holiness would have him taken out of hell3 that was the most important thing4 ,as for the punishment1 that the painter deserved for this dreadful sacrilege1 ,messer ,biaggio would leave that entirely to the high impartiality of the ,holy ,father4 ,messer ,biaggio1 replied ,paul ,,iii4 with as much seriousness as he could maintain1 you know that ,i have received from ,god an absolute power in heaven and upon the earth1 but ,i can do nothing in hell2 therefore you must remain there4 ,while ,michael ,angelo was working at his picture of ,the ,last ,judgment1 he fell from the scaffold and seriously injured his leg4 ,soured by pain and seized with an attack of misanthropy1 the painter shut himself up in his house and would not see any one4 ,but he reckoned without his physician2 and the physician this time was as stubborn as the invalid4 ,this excellent disciple of sculapius was named ,baccio ,rontini4 ,having learned by chance of the accident that had befallen the great artist1 he presented himself before his house and knocked in vain at the door4 ,no response4 ,he shouted1 he flew into a passion1 and he called the neighbours and the servants in a loud voice4 ,complete silence4 ,he goes to find a ladder1 places it against the front of the house1 and tries to enter by the casements4 ,the windows are hermetically sealed and the shutters are fast4 ,what is to be done8 ,any one else in the physician's place would have given up2 but ,rontini was not the man to be discouraged for so little4 ,with much difficulty he enters the cellar and with no less trouble he goes up into ,buonarroti's room1 and1 partly by acquiescence and partly by force1 he triumphantly tends his friend's leg4 ,it was quite time3 exasperated by his sufferings1 the artist had resolved to let himself die4 ,trois ,matres 7,paris1 #ahfa74 ,,footnotes3 #a ,dante1 ,inferno ,,iii4 ,,magdalen ,,in ,,the ,,desert 7,,correggio7 ,,aim ,,giron ,correggio was a painter and a poet at the same time1 interpreting ,nature1 flattering her1 idealizing her1 and realizing her creations in their double sthetic expression1 with undulating outlines and tender tones4 ,his drawing was modelled and supple1 with a certain vigour of line and a certain solidity of relief4 ,he had a charming imagination of conception and a voluptuous grace in its accomplishment1 which are requisites in the painting of women and children4 ,he therefore excelled in rendering bambini4 ,with a note-book in his hand1 he studied them everywhere4 ,this explains why his ,loves and his ,cherubs have such rare truth of mien1 of flesh1 and of life4 ,his knowledge of anatomy is great and he foreshortens on canvas and ceiling astonishingly before the advent of ,michael ,angelo4 ,his enchanting colouring1 impasted like that of ,giorgione1 vivid as that of ,titian1 ran through the most delicate gradations and melted into the most elusive harmonies4 ,beneath his facile brush1 soft and thick1 the transparencies of the skin and the morbidezza of the flesh become ideal4 ,he was the first to apply himself to the choice of fabrics1 and one of the first in ,italy to attend to the scientific distribution of light4 ,but1 in the famous chiaroscuro he does not get his effects by contrasts1 but by analogies1 superimposing shadow upon shadow and light upon light1 both being disposed in large masses and graduated in progression4 ,this process occurs at its fullest in the ,christmas ,night1 where the moon shines1 and the child glows with radiance1 in a kind of symbolic struggle between the natural light of this world and the supernatural light of the other4 ,the effect is such that the spectator is forced instinctively to blink his eyes1 as does the ,shepherdess herself entering the stable4 ,when ,correggio excels he is a painter worthy of ,athens1 wrote ,diderot1 whose art criticism had in it more of sentiment than knowledge4 ,with ,correggio everything is large and graceful1 said ,louis ,carrache1 who gave ,correggio a large place in his eclecticism4 ,but after studying and weighing everything1 from his somewhat excessive qualities it follows that ,correggio was more of an idealist than a mystic and obeyed ,art more than ,faith1 with a leaning towards the apotheosis of form4 ,he painted ,io and ,jupiter for ,frederick ,gonzaga of ,mantua4 ,this picture having passed to the son of the ,regent1 the two passionate heads so strongly troubled his prudery that he cut them out and burned them4 ,coypel then begged the ,prince to spare the rest and to give it to him4 ,he obtained it on condition that he would make good use of it1 and on the death of ,coypel1 ,m4 ,pasquier1 dput du ,commerce de ,rouen1 paid #af1ejj livres for the mutilated remains1 as ,i find in a very old account4 ,illustration3 ,,magdalen4 ,correggio ,all the great museums of the world possess ,correggios1 and ,i will only mention the exquisite ,saint ,catherine and the resplendent ,antiope of the ,louvre2 the ,dana of the ,borghese ,gallery1 a chef-d'oeuvre of grace and delicacy2 and1 finally1 in the ,dresden ,gallery1 our ,magdalen in the ,desert1 that jewel so well-known and so often reproduced4 ,this ,magdalen as a matter of fact holds the first place among the small ,correggios4 ,there are two kinds of ,magdalens in art3 ,i4 the ,repentant1 emaciated1 growing ugly1 disfigured by tears and penitence at the end of her life1 with a skull in her hand or before her eyes1 not having had even--like the one sculptured in the ,cathedral of ,rouen--for three times ten winters any other vesture than her long hair1 according to ,petrarch's verse2 ,,ii4 the ,sinner1 always young1 always beautiful1 always seductive1 who has not lost any of her charms nor even of her coquetry1 and with whom the ,book of ,life takes the place of the ,death's ,head4 ,our ,magdalen belongs to the latter class4 ,in a solitary spot1 but attractive with its verdure and rocks1 on a grassy knoll the saint is stretched out at full length1 with her shoulder1 her bosom1 her arms1 and her feet adorably bare4 ,a blue fabric drapes the rest of her body and forms a coquettish hood for her head and neck4 ,her flesh has a robust elegance of line4 ,leaning on her right elbow1 her hand1 half hidden in her hair1 supports a charming and meditative head1 while her other arm is slipped under an open manuscript4 ,her hair1 long and blonde1 according to legend--which she loves and still cares for because it once wiped the feet of her ,saviour--falls in thick curls1 or strays at will with a premeditated abandon4 ,on the ground1 to her right1 stands the vase of perfumes of her first adoration2 to the left are the stones of her supreme expiation4 ,what grace in her attitude6 ,what beauty of form6 ,she is thrown in with a rare happiness and painted with an exquisite delicacy of touch and tint4 ,the blue drapery upon the green landscape defines her sufficiently without making her stand out too much1 leaving the figure and the landscape to mingle without disturbing each other in skilful harmony4 ,all of this is in most finished execution1 a little elaborate1 perhaps1 and the expression of the face reflects the sweet1 sad memory of the ,beloved1 whose ,gospels she is reading1 just as one reads again tender letters of the past4 ,this work was executed for the ,dukes of ,este1 who kept it in a silver frame studded with precious stones and used it as an ornament for their bedrooms1 and when they travelled1 they took it with them in a casket4 ,when the ,king of ,poland became its possessor1 he gave it a second boxing of glass with lock and key4 ,in #aghh1 this masterpiece having been stolen1 #a1jjj ducats were promised for its discovery1 and1 in consideration of that sum1 the thief denounced himself4 ,cristofano ,allori1 the greatest ,florentine painter of the ,decadence1 made a superb copy for the ,offices1 ,i believe4 ,this ,magdalen of ,correggio's1 the least converted of sinners and the most adorable of penitents1 is she really1 historically and liturgically the ,magdalen of the ,house of ,bethany1 of the grotto de la ,sainte-,baume in ,provence8 ,no4 ,she recalls rather cette dame de marque who was evoked in the ,seventeenth ,century by the ,carmelite ,father ,pierre de ,saint-,louis in his sublime poem of accomplished burlesque2 and does not the following verse hum in your ear3 ,lvres dont l'incarnat faisant voir la fois ,un rosier sans pine1 un chapelet sans croix1 while the sinner 444 s'occupe punir le forfait ,de son temps prtrit qui ne fut qu'imparfait8 ,this evidently is not at all the art of the ,middle ,ages1 nor its saints1 whose vestment was sackcloth and whose body was a mere lay figure for a soul devoted entirely to purity1 to simplicity1 to mysticism1 and to the other world4 ,in the ,sixteenth ,century1 however1 people took the sackcloth from the saints and dressed them in flesh4 ,then was produced a kind of revival of paganism1 of naturalism1 of life2 and religious art1 in its flesh and colouring1 no longer created anything but an ,olympus of beautiful maidens1 or1 at least1 noble goddesses4 ,correggio's ,magdalen belongs to this artistic cycle and the painter executed it in the noonday splendour of those qualities1 the dawn of which glows in ,parma at ,st4 ,paul's4 ,correggio is not a mystic1 he is a voluptuous naturalist1 and from him to the realist ,caravaggio1 the grinder of flesh1 and the exuberant ,rubens1 who gave much study to ,correggio1 the distance is not very great and the decline is fatal4 ,but1 in the meantime1 where shall we find more grace1 or seductiveness--under this conversion complicated with memories--than in ,correggio's ,magdalen8 ,in hagiographal literature we find a work of similar tone and charm3 ,marie ,madeleine1 by ,p4 ,lacordaire1 an exquisite little book written with tenderness and piety1 which deliciously calls up before us the ,magdalen of repentance and love1 the loving woman accustomed to the delights of contemplation and needing only to see in her heart him whom in other days she saw under the transparent veil of mortal flesh4 ,it must be confessed that ,correggio was constantly preoccupied with charm and with that skilful coquetry that sports with every grace4 ,this is a subtlety of purely personal qualities2 but let others beware of a systematic affectation6 ,in this way ,correggio did not found a school1 but he had imitators1 among whom was ,parmigiano1 who by dint of study and in search for grace--the most natural thing in the world--most often fell into affected and conventional ways4 ,jouin1 ,chefs-d'oeuvre3 ,peinture1 ,sculpture1 ,architecture 7,paris1 #ahie-g74 ,,banquet ,,of ,,the ,,arquebusiers 7,,van ,,der ,,helst7 ,,william ,,makepeace ,,thackeray ,the ,night-,watch at ,amsterdam is magnificent in parts1 but on the side to the spectator's right1 smoky and dim4 ,the ,five ,masters of the ,drapers is wonderful for depth1 strength1 brightness1 massive power4 ,what words are these to express a picture6 to describe a description6 ,i once saw a moon riding in the sky serenely1 attended by her sparkling maids of honour1 and a little lady said1 with an air of great satisfaction1 ,i must sketch it4 ,ah1 my dear lady1 if with an ,h4,b41 a ,bristol board1 and a bit of india-rubber1 you can sketch the firmament on high1 and the moon in her glory1 ,i make you my compliment6 ,i can't sketch ,the ,five ,drapers with any ink or pen at present at command--but can look with all my eyes1 and be thankful to have seen such a masterpiece4 ,they say he was a moody1 ill-conditioned man1 the old tenant of the mill4 ,what does he think of the ,van der ,helst which hangs opposite his ,night-,watch1 and which is one of the great pictures of the world8 ,it is not painted by so great a man as ,rembrandt2 but there it is--to see it is an event of your life4 ,having beheld it you have lived in the year #afdh1 and celebrated the ,treaty of ,mnster4 ,you have shaken the hands of the ,dutch ,guardsmen1 eaten from their platters1 drunk their ,rhenish1 heard their jokes1 as they wagged their jolly beards4 ,the ,amsterdam ,catalogue discourses thus about it3--a model catalogue3 it gives you the prices paid1 the signatures of the painters1 a succinct description of the work4 ,this masterpiece represents a banquet of the ,civic ,guard1 which took place on the #ahth of ,june1 #afdh1 in the great hall of the ,st4 ,joris ,doele1 on the ,singel at ,amsterdam1 to celebrate the conclusion of the ,peace at ,mnster4 ,the thirty-five figures composing the picture are all portraits4 ',the ,captain ,witse' is placed at the head of the table1 and attracts our attention first4 ,he is dressed in black velvet1 his breast covered with a cuirass1 on his head a broad-brimmed black hat with white plumes4 ,he is comfortably seated on a chair of black oak1 with a velvet cushion1 and holds in his left hand1 supported on his knee1 a magnificent drinking-horn1 surrounded by a ,st4 ,george destroying the dragon1 and ornamented with olive-leaves4 ,the captain's features express cordiality and good-humour2 he is grasping the hand of ',lieutenant ,van ,wavern' seated near him in a habit of dark grey1 with lace and buttons of gold1 lace-collar and wrist-bands1 his feet crossed1 with boots of yellow leather1 with large tops1 and gold spurs1 on his head a black hat and dark-brown plumes4 ,behind him1 at the centre of the picture1 is the standard-bearer1 ',jacob ,banning1' in an easy martial attitude1 hat in hand1 his right hand on his chair1 his right leg on his left knee4 ,he holds the flag of blue silk1 in which the ,virgin is embroidered 7such a silk6 such a flag6 such a piece of painting671 emblematic of the town of ,amsterdam4 ,the banner covers his shoulder1 and he looks towards the spectator frankly and complacently4 ,illustration3 ,,the ,,banquet ,,of ,,the ,,arquebusiers4 ,van der ,helst4 ,the man behind him is probably one of the sergeants4 ,his head is bare4 ,he wears a cuirass1 and yellow gloves1 grey stockings1 and boots with large tops1 and knee-caps of cloth4 ,he has a napkin on his knees1 and in his hand a piece of ham1 a slice of bread and a knife4 ,the old man behind is probably ',william the ,drummer4' ,he has his hat in his right hand1 and in his left a gold-footed wineglass1 filled with white wine4 ,he wears a red scarf1 and a black satin doublet1 with little slashes of yellow silk4 ,behind the drummer1 two matchlock-men are seated at the end of the table4 ,one in a large black habit1 a napkin on his knee1 a hausse-col of iron1 and a linen scarf and collar4 ,he is eating with his knife4 ,the other holds a long glass of white wine4 ,four musketeers1 with different shaped hats1 are behind these1 one holding a glass1 the three others with their guns on their shoulders4 ,other guests are placed between the personage who is giving the toast and the standard-bearer4 ,one with his hat off1 and his hand uplifted1 is talking to another4 ,the second is carving a fowl4 ,a third holds a silver plate2 and another1 in the background1 a silver flagon1 from which he fills a cup4 ,the corner behind the captain is filled by two seated personages1 one of whom is peeling an orange4 ,two others are standing1 armed with halberts1 of whom one holds a plumed hat4 ,behind him are other three individuals1 one of them holding a pewter pot on which the name ',poock1' the landlord of the ',hotel ,doele1' is engraved4 ,at the back1 a maid-servant is coming in with a pasty1 crowned with a turkey4 ,most of the guests are listening to the captain4 ,from an open window in the distance1 the faades of two houses are seen1 surmounted by stone figures of sheep4 ,there1 now you know all about it3 now you can go home and paint just such another4 ,if you do1 do pray remember to paint the hands of the figures as they are here depicted2 they are as wonderful portraits as the faces4 ,none of your slim ,van ,dyck elegancies1 which have done duty at the cuffs of so many doublets2 but each man with a hand for himself1 as with a face for himself4 ,i blushed for the coarseness of one of the chiefs in this great company1 that fellow behind ,william the ,drummer1 splendidly attired1 sitting full in the face of the public2 and holding a pork-bone in his hand4 ,suppose the ,saturday ,review critic were to come suddenly on this picture8 ,ah6 what a shock it would give that noble nature6 ,why is that knuckle of pork not painted out8 at any rate1 why is not a little fringe of lace painted round it8 or a cut pink paper8 or couldn't a smelling-bottle be painted in instead1 with a crest and a gold top1 or a cambric pocket-handkerchief in lieu of the horrid pig1 with a pink coronet in the corner8 or suppose you covered the man's hand 7which is very coarse and strong71 and gave him the decency of a kid glove8 ,but a piece of pork in a naked hand8 ,o nerves and eau de ,cologne1 hide it1 hide it6 ,in spite of this lamentable coarseness1 my noble sergeant1 give me thy hand as nature made it6 ,a great1 and famous1 and noble handiwork ,i have seen here4 ,not the greatest picture in the world--not a work of the highest genius--but a performance so great1 various1 and admirable1 so shrewd of humour1 so wise of observation1 so honest and complete of expression1 that to have seen it has been a delight1 and to remember it will be a pleasure for days to come4 ,well done1 ,bartholomeus ,van der ,helst6 ,brave1 meritorious1 victorious1 happy ,bartholomew1 to whom it has been given to produce a masterpiece6 444 ,was it a dream8 ,it seems like one4 ,have we been to ,holland8 ,have we heard the chimes at midnight at ,antwerp8 ,were we really away for a week1 or have ,i been sitting up in the room dozing1 before this stale old desk8 ,here's the desk2 yes4 ,but if it has been a dream1 how could ,i have learned to hum that tune out of ,dinorah8 ,ah1 is it that tune1 or myself that ,i am humming8 ,if it was a dream how comes this yellow ,,notice ,,des ,,tableaux ,,du ,,mus,e ,d',,amsterdam ,,avec ,,fascimile ,,des ,,monogrammes before me1 and this signature of the gallant ,bartholomeus van der ,helst fecit ,a2 #afdh4 ,yes1 indeed1 it was a delightful little holiday2 it lasted a whole week4 ,roundabout ,papers 7,london1 #ahfc74 ,l',,embarquement ,,pour ,l',,le ,,de ,,cyth,,re 7,,watteau7 ,,edmond ,,and ,,jules ,,de ,,goncourt ,watteau is the great poet of the ,eighteenth ,century4 ,a creation1 a whole creation of poetry and dreams1 emanated from his brain and filled his work with the elegance of a supernatural life4 ,from the fantasies of his brain1 from the caprice of his art1 from his perfectly original genius1 not one but a thousand fairies took their flight4 ,from the enchanted visions of his imagination1 the painter has drawn an ideal world1 and1 superior to his own time1 he has created one of those ,shakespearian realms1 one of those countries of love and light1 one of those paradises of gallantry that ,polyphile built upon the cloud of dreams for the delicate joy of poetic mortals4 ,watteau revived grace4 ,grace with ,watteau is not the antique grace--a rigid and solid charm1 the perfection of the marble of a ,galatea1 the entirely plastic and the material glory of a ,venus4 ,grace with ,watteau is grace4 ,it is that nothing that invests a woman with an attraction1 a coquetry1 a more than physical beauty4 ,it is that subtile quality which seems the smile of a line1 the soul of form1 the spiritual physiognomy of matter4 ,illustration3 ,l',,embarquement ,,pour ,l',,le ,,de ,,cyth,,re4 ,watteau4 ,all the fascinations of a woman in repose3 languor1 idleness1 abandon1 leaning back1 reclining at full length1 nonchalance1 the cadences of pose1 the pretty air of profiles bending over the scales of love 7gammes d'amour71 the receding curves of the bosom1 the serpentine lines and undulations1 the suppleness of the female body1 the play of slender fingers on the handle of a fan and the indiscretions of high heels beyond the skirts1 and the happy fortune of deportment1 and the coquetry of actions1 and the management of the shoulders1 and all that knowledge that was taught to women by the mirrors of the last century1--the mimicry of grace6--lives in ,watteau with its blossom and its accent1 immortal and fixed in a more vital proof than the bosom of the wife of ,diomedes moulded by the ashes of ,pompeii4 ,and if this grace is animated by ,watteau1 if he looses it from repose and immobility1 if he renders it active and moving1 it seems that it works with a rhythm and that its measured pace is a dance led by some harmony4 ,how decorative is the form of woman1 and her grace6 ,o nature1 wherein the painter's poetic fancies wander6 ,o landscape6 ,o stage fit for a desirable life6 a helpful land1 gallant woods1 meadows full of music1 groves propitious to the sports of ,echo6 cradling trees hung with baskets of flowers6 desert places far from the jealous world1 touched by the magic brush of a ,servandoni1 refreshed with fountains1 peopled with marbles and statues1 and ,naiads1 that spot the trembling shadow of the leaves6 jets of water suddenly springing up in the midst of farm-yards6 an amiable and radiant countryside6 ,suns of apotheosis1 beautiful lights sleeping on the lawns1 penetrating and translucent verdure without one shadow where the palette of ,veronese1 the riot of purple1 and of blonde tresses may find sleep4 ,rural delights6 murmurous and gorgeous decorations6 gardens thick with brier and rose6 ,french landscapes planted with ,italian pines6 villages gay with weddings and carriages1 ceremonies1 toilettes1 and ftes stunned with the noise of violins and flutes leading the bridal of ,nature and the ,opera to a ,jesuit fane6 ,rustic scene on the green curtain1 on the flowery slope up which the ,comdie ,franaise climbs and the ,comdie ,italienne gambols4 ,quick6 to array the spring in ball costume1 ,watteau's heavens and earth1 quick4 ,gelosi6 ,a bergomask laugh shall be the laughter1 animation1 and action1 and movement of the piece4 ,look where ,folly1 capped and belled1 runs and wakes gaiety1 zephyrs1 and noise6 ,ruffs and caps1 belts and daggers1 little vests and short mantles1 go and come4 ,the band of buffoons comes running1 bringing beneath the shady boughs the carnival of human passions and its rainbow-hued garb4 ,variegated family1 clothed with sunlight and brilliant silk6 that masks with the night6 that patches and paints with the moon6 ,harlequin1 as graceful as a product of the pencil of ,parmesan6 ,pierrot1 with his arms at his side1 as straight as an ,i1 and the ,tartaglias1 and the ,scapins1 and the ,cassandras1 and the ,doctors1 and the favourite ,mezzetin the big brown man with the laughing face always in the foreground with his cap on the back of his head--striped all over like a zebra1 proud as a god1 and drunk as a ,silenus6 ,it is the ,comdie ,italienne that plays the guitar in all these landscapes4444 ,here is the new ,olympus and the new mythology2 the ,olympus of all the demi-gods forgotten by antiquity4 ,here is the deification of the ideas of the ,eighteenth ,century1 the soul of ,watteau's world and time led to the ,pantheon of human passions and fashions4 ,these are the new humours of aging humanity--,languor1 ,gallantry1 and ,reverie1 which ,watteau incarnates as clothed allegories1 and which he rests upon the pulvinar of a divine nature2 these are the moral muses of our age out of which he has created the women1 or1 we might say1 the goddesses of these divine pictures4 ,love is the light of this world1 it penetrates and fills it4 ,it is the youth and serenity of it2 and amidst rivers and mountains1 promenades and gardens1 lakes and fountains1 the ,paradise of ,watteau unfolds2 it is ,cythera4 ,under a sky painted with the colours of summer1 the galley of ,cleopatra swings at the bank4 ,the waves are stilled4 ,the woods are hushed4 ,from the grass to the firmament1 beating the motionless air with their butterfly wings1 a host of ,cupids fly1 fly1 play and dance1 here tying careless couples with roses1 and tying above a circlet of kisses that has risen from earth to the sky4 ,here is the temple1 here is the end of this world3 the painter's ,l',amour paisible1 ,love disarmed1 seated in the shadows1 which the poet of ,theos wished to engrave upon a sweet cup of spring2 a smiling ,arcadia2 a ,decameron of sentiment2 a tender meditation2 attentions with vague glances2 words that lull the soul2 a platonic gallantry1 a leisure occupied by the heart1 an idleness of youthful company2 a court of amorous thoughts2 the emotional and playful courtesy of the young newly married leaning upon the offered arm2 eyes without fever1 desire without appetite1 voluptuousness without desire1 audacious gestures regulated like the ballet for a spectacle1 and tranquil defences disdainful of haste through their security2 the romance of the body and the mind1 soothed1 pacified1 resuscitated1 happy2 an idleness of passion at which the stone satyrs lurking in the green coulisses laugh with their goat-laughter4 ,adieu to the bacchanales led by ,gillot1 that last pagan of the ,renaissance1 born of the libations of the ,pleiad to the rustic gods of ,arcueil6 ,adieu to the ,olympus of the ,io ,pan1 the hoarse pipe and the goat-footed ,gods1 the laughter of the ,cyclops of ,euripides and the ,evohe of ,ronsard1 the licentious triumphs1 the ivy-crowned ,joys2 ,et la libre cadence ,de leur danse4 ,these gods have gone1 and ,rubens1 who lives again in that palette of light and rosy flesh1 wanders bewildered in these ftes1 where the riot of the senses is stilled1--animated caprices which seem to await the crack of a whip to dissolve and disappear in the realm of fancy like a mid-summer night's dream6 ,it is ,cythera2 but it is ,watteau's4 ,it is love1 but it is a poetic love1 a love that dreams and thinks2 modern love1 with its aspirations and its crown of melancholy4 ,yes1 at the heart of this work of ,watteau's1 ,i do not know what slow and vague harmony murmurs behind those laughing words2 ,i do not know what musical and sweetly contagious sorrow is diffused throughout these gallant ftes4 ,like the fascination of ,venice1 ,i do not know what veiled and sighing poetry in low tones holds here the charmed spirit4 ,the man has passed across his work2 and this work you come to regard as the play and distraction of a suffering thought1 like the playthings of a sick child who is now dead4444 ,but let us speak of that masterpiece of ,french masterpieces1 that canvas which has held a distinguished place on one of the walls of the salon carr for fifty years1 ,l',embarquement de ,cythre4 ,observe all that ground lightly coated with a transparent and golden varnish1 all that ground covered with rapid strokes of the brush lightly laid on with a delicate touch4 ,notice that green of the trees shot through with red tones1 penetrated with quivering air1 and the vaporous light of autumn4 ,notice the delicate water-colour effect of thick oil1 the general smoothness of the canvas1 the relief of this pouch or hood2 notice the full modelling of the little faces with their glances in the confused outlines of the eye and their smiles in the suggested outlines of the mouth4 ,the beautiful and flowing sweep of the brush over those dcolletages1 the bare flesh glowing with voluptuous rose among the shadows of the wood6 ,the pretty crossings of the brush to round a neck6 ,the beautiful undulating folds with soft breaks like those which the modeller makes in the clay6 ,and the spirit and the gallantry of touch of ,watteau's brush in the feminine trifles and headdresses and finger-tips1--and everything it approaches6 ,and the harmony of those sunlit distances1 those mountains of rosy snow1 those waters of verdurous reflections2 and again those rays of sunlight falling upon robes of rose and yellow1 mauve petticoats1 blue mantles1 shot-coloured vests1 and little white dogs with fiery spots4 ,for no painter has equalled ,watteau in rendering beautifully coloured objects transfigured by a ray of sunlight1 their soft fading and that kind of diffused blossoming of their brilliancy under the full light4 ,let your eyes rest for a moment on that band of pilgrims of both sexes hurrying1 beneath the setting sun1 towards the galley of ,love that is about to set sail3 there is the joyousness of the most adorable colours in the world surprised in a ray of the sun1 and all that haze and tender silk in the radiant shower involuntarily remind you of those brilliant insects that we find dead1 but with still living colours1 in the golden glow of a piece of amber4 ,this picture1 the ,embarquement de ,cythre1 is the wonder of wonders of this master4 ,l',art du ,dix-huitime ,sicle 7#c;d ed41 ,paris1 #ahhj74 ,,the ,,sistine ,,madonna 7,,raphael7 ,f4,a4 ,,gruyer ,raphael seemed to have attained perfection in the ,virgin with the ,fish2 however1 four or five years later1 he was to rise infinitely higher and display something superior to art and inaccessible to science4 ,it was in #aeah that the ,benedictines of the monastery of ,st4 ,sixtus ordered this picture4 ,they had required that the ,virgin and the ,infant ,jesus should be in the company of ,st4 ,sixtus and ,st4 ,barbara4 ,this is how ,raphael entered into their views4 ,deep shadows were veiling from us the majesty of the skies4 ,suddenly light succeeds the obscurity1 and the ,infant ,jesus and ,mary appear surrounded by a brightness so intense that the eyes can scarcely bear it4 ,between two green curtains drawn to either side of the picture1 amid an aureole of innumerable cherubin1 the ,virgin is seen standing upon the clouds1 with her son in her arms1 showing him to the world as its ,redeemer and ,sovereign ,judge4 ,lower down1 ,st4 ,sixtus and ,st4 ,barbara are kneeling on the clouds on either side4 ,nothing is visible of the earth1 but it is divined by the gestures and glances of the two saints1 who are pointing to the multitude for whom they are imploring the divine mercy4 ,two angels are leaning on a kind of balustrade whose horizontal line forms a solid plane at the base of the composition4 ,nothing could be more elementary than the idea of such a picture2 the ancient symmetry and the most rigid parallelism are scrupulously observed4 ,raphael becomes almost archaic1 and1 while returning to the simplicity of primitive traditions1 by the force of genius he confounds the scientific exaggeration that is already so close to decadence4 ,doubtless he had raised his eyes high every time he had taken antiquity as a model1 but he raised them much higher still by becoming exclusively ,christian again1 and by comprehending that the humblest way is not only the surest1 but also the most sublime4 ,why is such simple means so highly successful in exalting our feelings8 ,why is it1 when looking at this picture1 we have moments of divine oblivion in which we fancy ourselves in ,heaven8 ,that is what we must try to penetrate and comprehend4 ,illustration3 ,,the ,,sistine ,,madonna4 ,raphael4 ,the principal figure of the picture is the ,infant ,jesus4 ,he is no longer the graceful ,bambino that we have so often seen in the arms of ,raphael's ,madonnas1 gentle and encouraging to the eyes of mankind1 or again he who1 erewhile1 in the ,virgin with the ,fish1 leaned towards the young ,tobit2 it is the ,god himself1 it is the ,god of ,justice and of the ,last ,day4 ,in the most humble state of our flesh1 beneath the veil of infancy1 we see the terrifying splendour of infinite majesty in this picture4 ,the divine ,infant leaves between himself and us a place for fear1 and in his presence we experience something of the fear of ,god that ,adam felt and that he transmitted to his race4 ,for attaining such heights of impression the means employed by ,raphael are of an incomprehensible simplicity4 ,the ,infant ,jesus nestles familiarly in his mother's arms4 ,sitting on a fold of the white veil that the ,virgin supports with her left hand1 he leans against the ,madonna's right arm2 his legs are crossed one above the other2 the whole of the left arm follows the bend of the body and the left hand rests upon the right leg2 at the same time1 the right shoulder being raised by ,mary's hand1 the right arm is bent at the elbow and the hand grasps the ,virgin's veil4 ,this attitude1 so natural1 so true1 so unstudied1 expresses grandeur and sovereignty4 ,nothing can be more elementary nor more powerful4 ,the light rests calmly upon every part of this beautiful body and all its members in such fine repose4 ,humanity was never seen under such radiance4 ,the ,son of ,god1 in transporting to ,heaven the terrestrial form of his infancy1 has made it divine for all eternity4 ,raphael doubtless owed to antiquity something of the power that enabled him spontaneously to create such a masterpiece2 but in this case he has far surpassed his models1 and we should search vainly in antique art for a more ideal and grand figure than that of this marvellous infant4 ,however1 hitherto we have only examined the body1 what shall we say about the head to give a true idea of it8 ,in fact1 that is perhaps the most extraordinary and most indescribable part of the whole picture4 ,the ,infant ,jesus seems to recoil from the spectacle of human shame2 he lovingly presses against the ,virgin's breast1 softly rests his forehead against his ,mother's cheek1 and darts towards the world one of those flaming and terrible glances at which1 it is said1 everything in heaven1 on earth1 and in hell trembles4 ,his disordered hair stands upright and quivers as in the breath of the tempest1 and sombre clouds pass across the widely modelled forehead2 the brows are frowning1 the pupils dilate and the flame is ready to dart forth2 the eyes1 profound and terrible1 are preparing to flash with lightning2 they still withhold it1 but we feel that it may break forth1 and we tremble4 ,this glance is truly splendid2 it fascinates you1 attracts you1 and1 at the same time1 fills you with terror4 ,the lips are quivering1 and1 from the point of view of line1 that is the great mystery1 ,i think2 the upper lip1 visibly lifted on the left side1 assumes a strange accent of anger and indignation4 ,this deviation of a single feature is materially a small matter1 and yet it suffices to stamp the whole countenance with irresistible action4 ,the ,infant ,jesus assumes a formidable aspect2 we recognize in him the ,sovereign ,judge2 his power is infinite and one act of his will be sufficient to condemn or absolve4 ,the ,virgin of the ,chair had given us a presentiment of this image in #aeaf2 the ,virgin of ,st4 ,sixtus shows it to us in #aeah1 in its eternal grandeur and sublime reality4 ,but the ,word of ,god would scarcely leave room for anything but fear1 if the ,virgin did not immediately come to shed hope in the soul terrified at the idea of justice4 ,in fact1 the ,virgin remains calm and serene beside her enraged son1 and reassures our heart also with her confidence4 ,if she presents the ,son of ,god to the world under a terrifying aspect1 at the same time she presses him so tenderly against her breast1 and her features1 under the splendour of the divine radiance1 shine with such purity that we feel the flame that purifies all passing within ourselves4 ,the ,virgin appears here like the dawning light4 ,she advances from right to left1 beautiful as the skies1 light as the cloud that bears her4 ,her gait1 or rather her flight through the air1 is stamped with royal nobleness and dignity4 ,her right hand1 raised as high as the shoulder1 holds the body of ,jesus under his right arm1 and the ,saviour lies back against his ,mother's right arm1 while ,mary's left arm is placed under the ,infant's body to support and carry him4 ,the ,virgin of ,st4 ,sixtus1 like every ,madonna1 wears a red robe and a white mantle2 and ,art has never done greater things with drapery with such simple elements4 ,the mantle falls with a beautiful movement over the lower part of the body and floats in wide folds1 which1 while sharply defining the form and movement of the lower limbs1 reveals the bare feet which are of admirable form and colour4 ,the robe1 ornamented only with a little gold embroidery on the sleeve1 is of a purple tint in the shadows and becomes rose in the light2 it is girdled below the breast like the antique statues1 and reveals the neck as well as the top of the shoulders1 which are surrounded by a veil of white gauze4 ,a long scarf of the same colour as the veil but tinted with bistre1 is placed on the crown of the head1 and1 distending like a sail above the left shoulder1 returns to the left hand to serve as a support for the ,infant1 and runs along the body of ,jesus1 who grasps it with his right hand4 ,the ,virgin's head appears in full illumination without any artifice1 and glows solely with its own beauty4 ,it is three quarters left1 indeed almost full face1 in a similar position but in opposition to the ,saviour's head1 which1 as we have seen1 is three quarters right and almost full face also4 ,the hair1 a light chestnut1 is arranged simply in smooth and flat bands lightly waved above the brow1 leaving the ears1 cheeks1 and temples completely uncovered1 and not interfering in any way with the outlines of the face4 ,the forehead1 of a medium height1 presents a widely developed surface1 in the centre of which glows a light that is continued down the bridge of the nose4 ,the eyes1 of irreproachable shape1 are full of brilliance1 and their gaze sheds over all it illumines an infinite softness mingled with an indefinable exaltation4 ,the mouth trembles with divine emotion and seems to quiver with celestial bliss4 ,another remarkable thing in this supreme manifestation of genius is that in the ,virgin and the ,infant1 of such different1 we might almost say such opposite expressions1 the same features are noticeably repeated4 ,raphael has been faithful to the last to the system he adopted in almost his earliest pictures1 and to make this intentional resemblance more noticeable here he has placed the two heads close together1 and shown them almost full face1 so that there shall be no distracting element2 and has opposed them to each other by turning them in different ways so that they may complement each other and be reflected in one another as in a mirror4 ,therefore1 as the same glory surrounds both ,mother and ,son at the same time1 so the same character of beauty is found faithfully reproduced in each4 ,the skulls of both have the same general conformation1 the same intelligence shines upon the two brows1 although the ,saviour's is dark and menacing whilst the ,virgin's remains radiant and clear2 the eyes have also the same shape and are full of the same fire1 though the glance of the one is terrible and of the other1 reassuring2 the mouth has the same lines1 the same nobility1 and the same quiver that has the power of alternately inspiring terror and tranquillity2 and the cleft in the chin is identical4 ,the colour also helps to make an almost perfect unity of these two figures--we have the same white and solid flesh tints1 strong and delicate2 the same warm and always luminous shadows4 ,indeed1 ,jesus is confounded with ,mary1 so to speak1 so that the two forms together make one and the same body1 and1 moreover1 the ,saviour at need may get rid of his majestic nakedness beneath the veil and in the mantle of ,mary4 ,this ,virgin1 in which ,raphael has surpassed himself1 was painted in a moment of veritable exaltation of genius4 ,it was not laboriously conceived2 it was born of itself1 spontaneously complete1 like the antique ,minerva1 with its perfect form and beauty1 and it was the recompense for an entire life consecrated without intermission to the search after nature and truth1 to the study of the masters and all the traditions1 to the cult of the ideal and especially of the ,virgin4 ,after having produced so many rare masterpieces1 his love and faith were carried to such a pitch of power and enthusiasm that he seemed to be borne up by them1 and1 suddenly penetrating into a sphere superior to all he had hitherto visited1 he painted a ,virgin incomparably more beautiful than all the admirable ,virgins he had painted before4 ,not a single design1 nor preparatory study1 puts us on the trace of any bringing forth of any of the parts of this picture4 ,however1 if the image of this ,virgin was traced on the canvas by a hand suddenly inspired1 ,i think that at the same time ,raphael confronted his inspiration with nature1 and that1 whilst resolutely springing towards the infinite1 he yet set himself face to face with reality4 ,perhaps1 strictly1 he would have had no need of that2 he had amassed so much1 his memory placed such numerous1 varied1 and exact documents at the service of his will1 that he had only to remember in order almost immediately to produce an accomplished whole4 ,moreover1 he had the model he wanted1 possessing without dominating it2 and without losing sight of his ideal1 it was to this model that he applied himself for the embodiment of his idea4 ,thus1 in the ,virgin of ,st4 ,sixtus1 we recognize1 not the image of ,la ,fornarina1 but the transfiguration of her image4 ,none of her features are left and yet it is she1 but so purified that no trouble nor shadow comes to dim the radiant and virginal brightness of the picture4 ,in every human creature there is a divine germ that cannot flourish on earth and whose blossoming is only in the skies2 this is the flowering1 the splendour of which is shown in the ,virgin of ,st4 ,sixtus4 ,we care very little about ,raphael's private life2 we only affirm in the presence of his work that as a painter he did not love for this life only1 and that from the beginning to the end of his career he had the respect and the taste for eternal love4 ,since the day when the ,virgin appeared transfigured to the seer of the ,apocalypse1 she had never revealed herself in such effulgence4 ,before this picture1 we lose every memory of earth and see nothing but the ,queen of ,heaven and of the angels1 the creature elect and blessed above all creatures4 ,in thus painting the ,virgin1 ,raphael has almost reached the confines of divinity4 ,but everything in this picture is food for admiration1 even the atmosphere that envelops it and those innumerable and endless legions of cherubin that gravitate around the ,virgin and the ,word of ,god4 ,the aureole that encircles the divine group shows nothing at first but dazzling and golden light2 then1 as it recedes from the centre1 this light gradually pales and insensibly merges from the most intense gold into the purest blue1 and is filled with those heads1 chaste1 innocent1 and fervent1 that spring beneath the brush of ,raphael like the flowers at the breath of ,spring4 ,these arial creatures throng to contemplate the ,virgin1 and their forms recall those radiances in the shape of crowns that fill the ,dantesque ,paradise1 making the name of ,mary resound with their praises4 ,our eyes and mind lose themselves in the immense multitude of these happy spirits4 ,number if you can the sands of the sea or the stars in the sky1 those that are visible and invisible1 and still believe that you have not attained the number of the angels4 ,it costs ,god nothing to multiply the most excellent things1 and it is the most beautiful of which he is most prodigal4 ,we cannot keep our eyes away from that sky2 we gaze at it and love to dazzle and weary our eyes with it4 ,on either side of the ,virgin1 kneel ,st4 ,sixtus and ,st4 ,barbara4 ,placed also amid the clouds1 but below the ,madonna1 they are near the sovereign mediatrix1 as mediators also between the world and the ,sovereign ,judge4 ,st4 ,sixtus is seen on the right in profile1 his head is raised towards the ,infant ,jesus1 his left hand is placed devoutly on his breast while his right is foreshortened and points towards the spectator4 ,he wears a white rochet tied by a girdle with golden tassels1 a white amice around his neck1 a magnificent pallium woven with gold falling to his feet1 and a long chasuble embroidered with gold and lined with red enveloping his shoulders and arms1 the wide folds of which are lost amid the clouds4 ,his head is bare1 and his white tiara1 adorned with the triple crown1 is placed on the balustrade that runs horizontally across the base of the picture4 ,it is impossible to find a representation of pontifical sovereignty of greater fervour1 grandeur1 and truth4 ,his cranium is bald and has only a crown of grey hair remaining4 ,his emaciated face is full of ardour and power3 his eyes penetrate straight into the splendour of ,god2 and his mouth1 although partially hidden by the grey beard that covers the lower part of his face1 is praying with extraordinary fervour4 ,his gesture1 so resolute and respectful1 is in itself an act of love and charity1 and his very hands1 so true in drawing and so bold in action1 have their special eloquence4 ,it seems impossible that the divine justice will not allow itself to be swayed by such intercession4 ,st4 ,barbara is opposite ,st4 ,sixtus4 ,her body is in left profile1 towards the ,virgin1 while her head1 turned over her left shoulder towards the spectator1 appears almost in full face4 ,only her left arm and hand are visible1 pressed against her breast4 ,her left knee1 directly resting upon the cloud1 sustains the weight of her body2 her right leg1 which is raised1 only touches the clouds with the foot4 ,her head is as beautiful1 youthful1 and fresh as the action of her whole figure is easy1 elegant1 and noble4 ,then where did ,raphael find this serenity if not in himself8 ,the saint1 gently bending towards the earth1 seems to want to receive our hopes and vows to bear them to ,heaven4 ,she is one of those virgins who are created in the image of the ,virgin par excellence4 ,nevertheless1 here she affects certain worldly appearances which1 beside the severe simplicity of the ,mother of the ,word1 establish a hierarchy between the two figures and a sort of line of demarcation that cannot be crossed4 ,the higher we soar the more is grandeur simplified in everything4 ,st4 ,barbara's hair is arranged with a certain elegance2 it is very abundant1 of an ash blonde1 and forms thick waving bands that are gathered off the temples and are crossed by two white fillets1 one of which crosses the top of the forehead like a diadem4 ,her eyes1 lowered towards the earth1 are perfectly beautiful2 her mouth is calm and sweet2 and purity shines in all her features4 ,her shoulders are bare1 only covered with a veil of white gauze which falls down her back1 passes under her arm and returns to her breast where her left hand holds it4 ,her robe of violet shading into a neutral tint1 is only visible where it covers her leg2 for a green mantle1 thrown over it1 envelops the body1 only revealing the arm1 the sleeve of which is blue on the upper arm1 yellow1 and slightly puffed at the shoulder1 and yellow also on the forearm4 ,all this is of a grand air and in exquisite taste4 ,thus draped1 the figure has a charming effect which1 without detracting from the religious idea1 leaves room also for a more human sentiment4 ,raphael1 doubtless1 had thought that the figures of the ,virgin1 the ,infant ,jesus1 ,st4 ,sixtus1 and ,st4 ,barbara would alone be sufficient for his picture2 but the empty space remaining beneath the feet of the ,madonna was too considerable to be filled up simply by clouds3 and therefore he added that rigid and horizontal supporting bar on which two angels lean upon their elbows1 contemplating the glory of the ,virgin with such rapture4 ,in fact1 these angels seem to be painted as an afterthought1 for1 laid in with a light brush1 they scarcely cover the clouds1 but allow the underlying pigment to show through4 ,little wings of vivid tint complete these arial creatures1 always living around ,raphael and always ready to come from his brush4 ,although held to nature by the most intimate ties1 although perhaps too familiar in attitude and manner1 they are yet supernatural by the clearness of their intelligence and by the power of their admiration4 ,we are enchanted with their candour and beauty4 ,they are full of zeal and enthusiasm2 they possess the grace of the ,pagan ,loves merged into ,christian innocence and chastity4 ,their faith is as beautiful as the sky1 and in loving them it is almost for ,god himself that we feel the love4 ,such are the various parts of this work2 their union forms the most sublime harmony1 and each in particular brings a divine note to this celestial concert4 ,by what process was this picture produced8 ,we can scarcely say1 so greatly does the inspiration predominate over the technique4 ,raphael aimed at the sublime2 and the rest was given to him as increase4 ,the colour is just what it should be in such a subject2 whilst keeping to a sweet1 calm1 and peaceful scale1 it is resplendent with light1 and we ask ourselves whether it is not the hand of an angel rather than that of a man that has been able to realize such a marvel4 ,the ,virgin of ,st4 ,sixtus is the most beautiful picture in the world4 ,to copy this ,virgin is to attempt the impossible4 ,study it a hundred times and a hundred times it will reveal itself under a new aspect4 ,it was before this picture1 it is said1 that ,correggio cried3 ,and ,i also1 ,i am a painter4 ,the ,virgin of ,st4 ,sixtus was immediately placed where it was meant to be2 it was present in triumph every day for two hundred and thirty-six years at the divine sacrament2 and never was a human work so worthy of that signal honour4 ,in #agcd the degenerate monks of ,st4 ,sixtus preferred a little gold to their inestimable masterpiece1 and for a miserable sum of a hundred and some thousands of francs 7#aaj1jjj to #abj1jjj71 they sold their ,virgin to ,augustus ,,iii41 ,elector of ,saxony and ,king of ,poland4 ,that day the barbarians were not those the ,italians think4444 ,at ,dresden1 the ,madonna was received with great pomp4 ,augustus ,,iii4 had it brought in haste into the reception hall of his palace2 as the place of honour was occupied by the throne1 he1 himself1 seized the royal chair1 and relegating it to a less conspicuous station1 he cried3 ,room for the great ,raphael4 ,if this is historic1 it does honour to the prince2 if legendary1 it is to the glory of the people whose sentiment it translates4 ,les ,vierges de ,raphal 7,paris1 #ahfi74 ,,the ,,dream ,,of ,,st4 ,,ursula 7,,carpaccio7 ,,john ,,ruskin ,in the year #ahfi1 just before leaving ,venice ,i had been carefully looking at a picture by ,victor ,carpaccio1 representing the dream of a young princess4 ,carpaccio has taken much pains to explain to us1 as far as he can1 the kind of life she leads1 by completely painting her little bedroom in the light of dawn1 so that you can see everything in it4 ,it is lighted by two doubly-arched windows1 the arches being painted crimson round their edges1 and the capitals of the shafts that bear them1 gilded4 ,they are filled at the top with small round panes of glass2 but beneath1 are open to the blue morning sky1 with a low lattice across them2 and in the one at the back of the room are set two beautiful white ,greek vases with a plant in each2 one having rich dark and pointed green leaves1 the other crimson flowers1 but not of any species known to me1 each at the end of a branch like a spray of heath4 ,illustration3 ,,the ,,dream ,,of ,,st4 ,,ursula4 ,carpaccio4 ,these flower-pots stand on a shelf which runs all round the room1 and beneath the window1 at about the height of the elbow1 and serves to put things on anywhere3 beneath it1 down to the floor1 the walls are covered with green cloth2 but above are bare and white4 ,the second window is nearly opposite the bed1 and in front of it is the princess's reading-table1 some two feet and a half square1 covered by a red cloth with a white border and dainty fringe2 and beside it her seat1 not at all like a reading chair in ,oxford1 but a very small three-legged stool like a music stool1 covered with crimson cloth4 ,on the table are a book1 set up at a slope fittest for reading1 and an hour-glass4 ,under the shelf near the table so as to be easily reached by the outstretched arm1 is a press full of books4 ,the door of this has been left open1 and the books1 ,i am grieved to say1 are rather in disorder1 having been pulled about before the princess went to bed1 and one left standing on its side4 ,opposite this window1 on the white wall1 is a small shrine or picture 7,i can't see which1 for it is in sharp retiring perspective71 with a lamp before it1 and a silver vessel hung from the lamp1 looking like one for holding incense4 ,the bed is a broad four-poster1 the posts being beautifully wrought golden or gilded rods1 variously wreathed and branched1 carrying a canopy of warm red4 ,the princess's shield is at the head of it1 and the feet are raised entirely above the floor of the room1 on a dais which projects at the lower end so as to form a seat1 on which the child has laid her crown4 ,her little blue slippers lie at the side of the bed1--her white dog beside them1 the coverlid is scarlet1 the white sheet folded half way back over it2 the young girl lies straight1 bending neither at waist nor knee1 the sheet rising and falling over her in a narrow unbroken wave1 like the shape of the coverlid of the last sleep1 when the turf scarcely rises4 ,she is some seventeen or eighteen years old1 her head is turned towards us on the pillow1 the cheek resting on her hand1 as if she were thinking1 yet utterly calm in sleep1 and almost colourless4 ,her hair is tied with a narrow riband1 and divided into two wreaths1 which encircle her head like a double crown4 ,the white nightgown hides the arm raised on the pillow1 down to the wrist4 ,at the door of the room an angel enters2 7the little dog1 though lying awake1 vigilant1 takes no notice47 ,he is a very small angel1 his head just rises a little above the shelf round the room1 and would only reach as high as the princess's chin1 if she were standing up4 ,he has soft grey wings1 lustreless2 and his dress1 of subdued blue1 has violet sleeves1 open above the elbow1 and showing white sleeves below4 ,he comes in without haste1 his body1 like a mortal one1 casting shadow from the light through the door behind1 his face perfectly quiet2 a palm-branch in his right hand--a scroll in his left4 ,so dreams the princess1 with blessed eyes1 that need no earthly dawn4 ,it is very pretty of ,carpaccio to make her dream out the angel's dress so particularly1 and notice the slashed sleeves2 and to dream so little an angel--very nearly a doll angel1--bringing her the branch of palm1 and message4 ,but the lovely characteristic of all is the evident delight of her continual life4 ,royal power over herself1 and happiness in her flowers1 her books1 her sleeping and waking1 her prayers1 her dreams1 her earth1 her heaven4444 ,how do ,i know the princess is industrious8 ,partly by the trim state of her room1--by the hour-glass on the table1--by the evident use of all the books she has1 7well bound1 every one of them1 in stoutest leather or velvet1 and with no dog's-ears17 but more distinctly from another picture of her1 not asleep4 ,in that one a prince of ,england has sent to ask her in marriage3 and her father1 little liking to part with her1 sends for her to his room to ask her what she would do4 ,he sits1 moody and sorrowful2 she1 standing before him in a plain house-wifely dress1 talks quietly1 going on with her needlework all the time4 ,a work-woman1 friends1 she1 no less than a princess2 and princess most in being so4 ,in like manner1 is a picture by a ,florentine1 whose mind ,i would fain have you know somewhat1 as well as ,carpaccio's--,sandro ,botticelli--the girl who is to be the wife of ,moses1 when he first sees her at the desert well1 has fruit in her left hand1 but a distaff in her right4#b ,to do good work1 whether you live or die1 it is the entrance to all ,princedoms2 and if not done1 the day will come1 and that infallibly1 when you must labour for evil instead of good4 ,fors ,clavigera 7,sunnyside1 ,orpington1 ,kent1 #ahgb74 ,,footnotes3 #b ,more accurately a rod cloven into three at the top1 and so holding the wool4 ,the fruit is a bunch of apples2 she has golden sandals1 and a wreath of myrtle round her hair4 ,,the ,,descent ,,from ,,the ,,cross 7,,rubens7 ,,eug,,ne ,,fromentin ,many people say ,antwerp2 but many also say the country of ,rubens1 and this mode of speech more exactly expresses all the things that constitute the magic of the place3 a great city1 a great personal destiny1 a famous school1 and ultra-celebrated pictures4 ,all this is imposing1 and our imagination becomes excited rather more than usual when1 in the centre of the ,place ,vert1 we see the statue of ,rubens and1 farther on1 the old basilica where are preserved the triptychs which1 humanly speaking1 have consecrated it4 ,the statue is not a masterpiece2 but it is he1 in his own home4 ,under the form of a man1 who was nothing but a painter1 with the sole attributes of a painter1 in perfect truth it personifies the sole ,flemish sovereignty which has neither been contested nor menaced1 and which certainly never will be4 ,illustration3 ,,the ,,descent ,,from ,,the ,,cross4 ,rubens4 ,at the end of the square is seen ,notre ,dame2 it presents itself in profile1 being outlined by one of its lateral faces1 the darkest one1 on account of the rains beating on that side4 ,it is made to look blacker and bigger by being surrounded with light and low buildings4 ,with its carved stonework1 its rusty tone1 its blue and lustrous roof1 its colossal tower where the golden disk and the golden needles of its dial glitter in the stone discoloured by the vapours from the ,scheldt and by the winters1 it assumes monstrous proportions4 ,when the sky is troubled1 as it is to-day1 it adds all its own strange caprices to the grandeur of the lines4 ,imagine then the invention of a ,gothic ,piranesi1 exaggerated by the fancy of the ,north1 wildly illuminated by a stormy day1 and standing out in irregular blotches against the scenic background of a sky entirely black or entirely white1 and full of tempest4 ,a more original or more striking preliminary stage-setting could not be contrived4 ,thus it is vain for you to have come from ,mechlin or ,brussels1 to have seen the ,magi and the ,calvary1 to have formed an exact and measured idea of ,rubens1 or even to have taken familiarities in examining him that have set you at your ease with him1 for you cannot enter ,notre ,dame as you enter a museum4 ,it is three o'clock2 the clock high up has just struck4 ,scarcely even a sacristan makes a sound in the tranquil1 clean and clear naves1 as ,pieter ,neefs has represented them1 with an inimitable feeling for their solitude and grandeur4 ,it is raining and the light is fading4 ,shadows and gleams succeed each other upon the two triptychs in their thin framing of brown wood fastened without any pomp to the cold and smooth walls of the transepts1 and this proud painting only stands out the more amid the violent lights and obscurities contending around it4 ,german copyists have placed their easels before the ,descent from the ,cross2 there is nobody before the ,elevation to the ,cross4 ,this simple fact expresses the world's opinion as to these two works4 ,they are greatly admired1 almost unreservedly so1 and the fact is rare in the case of ,rubens1 but the admiration is divided4 ,the chief renown has fallen upon the ,descent from the ,cross4 ,the ,elevation to the ,cross has the gift of touching still more the impassioned1 or more deeply convinced1 friends of ,rubens4 ,no two works1 in fact1 could resemble each other less than these that were conceived at an interval of two years1 that were inspired by the same effort of mind1 and that1 nevertheless1 so plainly bear the marks of two separate tendencies4 ,the date of the ,descent from the ,cross is #afab2 that of the ,elevation to the ,cross is #afaj4 ,i insist upon the date1 for it is important4 ,rubens was returning to ,antwerp1 and it was on his disembarkation1 so to speak1 that he painted them4 ,his education was finished4 ,at that moment he had even an excess of studies that were somewhat heavy for him and of which he was going to make free use once for all and then get rid of almost immediately4 ,of all the ,italian masters he had consulted1 each one1 be it understood1 gave him advice of a sufficiently exclusive nature4 ,the hot-headed masters authorized him to dare greatly2 the severe masters recommended him to keep himself under strong restraint4 ,his nature1 character1 and native faculties all tended to a division4 ,the task itself exacted that he should make two parts of his beautiful gifts4 ,he felt the expediency of this1 took advantage of it1 treated of the subjects in accordance with their spirit1 and gave two contrary and two just ideas of himself3 on the one hand the most magnificent example we possess of his wisdom1 and on the other one of the most astonishing visions of his fire and ardour4 ,to the personal inspiration of the painter add a very marked ,italian influence and you will still better be able to explain to yourself the extraordinary value that posterity attaches to pages which may be regarded as his diploma works and which were the first public acts of his life as the head of a school4 ,i will tell you how this influence manifests itself and by what characteristics it may be recognized4 ,but first it is enough for me to remark that it exists1 in order that the physiognomy of the talent of ,rubens may not lose any of its features at the moment when we examine it4 ,this is not that he should be positively cramped in canonical formul in which others would find themselves imprisoned4 ,on the other hand1 with what ease he moves among these formul1 with what freedom he makes use of them1 with what tact he disguises or confesses them1 according as he takes pleasure in revealing the well-informed man or the novice4 ,however1 whatever he may do1 we feel the ,romanist who has just spent some years on classic ground1 who has just arrived and has not yet changed his atmosphere4 ,there is some unknown quality remaining with him that reveals travel1 such as a foreign odour about his clothes4 ,it is certainly to this fine ,italian scent that the ,descent from the ,cross owes the extreme favour that it enjoys4 ,for those indeed who would like ,rubens to be somewhat as he is1 but very much also as they imagine him1 there is here a seriousness in youth1 a frank and studious flower of maturity which is about to disappear and which is unique4 ,i need not describe the composition4 ,you could not mention a more popular composition as a work of art or as an example of religious style4 ,there is nobody who has not in his mind the ordering and the effect of the picture1 its great central light cast against a dark background1 its grandiose masses1 its distinct and massive divisions4 ,we know that ,rubens got the first idea of it from ,italy1 and that he made no attempt to conceal the loan4 ,the scene is powerful and grave4 ,it acts on one from afar1 it stands out strikingly upon a wall3 it is serious and enforces seriousness4 ,when we remember the carnage with which the work of ,rubens is crimsoned1 the massacres1 the executioners torturing1 martyring1 and making their victims howl1 we recognize that here we have a noble execution4 ,everything in it is restrained1 concise1 and laconic1 as in a page of ,holy ,writ4 ,there are neither gesticulations1 cries1 horrors1 nor too many tears4 ,the ,virgin hardly breaks into a single sob1 and the intense suffering of the drama is expressed by scarce a gesture of inconsolable motherhood1 a tearful face1 or red eyes4 ,the ,christ is one of the most elegant figures that ,rubens ever imagined for the painting of a ,god4 ,it possesses some peculiar extended1 pliant1 and almost tapering grace1 that gives it every natural delicacy and all the distinction of a beautiful academic study4 ,it is subtly proportioned and in perfect taste3 the drawing does not fall far short of the sentiment4 ,you have not forgotten the effect of that large and slightly hip-shot body1 with its small1 thin1 and fine head slightly fallen to one side1 so livid and so perfectly limpid in its pallor1 neither shrivelled nor drawn1 and from which all suffering has disappeared1 as it descends with so much beatitude to rest for a moment among the strange beauties of the death of the just6 ,recollect how heavily it hangs and how precious it is to support1 in what a lifeless attitude it glides along the sudarium1 with what agonized affection it is received by the outstretched hands and arms of the women4 ,is there anything more touching8 ,one of his feet1 livid and pierced1 encounters at the foot of the ,cross the bare shoulder of ,magdalen4 ,it does not rest upon it1 but grazes it4 ,the contact is scarcely noticeable1 we divine it rather than see it4 ,it would have been profane to insist upon it1 it would have been cruel not to have made us believe in it4 ,all ,rubens's furtive sensitiveness is in this imperceptible contact that says so many things1 respects them all1 and makes them affecting4 ,the sinner is admirable4 ,she is incontestably the best piece of work in the picture1 the most delicate1 the most personal1 one of the best figures of women1 moreover1 that ,rubens ever executed in his career that was so fertile in feminine creations4 ,this delicious figure has its legend2 how should it not have1 its very perfection having become legendary6 ,it is probable that this beautiful maiden with the black eyes1 with the firm glance1 with the clear-cut profile1 is a portrait1 and the portrait is that of ,isabella ,brandt1 whom he had married two years before1 and who had also sat for him for the ,virgin in the wing of the ,visitation4 ,however1 while observing her ample figure1 powdered hair1 and plump proportions1 we reflect what must some day be the splendid and individual charms of that beautiful ,helen ,fourment whom he is to marry twenty years later4 ,from his earliest to his latest years1 one tenacious type seems to have taken up its abode in ,rubens's heart2 one fixed idea haunted his amorous and constant imagination4 ,he delights in it1 he completes it1 he achieves it2 to some extent he pursues it in his two marriages1 just as he never ceases to repeat it throughout his works4 ,there is always something both of ,isabella and of ,helen in the women whom ,rubens painted from either one of them4 ,in the first he puts a sort of preconceived trait of the second2 into the second glides a kind of ineffaceable memory of the first4 ,at the date of which we treat1 he possesses the first and is inspired by her2 the other is not yet born1 and still he divines her4 ,the future already mingles with the present2 the real with the ideal4 ,as soon as the image appears it has this double form4 ,not only is it exquisite1 but not a feature is wanting4 ,does it not seem as if in thus fixing it from the first day1 ,rubens intended that neither he nor anyone else should forget it8 ,as for the rest1 this is the sole mundane grace with which he has embellished this austere picture1 slightly monkish1 and absolutely evangelical in character1 if by that is meant the gravity of sentiment and style1 and if we remember the rigours that such a spirit must impose upon itself4 ,in that case1 you will understand1 a great part of his reserve is as much the result of his ,italian education as of the attention he gave to his subject4 ,the canvas is sombre1 notwithstanding its high lights and the extraordinary whiteness of the winding-sheet4 ,in spite of its reliefs1 the painting is flat4 ,it is a picture of blackish grounds on which are disposed broad strong lights of no gradations4 ,the colouring is not very rich3 it is full1 well-sustained1 and clearly calculated to be effective from a distance4 ,it makes the picture1 frames it1 expresses its weakness and its strength1 and makes no attempt to beautify it4 ,it is composed of an almost black green1 an absolute black1 a rather heavy red1 and a white4 ,these four tones are placed side by side as frankly as is possible with four notes of such violence4 ,the contact is brusque and yet they do not suffer4 ,in the great white1 the corpse of ,christ is drawn with a delicate and supple line and modelled by its own reliefs without any effort of nuances1 thanks to deviations of imperceptible values4 ,no shining1 no single division in the lights1 and scarcely a detail in the dark parts4 ,all that is of a singular breadth and rigidity4 ,the outlines are narrow1 the half-tints limited except in the ,christ1 where the under layer of ultramarine has worn through and to-day forms blemishes4 ,the pigment is smooth1 compact1 flowing easily and thoughtfully4 ,at the distance from which we examine it1 the work of the hand disappears1 but it is easy to guess that it is excellent and directed with full confidence by a mind broken into good habits1 that conforms to them1 applies itself1 and wishes to do well4 ,rubens remembers1 observes1 restrains himself1 possesses all his forces1 subordinates them1 and only half makes use of them4 ,in spite of these drawbacks1 this is a singularly original1 attractive1 and strong work4 ,van ,dyck will derive his best religious inspirations from it4 ,philippe de ,champagne will not imitate it1 ,i am afraid1 except in its weak points1 and from it will compose his ,french style4 ,otto ,van ,veen should certainly applaud it4 ,what should ,van ,oort think of it8 ,as for ,jordaens1 he is waiting for his fellow student to become more distinctly and expressly ,rubens before following him in these new ways4 ,les ,matres d' ,autrefois 7,paris1 #ahgf74 ,,bacchus ,,and ,,ariadne 7,,titian7 ,,charles ,,lamb ,hogarth excepted1 can we produce any one painter within the last fifty years1 or since the humour of exhibiting began1 that has treated a story imaginatively8 ,by this we mean1 upon whom has subject so acted that it has seemed to direct him--not to be arranged by him8 ,any upon whom its leading or collateral points have impressed themselves so tyrannically1 that he dared not treat it otherwise1 lest he should falsify a revelation8 ,any that has imparted to his compositions1 not merely so much truth as is enough to convey a story with clearness1 but that individualizing property1 which should keep the subject so treated distinct in feature from every other subject1 however similar1 and to common apprehensions almost identical2 so as that we might say this and this part could have found an appropriate place in no other picture in the world but this8 ,is there anything in modern art--we will not demand that it should be equal--but in any way analogous to what ,titian has effected1 in that wonderful bringing together of two times in the ,ariadne1 in the ,national ,gallery8 ,precipitous1 with his reeling ,satyr rout about him1 repeopling and re-illuming suddenly the waste places1 drunk with a new fury beyond the grape1 ,bacchus1 born in fire1 fire-like flings himself at the ,cretan4 ,this is the time present4 ,with this telling of the story an artist1 and no ordinary one1 might remain richly proud4 ,guido in his harmonious version of it1 saw no farther4 ,but from the depths of the imaginative spirit ,titian has recalled past time1 and laid it contributory with the present to one simultaneous effect4 ,with the desert all ringing with the mad symbols of his followers1 made lucid with the presence and new offers of a god1--as if unconscious of ,bacchus1 or but idly casting her eyes as upon some unconcerning pageant--her soul undistracted from ,theseus--,ariadne is still pacing the solitary shore1 in as much heart-silence1 and in almost the same local solitude1 with which she awoke at daybreak to catch the forlorn last glances of the sail that bore away the ,athenian4 ,here are two points miraculously co-uniting2 fierce society1 with the feeling of solitude still absolute2 noon-day revelations1 with the accidents of the dull grey dawn unquenched and lingering2 the present ,bacchus with the past ,ariadne2 two stories1 with double ,time2 separate1 and harmonizing4 ,had the artist made the woman one shade less indifferent to the ,god2 still more1 had she expressed a rapture at his advent1 where would have been the story of the mighty desolation of the heart previous8 merged in the insipid accident of a flattering offer met with a welcome acceptance4 ,the broken heart for ,theseus was not lightly to be pieced up by a ,god4 ,lamb's ,complete ,works1 edited by ,r4,h4 ,shepherd 7,london1 #ahge74 ,illustration3 ,,bacchus ,,and ,,ariadne4 ,titian4 ,,bacchus ,,and ,,ariadne 7,,titian7 ,,edward ,t4 ,,cook ,but though as yet half unconscious1 ,ariadne is already under her fated star3 for above is the constellation of ,ariadne's crown--the crown with which ,bacchus presented his bride4 ,and observe in connection with the astronomical side of the allegory the figure in ,bacchus's train with the serpent round him3 this is the serpent-bearer 7,milton's ,ophiuchus huge7 translated to the skies with ,bacchus and ,ariadne4 ,notice too another piece of poetry3 the marriage of ,bacchus and ,ariadne took place in the spring1 ,ariadne herself being the personification of its return1 and ,bacchus of its gladness2 hence the flowers in the foreground which deck his path4 ,the picture is as full of the painter's art as of the poet's4 ,note first the exquisite painting of the vine leaves1 and of these flowers in the foreground1 as an instance of the constant habit of the great masters to render every detail of their foreground with the most laborious botanical fidelity4 ,the foreground is occupied with the common blue iris1 the aquilegia1 and the wild rose 7more correctly the ,capparis ,spinosa72 every stamen of which latter is given1 while the blossoms and leaves of the columbine 7a difficult flower to draw7 have been studied with the most exquisite accuracy4 ,but this detail is sought not for its own sake1 but only so far as is necessary to mark the typical qualities of beauty in the object4 ,thus while every stamen of the rose is given because this was necessary to mark the flower1 and while the curves and large characters of the leaves are rendered with exquisite fidelity1 there is no vestige of particular texture1 of moss1 bloom1 moisture1 or any other accident1 no dewdrops1 nor flies1 nor trickeries of any kind3 nothing beyond the simple forms and hues of the flowers1 even those hues themselves being simplified and broadly rendered4 ,the varieties of aquilegia have in reality a greyish and uncertain tone of colour1 and never attain the purity of blue with which ,titian has gifted his flower4 ,but the master does not aim at the particular colour of individual blossoms2 he seizes the type of all1 and gives it with the utmost purity and simplicity of which colour is capable4 ,a second point to be noticed is the way in which one kind of truth has often to be sacrificed in order to gain another4 ,thus here ,titian sacrifices truth of arial effect to richness of tone--tone in the sense1 that is1 of that quality of colour which makes us feel that the whole picture is in one climate1 under one kind of light1 and in one kind of atmosphere4 ,it is difficult to imagine anything more magnificently impossible than the blue of the distant landscape2 impossible1 not from its vividness1 but because it is not faint and arial enough to account for its purity of colour2 it is too dark and blue at the same time2 and there is indeed so total a want of atmosphere in it1 that1 but for the difference of form1 it would be impossible to tell the mountains intended to be ten miles off1 from the robe of ,ariadne close to the spectator4 ,yet make this blue faint1 arial1 and distant2 make it in the slightest degree to resemble the tint of nature's colour2 and all the tone of the picture1 all the intensity and splendour will vanish on the instant4#c ,we may notice lastly what ,sir ,joshua ,reynolds points out 7,discourse ,,viii471 that the harmony of the picture--that wonderful bringing together of two times of which ,lamb speaks above1 is assisted by the distribution of colours4 ,to ,ariadne is given 7say the critics7 a red scarf to relieve the figure from the sea1 which is behind her4 ,it is not for that reason alone1 but for another of much greater consequence2 for the sake of the general harmony and effect of the picture4 ,the figure of ,ariadne is separated from the great group1 and is dressed in blue1 which1 added to the colour of the sea1 makes that quantity of cold colour which ,titian thought necessary for the support and brilliancy of the great group2 which group is composed1 with very little exception1 entirely of mellow colours4 ,but as the picture in this case would be divided into two distinct parts1 one half cold1 and the other warm2 it was necessary to carry some of the mellow colours of the great group into the cold part of the picture1 and a part of the cold into the great group2 accordingly1 ,titian gave ,ariadne a red scarf1 and to one of the ,bacchante a little blue drapery4 ,it is interesting to know that this great picture took ,titian three years1 off and on1 to finish4 ,it was a commission from the ,duke of ,ferrara1 who supplied canvas and frame for it1 and repeatedly wrote to press for its delivery2 it reached him in #aebc4 ,a ,popular ,handbook to the ,national ,gallery 7,london and ,new ,york1 #ahhh74 ,,footnotes3 #c ,modern ,painters1 ,vols4 ,i41 ,,xxvii41 ,,xxx4 7,preface to ,second ,edition71 pt4 i4 sec4 ii4 ch4 #a #e1 pt4 ii4 sec4 ii4 ch4 #a4 #ae2 ,vol4 ,,iii4 pt4 iv4 ch4 ix4 #ah2 ,vol4 ,v4 pt4 ix4 ch4 iii4 #ca2 ,arrows of the ,chace1 ,i4 #eh4 ,,the ,,coronation ,,of ,,the ,,virgin 7,,fra ,,angelico7 ,,th,,ophile ,,gautier ,the ,coronation of the ,virgin1 by ,fra ,beato ,angelico1 seems to have been painted by an angel rather than by a mortal4 ,time has not tarnished the ideal freshness of this painting1 delicate as a miniature in a missal1 and whose tints are borrowed from the whiteness of the lily1 the rose of the dawn1 the blue of the sky1 and the gold of the stars4 ,no muddy tones of earth dull these seraphic beings composed of luminous vapours4 ,upon a throne with marble steps1 the varied colours of which are symbolic1 ,christ is seated1 holding a crown of rich workmanship which he is about to place upon the head of his divine mother1 kneeling before him1 with her head modestly inclined and her hands crossed upon her breast4 ,around the throne1 throng a choir of angel-musicians1 playing the trumpet1 the theorbo1 the angelot1 and the viola d' amore4 ,a light flame flutters about their heads and their great wings palpitate with joy at this glorious coronation which will transform the humble handmaid of the ,lord into the ,lady of ,paradise4 ,to the left1 an angel kneels in prayer4 ,in the lower part of the painting with faces uplifted to the sky the hosts of the blessed1 distributed in two groups1 adore and contemplate4 ,on one side1 are ,moses1 ,saint ,john the ,baptist1 the apostles1 the bishops1 and the founders of orders1 distinguished by some emblem1 and for greater certainty bearing their names inscribed around their nimbus1 or upon the embroideries of their vestments4 ,saint ,dominick holds a branch of lilies and a book4 ,a sun forms the agrafe of ,saint ,thomas ,aquinas's mantle2 ,charlemagne1 l'empereur la barbe fleurie1 is recognizable by his crown of fleur-de-lis4 ,saint ,nicholas1 bishop of ,myra1 has by his side the three balls of gold1 symbolic of the three purses which he gave to a poor gentleman to dower his three daughters whose beauty exposed them to dangers4 ,on the other side1 throng ,king ,david1 apostles1 martyrs1 ,saint ,peter the ,dominican with his wounded head1 ,saint ,laurence holding his gridiron1 ,saint ,stephen with a palm in his hand1 and ,saint ,george armed from head to foot2 then1 in the foreground of the picture1 is the charming group of saints of perfectly celestial grace3 the kneeling ,magdalen offers her vase of perfumes2 ,saint ,ccilia advances1 crowned with roses2 ,saint ,clara gleams through her veil1 constellated with crosses and golden stars2 ,saint ,catherine of ,alexandria leans upon the wheel1 the instrument of her execution1 as calmly and peacefully as if it were a spinning-wheel2 and ,saint ,agnes holds in her arms a little white lamb1 the symbol of innocent purity4 ,illustration3 ,,the ,,coronation ,,of ,,the ,,virgin4 ,fra ,angelico4 ,fra ,beato ,angelico has given to these youthful saints a celestial and ideal beauty1 whose type exists not upon this earth3 they are visible souls1 rather than bodies1 they are thoughts of human form enveloped in these chaste draperies of white1 rose1 and blue1 sown with stars and embroidered1 clothed as might be the happy spirits who rejoice in the eternal light of ,paradise4 ,if there be paintings in ,heaven1 surely they must resemble those of ,fra ,angelico4 ,guide de l',amateur au ,muse du ,louvre 7,paris1 #ahhb74 ,,judith 7,,sandro ,,botticelli7 ,,maurice ,,hewlett ,in the days when it was verging on a question whether a man could be at the same time a good ,christian and an artist the chosen subjects of painting were significant of the approaching crisis--those glaring moral contrasts in history which1 for want of a happier term1 we call dramatic4 ,why this was so1 whether ,art took a hint from ,politics1 or had withdrawn her more intimate manifestations to await likelier times1 is a question it were long to answer4 ,the subjects1 at any rate1 were such as the ,greeks1 with their surer instincts and saving grace of sanity in matters of this kind1 either forbore to meddle with or treated as decoratively as they treated acanthus-wreaths4 ,to-day we call them effective subjects2 we find they produce shocks and tremors2 we think it braces us to shudder1 and we think that ,art is a kind of emotional pill2 we measure it quantitatively1 and say that we know what we like4 ,and doubtless there is something piquant in the quivering produced1 for example1 by the sight of white innocence fluttering helpless in a grey shadow of lust4 ,so long as the ,bible remained a god that piquancy was found in a ,massacre of the ,innocents2 in our own time we find it in a ,faust and ,gretchen1 in the ,dor ,gallery1 or in the ,royal ,academy4 ,it was a like appreciation of the certain effect of vivid contrasts as powerful didactic agents 7coupled with1 or drowning1 a something purer and more devout7 which had inspired those most beautiful and distinctive of all the symbols of ,catholicism1 the ,adoration of the ,kings1 the ,christ-child cycle1 and which raised the ,holy ,child and ,maid-,mother to their place above the mystic tapers and the ,cross4 ,naturally the ,old ,testament1 that garner of grim tales1 proved a sick wine3 ,david and ,golias1 ,susanna and the ,elders1 the ,sacrifice of ,isaac1 ,jethro's ,daughter4 ,but the story of ,judith did not come to be painted in ,tuscan sanctuaries until ,donatello of ,florence had first cast her in bronze at the prayer of ,cosimo pater patri4 ,her entry was dramatic enough at least3 ,dame ,fortune may well have sniggered as she spun round the city on her ball4 ,cosimo the patriot and his splendid grandson were no sooner dead and their brood sent flying1 than ,donatello's ,judith was set up in the ,piazza as a fit emblem of rescue from tyranny1 with the vigorous motto1 to make assurance double1 ,,exemplvm ,,salvtis ,,pvblicae ,,cives ,,posvere4 ,savonarola1 who knew his ,bible1 saw here a keener application of ,judith's pious sin4 ,a few years later that same ,judith saw him burn4 ,thus1 as an incarnate cynicism1 she will pass2 as a work of art she is admittedly one of her great creator's failures4 ,her neighbour ,perseus of the ,loggia makes this only too plain6 ,for ,cellini has seized the right moment in a deed of horror1 and ,donatello1 with all his downrightness and grip of the fact1 has hit upon the wrong4 ,it is fatal to freeze a moment of time into an eternity of writing4 ,his ,judith will never strike3 her arm is palsied where it swings4 ,the ,damoclean sword is a fine incident for poetry2 but ,holofernes was no ,damocles1 and if he had been1 it were intolerable to cast his experience in bronze4 ,donatello has essayed that thing impossible for sculpture1 to arrest a moment instead of denote a permanent attribute4 ,art is adjectival1 is it not1 ,o ,donatello8 ,her business is to qualify facts1 to say what things are1 not to state them1 to affirm that they are4 ,a sculptured ,judith was done not long afterwards1 carved1 as we shall see1 with a burin on a plate2 and the man who so carved her was a painter4 ,illustration3 ,,judith4 ,botticelli4 ,meantime1 pari passu1 almost1 a painter who was a poet was trying his hand2 a man who knew his ,bible and his mythology and was equally at home with either4 ,perhaps it is not extravagant to say that you cannot be an artist unless you are at home with mythology1 unless mythology is the swiftest and most direct expression of your being1 so that you can be measured by it as a man is known by his books1 or a woman by her clothes1 her way of bowing1 her amusements1 or her charities4 ,for mythopoeia is just this1 the incarnating the spirit of natural fact2 and the generic name of that power is ,art4 ,a kind of creation1 a clothing of essence in matter1 an hypostatizing 7if you will have it7 of an object of intuition within the folds of an object of sense4 ,lessing did not dig so deep as his ,greek ,voltaire 7whose dazzling antithesis1 after all1 touches the root of the matter71 for he did not see that rhythmic extension in time or space1 as the case may be1 with all that that implies--colour1 value1 proportion1 all the convincing incidents of form--is simply the mode of all arts1 the thing with which ,art's substance must be interpenetrated1 until the two form a whole1 lovely1 golden1 irresistible1 and inevitable as ,nature's pieces are4 ,this substance1 as ,i have said1 is the spirit of natural fact4 ,and so mythology is ,art at its simplest and barest 7where the bodily medium is neither word1 nor texture of stone1 nor dye71 the parent art from which all the others were1 so to speak1 begotten by man's need4 ,this much of explanation1 ,i am sorry to say1 is necessary1 before we turn to our mytho-poet of ,florence1 to see what he made out of the story of ,judith4 ,first of all1 though1 what has the story of ,judith to do with mythology8 ,it is a legend1 one of the finest of ,semitic legends2 and between legend and myth there is as great a gulf as between ,jew and ,greek4 ,i believe there are no myths proper to ,israel--,i do not see how such magnificent egoists could contract to the necessary state of awe--and ,i do not know that there are any legends proper to ,greece which are divorced from real myths4 ,for where a myth is the incarnation of the spirit of natural fact1 a legend is the embellishment of an historical event3 a very different thing4 ,a natural fact is permanent and elemental1 an historical event is transient and superficial4 ,take one instance out of a score4 ,the rainbow links heaven and earth4 ,iris1 then1 to the myth-making ,greek1 was ,jove's messenger1 intermediary between ,god and ,man4 ,that is to incarnate a constant1 natural fact4 ,plato afterwards1 making her a daughter of ,thaumas1 incarnated a fact1 psychological1 but none the less constant1 none the less natural4 ,but1 to say1 as the legend-loving ,jew said1 that ,noah floated his ark over a drowning world and secured for his posterity a standing covenant with ,god1 who then and once for all set his bow in the heavens2 that is to indicate1 somewhere1 in the dim backward and abysm of time1 an historical event4 ,the rainbow is suffered as the skirt of the robe of ,noah1 who was an ancestor of ,israel4 ,so the ,judith poem may be a decorated event1 or it may be the barest history in a splendid epical setting3 the point to remember is that it cannot be1 as legend1 a subject for creative art4 ,the artist1 in the language of ,neo-,platonism1 is a demiurge2 he only of men can convert dead things into life4 ,and now we will go into the ,uffizi4 ,mr4 ,ruskin1 in his petulant-playful way1 has touched upon the feeling of amaze most people have who look for the first time at ,botticelli's ,judith tripping smoothly and lightly over the hill-country1 her steadfast maid dogging with intent patient eyes every step she takes4 ,you say it is flippant1 affected1 pedantic4 ,for answer1 ,i refer you to the sage himself1 who1 from his point of view--that painting may fairly deal with a chapter of history--is perfectly right4 ,the prevailing strain of the story is the strength of weakness--ex dulci fortitudo1 to invert the old enigma4 ,o ,god1 ,o my ,god1 hear me also1 a widow4 ,break down their stateliness by the hand of a woman6 ,it is the refrain that runs through the whole history of ,israel1 that reasonable complacency of a little people in their ,god-fraught destiny4 ,and1 withal1 a streak of savage spite3 that the audacious oppressor shall be done scornfully to death4 ,there is the motive of ,jael and ,sisera too4 ,so she smote twice upon his neck with all her might1 and she took away his head from him1 and tumbled his body down from the bed4 ,ho6 what a fate for the emissary of the ,great ,king4 ,wherefore1 once more1 the jubilant paradox1 ,the ,lord hath smitten him by the hand of a woman6 ,that is it3 the amazing1 thrilling antithesis insisted on over and over again by the old ,hebrew bard4 ,her sandals ravished his eyes1 her beauty took his mind prisoner1 and the fauchion passed through his neck4 ,that is the leit-motif3 ,sandro the poet knew it perfectly well and taught it to the no small comfort of ,mr4 ,ruskin and his men4 ,giuditta1 dainty1 blue-eyed1 a girl still and three years a widow1 flits homeward through a spring landscape of grey and green and the smile of a milky sky1 being herself the dominant of the chord1 with her bough of slipt olive and her jagged scimitar1 with her pretty blue fal-lals smocked and puffed1 and her yellow curls floating over her shoulders4 ,on her slim feet are the sandals that ravished his eyes2 all her maiden bravery is dancing and fluttering like harebells in the wind4 ,behind her plods the slave girl folded in an orange scarf1 bearing that shapeless1 nameless burden of hers1 the head of the grim ,lord ,holofernes4 ,oh1 for that1 it is the legend itself6 ,for look at the girl's eyes4 ,what does their dreamy solemnity mean if not1 the ,lord hath smitten him by the hand of a woman8 ,one other delicate bit of symbolizing he has allowed himself1 which ,i may not omit4 ,you are to see by whom this deed was done3 by a woman who has unsexed herself4 ,judith is absorbed in her awful service2 her robe trails on the ground and clings about her knees2 she is unconscious of the hindrance4 ,the gates of ,bethulia are in sight2 the ,chaldean horsemen are abroad1 but she has no anxiety to escape4 ,she is swift because her life just now courses swiftly2 but there is no haste4 ,the maid1 you shall mark1 picks up her skirts with careful hand1 and steps out the more lustily for it4 ,so far ,botticelli the poet1 and so far also ,mr4 ,ruskin1 reader of pictures4 ,what says ,botticelli the painter8 ,had he no instincts to tell him that his art could have little to say to a legend8 ,or that a legend might be the subject of an epic 7here1 indeed1 was an epic ready made71 might1 under conditions1 be the subject of a drama2 but could not1 under any conditions1 be alone the subject of a picture8 ,i don't for a moment suggest that he had1 or that any artist ever goes to work in this double-entry1 methodical way1 but are we entitled to say that he was not influenced by his predilections1 his determinations as a draughtsman1 when he squared himself to illustrate the ,bible8 ,we say that the subject of a picture is the spirit of natural fact4 ,if ,botticelli was a painter1 that is what he must have looked for1 and must have found1 in every picture he painted4 ,where1 then1 was he to get his natural facts in the story of ,judith8 ,what is1 in that story1 the natural1 essential 7as opposed to the historical1 fleeting7 fact8 ,it is murder4 ,judith's deed was what the old ,scots law incisively calls slauchter4 ,it may be glossed over as assassination or even execution--in fact1 in ,florence1 where ,giuliano was soon to be taken off1 it did not fail to be so called3 it remains1 however1 just murder4 ,botticelli1 not shirking the position at all1 judged murder to be a natural fact1 and its spirit or essence swiftness and stealth4 ,chaucer1 let us note1 had been of the same mind3 ,the smyler with the knyf under his cloke1 and so on1 in lines not be matched for hasty and dreadful suggestion4 ,swiftness and stealth1 the ambush1 the averted face and the sudden stab1 are the standing elements of murder3 pare off all the rest1 you come down to that4 ,your staring looks1 your blood1 your chirking1 are accidentals4 ,they may be there 7for each of us carries a carcase71 but the horror of sudden death is above them3 a man may strangle with his thoughts cleaner than with his pair of hands4 ,and as matter is but the stuff wherewith ,nature works1 and she is only insulted1 not defied1 when we flout or mangle it1 so it is against the high dignity of ,art to insist upon the carrion she must use4 ,she will press1 here the terror1 there the radiance1 of essential fact2 she will leave to us1 seeing it in her face1 to add mentally the poor stage properties we have grown to trust4 ,no blood1 if you please4 ,therefore1 in ,botticelli's ,judith1 nothing but the essentials are insisted on2 the rest we instantly imagine1 but it is not there to be sensed4 ,the panel is in a tremor4 ,so swift and secret is ,judith1 so furtive the maid1 we need no hurrying horsemen to remind us of her oath1--,hear me1 and ,i will do a thing which shall go throughout all generations to the children of our nation4 ,sudden death in the air2 nature has been outraged4 ,but there is no drop of blood--the thin scarlet line along the sword-edge is a symbol if you will--the pale head in the cloth is a mere thing3 yet we all know what has been done4 ,earthwork out of ,tuscany 7,london1 #ahie74 ,,the ,,avenue ,,of ,,middelharnais 7,,hobbema7 ,,paul ,,lafond ,some small and slender trees1 branchless almost to their tops1 border the two sides of a road1 which occupies the centre of the picture1 and extend all the way to a village which closes the horizon with several masts and hulls of ships in profile against a sky where the sun is veiled2 to the right1 a nursery-garden of shrubs and rose-trees separated from the road by a wide ditch full of water2 then1 in the middle distance1 the buildings of a farm2 to the left1 a clump of trees and another ditch1 and further back the spire of a church2 a huntsman1 with a gun on his shoulder and preceded by his dog1 is walking on the road1 and two peasants--a man and a woman--have stopped to chat on the path that leads across to the farm2 a horticulturist is grafting the shrubs in the nursery-garden2 and this corner of a landscape has sufficed for ,hobbema to produce a masterpiece which the ,national ,gallery of ,london is justly proud to possess4 ,this youngest of the great ,european ,museums is not the poorest and owns very considerable works of every school4 ,illustration3 ,,the ,,avenue ,,of ,,middelharnais4 ,hobbema4 ,what is most admired in this picture of the ,dutch ,master8 ,the firmness of touch1 the brilliancy of the key1 the ease and breadth of execution without the slightest sign of hesitation or alteration1 or the extraordinary perfection with which the perspective is rendered8 ,we do not know4 ,despite the complexity of the subject1 the one defect of which may be a slight lack of unity in the composition1 the general effect of the picture is simple and powerful1 and the gradation of colour harmonious and correct4 ,it would be impossible to go any farther than this artist has done in the interpretation of this tranquil ,dutch landscape4 ,the deep values of the trees1 the yellowish greys of the road1 and the sluggish water of the ditches1 together with the blue sky flecked with little grey and white clouds produce an ensemble of absolute calm4 ,the little figures which give life to this canvas are so fine and delicate in execution that they leave nothing to be desired4 ,here1 as very rarely happens1 the multiplication of details does not spoil the effect of the whole4 ,this is a picture absolutely without a peer1 and a page by itself in ,hobbema's work4 ,this is true in every sense1 even in the choice of subject2 for most frequently the painter borrows the motives for his pictures from a different phase of nature4 ,ordinarily he interprets forest-clearings2 the skirts of a wood with poor huts hidden by great trees2 calm and fresh pools2 and streams feeding humble mills4 ,witness the one in the ,louvre for which he showed so great a predilection and which he reproduced under so many varied aspects4 ,but whatever may be the subject he treats1 he always remains the happy interpreter of the calm scenery of his own country of low and drowned horizons2 the painter attracted by the light which with him envelops everything it approaches--trees1 cottages1 ground1 waters1 and distances bathed in delicious depths4 ,nature1 gentle and friendly to man1 which he saw with a simplicity and a clearness approached by no other painter1 attracted and charmed him above all else1 in contrast to his contemporary and friend1 ,j4 ,ruysdael1 who1 led away by heart-breaking melancholy1 would never see any side of her but the energetic and lugubrious1 the sad and troubled4 ,in his forests1 on the banks of his ponds and rivers1 in the neighbourhood of his huts and mills1 ,hobbema wants to have company2 so he has sown his landscapes with figures1 and they are constantly animated with people and animals4 ,are these figures always his own8 ,it would be imprudent to affirm this1 although they harmonize in most cases so marvellously with the rest of the picture1 and it would therefore seem difficult for them to be by another hand4 ,however1 if we must defer to his historian1 von ,wurzbach1 they are very frequently the work of ,nicholaas ,berghem1 ,adriaen ,van de ,velde1 ,lingelbach1 ,philip ,wouwerman1 ,isack van ,ostade1 ,pijnacker1 etc41 which would prove1 at least1 that he knew how to select his collaborators4 ,the painter of the ,avenue of ,middelharnais in the ,national ,gallery1 of the ,mill in our ,louvre1 and of many other masterpieces was yet unknown1 or rather despised1 not very long ago1 and it is quite recently that his name has emerged from the unjust neglect in which it was buried4 ,this great name of ,hobbema had fallen into such discredit that when one of his pictures fell by chance into the hands of an amateur or merchant the signature would be effaced as quickly as possible and replaced by that of ,j4 ,ruysdael1 the sole painter worthy of entering into competition with him4 ,who then is this ,meindert ,hobbema8 ,where was he born8 ,where did he live8 ,what was his life8 ,alas1 we know very little concerning this impeccable master1 one of the greatest glories of ,dutch painting4 ,the principal historians of the ,netherland school are ignorant of him or pass him by in silence4 ,houbraken1 ,descamps1 and d',argenville are dumb regarding him4 ,those who1 by chance1 treat of him1 commit so many errors that it is best to take no account of their words4 ,three cities1 ,amsterdam1 ,koeverden1 and a village1 ,middelharnais1 in the province of ,guelder1 which he has made famous by the marvellous picture1 the subject of our notice1 dispute the honour of being his birthplace4 ,but1 it seems1 although nothing can be affirmed with certainty1 that he first saw the light in ,amsterdam in #afch4 ,he was the son of a sergeant in the ,netherland army and spent his early life in ,koeverden1 where he was baptized and where his father was in garrison4 ,at a later period he established himself in ,amsterdam1 where he became the pupil and soon the comrade and friend of ,j4 ,ruysdael1 who served as witness to his marriage with ,eeltie ,vinck1 celebrated in this same city1 ,oct4 #b1 #affh4 ,from that time he scarcely ever left ,amsterdam1 where he died1 ,dec4 #ad1 #agji1 five years after his wife1 in the sad ,roosegraft1 which had seen ,rembrandt expire thirty years before4 ,he was sixty-seven years of age4 ,have we any need to add that1 like ,rembrandt1 the painter of painters1 he died poor8 ,that is all we know of ,meindert ,hobbema4 ,it is little enough1 but quite sufficient4 ,have we not the man complete in his work8 ,what more could we wish8 ,jouin1 ,chefs-d'oeuvre3 ,peinture1 ,sculpture1 ,architecture 7,paris1 #ahie-ig74 ,,the ,,dance ,,of ,,the ,,daughter ,,of ,,herodias 7,,andrea ,,del ,,sarto7 ,,algernon ,,charles ,,swinburne ,with the majestic and tragic things of art we began1 at the landmarks set by ,leonardo and ,michael ,angelo2 and are come now1 not quite at random1 to the lyric and elegiac loveliness of ,andrea del ,sarto4 ,to praise him would need sweeter and purer speech than this of ours4 ,his art is to me as the ,tuscan ,april in its temperate days1 fresh and tender and clear1 but lulled and kindled by such air and light as fills the life of the growing year with fire4 ,at ,florence only can one trace and tell how great a painter and how various he was4 ,there only1 but surely there1 can the influence and pressure of the things of time on his immortal spirit be understood2 how much of him was killed or changed1 how much of him could not be4 ,there are the first-fruits of his flowering manhood1 when the bright and buoyant genius in him had free play and large delight in its handiwork2 when the fresh interest of invention was still his1 and the dramatic sense1 the pleasure in the play of life1 the power of motion and variety2 before the old strength of sight and of flight had passed from weary wing and clouding eye1 the old pride and energy of enjoyment had gone out of hand and heart4 ,how the change fell upon him1 and how it wrought1 any one may see who compares his later with his earlier works1 with the series1 for instance1 of outlines representing the story of ,st4 ,john ,baptist in the desolate little cloister of ,lo ,scalzo4 ,in these mural designs there is such exultation and exuberance of young power1 of fresh passion and imagination1 that only by the innate grace can one recognize the hand of the master whom hitherto we know by the works of his after life1 when the gift of grace had survived the gift of invention4 ,this and all other gifts it did survive2 all pleasure of life and power of mind1 all the conscience of the man1 his will1 his character1 his troubles1 his triumphs1 his sin and honour1 heart-break and shame4 ,all these his charm of touch1 his sweetness of execution1 his ,elysian beauty1 melancholy grace1 outlived1 and blossomed in their dust4 ,turn from that cloistral series to those later pictures1 painted when he was faultless and nothing more2 and seeing all the growth and all the gain1 all the change and all the loss1 one to whom the second was unknown would feel and foreknow his story and his sorrow4 ,in the cloister1 what life and fullness of growing and strengthening genius1 what joyous sense of its growth and the fair field before it1 what dramatic delight in character and action6 where ,st4 ,john preaches in the wilderness and the few first listeners are gathered together at his feet1 old people and poor1 soul-stricken1 silent--women with worn still faces1 and a spirit in their tired aged eyes that feeds heartily and hungrily on his words--all the haggard funereal group filled from the fountain of his faith with gradual fire and white-heat of soul2 or where ,salome dances before ,herod1 an incarnate figure of music1 grave and graceful1 light and glad1 the song of a bird made flesh1 with perfect poise of her sweet slight body from the maiden face to the melodious feet2 no tyrannous or treacherous goddess of deadly beauty1 but a simple virgin1 with the cold charm of girlhood and the mobile charm of childhood2 as indifferent and innocent when she stands before ,herodias and when she receives the severed head of ,john with her slender and steady hands2 a pure bright animal1 knowing nothing of man1 and of life nothing but instinct and motion4 ,in her mother's mature and conscious beauty there is visible the voluptuous will of a harlot and a queen2 but1 for herself1 she has neither malice nor pity2 her beauty is a maiden force of nature1 capable of bloodshed without bloodguiltiness2 the ,king hangs upon the music of her movement1 the rhythm of leaping life in her fair fleet limbs1 as one who listens to a tune1 subdued by the rapture of sound1 absorbed in purity of passion4 ,i know not where the subject has been touched with such fine and keen imagination as here4 ,the time came when another than ,salome was to dance before the eyes of the painter2 and she required of him the head of no man1 but his own soul2 and he paid the forfeit into her hands4 ,with the coming of that time upon him came the change upon his heart and hand2 the work of an imperious whorish woman4 ,those words1 set by the prophet as a brand upon the fallen forehead of the chosen bride1 come back to mind as one studies in her husband's pictures the full calm lineaments1 the large and serene beauty of ,lucrezia del ,fede2 a predominant and placid beauty1 placid and implacable1 not to be pleaded with or fought against4 ,voluptuous always and slothful1 subtle at times no doubt and sweet beyond measure1 full of heavy beauty and warm1 slow grace1 her features bear no sign of possible love or conscience4 ,seen side by side with his clear sad face1 hers tells more of the story than any written record1 even though two poets of our age have taken it up4 ,in the feverish and feeble melodrama of ,alfred de ,musset there is no touch of tragedy1 hardly a shadow of passionate and piteous truth2 in ,mr4 ,browning's noblest poem--his noblest it seems to me--the whole tragedy is distilled into the right words1 the whole man raised up and reclothed with flesh4 ,one point only is but lightly touched upon--missed it could not be by an eye so sharp and skilful--the effect upon his art of the poisonous solvent of love4 ,how his life was corroded by it and his soul burnt into dead ashes1 we are shown in full2 but we are not shown in full what as a painter he was before1 what as a painter he might have been without it4 ,this is what ,i think the works of his youth and age1 seen near together as at ,florence1 make manifest to any loving and studious eye4 ,in those later works1 the inevitable and fatal figure of the woman recurs with little diversity or change4 ,she has grown into his art1 and made it even as herself2 rich1 monotonous in beauty1 calm1 complete1 without heart or spirit4 ,but his has not been always the low-pulsed forthright craftsman's hand it was then4 ,he had started on his way towards another goal than that4 ,nothing now is left him to live for but his faultless hand and her faultless face--still and full1 suggestive of no change in the steady deep-lidded eyes and heavy lovely lips without love or pudency or pity4 ,here among his sketches we find it again and ever the same1 crowned and clothed only with the glory and the joy and the majesty of the flesh4 ,when the luxurious and subtle sense which serves the woman for a soul looks forth and speaks plainest from those eyes and lips1 she is sovereign and stately still2 there is in her beauty nothing common or unclean4 ,we cannot but see her for what she is2 but her majestic face makes no appeal for homage or forgiveness4 ,essays and ,studies 7,london1 #ahge74 ,illustration3 ,,the ,,dance ,,of ,,the ,,daughter ,,of ,,herodias4 ,andrea del ,sarto4 ,,adoration ,,of ,,the ,,magi 7,,gentile ,,da ,,fabriano7 ,f4,a4 ,,gruyer ,at the beginning of the ,fifteenth ,century1 ,gentile da ,fabriano#d painted an ,adoration of the ,magi1#e in which the faithful representation of contemporary scenes is again found4 ,the ,virgin1 completely enveloped in a large blue cloak1 is seated in front of the stable1 with her head piously inclined towards her ,son whom she is regarding with tender gaze4 ,st4 ,joseph is at her side and behind her are two young women who are holding and admiring the gifts offered to the ,saviour4 ,the infant ,jesus has laid his hand on the head of the oldest of the ,magi1 who1 prostrated1 kisses his feet with devotion4 ,the two other ,kings are much younger than the first one4 ,they are presenting their offerings to the ,son of ,god1 and are about to lay their crowns before him4 ,then follows the retinue of these ,magi2 and in this throng1 where may be counted at least seventy figures on foot and on horseback1 of all ranks1 of all ages1 and of all sizes1 it is easy to recognize a trace of those popular festivals instituted in the preceding century4 ,despite some slight ,oriental disguises1 one may easily recognize the bearing1 the general features1 and the costumes of the ,italy of the first years of the ,fifteenth ,century4 ,gentile was also pleased to add to the superb chargers mentioned by ,lattuda1 all kinds of animals1 especially the apes that the ,milanese loved to include in their pompous processions4 ,finally1 in the background of this picture he has painted the embattled walls of a ,guelph city with two massive gates2 the one through which the ,magi have entered1 the other through which they will take their departure4 ,is there anything here1 either in the foreground or the background that suggests ,jerusalem8 ,do you not notice rather a resemblance to the fortifications of ,milan1 with the ,porta ,romana and the ,porta ,san-,lorenzo8 ,illustration3 ,,adoration ,,of ,,the ,,magi4 ,fabriano4 ,after having painted the frescoes of the ,cathedral of ,orvieto1 ,gentile lived for a long time in the north of ,italy1 particularly in ,venice4 ,it is very likely that while there1 closer to the ,orient and more especially nearer to ,milan1 he painted his ,adoration of the ,magi4 ,we may then certainly consider this as a faithful portrayal of one of those public ceremonials1 which without doubt he had witnessed1 and in which he had most likely participated4 ,only1 ignoring the passions and violence of the period1 he left everywhere in this painting the imprint of his own gentle and tender nature4 ,we know that ,michael ,angelo remarked of ,gentile that his name was in perfect harmony with the tone of his works4 ,none of them can more thoroughly convince us of the justice of this observation than this picture4 ,from the ,virgin herself to the most humble of the servants of the ,magi1 and indeed even to the animals1 that beautiful soul which had for its servant a talent replete with delicacy and suavity may be traced4#f ,les ,vierges de ,raphal 7,paris1 #ahfi74 ,,footnotes3 #d ,one of the founders of the ,roman ,school4 #e ,this painting is in the gallery of the ,accademia delle ,belle ,arti1 ,florence4 ,at its base on one side one may read3 ,,opvs3 ,,gentilis1 ,,de3 ,,fabriano2 and on the other side3 ,,mcccc4,x4,x4,,iii3 ,,mensis3 ,,maii4 #f ,in a predella below this picture may be seen ,the ,adoration of the ,shepherds and ,the ,flight into ,egypt4 ,gentile da ,fabriano also painted an ,adoration of the ,magi at ,san-,domenico1 ,perugia4 ,this second picture is of less value than the one at the ,accademia delle ,belle ,arti in ,florence4 ,,portrait ,,of ,,georg ,,gisze 7,,holbein7 ,,antony ,,valabr,,gue ,when ,holbein returned to ,london towards the end of #aeca1 leaving ,basle1 where he had worked for nearly three years1 he found himself immediately occupied with several portraits of the merchants of the ,hanseatic ,league4 ,during his first sojourn in ,england1 he had painted the chancellor1 ,sir ,thomas ,more1 his protector and friend1 and he had traced the features of several members of the aristocracy4 ,on his return1 circumstances for his gaining access to the court were less favourable4 ,henry ,,viii4 was obeying his own good pleasure and satisfying all his caprices1 and the chancellor was holding aloof1 and could not exert his influence4 ,holbein did not now possess the title of ,painter to the ,king1 consequently he had to consider himself happy in obtaining the favour of his compatriots4 ,the ,german merchants had formed themselves into a powerful association2 they found themselves united in a kind of city1 which went by the name of ,stahlhof4 ,there they had their ,guildhall1 their ,bourse1 the place where their affairs were managed and which contained their stores of merchandise1 and their counting-houses4 ,it was a separate quarter1 where each one could also have his own dwelling4 ,the company was opulent2 the industry of the members of the ,hanseatic ,league was chiefly in iron and the precious metals2 among them were armourers1 watch-makers1 and goldsmiths4 ,in the ,stahlhof1 called in ,english the ,steelyard1 and which the founders themselves had designated the ,palace of ,steel1 was to be noted a certain opulence and pursuit of comfort which is to be found in all ages4 ,after having finished their business1 the merchants formed a social circle of their own4 ,they had a festival-hall of their own1 and they could walk about in spacious gardens which extended along the banks of the ,thames4 ,among these representatives of high finance a painter might find a choice clientle that would never care about the price of an order4 ,we know that ,holbein painted the portraits of many of these rich merchants1 for to-day we find these canvases1 whose authenticity has been established1 in ,museums and important collections4 ,we may therefore suppose that the ,german merchants appreciated ,holbein at his true value2 doubtless they disputed the honour of having their features reproduced by a master of such remarkable talent4 ,the portrait of ,georg ,gisze1 which is before our readers1 is certainly the finest work of this series4 ,when we saw this masterly work in the ,museum of ,berlin1 to which it belongs1 it left an indelible impression upon us which we still feel at this distance4 ,it is incontestably a masterpiece from every point of view2 in the ,gallery there is but one other picture of the same kind which may be compared to it1 a painting which suggests a parallel in a single detail1--,the ,man with the ,pinks1 by ,van ,eyck4 ,illustration3 ,,portrait ,,of ,,georg ,,gisze4 ,holbein4 ,holbein has represented ,georg ,gisze in his mercantile office1 at a table1 holding a letter which he is about to open1 and surrounded by small objects1 articles for which he has use in his business and in his every-day life4 ,this man appears before us in a marvellous pose1 among these material surroundings and in this professional scene4 ,observe his calm attitude and his almost placid physiognomy3 we notice1 however1 the firm and decided air of a wealthy and elegant merchant4 ,and1 at the same time1 we are sure that the type represented here is not of sudden growth3 everything about him reveals intelligence4 ,georg ,gisze is young2 the painter has told us his name and his age in an inscription on the wall3 he is thirty-four4 ,we do not lack information about him4 ,we like him under that air of youthful seriousness2 we see upon his face that dawning gravity in which the blossom of feeling already exists1 but its plenitude and maturity are still to come4 ,and in attentively examining our personage we are struck with his reflective and searching glance4 ,we seem to have a glimpse in him of an undefined melancholy4 ,this expression surprises us in this man1 who ought to be happy at living and who lacks no pleasures that ,fortune can procure4 ,this is a state of mind which is indicated to us1 moreover1 by a motto traced above his name on one of the walls of his office3 ,nulla sine mrore voluptas4 ,why this thought8 ,is it purely emblematic1 or does it contain an allusion to some private matter8 ,we are led to believe that it is intended as a complementary explanation1 that it was placed upon the picture because it was in sympathy with a train of ideas special to the model4 ,perhaps it recalls some domestic sorrow1 the lively grief left by an absent one1 or by some eternal separation4 ,a moral mystery1 which seems to us very attractive1 hovers around ,georg ,gisze4 ,he has long fair hair confined beneath a black cap2 his smooth-shaven face is rather thin4 ,he wears a rich costume1 a pourpoint of cerise silk with puffed sleeves1 and1 over this pourpoint1 a cloak of black wool lined with fur4 ,the table on which he is leaning is covered with a ,persian rug1 and1 beside the various objects scattered upon it1 you notice a bunch of carnations in an artistically wrought ,venetian glass4 ,these carnations1 like the motto1 awake in us an image1 a poetical reminiscence4 ,sentiment1 ,germanic in its essence1 mingled with dreams and vague ideals1 is introduced into this merchant's office4 ,the master has fully displayed with supreme power1 and with all the resources of his art1 the colours of the costume1 the paleness of the face1 and the freshness of the flesh standing out from the background of green panels4 ,he has played with all the various tones of the accessories1 book and registers1 inkstand1 watch1 and scales for weighing the gold4 ,every detail1 with no link missing1 contributes to form the perfect harmony of the whole4 ,we cannot too greatly admire the singular clearness and extraordinary precision with which the artist has placed in relief every detail that can make a figure live and render a work essentially eloquent4#g ,people have tried to make out that ,georg ,gisze was a merchant of ,basle4 ,he would then have been of the race connected most closely with the ,master's life4 ,this opinion has been discussed by ,woltmann1 ,holbein's historian4 ,the superscriptions on the sufficiently numerous letters1 which are reproduced in this painting1 must be especially noticed2 they are written in an ancient dialect which seems rather to be that of central ,germany4#h ,jouin1 ,chefs-d'oeuvre3 ,peinture1 ,sculpture1 ,architecture 7,paris1 #ahie-ig74 ,,footnotes3 #g ,in one corner of the picture is found this inscription with its ,latin distich3 ,imaginem ,georgii ,gysenii ,ista refert vultus1 qu cernis ,imago ,georgi ,sic oculos vivos1 sic habet ille genas4 ,anno tatis su ,,xxxiii4 ,anno dom4 #aecb4 #h ,we read on one of these letters3 ,dem erszamen ,jergen ,gisze to ,lunden in ,engelant1 mynem broder to handen4 ,,paradise 7,,tintoret7 ,,john ,,ruskin ,the chief reason why we all know the ,last ,judgment of ,michael ,angelo1 and not the ,paradise of ,tintoret1 is the same love of sensation which makes us read the ,inferno of ,dante1 and not his ,paradise2 and the choice1 believe me1 is our fault1 not his2 some farther evil influence is due to the fact that ,michael ,angelo had invested all his figures with picturesque and palpable elements of effect1 while ,tintoret has only made them lovely in themselves and has been content that they should deserve1 not demand1 your attention4 ,you are accustomed to think the figures of ,michael ,angelo sublime--because they are dark1 and colossal1 and involved1 and mysterious--because1 in a word1 they look sometimes like shadows1 and sometimes like mountains1 and sometimes like spectres1 but never like human beings4 ,believe me1 yet once more1 in what ,i told you long since--man can invent nothing nobler than humanity4 ,he cannot raise his form into anything better than ,god made it1 by giving it either the flight of birds or strength of beasts1 by enveloping it in mist1 or heaping it into multitude4 ,your pilgrim must look like a pilgrim in a straw hat1 or you will not make him into one with cockle and nimbus2 an angel must look like an angel on the ground1 as well as in the air2 and the much-denounced pre-,raphaelite faith that a saint cannot look saintly unless he has thin legs1 is not more absurd than ,michael ,angelo's1 that a ,sibyl cannot look ,sibylline unless she has thick ones4 ,illustration3 ,,paradise4 ,tintoret4 ,all that shadowing1 storming1 and coiling of his1 when you look into it1 is mere stage decoration1 and that of a vulgar kind4 ,light is1 in reality1 more awful than darkness--modesty more majestic than strength2 and there is truer sublimity in the sweet joy of a child1 or the sweet virtue of a maiden1 than in the strength of ,antus1 or thunder-clouds of tna4 ,now1 though in nearly all his greater pictures1 ,tintoret is entirely carried away by his sympathy with ,michael ,angelo1 and conquers him in his own field2--outflies him in motion1 outnumbers him in multitude1 outwits him in fancy1 and outflames him in rage1--he can be just as gentle as he is strong3 and that ,paradise1 though it is the largest picture in the world1 without any question1 is also the thoughtfullest1 and most precious4 ,the ,thoughtfullest6--it would be saying but little1 as far as ,michael ,angelo is concerned4 ,for consider it of yourselves4 ,you have heard1 from your youth up 7and all educated persons have heard for three centuries71 of this ,last ,judgment of his1 as the most sublime picture in existence4 ,the subject of it is one which should certainly be interesting to you in one of two ways4 ,if you never expect to be judged for any of your own doings1 and the tradition of the coming of ,christ is to you as an idle tale--still1 think what a wonderful tale it would be1 were it well told4 ,you are at liberty1 disbelieving it1 to range the fields--,elysian and ,tartarean1 of all imagination4 ,you may play with it1 since it is false2 and what a play would it not be1 well written8 ,do you think the tragedy1 or the miracle play1 or the infinitely ,divina ,commedia of the ,judgment of the astonished living who were dead2--the undeceiving of the sight of every human soul1 understanding in an instant all the shallow and depth of past life and future1--face to face with both1--and with ,god3--this apocalypse to all intellect1 and completion to all passion1 this minute and individual drama of the perfected history of separate spirits1 and of their finally accomplished affections6--think you1 ,i say1 all this was well told by mere heaps of dark bodies curled and convulsed in space1 and fall as of a crowd from a scaffolding1 in writhed concretions of muscular pain8 ,but take it the other way4 ,suppose you believe1 be it never so dimly or feebly1 in some kind of ,judgment that is to be2--that you admit even the faint contingency of retribution1 and can imagine1 with vivacity enough to fear1 that in this life1 at all events1 if not in another--there may be for you a ,visitation of ,god1 and a questioning--,what hast thou done8 ,the picture1 if it is a good one1 should have a deeper interest1 surely on this postulate8 ,thrilling enough1 as a mere imagination of what is never to be--now1 as a conjecture of what is to be1 held the best that in eighteen centuries of ,christianity has for men's eyes been made2--,think of it so6 ,and then1 tell me1 whether you yourselves1 or any one you have known1 did ever at any time receive from this picture any1 the smallest vital thought1 warning1 quickening1 or help8 ,it may have appalled1 or impressed you for a time1 as a thunder-cloud might3 but has it ever taught you anything--chastised in you anything--confirmed a purpose--fortified a resistance--purified a passion8 ,i know that for you1 it has done none of these things2 and ,i know also that1 for others1 it has done very different things4 ,in every vain and proud designer who has since lived1 that dark carnality of ,michael ,angelo's has fostered insolent science1 and fleshly imagination4 ,daubers and blockheads think themselves painters1 and are received by the public as such1 if they know how to foreshorten bones and decipher entrails2 and men with capacity of art either shrink away 7the best of them always do7 into petty felicities and innocencies of genre painting--landscapes1 cattle1 family breakfasts1 village schoolings1 and the like2 or else1 if they have the full sensuous art-faculty that would have made true painters of them1 being taught from their youth up1 to look for and learn the body instead of the spirit1 have learned it and taught it to such purpose1 that at this hour1 when ,i speak to you1 the rooms of the ,royal ,academy of ,england1 receiving also what of best can be sent there by the masters of ,france1 contain not one picture honourable to the arts of their age2 and contain many which are shameful in their record of its manners4 ,of that1 hereafter4 ,i will close to-day by giving you some brief account of the scheme of ,tintoret's ,paradise1 in justification that it is the thoughtfullest as well as mightiest picture in the world4 ,in the highest centre is ,christ1 leaning on the globe of the earth1 which is of dark crystal4 ,christ is crowned with a glory as of the sun1 and all the picture is lighted by that glory1 descending through circle beneath circle of cloud1 and of flying or throned spirits4 ,the ,madonna1 beneath ,christ1 and at some interval from ,him1 kneels to ,him4 ,she is crowned with the ,seven stars1 and kneels on a cloud of angels1 whose wings change into ruby fire where they are near her4 ,the three great ,archangels1 meeting from three sides1 fly towards ,christ4 ,michael delivers up his scales and sword4 ,he is followed by the ,thrones and ,principalities of the ,earth2 so inscribed--,throni--,principatus4 ,the ,spirits of the ,thrones bear scales in their hands2 and of the ,princedoms1 shining globes3 beneath the wings of the last of these are the four great teachers and lawgivers1 ,st4 ,ambrose1 ,st4 ,jerome1 ,st4 ,gregory1 ,st4 ,augustine1 and behind ,st4 ,augustine stands his mother1 watching him1 her chief joy in ,paradise4 ,under the ,thrones are set the ,apostles1 ,st4 ,paul separated a little from the rest1 and put lowest1 yet principal2 under ,st4 ,paul1 is ,st4 ,christopher1 bearing a massive globe1 with a cross upon it3 but to mark him as the ,christ-bearer1 since here in ,paradise he cannot have the child on his shoulders1 ,tintoret has thrown on the globe a flashing stellar reflection of the sun round the head of ,christ4 ,all this side of the picture is kept in glowing colour--the four ,doctors of the church have golden mitres and mantles2 except the ,cardinal1 ,st4 ,jerome1 who is in burning scarlet1 his naked breast glowing1 warm with noble life1--the darker red of his robe relieved against a white glory4 ,opposite to ,michael1 ,gabriel flies towards the ,madonna1 having in his hand the ,annunciation lily1 large and triple-blossomed4 ,above him1 and above ,michael equally1 extends a cloud of white angels1 inscribed ,serafini2 but the group following ,gabriel1 and corresponding to the ,throni following ,michael1 is inscribed ,cherubini4 ,under these are the great prophets1 and singers1 and foretellers of the happiness or of the sorrow of time4 ,david1 and ,solomon1 and ,isaiah1 and ,amos of the herdsmen4 ,david has a colossal golden psaltery laid horizontally across his knees2--two angels behind him dictate to him as he sings1 looking up towards ,christ2 but one strong angel sweeps down to ,solomon from among the cherubs1 and opens a book1 resting it on the head of ,solomon1 who looks down earnestly1 unconscious of it2--to the left of ,david1 separate from the group of prophets1 as ,paul from the apostles1 is ,moses1 dark-robed2--in the full light1 withdrawn far behind him1 ,abraham1 embracing ,isaac with his left arm1 and near him1 pale ,st4 ,agnes4 ,in front1 nearer1 dark and colossal1 stands the glorious figure of ,santa ,giustina of ,padua2 then a little subordinate to her1 ,st4 ,catharine1 and1 far on the left1 and high1 ,saint ,barbara leaning on her tower4 ,in front1 nearer1 flies ,raphael2 and under him is the four-square group of the ,evangelists4 ,beneath them1 on the left1 ,noah2 on the right1 ,adam and ,eve1 both floating unsupported by cloud or angel2 ,noah buoyed by the ,ark1 which he holds above him1 and it is this into which ,solomon gazes down1 so earnestly4 ,eve's face is1 perhaps1 the most beautiful ever painted by ,tintoret--full in light1 but dark-eyed4 ,adam floats beside her1 his figure fading into a winged gloom1 edged in the outline of fig-leaves4 ,far down1 under these1 central in the lowest part of the picture1 rises the ,angel of the ,sea1 praying for ,venice2 for ,tintoret conceives his ,paradise as existing now1 not as in the future4 ,i at first mistook this soft ,angel of the ,sea for ,magdalene1 for he is sustained by other three angels on either side1 as the ,magdalen is1 in designs of earlier time1 because of the verse1 ,there is joy in the presence of the angels over one sinner that repenteth4 ,but the ,magdalen is on the right1 behind ,st4 ,monica2 and on the same side1 but lowest of all1 ,rachel1 among the angels of her children gathered now again to her for ever4 ,i have no hesitation in asserting this picture to be by far the most precious work of art of any kind whatsoever1 now existing in the world2 and it is1 ,i believe1 on the eve of final destruction2 for it is said that the angle of the great council-chamber is soon to be rebuilt2 and that process will involve the destruction of the picture by removal1 and1 far more1 by repainting4 ,i had thought of making some effort to save it by an appeal in ,london to persons generally interested in the arts2 but the recent desolation of ,paris has familiarized us with destruction1 and ,i have no doubt the answer to me would be1 that ,venice must take care of her own4 ,but remember1 at least1 that ,i have borne witness to you to-day of the treasures that we forget1 while we amuse ourselves with the poor toys1 and the petty1 or vile1 arts1 of our own time4 ,the years of that time have perhaps come1 when we are to be taught to look no more to the dreams of painters1 either for knowledge of ,judgment1 or of ,paradise4 ,the anger of ,heaven will not longer1 ,i think1 be mocked for our amusement2 and perhaps its love may not always be despised by our pride4 ,believe me1 all the arts1 and all the treasures of men1 are fulfilled and preserved to them only1 so far as they have chosen first1 with their hearts1 not the curse of ,god1 but ,his blessing4 ,our ,earth is now encumbered with ruin1 our ,heaven is clouded by ,death4 ,may we not wisely judge ourselves in some things now1 instead of amusing ourselves with the painting of judgments to come8 ,the ,relation ,between ,michael ,angelo and ,tintoret 7,london1 #ahgb74 ,,aurora 7,,guido ,,reni7 ,,charlotte ,a4 ,,eaton ,on the roof of the summer-house of the ,palazzo ,rospigliosi1 is painted the celebrated fresco of ,guido's ,aurora4 ,its colouring is clear1 harmonious1 airy1 brilliant--unfaded by time2 and the enthusiastic admirer of ,guido's genius may be permitted to hope that this1 his noblest work1 will be immortal as his fame4 ,illustration3 ,,aurora4 ,guido ,reni4 ,morghen's fine engraving may give you some idea of the design and composition of this beautiful painting2 but it cannot convey the soft harmony of the tints1 the living touches1 the brilliant forms1 the realized dream of the imagination1 that bursts1 with all its magic1 upon your enraptured sight in the matchless original4 ,it is embodied poetry4 ,the ,hours1 that hand-in-hand encircle the car of ,phoebus1 advance with rapid pace4 ,the paler1 milder forms of those gentler sisters who rule over declining day1 and the glowing glance of those who bask in the meridian blaze1 resplendent in the hues of heaven1--are of no mortal grace and beauty2 but they are eclipsed by ,aurora herself1 who sails on the golden clouds before them1 shedding showers of shadowing roses on the rejoicing earth2 her celestial presence diffusing gladness1 and light1 and beauty around4 ,above the heads of the heavenly coursers1 hovers the morning star1 in the form of a youthful cherub1 bearing his flaming torch4 ,nothing is more admirable in this beautiful composition1 than the motion given to the whole4 ,the smooth and rapid step of the circling ,hours as they tread on the fleecy clouds2 the fiery steeds2 the whirling wheels of the car2 the torch of ,lucifer1 blown back by the velocity of his advance2 and the form of ,aurora1 borne through the ambient air1 till you almost fear she should float from your sight2 all realize the illusion4 ,you seem admitted into the world of fancy1 and revel in its brightest creations4 ,in the midst of such youth and loveliness1 the dusky figure of ,phoebus appears to great disadvantage4 ,it is not happily conceived4 ,yet his air is noble and godlike1 and his free commanding action1 and conscious ease1 as he carelessly guides1 with one hand1 the fiery steeds that are harnessed to his flaming car1 may1 perhaps1 compensate in some degree for his want of beauty2 for he certainly is not handsome2 and ,i looked in vain for the youthful majesty of the god of day1 and thought on ,apollo ,belvedere4 ,had ,guido thought of it too1 he never could have made this head1 which is1 ,i think1 the great and only defect of this exquisite painting2 and what makes it of more importance1 is1 that ,apollo1 not ,aurora1 is the principal figure--the first that catches the eye1 and which1 in spite of our dissatisfaction1 we are to the last obliged to contemplate4 ,the defects of his ,apollo are a new proof of what ,i have very frequently observed1 that ,guido succeeded far better in feminine than in masculine beauty4 ,his female forms1 in their loveliness1 their delicacy1 their grace and sweetness are faultless2 and the beauty and innocence of his infants have seldom been equalled2 but he rarely gave to manly beauty and vigour a character that was noble4 ,from the ,aurora of ,guido1 we must turn to the rival ,aurora of ,guercino1 in the ,villa ,ludovisi4 ,in spite of ,guido's bad head of ,apollo1 and in spite of ,guercino's magic chiaroscuro1 ,i confess myself disposed to give the preference to ,guido4 ,in the first place1 there is not the same unity of composition in ,guercino's4 ,it is very fine in all its parts2 but still it is in parts4 ,it is not so fine a whole1 nor is it so perfect a composition1 nor has it the same charm as ,guido's4 ,neither is there the same ideal beauty in the ,aurora4 ,guercino's is a mortal--,guido's a truly ethereal being4 ,guercino's ,aurora is in her car1 drawn by two heavenly steeds1 and the shades of night seem to dissipate at her approach4 ,old ,tithonus1 whom she has left behind her seems half awake2 and the morning star1 under the figure of a winged genius bearing his kindled torch1 follows her course4 ,in a separate compartment1 ,night1 in the form of a woman1 is sitting musing1 or slumbering1 over a book4 ,she has much of the character of a ,sibyl4 ,her dark cave is broken open1 and the blue sky and the coming light break beautifully in upon her and her companions1 the sullen owl and flapping bat1 which shrink from its unwelcome ray4 ,the ,hours are represented under the figure of children1 fluttering about before the goddess1 and extinguishing the stars of night--a beautiful idea2 but one1 perhaps1 better adapted to poetry than painting4 ,the ,hours of ,guercino are1 however1 infinitely less poetic and less beautiful than the bright female forms which encircle the car of day in ,guido's ,aurora4 ,yet it is a masterpiece of painting2 and but for the ,aurora of ,guido1 we could have conceived nothing beyond the ,aurora of ,guercino4 ,rome in the ,nineteenth ,century 7#eth edition1 ,london1 #aheb74 ,,aurora 7,,guido ,,reni7 ,,john ,,constable ,although no distinct landscape is known by the hand of ,guido1 yet in a history of this particular branch it may not be improper to notice its immense importance as an accessory in his picture of ,aurora4 ,it is the finest instance ,i know of the beauty of natural landscape brought to aid a mythological story1 and to be sensible of its value we have only to imagine a plain background in its stead4 ,but though ,guido has placed us in the heavens1 we are looking towards the earth1 where seas and mountain-tops are receiving the first beams of the morning sun4 ,the chariot of ,apollo is borne on the clouds1 attended by the ,hours and preceded by ,aurora1 who scatters flowers1 and the landscape1 instead of diminishing the illusion1 is the chief means of producing it1 and is indeed most essential to the story4 ,leslie1 ,life and ,letters of ,john ,constable1 ,r4,a4 7,london1 new ed41 #ahif74 ,,the ,,assumption ,,of ,,the ,,virgin 7,,titian7 ,,th,,ophile ,,gautier ,the pearl of the ,museum at ,madrid is a ,raphael2 that of ,venice is a ,titian1 a marvellous canvas1 forgotten and afterwards recovered1 which has its legend also4 ,for many long years ,venice possessed this masterpiece without knowing it4 ,relegated to an old and seldom frequented church it had disappeared under a slow coating of dust and behind a network of spider-webs4 ,the subject could scarcely be made out4 ,one day1 ,count ,cicognora1 a great connoisseur1 noticing that these rusty figures had a certain air1 and scenting the master under this livery of neglect and misery1 wetted his finger and rubbed the canvas1 an action which is not one of exquisite propriety1 but which an expert on pictures cannot help doing when he is face to face with a dirty canvas1 be he twenty times a count and a thousand times a dandy4 ,the noble picture1 preserved intact under this layer of dust1 like ,pompeii under its mantle of ashes1 appeared so young and fresh that the count never doubted but that he had discovered the canvas of a great master1 an unknown chef-d'oeuvre4 ,he had the strength of mind to control his excitement1 and proposed to the cur to exchange this great dilapidated painting for a beautiful picture1 quite new1 perfectly clean1 very brilliant1 and well framed1 which would do honour to the church and give pleasure to the faithful4 ,the cur joyfully accepted it1 smiling to himself at the eccentricity of the count1 who gave new for old and demanded nothing in return4 ,when relieved of its dirt and stains1 ,titian's ,assunta appeared radiant as the sun when it bursts through the clouds4 ,parisian readers may form an idea of the importance of this discovery by going to see the beautiful copy1 recently made by ,serrur and placed in the ,beaux ,arts4 ,the ,assunta is one of ,titian's greatest works1 the one in which he attains his highest flight3 the composition is balanced and distributed with infinite art4 ,the upper portion1 which is arched1 represents ,paradise1 ,glory1 as the ,spanish say in their ascetic language3 garlands of angels floating and submerged in a wave of light of uncalculable depth1 stars scintillating in the flame1 and brighter glints of the everlasting light form the aureole of the ,father1 who arrives from the depths of the infinite with the action of a hovering eagle1 accompanied by an archangel and a seraph whose hands support the crown and the nimbus4 ,this ,jehovah1 like a divine bird appearing head-foremost and with body horizontally foreshortened beneath a wave of drapery flying open like wings1 astonishes us by its sublime boldness2 if it is possible for the brush of a human being to give a countenance to divinity1 certainly ,titian has succeeded4 ,unlimited power and imperishable youth radiate from that white-bearded face that need only nod for the snows of eternity to fall3 not since the ,olympian ,jove of ,phidias has the lord of heaven and earth been represented more worthily4 ,illustration3 ,,the ,,assumption ,,of ,,the ,,virgin4 ,titian4 ,the centre of the picture is occupied by the ,virgin ,mary1 who is lifted up1 or rather who is surrounded by a wreath of angels and souls of the blessed3 for she has no need of any aid to mount to ,heaven2 she rises by the springing upward of her robust faith1 by the purity of her soul1 which is lighter than the most luminous ether4 ,truly there is in this figure an unheard-of force of ascension1 and in order to obtain this effect ,titian has not had recourse to slender forms1 diaphanous draperies1 and transparent colours4 ,his ,madonna is a very true1 very living1 and very real woman1 with a beauty as solid as that of the ,venus de ,milo1 or the sleeping woman in the ,tribune of ,florence4 ,large1 full drapery flows about her in numerous folds2 her flanks are wide enough to have contained a ,god1 and1 if she was not on a cloud1 the ,marquis du ,guast might have put his hand on her beautiful bosom1 as in the picture in our ,museum4 ,yet nothing is of more celestial beauty than this great and strong figure in its rose-coloured tunic and azure mantle2 notwithstanding the powerful voluptuousness of the body1 the radiant glance is of the purest virginity4 ,at the base of the picture1 the apostles are grouped in happily-contrasted attitudes of rapture and surprise4 ,two or three little angels1 who link them to the intermediary zone of the composition1 seem to be explaining to them the miracle that is taking place4 ,the heads of the apostles1 who are of various ages and characters1 are painted with a surprising force of vitality and reality4 ,the draperies are of that fullness and abundant flow that characterize ,titian as the richest and at the same time the simplest of all painters4 ,in studying this ,virgin and mentally comparing her with other ,virgins of different masters1 we reflected what a marvellous and ever new thing is art4 ,what ,catholic painting has embroidered with variations upon this theme of the ,madonna1 without ever exhausting it1 astonishes and confuses the imagination2 but1 in reflecting1 we comprehend that under the conventional type each painter conveyed secretly1 at the same time1 his dream of love and the personification of his talent4 ,the ,madonna of ,albrecht ,drer in her sad and somewhat constrained gracefulness1 with her tired features1 interesting rather than beautiful1 her air of a matron rather than a ,virgin1 her ,german and bourgeoise frankness1 her tight garments and her symmetrically broken folds1 almost always accompanied by a rabbit1 an owl1 or an ape1 through some vague memory of ,germanic pantheism1 may she not be the woman whom he would have loved and preferred to all others1 and does she not also exceedingly well represent the very genius of the artist8 ,as she is his ,madonna1 she might easily be his ,muse4 ,the same resemblance exists in ,raphael4 ,the type of his ,madonna1 in whom1 mingled with old memories1 the features of the ,fornarina are always found1 sometimes suggested1 sometimes copied1 most frequently idealized1 is she not the most perfect symbol of his talent1--elegant1 graceful1 and penetrated throughout with a chaste voluptuousness8 ,the ,christian nourished on ,plato and ,greek ,art1 the friend of ,leo ,x41 the dilettante ,pope1 the artist who died of love while painting the ,transfiguration1 did he not live entirely in these modest ,venuses holding on their knees a child who is ,love8 ,if we wished to symbolize the genius of every painter in an allegorical picture1 would it be any other than the angel of ,urbino8 ,the ,virgin of the ,assunta1 big1 strong1 highly-coloured1 with her robust and beautiful grace1 her fine bearing1 and her simple and natural beauty1--is she not ,titian's painting with all its qualities8 ,we might carry our researches still further2 but we have said enough as a suggestion4 ,thanks to the dusty shroud which covered it for so long1 the ,assunta glows with a quite youthful brilliancy2 the centuries have not elapsed for it1 and we enjoy the supreme pleasure of seeing a picture of ,titian's just it came fresh from the palette4 ,voyage en ,italie 7new ed41 ,paris1 #ahhd74 ,,the ,,night ,,watch 7,,rembrandt7 ,,eug,,ne ,,fromentin ,we know how the ,night ,watch is hung4 ,it faces the ,banquet of ,arquebusiers by ,van der ,helst1 and1 no matter what has been said1 the two pictures do not hurt each other4 ,they oppose each other like day and night1 like the transfiguration of things and their literal imitation1 slightly vulgar and clever4 ,admit that they are as perfect as they are celebrated and you will have before your eyes a unique antithesis1 what ,la ,bruyre calls opposition truths that illuminate one another4 ,i shall not astonish anyone in saying that the ,night ,watch possesses no charm1 and the fact is without example among the fine works of pictorial art4 ,it is amazing1 it is disconcerting1 it is imposing1 but it absolutely lacks that insinuating quality that convinces us1 and it almost always fails to please us at first4 ,in the first place1 it shocks our logical sense and that habitual visual rectitude that loves clear forms1 lucid ideas1 and clearly formulated boldness2 something warns us that our imagination as well as our reason will be only half satisfied and that even the mind that is most easily won over will not submit till the last and will not surrender without dispute4 ,this is due to various causes that do not all arise from the picture1--the light is detestable2 the frame of dark wood in which the painting is drowned spoils its middle values1 and its bronze scale of colour1 and its force1 and makes it look much more smoked than it is2 and1 lastly and above all1 the exigencies of the place prevent the picture from being hung at the proper height1 and1 against all the laws of the most elementary perspective1 oblige you to look at it from the same level4 ,illustration3 ,,the ,,night ,,watch4 ,rembrandt4 ,you are aware that the ,night ,watch1 rightly or wrongly1 passes for an almost incomprehensible work1 and that constitutes its chief prestige4 ,perhaps it would have made far less noise in the world1 if for two centuries people had not kept up the habit of trying to find out its meaning instead of examining its merits1 and persisted in the mania of regarding it as a picture enigmatical above all4 ,taking it literally1 what we know of the subject seems to me sufficient4 ,in the first place1 we know the names and quality of the personages1 thanks to the care with which the painter has inscribed them on a plate at the bottom of the picture2 which proves that if the painter's fancy has transfigured many things1 the chief idea at least deals with the customs of local life4 ,it is true that we cannot tell for what purpose these men are going out armed1 whether they are going to practise shooting1 or on parade1 or what2 but1 as there is no matter here for the deeper mysteries1 ,i am persuaded that if ,rembrandt has failed to be more explicit it is because either he did not wish or he did not know how to be1 and there is a whole series of hypotheses that might be very simply explained by some such matter as inability or intentional reticence4 ,as for the time of day 7the most vexed question of all and the only one1 moreover1 that could have been settled when first it arose71 for fixing that we have no need to discover that the ,captain's outstretched arm casts a shadow upon the skirt of his coat4 ,it suffices to remember that ,rembrandt never treated light otherwise2 that nocturnal obscurity is his habit2 that shadow is the ordinary form of his poetic feeling and his usual means of dramatic expression2 and that in his portraits1 in his interiors1 in his legends1 in his anecdotes1 in his landscapes1 and in his etchings1 as in his paintings1 it is generally with night that he makes day4 ,it is agreed that the composition does not constitute the principal merit of the picture4 ,the subject had not been selected by the painter1 and the manner in which he intended to treat it did not allow of its first sketch being very spontaneous1 nor very lucid4 ,therefore the scene is indecisive1 the action almost null1 and1 consequently1 the interest is greatly divided4 ,from the very beginning is betrayed an inherent vice in the first idea1 and a kind of irresolution in the manner of conceiving1 distributing1 and placing it4 ,some men marching1 others standing still1 one priming his musket1 another loading his1 another firing1 a drummer who poses for the head while beating his instrument1 a somewhat theatrical standard-bearer1 and1 finally1 a crowd of figures fixed in the requisite immobility of portraits1--so far as action is concerned1 these1 if ,i am not mistaken1 are the sole picturesque features of the painting4 ,is this indeed sufficient to give it the facial1 anecdotal1 and local feeling that we expect from ,rembrandt when he paints the places1 things1 and men of his time8 ,if ,van der ,helst instead of seating his arquebusiers had made them move in any manner whatever1 do not doubt that he would have given us the truest if not the finest indications of their ways4 ,and as for ,frans ,hals1 you may imagine with what clearness and order1 and how naturally he would have disposed the scene2 how piquant1 lively1 ingenious1 abundant1 and magnificent he would have been4 ,the idea conceived by ,rembrandt then is one of the most ordinary1 and ,i would venture to say that the majority of his contemporaries considered it poor in resources2 some because its abstract line is uncertain1 scanty1 symmetrical1 meagre1 and singularly incoherent2 others1 the colourists1 because this composition1 so full of gaps and ill-occupied spaces1 did not lend itself to that broad and generous employment of colours which is usual with able palettes4444 ,thus there is no truth and very little pictorial invention in the general disposition4 ,is there more in the individual figures8 ,what immediately strikes us is that they are unreasonably disproportioned and that many of them have shortcomings and so to speak an embarrassment of characterization that nothing can justify4 ,the captain is too big and the lieutenant too small1 not only by the side of ,captain ,kock1 whose stature crushes him1 but also beside accessory figures whose height or breadth gives this somewhat plain young man the air of a youth who has grown a moustache too soon4 ,regarding the two as portraits1 they are scarcely successful ones of doubtful likeness and thankless physiognomy1 which is surprising in a portrait-painter who had made his mark in #afdb1 and which affords some excuse for ,captain ,kock's having a little later applied to the infallible ,van der ,helst4 ,is the guard loading his musket rendered any better8 ,moreover1 what do you think of his right-hand neighbour1 and of the drummer8 ,one might say that all these portraits lack hands1 so vaguely are they sketched and so insignificant is their action4 ,it follows that what they hold is also ill rendered3 muskets1 halberds1 drum-sticks1 canes1 lances1 and flag-pole2 and that the gesture of an arm is impotent when the hand that ought to act does not do so clearly1 quickly1 or with energy1 precision1 or intelligence4 ,i will not speak of the feet1 which1 in most cases1 are lost in shadow4 ,such in reality are the necessities of the system of envelopment adopted by ,rembrandt1 and such is the imperious foregone conclusion of his method1 that one general dark cloud invades the base of the picture and that the forms float in it to the great detriment of their points of support4 ,must we add that the clothes are very similar to the likenesses1 sometimes uncouth and unnatural1 sometimes rigid and rebellious to the lines of the body8 ,one would say that they are not worn properly4 ,the helmets are stupidly put on1 the hats are outlandish and ungracefully worn4 ,the scarfs are in their place and yet they are awkwardly tied4 ,here is none of that unique ease of carriage1 that natural elegance1 that nglig dress1 caught and rendered to the life in which ,frans ,hals knows how to attire every age1 every stature1 every stage of corpulence1 and1 certainly also1 every rank4 ,we are not reassured on this point more than on many others4 ,we ask ourselves whether there is not here a laborious fantasy1 like an attempt to be strange1 which is not at all pleasing or striking4 ,some of the heads are very handsome1 ,i have mentioned those that are not4 ,the best1 the only ones in which the hand of the master and the feeling of a master are to be recognized1 are those which1 from the depths of the canvas1 shoot their vague eyes and the fine spark of their mobile glances at you2 do not severely examine their construction1 nor their plan1 nor their bony structure2 accustom yourself to the greyish pallor of their complexion1 question them from afar as they also look at you from a distance1 and if you want to know how they live1 look at them as ,rembrandt wants us to look at his human effigies1 attentively and long1 at their lips and eyes4 ,there remains an episodical figure which has hitherto baffled all conjectures1 because it seems by its traits1 its carriage1 its odd splendour1 and its inappropriateness1 to personify the magic1 the romantic feeling1 or1 if you prefer1 the misrepresentation of the picture2 ,i mean that little witch-like personage1 child-like and crone-like at the same time1 with her hair streaming and adorned with pearls1 gliding among the guards for no apparent reason1 and who1 a not less inexplicable detail1 has a white cock1 that at need might be taken for a purse1 hanging from her girdle4 ,whatever right she has to join the troop1 this little figure seems to have nothing human about her4 ,she is colourless and almost shapeless4 ,her figure is that of a doll and her gait is automatic4 ,she has the air of a beggar1 something like diamonds covers her whole body1 and an accoutrement resembling rays4 ,you would say that she came from some jewry1 or old clothes market1 or ,bohemia1 and that1 awaking from a dream1 she had attired herself in the most singular of all worlds4 ,she has the light1 the uncertainty1 and the wavering of a pale fire4 ,the more we examine her1 the less we can grasp the subtle lineaments that serve as envelope for her uncorporeal existence4 ,we end by seeing in her nothing but a kind of extraordinarily strange phosphorescence which is not the ordinary light of things1 nor yet the ordinary brilliance of a well-regulated palette1 and this adds more sorcery to the peculiarities of her countenance4 ,notice that in the place she occupies1 one of the dark corners of the canvas1 rather low in the middle distance1 between a man in deep red and the captain dressed in black1 this eccentric light has much greater force than the most sudden contrast with a neighbouring tint1 and without extreme care this explosion of accidental light would have sufficed to disorganize the whole picture4 ,what is the meaning of this little imaginary or real being1 who1 however1 is only a supernumerary while yet holding1 so to speak1 the chief rle8 ,i shall not attempt to tell you4 ,abler people than ,i have allowed themselves to inquire what it was and what it was doing there1 without coming to any satisfactory conclusion4 ,but if to all these somewhat vain questions ,rembrandt replied3 ,this child is a caprice no less strange than and quite as plausible as many others in my engraving or painting4 ,i have placed it as a narrow ray amid great masses of shadow because its exiguity rendered it more vibrating and it suited me to awaken with a ray one of the dark corners of my picture4 ,it also wears the usual costume of my female figures1 great or small1 young or old1 and in it you will find the type frequently occurring in my works4 ,i love what glitters1 and that is why ,i have clothed her in brilliant materials4 ,as for those phosphorescent gleams that astonish you here1 whilst elsewhere they pass unnoticed1 it is only the light in its colourless splendour and supernatural quality that ,i habitually give to my figures when ,i illuminate them at all strongly4--,do you not think that such a reply ought to satisfy the most difficult1 and that finally1 the rights of the stage-setter being reserved1 he need only render account of one point3 the manner in which he has treated the picture8 ,we know what to think of the effect produced by the ,night ,watch when it appeared in #afdb4 ,this memorable attempt was neither understood nor relished4 ,it added noise to ,rembrandt's glory1 increased it in the eyes of his faithful admirers1 and compromised it in the eyes of those who had only followed him with some effort and attended him to this decisive point4 ,it made him a painter more peculiar and a master less sure4 ,it heated and divided men of taste according to the heat of their blood1 or the stiffness of their reason4 ,in short1 it was regarded as an absolutely new but dangerous adventure which brought him applause and some blame1 and which at heart did not convince anybody4 ,if you know the judgment expressed on this subject by ,rembrandt's contemporaries1 his friends and his pupils1 you know that opinion has not sensibly varied for two centuries1 and that we repeat almost the same thing that this great daring man might have heard during his lifetime4444 ,save one or two frank colours1 two reds and a deep violet1 except one or two flashes of blue1 you cannot perceive anything in this colourless and violent canvas to recall the palette and ordinary method of any of the known colourists4 ,the heads have the appearance rather than the colouring proper to life4 ,they are red1 purple1 or pale1 without for all that having the true paleness ,velasquez gives to his faces1 or those sanguine1 yellowish1 greyish1 or purplish shades that ,frans ,hals renders with such skill when he desires to specify the temperaments of his personages4 ,in the clothes and hair and various parts of the accoutrements1 the colour is no more exact nor expressive than is1 as ,i have said1 the form itself4 ,when a red appears1 it is not of a delicate nature and it indistinctly expresses silk1 cloth1 or satin4 ,the guard loading his musket is clothed in red from head to foot1 from his hat to his boots4 ,do you perceive that ,rembrandt has occupied himself for a moment with the varied physiognomy of this red1 its nature or substance1 as a true colourist would not have failed to do8444 ,i defy any one to tell me how the lieutenant is dressed and in what colour4 ,is it white tinged with yellow8 ,is it yellow faded to white8 ,the truth is that this personage having to express the central light of the picture1 ,rembrandt has clothed him with light1 very ably with regard to brilliance and very negligently with regard to colour4 ,now1 and it is here that ,rembrandt begins to show himself1 for a colourist there is no light in the abstract4 ,light of itself is nothing3 it is the result of colours diversely illumined and diversely radiating in accordance with the nature of the ray that they transmit or absorb4 ,one very deep tint may be extraordinarily luminous2 another very light one on the contrary may not be at all luminous4 ,there is not a student in the schools who does not know that4 ,with the colourists1 then1 the light depends exclusively upon the choice of the colours employed to render it and is so intimately connected with the tone that we may truthfully say that with them light and colour are one4 ,in the ,night ,watch there is nothing of the kind4 ,tone disappears in light as it does in shade4 ,the shade is blackish1 the light whitish4 ,everything is brilliant or dull1 radiant or obscure1 by an alternative effacement of the colouring principle4 ,here we have different values rather than contrasted tones4 ,and this is so true that a fine engraving1 a good drawing1 a ,mouilleron lithograph1 or a photograph will give an exact idea of the picture in its important effects1 and a copy simply in gradations from light to dark would destroy none of its arabesque4 ,what is his execution in the picture before us8 ,does he treat a stuff well8 ,no4 ,does he express it ingeniously1 or with liveliness1 with its seams1 folds1 breaks1 and tissue4 ,assuredly not4 ,when he places a feather at the brim of a hat1 does he give it the lightness and floating grace that we see in ,van ,dyck1 or ,hals1 or ,velasquez8 ,does he indicate by a little gloss on a dead ground1 in their form1 or feeling of the body1 the human physiognomy of a well adjusted coat1 rubbed by a movement or worn with use8 ,can he1 with a few masterly touches and taking no more trouble than things are worth1 indicate lace-work1 or suggest jewellery1 or rich embroidery8 ,in the ,night ,watch we have swords1 muskets1 partisans1 polished casques1 damascened cuirasses1 high boots1 tied shoes1 a halberd with its fluttering blue silk1 a drum1 and lances4 ,imagine with what ease1 with what carelessness1 and with what a nimble way of making us believe in things without insisting upon them1 ,rubens1 ,veronese1 ,van ,dyck1 ,titian himself1 and lastly ,frans ,hals1 that matchless workman1 would have summarily indicated and superbly carried off all these accessories4 ,do you maintain in good faith that ,rembrandt in the ,night ,watch excels in treating them thus8 ,i pray you1 look at the halberd that the little lieutenant ,ruijtenberg holds at the end of his stiff arm2 look at the foreshortened steel1 look especially at the floating silk1 and tell me if an artist of that value has ever allowed himself more pitifully to express an object that ought to spring forth beneath his brush without his being aware of it4 ,look at the slashed sleeves that have been so highly praised1 the ruffles1 the gloves2 examine the hands6 ,consider well how in their affected or unaffected negligence their form is accentuated and their foreshortening is expressed4 ,the touch is thick1 embarrassed1 awkward1 and blundering4 ,we might truly say that it goes astray1 and that applied crosswise when it should be applied lengthwise1 made flat when any other than he would have rounded it1 it confuses instead of determining the form4444 ,at length ,i come to the incontestable interest of the picture1 to ,rembrandt's great effort in a new field3 ,i am going to speak of the application on a large scale of that way of looking at things which is proper to him and which is called chiaroscuro4 ,no mistake is possible here4 ,what people attribute to ,rembrandt is really his4 ,without any doubt chiaroscuro is the native and necessary form of his impressions and ideas4 ,others have made use of it2 but nobody has employed it so constantly and ingeniously as he4 ,it is the supremely mysterious form1 the most enveloped1 the most elliptic1 and the richest in hidden meanings and surprises that exists in the pictorial language of the painter4 ,in this sense it is more than any other the form of intimate feelings or ideas4 ,it is light1 vaporous1 veiled1 discreet2 it lends its charm to hidden things1 invites curiosity1 adds an attraction to moral beauties1 and gives a grace to the speculations of conscience4 ,in short1 it partakes of sentiment1 emotion1 uncertainty1 indefiniteness1 and infinity2 of dreams and of the ideal4 ,and this is why it is1 as it ought to be1 the poetic and natural atmosphere in which ,rembrandt's genius never ceased to dwell4 ,in very ordinary language and in its action common to all schools1 chiaroscuro is the art of rendering the atmosphere visible1 and painting an object enveloped with air4 ,its aim is to render all the picturesque accidents of shadow1 of half-tints1 of light1 of relief1 and of distance2 and to give in consequence more variety1 more unity of effect1 more caprice and more relative truth either to forms or to colours4 ,the contrary is a more ingenuous and more abstract acceptation1 by virtue of which objects are shown as they are1 viewed close at hand1 the atmosphere being suppressed1 and consequently without any other than linear perspective1 which results from the diminishing of objects and from their relation to the horizon4 ,when we speak of arial perspective1 we already presuppose a little chiaroscuro4 ,any other than ,rembrandt1 in the ,dutch school1 might sometimes make us forget that he was obeying the fixed laws of chiaroscuro2 with him this forgetfulness is impossible3 he has so to speak framed1 co-ordinated and promulgated its code1 and if we might believe him a doctrinaire at this moment of his career1 when instinct swayed him much more than reflection1 the ,night ,watch would have a redoubled interest1 for it would assume the character and the authority of a manifesto4 ,to envelop and immerse everything in a bath of shadow2 to plunge light itself into it only to withdraw it afterwards to make it appear more distant and radiant2 to make dark waves revolve around illuminated centres1 grading them1 sounding them1 thickening them2 to make the obscurity nevertheless transparent1 the half gloom easy to pierce1 and finally to give a kind of permeability to the strongest colours that prevents their becoming blackness1--this is the prime condition1 and these also are the difficulties of this very special art4 ,it goes without saying1 that if anyone ever excelled in this1 it was ,rembrandt4 ,he did not invent1 he perfected everything2 and the method that he used oftener and better than anyone else bears his name4 ,when explained according to this tendency of the painter to express a subject only by the brilliance and obscurity of objects1 the ,night ,watch has1 so to speak1 no more secrets for us4 ,everything that might have made us hesitate is made clear4 ,its qualities have their raison d'tre2 and we even come to comprehend its errors4 ,the embarrassment of the practitioner as he executes1 of the designer as he constructs1 of the painter as he colours1 of the costumer as he attires1 the inconsistency of the tone1 the amphibology of the effect1 the uncertainty of the time of day1 the strangeness of the figures1 their flashing apparition in deep shadow1--all this results here by chance from an effect conceived contrary to probability1 and pursued in spite of all logic1 not at all necessary1 and with the following purpose3 to illuminate a real scene with unreal light1 that is to say1 to clothe a fact with the ideal character of a vision4 ,do not seek for anything beyond this audacious project that mocked the painter's aims1 clashed with received ideas1 set up a system in opposition to customs1 and boldness of spirit in opposition to manual dexterity2 and the temerity of which certainly did not cease to spur him on until the day when ,i believe insurmountable difficulties revealed themselves1 for1 if ,rembrandt resolved some of them1 there are many that he could not resolve4 ,matres d',autrefois 7,paris1 #ahgf74 ,,the ,,rape ,,of ,,helen 7,,benozzo ,,gozzoli7 ,,cosmo ,,monkhouse ,though the patronage of art had shifted partly from the ,church to the great magnates1 especially the great commercial princes like the ,medici at ,florence1 her influence was still paramount1 and though secular subjects were not uncommon1 the vast majority of paintings executed for patrons1 whether clerical or lay1 were still religious in subject4 ,it is not therefore1 surprising that among the artists of the ,fifteenth ,century1 many of whom were monks and all ,church painters1 we find a distinct cleavage dividing artists whose aim was to break away from all traditions--realists--classicists--in a word1 reformers1 from artists who clung tenaciously to the old ideals1 and whose main aim was still the perfection of devotional expression4 ,illustration3 ,,the ,,rape ,,of ,,helen4 ,gozzoli4 ,it was to the former class that ,benozzo ,gozzoli belonged1 pupil though he was of ,fra ,angelico4 ,although his special quality may be partly discerned in the altar-piece that hangs above his master's predella1 in the strongly marked character of the saints1 and perhaps more in the carefully studied goldfinches1 there was little scope in such a subject for the exercise of his imagination or the display of his individuality4 ,it is different with the little panel opposite1 ,the ,rape of ,helen 7,no4 #eia71 in which he has depicted with great liveliness and gusto a scene from a classical legend4 ,possibly1 to ,fra ,angelico1 who regarded painting only as a means of edification1 its employment on such a subject may have seemed little less than sacrilege1 not unlike the use of a chancel for the stabling of horses4 ,such views can scarcely be said to be extinct now1 and this is the more remarkable as no one has the same feeling with regard to the other arts1 such as sculpture or poetry4 ,to a young man like ,benozzo1 and many others of his day1 not monks1 nor specially devout in disposition1 it must1 nevertheless1 have been a change which was welcome4 ,to paint the ,virgin enthroned with ,saints over and over again1 must have been a little wearisome to men conscious of a fancy to which they could give no scope except by putting ,s4 ,jerome's hat in a new place1 or introducing a couple of goldfinches4 ,one likes to think of the pleasure with which ,gozzoli received his commission one morning1 perhaps from ,cosimo de' ,medici himself1 for whom his master was adorning a cell in the ,convent of ,san ,marco1 recently rebuilt at the great man's expense4 ,did he know the legend of ,helen of ,troy1 or had he to seek the advice of some scholar like ,nicolli or ,poggio for the right tradition8 ,he seems1 indeed1 to have been rather mixed in his ideas on the subject4 ,did he consult ,brunellesco in the construction of his ,greek ,temple1 or ,donatello or ,ghiberti for the statue inside8 ,whence came that wonderful landscape with its mountains and cypress trees and strange-shaped ships8 ,from his imagination1 or from some old missal or choir-book illumination8 ,at all events1 pleasure evidently went to the making of it1 for his fancy had full scope4 ,his costumes he adopted frankly from those of his day1 adding some features in the way of strange headgear1 much like those in ,fra ,angelico's ,adoration 7in which he possibly had a hand71 to give an ,eastern colour to the group of boyish heroes on the left2 not knowing or considering that the robes in which he was accustomed to drape his angels were much nearer to1 were indeed derived from1 the costume of the ,greeks4 ,for his ideal of female beauty he seems to have been satisfied with his own taste4 ,one can scarcely imagine a face or figure much less classical than that of the blonde with the retrouss nose 7presumably ,helen herself71 who is riding so complacently on the neck of the long-legged ,italian in the centre4 ,the figures in the ,temple are of a finer type1 and the lady in the sweeping robe1 with the long sleeves1 who turns her back to us1 has a simple dignity which reminds one less of ,gozzoli's master than of ,lippo ,lippi or ,masaccio1 whose frescoes in the ,carmine he1 in common with all other artists1 had doubtless studied4 ,there is nothing so classical or so natural in the picture as the beautiful little bare-legged boy that is running away in the foreground4 ,this little bright panel--so gay1 so nave1 so ignorant1 and withal so charming--is of importance in the history of art as illustrated in the ,national ,gallery4 ,it is the first in which the artist has given full play to his imagination1 and entered the romantic world of classic legend1 and1 with one exception1 the first which is purely secular in subject1 and was designed for a secular purpose4 ,it probably once formed part of a marriage-chest4 ,the important share which the landscape has in the composition1 and its serious attempt at perspective1 are also worthy of note4 ,as an example of the master himself1 of the painter of the great panoramic procession of the notables of his day1 which under the title of the ,adoration of the ,kings1 covers the walls of the chapel in the ,medici ,palace at ,florence1 of the designs of the history of ,s4 ,agostino at ,san ,gemignano1 and of the frescoes in ,campo ,santo at ,pisa1 it is of course extremely inadequate1 but it suffices to indicate many paths which the young artist was to strike out from the old track which sufficed for his saint-like master4 ,in the ,national ,gallery 7,london1 #ahie74 ,,monna ,,lisa#i 7,,leonardo ,,da ,,vinci7 ,,walter ,,pater ,in ,vasari's life of ,leonardo da ,vinci as we now read it there are some variations from the first edition4 ,there1 the painter who has fixed the outward type of ,christ for succeeding centuries was a bold speculator1 holding lightly by other men's beliefs1 setting philosophy above ,christianity4 ,words of his1 trenchant enough to justify this impression1 are not recorded1 and would have been out of keeping with a genius of which one characteristic is the tendency to lose itself in a refined and graceful mystery4 ,the suspicion was but the time-honoured form in which the world stamps its appreciation of one who has thoughts for himself alone1 his high indifferentism1 his intolerance of the common forms of things2 and in the second edition the image was changed into something fainter and more conventional4 ,but it is still by a certain mystery in his work1 and something enigmatical beyond the usual measure of great men1 that he fascinates1 or perhaps half repels4 ,his life is one of sudden revolts1 with intervals in which he works not at all1 or apart from the main scope of his work4 ,by a strange fortune the works on which his more popular fame rested disappeared early from the world1 as the ,battle of the ,standard2 or are mixed obscurely with the work of meaner hands1 as the ,last ,supper4 ,his type of beauty is so exotic that it fascinates a larger number than it delights1 and seems more than that of any other artist to reflect ideas and views and some scheme of the world within2 so that he seemed to his contemporaries to be the possessor of some unsanctified and secret wisdom2 as to ,michelet and others to have anticipated modern ideas4 ,he trifles with his genius1 and crowds all his chief work into a few tormented years of later life2 yet he is so possessed by his genius that he passes unmoved through the most tragic events1 overwhelming his country and friends1 like one who comes across them by chance on some secret errand4444 ,illustration3 ,,monna ,,lisa4 ,l4 da ,vinci4 ,his art1 if it was to be something in the world1 must be weighted with more of the meaning of nature and purpose of humanity4 ,nature was the true mistress of higher intelligences4 ,so he plunged into the study of nature4 ,and in doing this he followed the manner of the older students2 he brooded over the hidden virtues of plants and crystals1 the lines traced by stars as they moved in the sky1 over the correspondences which exist between the different orders of living things1 through which1 to eyes opened1 they interpret each other2 and for years he seemed to those about him as one listening to a voice silent for other men4 ,he learned here the art of going deep1 of tracking the sources of expression to their subtlest retreats1 the power of an intimate presence in the things he handled4 ,he did not at once or entirely desert his art2 only he was no longer the cheerful objective painter1 through whose soul1 as through clear glass1 the bright figures of ,florentine life1 only made a little mellower and more pensive by the transit1 passed on to the white wall4 ,he wasted many days in curious tricks of design1 seeming to lose himself in the spinning of intricate devices of lines and colours4 ,he was smitten with a love of the impossible--the perforation of mountains1 changing the course of rivers1 raising great buildings1 such as the church of ,san ,giovanni1 in the air2 all those feats for the performance of which natural magic professes to have the key4 ,later writers1 indeed1 see in these efforts an anticipation of modern mechanics2 in him they were rather dreams1 thrown off by the over-wrought and labouring brain4 ,two ideas were especially fixed in him1 as reflexes of things that had touched his brain in childhood beyond the measure of other impressions--the smiling of women and the motion of great waters4444 ,the science of that age was all divination1 clairvoyance1 unsubjected to our exact modern formulas1 seeking in an instant of vision to concentrate a thousand experiences4 ,later writers1 thinking only of the well-ordered treatise on painting which a ,frenchman1 ,raffaelle du ,fresne1 a hundred years afterwards1 compiled from ,leonardo's bewildered manuscripts1 written strangely as his manner was1 from right to left1 have imagined a rigid order in his inquiries4 ,but this rigid order was little in accordance with the restlessness of his character2 and if we think of him as the mere reasoner who subjects design to anatomy1 and composition to mathematical rules1 we shall hardly have of him that impression which those about him received from him4 ,poring over his crucibles1 making experiments with colour1 trying by a strange variation of the alchemist's dream to discover the secret1 not of an elixir to make man's natural life immortal1 but rather giving immortality to the subtlest and most delicate effects of painting1 he seemed to them rather the sorcerer or the magician1 possessed of curious secrets and a hidden knowledge1 living in a world of which he alone possessed the key4 ,what his philosophy seems to have been most like is that of ,paracelsus or ,cardan2 and much of the spirit of the older alchemy still hangs about it1 with its confidence in short cuts and odd byways to knowledge4 ,to him philosophy was to be something giving strange swiftness and double sight1 divining the sources of springs beneath the earth or of expression beneath the human countenance1 clairvoyant of occult gifts in common or uncommon things1 in the reed at the brook-side or the star which draws near to us but once in a century4 ,how in this way the clear purpose was overclouded1 the fine chaser's head perplexed1 we but dimly see2 the mystery which at no point quite lifts from ,leonardo's life is deepest here4 ,but it is certain that at one period of his life he had almost ceased to be an artist4 ,the year #adhc--the year of the birth of ,raffaelle and the thirty-first of ,leonardo's life--is fixed as the date of his visit to ,milan by the letter in which he recommends himself to ,ludovico ,sforza1 and offers to tell him for a price strange secrets in the art of war4 ,it was that ,sforza who murdered his young nephew by slow poison1 yet was so susceptible to religious impressions that he turned his worst passions into a kind of religious cultus1 and who took for his device the mulberry tree--symbol1 in its long delay and sudden yielding of flowers and fruit together1 of a wisdom which economizes all forces for an opportunity of sudden and sure effect4 ,the fame of ,leonardo had gone before him1 and he was to model a colossal statue of ,francesco1 the first duke4 ,as for ,leonardo himself he came not as an artist at all1 or careful of the fame of one2 but as a player on the harp1 a strange harp of silver of his own construction1 shaped in some curious likeness to a horse's skull4 ,the capricious spirit of ,ludovico was susceptible to the charm of music1 and ,leonardo's nature had a kind of spell in it4 ,fascination is always the word descriptive of him4 ,no portrait of his youth remains2 but all tends to make us believe that up to this time some charm of voice and aspect1 strong enough to balance the disadvantage of his birth1 had played about him4 ,his physical strength was great2 it was said that he could bend a horseshoe like a coil of lead4 ,the ,duomo1 the work of artists from beyond the ,alps1 so fantastic to a ,florentine used to the mellow unbroken surfaces of ,giotto and ,arnolfo1 was then in all its freshness2 and below1 in the streets of ,milan1 moved a people as fantastic1 changeful1 and dreamlike4 ,to ,leonardo least of all men could there be anything poisonous in the exotic flowers of sentiment which grew there4 ,it was a life of exquisite amusements1 7,leonardo became a celebrated designer of pageants17 and brilliant sins2 and it suited the quality of his genius1 composed in almost equal parts of curiosity and the desire of beauty1 to take things as they came4 ,curiosity and the desire of beauty--these are the two elementary forces in ,leonardo's genius2 curiosity often in conflict with the desire of beauty1 but generating1 in union with it1 a type of subtle and curious grace4 ,the movement of the ,fifteenth ,century was two-fold3 partly the ,renaissance1 partly also the coming of what is called the modern spirit1 with its realism1 its appeal to experience2 it comprehended a return to antiquity1 and a return to nature4 ,raffaelle represents the return to antiquity1 and ,leonardo the return to nature4 ,in this return to nature he was seeking to satisfy a boundless curiosity by her perpetual surprises1 a microscopic sense of finish by her finesse1 or delicacy of operation1 that subtilitas natur which ,bacon notices4 ,so we find him often in intimate relations with men of science1 with ,fra ,luca ,paccioli the mathematician1 and the anatomist ,marc ,antonio della ,torre4 ,his observations and experiments fill thirteen volumes of manuscript2 and those who can judge describe him as anticipating long before1 by rapid intuition1 the later ideas of science4 ,he explained the obscure light of the unilluminated part of the moon1 knew that the sea had once covered the mountains which contain shells1 and the gatherings of the equatorial waters above the polar4 ,he who thus penetrated into the most secret parts of nature preferred always the more to the less remote1 what1 seeming exceptional1 was an instance of law more refined1 the construction about things of a peculiar atmosphere and mixed lights4 ,he paints flowers with such curious fidelity that different writers have attributed to him a fondness for particular flowers1 as ,clement the cyclamen1 and ,rio the jasmine2 while at ,venice there is a stray leaf from his portfolio dotted all over with studies of violets and the wild rose4 ,in him first1 appears the taste for what is bizarre or recherch in landscape3 hollow places full of the green shadow of bituminous rocks1 ridged reefs of trap-rock which cut the water into quaint sheets of light--their exact antitype is in our own western seas2 all solemn effects of moving water2 you may follow it springing from its distant source among the rocks on the heath of the ,madonna of the ,balances1 passing as a little fall into the treacherous calm of the ,madonna of the ,lake1 next1 as a goodly river below the cliffs of the ,madonna of the ,rocks1 washing the white walls of its distant villages1 stealing out in a network of divided streams in ,la ,gioconda1 to the sea-shore of the ,saint ,anne--that delicate place1 where the wind passes like the hand of some fine etcher over the surface1 and the untorn shells lie thick upon the sand1 and the tops of the rocks1 to which the waves never rise1 are green with grass grown fine as hair4 ,it is the landscape1 not of dreams or fancy1 but of places far withdrawn1 and hours selected from a thousand with a miracle of finesse4 ,through his strange veil of sight things reach him so2 in no ordinary night or day1 but as in faint light of eclipse1 or in some brief interval of falling rain at daybreak1 or through deep water4 ,and not into nature only2 but he plunged also into human personality1 and became above all a painter of portraits2 faces of a modelling more skilful than has been seen before or since1 embodied with a reality which almost amounts to illusion on dark air4 ,to take a character as it was1 and delicately sound its stops1 suited one so curious in observation1 curious in invention4 ,so he painted the portraits of ,ludovico's mistresses1 ,lucretia ,crivelli and ,cecilia ,galerani the poetess1 of ,ludovico himself1 and the ,duchess ,beatrice4 ,the portrait of ,cecilia ,galerani is lost1 but that of ,lucretia ,crivelli has been identified with ,la ,belle ,ferronnire of the ,louvre1 and ,ludovico's pale1 anxious face still remains in the ,ambrosian4 ,opposite is the portrait of ,beatrice d',este1 in whom ,leonardo seems to have caught some presentiment of early death1 painting her precise and grave1 full of the refinement of the dead1 in sad earth-coloured raiment1 set with pale stones4444 ,the ,last ,supper was finished in #adig2 in #adih the ,french entered ,milan1 and whether or not the ,gascon bowmen used it as a mark for their arrows1 the model of ,francesco ,sforza certainly did not survive4 ,ludovico became a prisoner1 and the remaining years of ,leonardo's life are more or less years of wandering4 ,from his brilliant life at court he had saved nothing1 and he returned to ,florence a poor man4 ,perhaps necessity kept his spirit excited3 the next four years are one prolonged rapture or ecstasy of invention4 ,he painted the pictures of the ,louvre1 his most authentic works1 which came there straight from the cabinet of ,francis the ,first1 at ,fontainebleau4 ,one picture of his1 the ,saint ,anne--not the ,saint ,anne of the ,louvre1 but a mere cartoon now in ,london--revived for a moment a sort of appreciation more common in an earlier time1 when good pictures had still seemed miraculous2 and for two days a crowd of people of all qualities passed in nave excitement through the chamber where it hung1 and gave ,leonardo a taste of ,cimabue's triumph4 ,but his work was less with the saints than with the living women of ,florence2 for he lived still in the polished society that he loved1 and in the houses of ,florence1 left perhaps a little subject to light thoughts by the death of ,savonarola 7the latest gossip is of an undraped ,monna ,lisa1 found in some out-of-the-way corner of the late ,orleans collection71 he saw ,ginevra di ,benci1 and ,lisa1 the young third wife of ,francesco del ,giocondo4 ,as we have seen him using incidents of the sacred legend1 not for their own sake1 or as mere subjects for pictorial realisation1 but as a symbolical language for fancies all his own1 so now he found a vent for his thoughts in taking one of those languid women1 and raising her1 as ,leda or ,pomona1 ,modesty or ,vanity1 to the seventh heaven of symbolical expression4 ,la ,gioconda is1 in the truest sense1 ,leonardo's masterpiece1 the revealing instance of his mode of thought and work4 ,in suggestiveness1 only the ,melancholia of ,drer is comparable to it2 and no crude symbolism disturbs the effect of its subdued and graceful mystery4 ,we all know the face and hands of the figure1 set in the marble chair1 in that cirque of fantastic rocks1 as in some faint light under sea4 ,perhaps of all ancient pictures time has chilled it least4#aj ,as often happens with works in which invention seems to reach its limit1 there is an element in it given to1 not invented by1 the master4 ,in that inestimable folio of drawings1 once in the possession of ,vasari1 were certain designs by ,verrocchio1 faces of such impressive beauty that ,leonardo in his boyhood copied them many times4 ,it is hard not to connect with these designs of the elder by-past master1 as with its germinal principle1 the unfathomable smile1 always with a touch of something sinister in it1 which plays over all ,leonardo's work4 ,besides1 the picture is a portrait4 ,from childhood we see this image defining itself on the fabric of his dreams2 and but for express historical testimony1 we might fancy that this was but his ideal lady1 embodied and beheld at last4 ,what was the relationship of a living ,florentine to this creature of his thought8 ,by what strange affinities had she and the dream grown thus apart1 yet so closely together8 ,present from the first1 incorporeal in ,leonardo's thought1 dimly traced in the designs of ,verrocchio1 she is found present at last in ,il ,giocondo's house4 ,that there is much of mere portraiture in the picture is attested by the legend that by artificial means1 the presence of mimes and flute players1 that subtle expression was protracted on the face4 ,again1 was it in four years and by renewed labour never really completed1 or in four months and as by stroke of magic1 that the image was projected8 ,the presence that thus so strangely rose beside the waters is expressive of what in the ways of a thousand years man had come to desire4 ,hers is the head upon which all the ends of the world are come1 and the eyelids are a little weary4 ,it is a beauty wrought out from within upon the flesh1 the deposit1 little cell by cell1 of strange thoughts and fantastic reveries and exquisite passions4 ,set it for a moment beside one of those white ,greek goddesses or beautiful women of antiquity1 and how would they be troubled by this beauty into which the soul with all its maladies has passed8 ,all the thoughts and experience of the world have etched and moulded there in that which they have of power to refine and make expressive the outward form1 the animalism of ,greece1 the lust of ,rome1 the reverie of the middle age with its spiritual ambition and imaginative loves1 the return of the ,pagan world1 the sins of the ,borgias4 ,she is older than the rocks among which she sits2 like the vampire1 she has been dead many times1 and learned the secrets of the grave2 and has been a diver in deep seas1 and keeps their fallen day about her2 and trafficked for strange webs with ,eastern merchants2 and1 as ,leda1 was mother of ,helen of ,troy1 and as ,saint ,anne1 the mother of ,mary2 and all this has been to her but as the sound of lyres and flutes1 and lives only in the delicacy with which it has moulded the changing lineaments and tinged the eyelids and the hands4 ,the fancy of a perpetual life1 sweeping together ten thousand experiences1 is an old one2 and modern thought has conceived the idea of humanity as wrought upon by1 and summing up in itself1 all modes of thought and life4 ,certainly ,lady ,lisa might stand as the embodiment of the old fancy1 the symbol of the modern idea4 ,during these years at ,florence ,leonardo's history is the history of his art2 he himself is lost in the bright cloud of it4 ,the outward history begins again in #aejb1 with a wild journey through central ,italy1 which he makes as the chief engineer of ,csar ,borgia4 ,the biographer1 putting together the stray jottings of his manuscripts1 may follow him through every day of it1 up the strange tower of ,sienna1 which looks towards ,rome1 elastic like a bent bow1 down to the sea-shore at ,piombino1 each place appearing as fitfully as in a fevered dream4444 ,we catch a glimpse of him again at ,rome in #aead1 surrounded by his mirrors and vials and furnaces1 making strange toys that seemed alive of wax and quicksilver4 ,the hesitation which had haunted him all through life1 and made like one under a spell1 was upon him now with double force4 ,no one had ever carried political indifferentism farther2 it had always been his philosophy to fly before the storm2 he is for the ,sforzas or against them1 as the tide of their fortune turns4 ,yet now he was suspected by the anti-,gallian society at ,rome of ,french tendencies4 ,it paralyzed him to find himself among enemies2 and he turned wholly to ,france1 which had long courted him4 ,france was about to become an ,italy more ,italian than ,italy itself4 ,francis the ,first1 like ,lewis the ,twelfth before him1 was attracted by the finesse of ,leonardo's work2 ,la ,gioconda was already in his cabinet1 and he offered ,leonardo the little ,chteau de ,clou1 with its vineyards and meadows1 in the soft valley of the ,masse1 and not too far from the great outer sea4 ,m4 ,arsne ,houssaye has succeeded in giving a pensive local colour to this part of his subject1 with which1 as a ,frenchman1 he could best deal4 ,a ,monsieur ,lyonard1 peinteur du ,roy pour ,amboyse1--so the letter of ,francis the ,first is headed4 ,it opens a prospect1 one of the most attractive in the history of art1 where1 under a strange mixture of lights1 ,italian art dies away as a ,french exotic4 ,studies in the ,history of the ,renaissance 7,london1 #ahgc74 ,,footnotes3 #i ,the spelling commonly used is ,mona ,lisa4 ,the editor has thought best1 however1 to keep the form of spelling used by ,walter ,pater4 #aj ,yet for ,vasari there was some further magic of crimson in the lips and cheeks1 lost for us4 ,,the ,,adoration ,,of ,,the ,,lamb 7,,van ,,eyck7 ,,kugler ,hubert van ,eyck was born1 according to the common acceptation1 in #acff4 ,john van ,eyck was his junior by some unknown number of years4 ,chroniclers of the ,sixteenth ,century vaguely suggest that the two brothers settled at ,ghent in #adaj4 ,there is every reason to believe that all these dates are incorrect2 that ,hubert was born after #acff1 and that the date of his migration to ,ghent must be placed later in the century4 ,it is credible that both the brothers were court painters to ,philip of ,charolois1 heir apparent to the throne of ,burgundy1 who lived with his wife ,michelle de ,france at ,ghent between #adah and #adba4 ,in the service of the prince1 painters were free from the constraint of their guild1 but on the withdrawal of the court the privilege would cease2 and this explains how the names of the ,van ,eycks were not recorded in the register of the corporation of ,st4 ,luke till #adba1 when1 on the death of the ,countess ,michelle1 and as a tribute to her memory1 they were registered as masters without a fee4 ,john van ,eyck soon found employment in the court atmosphere1 which seemed congenial to him1 whilst ,hubert remained at ,ghent1 received commissions from the municipality 7#adbd71 and became acquainted with ,jodocus ,vydts1 for whom he composed the vast altar-piece known as the ,adoration of the ,lamb4 ,it was not fated that he should finish the great work which he was then induced to begin4 ,he probably sketched the subjects that were to adorn the panels1 and completed some of the more important of them4 ,at his death in #adbf he was buried in the chapel1 the decoration of which had been the last occupation of his life4 ,we may sum up the qualities which distinguished him1 and the services which he rendered to the art of his country1 in the following sentences3-- ,illustration3 ,,the ,,adoration ,,of ,,the ,,lamb4 ,van ,eyck4 ,he carried the realistic tendency1 already existing in the ,flemish masters1 to an extraordinary pitch of excellence1 whilst in many essential respects he adhered to the more ideal feeling of the previous period1 imparting to this1 by the means of his far richer powers of representation1 greater distinctness1 truth of nature1 and variety of expression4 ,throughout his works he displayed an elevated and highly energetic conception of the stern import of his labours in the service of the ,church4 ,the prevailing arrangement of his subject is symmetrical1 holding fast the early architectonic rules which had hitherto presided over ecclesiastic art4 ,the later mode of arrangement1 in which a freer and more dramatic and picturesque feeling was introduced1 is only seen in ,hubert van ,eyck's works in subjection to these rules4 ,thus his heads exhibit the aim at beauty and dignity belonging to the earlier period1 only combined with more truth of nature4 ,his draperies unite its pure taste and softness of folds with greater breadth2 the realistic principle being apparent in that greater attention to detail which a delicate indication of the material necessitates4 ,nude figures are studied from nature with the utmost fidelity2 undraped portions are also given with much truth1 especially the hands2 only the feet remain feeble4 ,that1 however1 which is almost the principal quality of his art1 is the hitherto unprecedented power1 depth1 transparency1 and harmony of his colouring4 ,to attain this he availed himself of a mode of painting in oil which he and his brother had perfected4 ,oil painting1 it is true1 had long been in use1 but only in a very undeveloped form1 and for inferior purposes4 ,according to the most recent and thorough investigations1 the improvement introduced by the ,van ,eycks1 and which they doubtless only very gradually worked out1 were the following4 ,first1 they removed the chief impediment which had hitherto obstructed the application of oil-paint to pictures properly so called4 ,for1 in order to accelerate the slow drying of the oil colours1 it had been necessary to add a varnish to them1 which consisted of oil boiled with a resin4 ,owing to the dark colour of this varnish1 in which amber1 or more frequently sandarac1 was used1 this plan1 from its darkening effect on most colours1 had hitherto proved unsuccessful4 ,the ,van ,eycks1 however1 succeeded in preparing so colourless a varnish that they could apply it without disadvantage1 to all colours4 ,in painting a picture they proceeded on the following system4 ,the outline was drawn on a gesso ground1 so strongly sized that no oil could penetrate the surface4 ,the under painting was then executed in a generally warm brownish glazing colour1 and so thinly that the light ground was clearly seen through it4 ,they then laid on the local colours1 thinner in the lights1 and1 from the quantity of vehicle used1 more thickly in the shadows2 in the latter availing themselves often of the under painting as a foil4 ,in all other parts they so nicely preserved the balance between the solid and the glazing colours as to attain that union of body and transparency which is their great excellence4 ,finally1 in the use of the brush they obtained that perfect freedom which the new vehicle permitted2 either leaving the touch of the brush distinct1 or fusing the touches tenderly together1 as the object before them required4 ,of all the works which are now attributed to ,hubert1 but one is genuine and historically authenticated4 ,this noble work is certified by an inscription4 ,it is a large altar picture1 consisting of two rows of separate panels1 once in the ,cathedral of ,st4 ,bavon at ,ghent4 ,it was painted1 as before remarked1 for ,jodocus ,vydts1 ,seigneur of ,pamele1 and ,burgomaster of ,ghent1 and his wife ,elizabeth1 of the then distinguished family of ,burlunt1 for their mortuary chapel in that cathedral4#aa ,when the wings were opened1 which occurred only on festivals1 the subject of the upper centre picture was seen1 consisting of three panels1 on which were the ,triune ,god--the ,king of heaven and earth--and at his side the ,holy ,virgin and the ,baptist2 on the inside of the wings were angels1 who with songs and sacred music celebrate the praises of the ,most ,high3 at the two extremities1 each inside the half-shutters which covered the figure of ,god the ,father1 were ,adam and ,eve1 the representatives of fallen man4 ,the lower central picture shows the ,lamb of the ,revelation1 whose blood flows into a cup2 over it is the dove of the ,holy ,spirit2 angels1 who hold the instruments of the ,passion1 worship the ,lamb1 and four groups1 each consisting of many persons1 advance from the sides3 they comprise the holy martyrs1 male and female1 with priests and lay-men2 in the foreground is the fountain of life2 in the distance the towers of the heavenly ,jerusalem4 ,on the wing pictures1 other groups are coming up to adore the ,lamb2 on the left1 those who have laboured for the kingdom of the ,lord by worldly deeds--the soldiers of ,christ1 and the righteous judges2 on the right1 those who1 through self-denial and renunciation of earthly good1 have served ,him in the spirit--holy hermits and pilgrims2 a picture underneath1 which represented hell1 finished the whole4 ,this work is now dispersed3 the centre pictures and the panels of ,adam and ,eve only being in ,ghent4#ab ,the lower picture of hell was early injured and lost1 and the others form some of the greatest ornaments of the gallery of the ,berlin ,museum4#ac ,the three figures of the upper centre picture are designed with all the dignity of statue-like repose belonging to the early style2 they are painted1 too1 on a ground of gold and tapestry1 as was constantly the practice in earlier times3 but united with the traditional type we already find a successful representation of life and nature in all their truth4 ,they stand on the frontier of two different styles1 and1 from the excellence of both1 form a wonderful and most impressive whole4 ,in all the solemnity of antique dignity the ,heavenly ,father sits directly fronting the spectator--his right hand raised to give the benediction to the ,lamb1 and to all the figures below2 in his left is a crystal sceptre2 on his head the triple crown1 the emblem of the ,trinity4 ,the features are such as are ascribed to ,christ by the traditions of the ,church1 but noble and well-proportioned2 the expression is forcible1 though passionless4 ,the tunic of this figure1 ungirt1 is of a deep red1 as well as the mantle1 which last is fastened over the breast by a rich clasp1 and1 falling down equally from both shoulders1 is thrown in beautiful folds over the feet4 ,behind the figure1 and as high as the head1 is a hanging of green tapestry adorned with a golden pelican 7a well-known symbol of the ,redeemer72 behind the head the ground is gold1 and on it1 in a semicircle1 are three inscriptions1 which again describe the ,trinity1 as all-mighty1 all-good1 and all-bountiful4 ,the two other figures of this picture display equal majesty2 both are reading holy books and are turned towards the centre figure4 ,the countenance of ,john expresses ascetic seriousness1 but in the ,virgin's we find a serene grace1 and a purity of form1 which approach very nearly to the happier efforts of ,italian art4 ,on the wing next to the ,virgin stand eight angels singing before a music-desk4 ,they are represented as choristers in splendid vestments and crowns4 ,the brilliancy of the stuffs and precious stones is given with the hand of a master1 the music-desk is richly ornamented with ,gothic carved work and figures1 and the countenances are full of expression and life2 but in the effort to imitate nature with the utmost truth1 so as even to enable us to distinguish with certainty the different voices of the double quartet1 the spirit of a holier influence has already passed away4 ,on the opposite wing1 ,st4 ,cecilia sits at an organ1 the keys of which she touches with an expression of deep meditation3 other angels stand behind the organ with different stringed instruments4 ,the expression of these heads shows far more feeling1 and is more gentle2 the execution of the stuffs and accessories is equally masterly4 ,the two extreme wings of the upper series1 the subjects of which are ,adam and ,eve1 are now in the ,museum at ,brussels4 ,the attempt to paint the nude figure of the size of life1 with the most careful attention to minute detail1 is eminently successful1 with the exception of a certain degree of hardness in the drawing4 ,eve holds in her right hand the forbidden fruit4 ,in the filling up1 which the shape of the altar-piece made necessary over these panels1 there are small subjects in chiaroscuro3 over ,adam1 the sacrifice of ,cain and ,abel2 over ,eve1 the death of ,abel--death1 therefore1 as the immediate consequence of original sin4 ,the arrangement of the lower middle picture1 the worship of the ,lamb1 is strictly symmetrical1 as the mystic nature of the allegorical subject demanded1 but there is such beauty in the landscape1 in the pure atmosphere1 in the bright green of the grass1 in the masses of trees and flowers1 even in the single figures which stand out from the four great groups1 that we no longer perceive either hardness or severity in this symmetry4 ,the wing picture on the right1 representing the holy pilgrims1 is1 in the figures1 less striking than the others4 ,here ,st4 ,christopher1 who wandered through the world seeking the most mighty ,lord1 strides before all1 a giant in stature1 whilst a host of smaller pilgrims1 of various ages1 follow him4 ,a fruitful valley1 with many details1 showing a surprising observation of nature1 is seen through the slender trees4 ,the cast of the folds in the ample red drapery of ,st4 ,christopher1 as in the upper picture1 reminds us still of the earlier style4 ,the whimsical and singular expression in the countenances of the pilgrims is also very remarkable4 ,the picture next to the last described is more pleasing2 it represents the troop of holy anchorites passing out of a rocky defile4 ,in front are ,st4 ,paul the ,hermit and ,st4 ,anthony1 the two who set the first example of retirement from the world2 and the procession closes with the two holy women who also passed the greater part of their lives in the wilderness1 ,mary ,magdalen and ,st4 ,mary of ,egypt4 ,the heads are full of character1 with great variety of expression3 on every countenance may be traced the history of its life4 ,grave old men stand before us1 each one differing from the other2 one is firm and strong1 another more feeble2 one cheerful and single-minded1 another less open4 ,some inspired fanatics wildly raise their heads1 whilst others with a simple and almost humorous expression walk by their side1 and others again are still struggling with their earthly nature4 ,it is a remarkable picture1 and leads us deep into the secrets of the human heart--a picture which in all times must be ranked amongst the master-works of art1 and which to be intelligible needs no previous inquiry into the relative period and circumstances of the artists who created it4 ,the landscape background1 the rocky defile1 the wooded declivity1 and the trees laden with fruit1 are all eminently beautiful4 ,the eye would almost lose itself in this rich sense of still life if it were not constantly led back to the interest of the foreground4 ,the opposite wing pictures differ essentially in conception from those just described4 ,their subject did not in itself admit such varied interest1 and it is rather the common expression of a tranquil harmony of mind1 and of the consciousness of a resolute will1 which attracts the spectator1 combined at the same time with a skilful representation of earthly splendour and magnificence4 ,inside the wing to the right we see the soldiers of the ,lord on fine chargers1 simple and noble figures in bright armour1 with surcoats of varied form and colour4 ,the three foremost with the waving banners appear to be ,st4 ,sebastian1 ,st4 ,george1 and ,st4 ,michael1 the patron saints of the old ,flemish guilds1 which accompanied their earls to the ,crusades4 ,in the head of ,st4 ,george1 the painter has strikingly succeeded in rendering the spirit of the chivalry of the ,middle ,ages--that true heroic feeling and sense of power which humbles itself before the higher sense of the ,divinity4 ,emperors and kings follow after him4 ,the landscape is extremely beautiful and highly finished1 with rich and finely-formed mountain ridges1 and the fleecy clouds of spring floating lightly across4 ,the second picture 7the last to the left7 represents the righteous judges2 they also are on horseback1 and are fine and dignified figures4 ,in front1 on a splendidly caparisoned grey horse1 rides a mild benevolent old man1 in blue velvet trimmed with fur4 ,this is the likeness of ,hubert1 to whom his brother has thus dedicated a beautiful memorial4 ,rather deeper in the group is ,john himself1 clothed in black1 with his shrewd1 sharp countenance turned to the spectator4 ,we are indebted to tradition for the knowledge of these portraits4 ,both these wing pictures have the special interest of showing us1 by means of armour1 rich costumes1 and caparisons1 a true and particular representation of the ,court of ,burgundy in the time of ,philip the ,good--when it was confessedly the most superb court in ,europe4 ,the upper wings1 when closed1 represented the ,annunciation1 and this was so arranged that on the outer and wider ones 7the backs of the two pictures of angels singing and playing7 were the figures of the ,virgin and the ,angel ,gabriel1--on the inner narrower ones 7that is1 on the back of the ,adam and ,eve71 a continuation of the ,virgin's chamber4 ,here1 as was often the case in the outside pictures of large altar-pieces1 the colouring was kept down to a more uniform tone1 in order that the full splendour might be reserved to adorn with greater effect the principal subject within4 ,the angel and the ,holy ,virgin are clothed in flowing white drapery1 but the wings of the angel glitter with a play of soft and brilliant colour1 imitating those of the green parrot4 ,the heads are noble and well painted2 the furniture of the room is executed with great truth1 as well as the view through the arcade which forms the background of the ,virgin's chamber1 into the streets of a town1 one of which we recognize as a street in ,ghent4 ,in the semicircles which close these panels above1 on the right and left1 are the prophets ,micah and ,zechariah1 whose heads have great dignity1 but are somewhat stiff and unsatisfactory in their attitudes4 ,in the centre 7corresponding with the figures in chiaroscuro over ,adam and ,eve7 are two kneeling female figures represented as sibyls4 ,the exterior portion of the lower wings contains the statues of the two ,st4 ,johns4 ,these display a heavy style of drapery1 and there is something peculiarly angular in the breaks of the folds1 imitated perhaps from the sculpture of the day1 which had also already abandoned the older ,northern mould4 ,this peculiarity by degrees impressed itself more and more on the style of painting of the ,fifteenth ,century1 and the drapery of the figures in the ,annunciation already betrays a tendency towards it4 ,the heads exhibit a feeling for beauty of form which is rare in this school4 ,john the ,baptist1 who is pointing with his right hand to the ,lamb on his left1 is appropriately represented1 as the last of the ,prophets1 as a man of earnest mien and dignified features1 with much hair and beard4 ,john the ,evangelist1 on the other hand1 appears as a tender youth with delicate features1 looking very composedly at the monster with four snakes which1 at his benediction1 rises from the chalice in his hand4 ,the likenesses of the donors are given with inimitable life and fidelity4 ,they show the careful hand of ,jan van ,eyck1 but already approach that limit within which the imitation of the accidental and insignificant in the human countenance should be confined4 ,the whole1 however1 is in admirable keeping1 and the care of the artist can hardly be considered too anxiously minute1 since feeling and character are as fully expressed as the mere bodily form4 ,the aged ,jodocus ,vydts1 to whose liberality posterity is indebted for this great work of art1 is dressed in a simple red garment trimmed with fur2 he kneels with his hands folded1 and his eyes directed upwards4 ,his countenance1 however1 is not attractive2 the forehead is low and narrow1 and the eye without power4 ,the mouth alone shows a certain benevolence1 and the whole expression of the features denotes a character capable of managing worldly affairs4 ,the idea of originating so great a work as this picture is to be found in the noble1 intellectual1 and expressive features of his wife1 who kneels opposite to him in the same attitude1 and in still plainer attire4 ,at ,hubert van ,eyck's death1 on the #afth of ,september1 #adbf1 ,jodocus ,vydts engaged ,jan van ,eyck1 the younger brother and scholar of ,hubert1 to finish the picture in the incomplete parts4#ad ,a close comparison of all the panels of this altar-piece with the authentic works of ,jan van ,eyck shows that the following portions differ in drawing1 colouring1 cast of drapery1 and treatment1 from his style1 and may therefore with certainty be attributed to the hand of ,hubert3--of the inner side of the upper series1 the ,almighty1 the ,virgin1 ,st4 ,john the ,baptist1 ,st4 ,cecilia with the angels playing on musical instruments1 and ,adam and ,eve2 of the inner side of the lower series1 the side of the centre picture with the apostles and saints1 and the wings with the hermits and pilgrims1 though with the exception of the landscapes4 ,on the other hand1 of the inner side of the upper series1 the wing picture with the singing angels is by ,jan van ,eyck2 of the inner side of the lower series1 the side of the centre picture of the ,adoration of the ,lamb1 containing the patriarchs and prophets1 etc41 and the entire landscape2 the wing with the soldiers of ,christ and the ,righteous ,judges1 and the landscapes to the wing with the hermits and pilgrims2 finally1 the entire outer sides of the wings1 comprising the portraits of the founders1 and the ,annunciation4 ,the ,prophet ,zechariah and the two sibyls alone show a feebler hand4#ae ,about one hundred years after the completion of this altar-piece an excellent copy of it was made by ,michael ,coxis for ,philip ,,ii4 of ,spain4 ,the panels of this work1 like those of the original1 are dispersed2 some are in the ,berlin ,museum1 some in the possession of the ,king of ,bavaria1 and others in the remains of the ,king of ,holland's collection at the ,hague4 ,a second copy1 which comprises the inside pictures of this great work1 from the chapel of the ,town-house at ,ghent1 is in the ,antwerp ,museum4 ,handbook of ,painting3 the ,german1 ,flemish1 and ,dutch ,schools1 based on the handbook of ,kugler remodelled by ,dr4 ,waagen and revised by ,j4,a4 ,crowe 7,london1 #ahgd74 ,,footnotes3 #aa ,carton1 ,les ,trois ,frres van ,eyck1 p4 #cf4 #ab ,marc van ,vaernewijck in a ,,ms4 of #aeff-h1 describing the ,ghent troubles1 states that on the #aith of ,august1 two days before the iconoclasts plundered ,st4 ,bavon1 the picture of the ,mystic ,lamb was removed from the ,vijdts chapel and concealed in one of the towers4 ,see the ,,ms41 ,van die ,beroerlicke ,tijden in die ,nederlandenb1 recently printed at ,ghent 7#ahgb71 p4 #adf4 ,on the same page in which ,vaernewijck relates this story he says that he refers his readers1 for the lives of the ,van ,eycks to his book1 ,mijn leecken ,philosophie int xxe bouck4 ,this book1 which probably still exists on the shelves of some library1 has not as yet been discovered4 #ac ,the pictures here exhibited as the works of ,hemmelinck1 ,messis1 ,lucas of ,holland1 ,a4 ,drer1 and even ,holbein1 are inferior to those ascribed to ,eyck in colour1 execution1 and taste4 ,the draperies of the three on a gold ground1 especially that of the middle figure1 could not be improved in simplicity1 or elegance1 by the taste of ,raphael himself4 ,the three heads of ,god the ,father1 the ,virgin1 and ,st4 ,john the ,baptist1 are not inferior in roundness1 force1 or sweetness to the heads of ,l4 da ,vinci1 and possess a more positive principle of colour4--,life of ,fuseli1 i4 p4 #bfg4 ,this is a very remarkable opinion for the period when it was written4 #ad ,this appears from the following inscription of the time1 on the frame of the outer wing3-- ,pictor ,hubertus ab ,eyck1 major quo nemo repertus ,incepit2 pondusque ,johannes arte secundus ,frater perfecit1 ,judoci ,vyd prece fretus ,vers,v se,xta ,ma,i ,vos ,co,l,lo,cat a,cta t,ver,i4 ,the last verse gives the date of ,may #f1 #adcb4 ,the discovery of this inscription1 under a coating of green paint1 was made in ,berlin in #ahbd1 when the first word and a half of the third line1 which were missing1 were imperfectly supplied with frater perfectus by an old copy of this inscription1 found by ,m4 de ,bast1 the ,belgian connoisseur4 #ae ,dr4 ,waagen did not always hold decided opinions as to what portions of the altar-piece of ,ghent are by ,hubert and ,john van ,eyck1 respectively4 ,there is no doubt that some of the sublime earnestness which ,schlegel notes in the ,eternal1 the ,virgin1 and ,john the ,baptist1 and much of the stern realism which characterizes those figures1 is to be found in the patriarchs and prophets1 and in the hermits and pilgrims1 and in the ,adam and ,eve2 but it is too much to say that these wing pictures can with certainty be assigned to ,hubert1 and it is not to be forgotten that ,john van ,eyck worked in this picture on the lines laid down by his elder brother1 and must have caught some of the spirit of his great master4 ,,the ,,death ,,of ,,procris 7,,piero ,,di ,,cosimo7 ,,edward ,t4 ,,cook ,a very characteristic work by ,piero1 called di ,cosimo1 after his godfather and master1 ,cosimo ,rosselli4 ,piero's peculiarities are well known to all readers of ,george ,eliot's ,romola1 where everything told us about him by ,vasari is carefully worked up4 ,the first impression left by this picture--its quaintness--is precisely typical of the man4 ,he shut himself off from the world1 and stopped his ears2 lived in the untidiest of rooms1 and would not have his garden tended1 preferring to see all things wild and savage about him4 ,he took his meals at times and in ways that no other man did1 and ,romola used to coax him with sweets and hard-boiled eggs4 ,his fondness for quaint landscape 7he would sometimes stand beside a wall1 says ,vasari1 and image forth the most extraordinary landscapes that ever were7 may be seen in this picture3 so also may his love of animals1 in which1 says ,vasari1 he took indescribable pleasure4 ,illustration3 ,,the ,,death ,,of ,,procris4 ,piero di ,cosimo4 ,the subjects of his pictures were generally allegorical4 ,in ,romola he paints ,tito and ,romola as ,bacchus and ,ariadne2 here he shows the death of ,procris1 the story in which the ancients embodied the folly of jealousy4 ,for ,procris being told that ,cephalus was unfaithful1 straight-way believed the report and secretly followed him to the woods1 for he was a great hunter4 ,and ,cephalus called upon aura1 the ,latin for breeze1 for ,cephalus was hot after the chase3 ,sweet air1 ,o come1 and echo answered1 ,come1 sweet air4 ,but ,procris1 thinking that he was calling after his mistress1 turned to see1 and as she moved she made a rustling in the leaves1 which ,cephalus mistook for the motion of some beast of the forest1 and let fly his unerring dart1 which ,procris once had given him4 ,but ,procris lay among the white wind-flowers1 ,shot in the throat4 ,from out the little wound ,the slow blood drained1 as drops in autumn showers ,drip from the leaves upon the sodden ground4 ,none saw her die but ,lelaps1 the swift hound1 ,that watched her dumbly with a wistful fear1 ,till at the dawn1 the hornd wood-men found ,and bore her gently on a sylvan bier1 ,to lie beside the sea1--with many an uncouth tear4 ,,austin ,,dobson3 ,old ,world ,lyrics4 ,a ,popular ,handbook to the ,national ,gallery 7,london and ,new ,york1 #ahhh74 ,,the ,,death ,,of ,,procris 7,,piero ,,di ,,cosimo7 ,,john ,,addington ,,symonds ,the point that connects him with ,botticelli is the romantic treatment of his classical mythology1 best exemplified in his pictures of the tale of ,perseus and ,andromeda4#af ,piero was by nature and employment a decorative painter2 the construction of cars for pageants1 and the adornment of dwelling rooms and marriage chests1 affected his whole style1 rendering it less independent and more quaint than that of ,botticelli4 ,landscape occupies the main part of his compositions1 made up by a strange amalgam of the most eccentric details--rocks toppling over blue bays1 sea-caverns and fantastic mountain ranges4 ,groups of little figures upon these spaces tell the story1 and the best invention of the artist is lavished on the form of monstrous creatures like the dragon slain by ,perseus4 ,there is no attempt to treat the classic subject in a classic spirit3 to do that and to fail in doing it1 remained for ,cellini4444#ag ,the same criticism applies to ,piero's picture of the murdered ,procris watched by a ,satyr of the woodland4#ah ,in creating his ,satyr the painter has not had recourse to any antique bas-relief1 but has imagined for himself a being half human1 half bestial1 and yet wholly real2 nor has he portrayed in ,procris a nymph of ,greek form1 but a girl of ,florence4 ,the strange animals and gaudy flowers introduced into the landscape background further remove the subject from the sphere of classic treatment4 ,florentine realism and quaint fancy being thus curiously blended1 the artistic result may be profitably studied for the light it throws upon the so-called ,paganism of the earlier ,renaissance4 ,fancy at that moment was more free than when superior knowledge of antiquity had created a demand for reproductive art1 and when the painters thought less of the meaning of the fable for themselves than of its capability of being used as a machine for the display of erudition4 ,the ,renaissance in ,italy 7,london1 #ahgg74 ,,footnotes3 #af ,uffizi ,gallery4 #ag ,see the bas-relief upon the pedestal of his ',perseus' in the ,loggia de' ,lanzi4 #ah ,in the ,national ,gallery4 ,,the ,,marriage ,,in ,,cana 7,,tintoret7 ,,john ,,ruskin ,the ,church of the ,salute is farther assisted by the beautiful flight of steps in front of it down to the canal2 and its faade is rich and beautiful of its kind1 and was chosen by ,turner for the principal object in his well known view of the ,grand ,canal4 ,the principal faults of the building are the meagre windows in the sides of the cupola1 and the ridiculous disguise of the buttresses under the form of colossal scrolls2 the buttresses themselves being originally a hypocrisy1 for the cupola is stated by ,lazari to be of timber1 and therefore needs none4 ,the sacristy contains several precious pictures3 the three on its roof by ,titian1 much vaunted1 are indeed as feeble as they are monstrous2 but the small ,titian1 ,st4 ,mark with ,sts4 ,cosmo and ,damian1 was1 when ,i first saw it1 to my judgment1 by far the first work of ,titian's in ,venice4 ,it has since been restored by the ,academy1 and it seemed to me entirely destroyed1 but ,i had not time to examine it carefully4 ,illustration3 ,,the ,,marriage ,,in ,,cana4 ,tintoret ,at the end of the larger sacristy is the lunette which once decorated the tomb of the ,doge ,francesco ,dandolo1 and1 at the side of it1 one of the most highly finished ,tintoret's in ,venice1 namely3 ,the ,marriage in ,cana4 ,an immense picture1 some twenty-five feet long by fifteen high1 and said by ,lazari to be one of the few which ,tintoret signed with his name4 ,i am not surprised at his having done so in this case4 ,evidently the work has been a favourite with him1 and he has taken as much pains as it was ever necessary for his colossal strength to take with anything4 ,the subject is not one which admits of much singularity or energy in composition4 ,it was always a favourite one with ,veronese1 because it gave dramatic interest to figures in gay costumes and of cheerful countenances2 but one is surprised to find ,tintoret1 whose tone of mind was always grave1 and who did not like to make a picture out of brocades and diadems1 throwing his whole strength into the conception of a marriage feast2 but so it is1 and there are assuredly no female heads in any of his pictures in ,venice elaborated so far as those which here form the central light4 ,neither is it often that the works of this mighty master conform themselves to any of the rules acted upon by ordinary painters2 but in this instance the popular laws have been observed1 and an academy student would be delighted to see with what severity the principal light is arranged in a central mass1 which is divided and made more brilliant by a vigorous piece of shadow thrust into the midst of it1 and which dies away in lesser fragments and sparkling towards the extremities of the picture4 ,this mass of light is as interesting by its composition as by its intensity4 ,the cicerone who escorts the stranger round the sacristy in the course of five minutes and allows him some forty seconds for the contemplation of a picture which the study of six months would not entirely fathom1 directs his attention very carefully to the bell' effetto di prospettivo1 the whole merit of the picture being1 in the eyes of the intelligent public1 that there is a long table in it1 one end of which looks further off than the other2 but there is more in the bell' effetto di prospettivo than the observance of the common law of optics4 ,the table is set in a spacious chamber1 of which the windows at the end let in the light from the horizon1 and those in the side wall the intense blue of an ,eastern sky4 ,the spectator looks all along the table1 at the farther end of which are seated ,christ and the ,madonna1 the marriage guests on each side of it1--on one side men1 on the other women2 the men are set with their backs to the light1 which passing over their heads and glancing slightly on the table-cloth1 falls in full length along the line of young ,venetian women1 who thus fill the whole centre of the picture with one broad sunbeam1 made up of fair faces and golden hair4 ,close to the spectator a woman has risen in amazement1 and stretches across the table to show the wine in her cup to those opposite2 her dark red dress intercepts and enhances the mass of gathered light4 ,it is rather curious1 considering the subject of the picture1 that one cannot distinguish either the bride or the bride-groom2 but the fourth figure from the ,madonna in the line of women1 who wears a white head-dress of lace and rich chains of pearls in her hair1 may well be accepted for the former1 and ,i think that between her and the woman on the ,madonna's left hand the unity of the line of women is intercepted by a male figure3 be this as it may1 this fourth female face is the most beautiful1 as far as ,i recollect1 that occurs in the works of the painter1 with the exception only of the ,madonna in the ,flight into ,egypt4 ,it is an ideal which occurs indeed elsewhere in many of his works1 a face at once dark and delicate1 the ,italian cast of feature moulded with the softness and childishness of ,english beauty some half a century ago2 but ,i have never seen the ideal so completely worked out by the master4 ,the face may best be described as one of the purest and softest of ,stothard's conceptions1 executed with all the strength of ,tintoret4 ,the other women are all made inferior to this one1 but there are beautiful profiles and bendings of breasts and necks along the whole line4 ,the men are all subordinate1 though there are interesting portraits among them2 perhaps the only fault of the picture being that the faces are a little too conspicuous1 seen like balls of light among the crowd of minor figures which fill the background of the picture4 ,the tone of the whole is sober and majestic in the highest degree2 the dresses are all broad masses of colour1 and the only parts of the picture which lay claim to the expression of wealth or splendour are the head-dresses of the women4 ,in this respect the conception of the scene differs widely from that of ,veronese1 and approaches more nearly to the probable truth4 ,still the marriage is not an important one2 an immense crowd1 filling the background1 forming superbly rich mosaic of colour against the distant sky4 ,taken as a whole the picture is perhaps the most perfect example which human art has produced of the utmost possible force and sharpness of shadow united with richness of local colour4 ,in all the other works of ,tintoret1 and much more of other colourists1 either the light and shade or the local colour is predominant2 in the one case the picture has a tendency to look as if painted by candle-light1 in the other it becomes daringly conventional1 and approaches the conditions of glass-painting4 ,this picture unites colour as rich as ,titian's with light and shade as forcible as ,rembrandt's1 and far more decisive4 ,there are one or two other interesting pictures of the early ,venetian school in this sacristy1 and several important tombs in the adjoining cloister2 among which that of ,francesco ,dandolo1 transported here from the ,church of the ,frari1 deserves especial attention4 ,stones of ,venice 7,london1 #ahec74 ,,madame ,,de ,,pompadour 7,,de ,,la ,,tour7 ,,charles-,,augustin ,,sainte-,,beuve ,madame de ,pompadour was not exactly a grisette1 as her enemies affected to say and as ,voltaire has said in a malicious moment3 she was a bourgeoise1 a blossom of finance1 the most lovely woman in ,paris1 witty1 elegant1 adorned with a thousand gifts and a thousand talents1 but with a way of feeling that did not have the grandeur and coldness of an aristocratic ambition4 ,she loved the ,king for his own sake1 as the handsomest man in his realm1 as the one who had seemed the most amiable to her2 she loved him sincerely1 sentimentally1 if not with a profound passion4 ,on her arrival at court1 her ideal would have been to amuse him with a thousand entertainments borrowed from the arts1 or even from matters of the intellect1 to make him happy and constant in a circle of varied enchantments and pleasures4 ,a ,watteau landscape1 sports1 comedies1 pastorals in the shade1 a continual ,embarkation for ,cythera1 that would have been the round she would have preferred4 ,but once transported into the slippery enclosure of the court1 she could realize her ideal very imperfectly4 ,kind and obliging by nature1 she had to take up arms to defend herself against enmity and perfidy and to take the offensive to avoid being overthrown2 necessity led her into politics and induced her to make herself ,minister of ,state4 ,she loved the arts and intellectual things far above the comprehension of any of the ladies of quality4 ,on her arrival at her eminent and dishonourable post--much more dishonourable than she thought--she at first only thought of herself as destined to aid1 to call to her side1 and to encourage struggling merit and men of talent of all kinds4 ,this is her sole glory1 her best title1 and her best excuse4 ,she did her best to advance ,voltaire and to make him agreeable to ,louis ,,xv41 whom the petulant poet so strongly repelled by the vivacity and even the familiarity of his praises4 ,she thought she had found a genius in ,crbillon and honoured him accordingly4 ,she showed favour to ,gresset2 she protected ,marmontel2 she welcomed ,duclos2 she admired ,montesquieu and plainly showed it4 ,she would have liked to serve ,jean-,jacques ,rousseau4 ,when the ,king of ,prussia ostentatiously gave d',alembert a modest pension and ,louis ,,xv4 was scoffing in her presence at the amount 7#abjj livres71 in comparison with the term sublime genius1 for which it was given1 she advised him to forbid the philosopher to accept it and to double it himself2 which ,louis ,,xv4 did not dare to do2 his religious principles would not permit it on account of the ,encyclopdie4 ,it was not her fault that we cannot say the century of ,louis ,,xv41 as we say the century of ,louis ,,xiv4 ,illustration3 ,,portrait ,,of ,,madame ,,de ,,pompadour4 ,de la ,tour4 ,there are then in the career and power of ,madame de ,pompadour two distinct periods3 the first1 the most brilliant and most greatly favoured1 was that following the peace of ,aix-la-,chapelle 7#agdh73 in this1 she completely played her rle of a youthful favourite1 fond of peace1 the arts1 the pleasures of the mind1 and advising and protecting all things happily4 ,there was a second period1 greatly checkered1 but more frequently disastrous and fatal2 this was the whole period of the ,seven ,years' ,war1 the attempted assassination by ,damiens1 the defeat of ,rosbach1 and the insults of the victorious ,frederick4 ,these were harsh years which prematurely aged this weak and graceful woman1 who was drawn into a struggle beyond her strength4444 ,however1 my impression is that things might have been worse1 and that1 with the aid of ,m4 de ,choiseul1 by means of the ,family ,compact she again covered her own mistakes and the humiliation of the ,french monarchy with a certain amount of prestige4 ,it seems that the nation itself felt this and felt more especially that after this brilliant favourite there would be a greater fall2 for when she died at ,versailles1 ,april #ae1 #agfd1 the regret of the ,parisian populace1 which some years before would have stoned her1 was universal4444 ,the one who seemed to regret her the least was ,louis ,,xv42 it is related that seeing from a window the hearse on its way from ,versailles to ,paris1 the weather being dreadful1 he only said3 ,the ,marquise will not have very fine weather for her journey4 ,all the masters of the ,french school of her time painted a portrait of ,madame de ,pompadour3 we have one by ,boucher1 and another by ,drouais which ,grimm preferred to all others2 but the most admirable of all is certainly ,la ,tour's pastel owned by the ,louvre4 ,to this we go in order to see la marquise before we allow ourselves to judge of her1 or to form the least idea of her personality4 ,she is represented as seated in an arm-chair1 holding in one hand a book of music1 and with her left arm resting on a marble table on which are placed a globe and several volumes4 ,the largest one of these books1 which is next to the globe1 is ,volume ,,iv4 of the ,encyclopdie2 next to it in a row are the volumes of ,l',esprit des ,lois1 ,la ,henriade1 and ,pastor ,fido1 indicative of the tastes at once serious and sentimental of the queen of this spot4 ,upon the table also and at the base of the globe is seen a blue book upside down1 its cover is inscribed3 ,pierres graves2 this is her work4 ,underneath it and hanging down over the table is a print representing an engraver of precious stones at work with these words3 ,pompadour sculpsit4 ,on the floor1 by the foot of the table1 is a portfolio marked with her arms and containing engravings and drawings2 we have here a complete trophy4 ,in the background1 between the feet of the consol-table1 is seen a vase of ,japanese porcelain3 why not of ,svres8 ,behind her arm-chair and on the side of the room opposite the table is another arm-chair1 or an ottoman1 on which lies a guitar4 ,but it is the person herself who is in every respect marvellous in her extreme delicacy1 gracious dignity1 and exquisite beauty4 ,holding her music-book in her hand lightly and carelessly1 her attention is suddenly called away from it2 she seems to have heard a noise and turns her head4 ,is it indeed the ,king who has arrived and is about to enter8 ,she seems to be expecting him with certainty and to be listening with a smile4 ,her head1 thus turned aside1 reveals the outline of the neck in all its grace1 and her very short but deliciously-waved hair is arranged in rows of little curls1 the blonde tint of which may be divined beneath the slight covering of powder4 ,the head stands out against a light-blue background1 which in general dominates the whole picture4 ,everything satisfies and delights the eye2 it is a melody1 perhaps1 rather than a harmony4 ,a bluish light1 sifting downwards1 falls across every object4 ,there is nothing in this enchanted boudoir which does not seem to pay court to the goddess1--nothing1 not even ,l',esprit des ,lois and ,l',encyclopdie4 ,the flowered satin robe makes way along the undulations of the breast for several rows of those bows1 which were called1 ,i believe1 parfaits contentements1 and which are of a very pale lilac4 ,her own flesh-tints and complexion are of a white lilac1 delicately azured4 ,that breast1 those ribbons1 and that robe--all blend together harmoniously1 or rather lovingly4 ,beauty shines in all its brilliance and in full bloom4 ,the face is still young2 the temples have preserved their youth and freshness2 the lips are also still fresh and have not yet withered as they are said to have become from having been too frequently puckered or bitten in repressing anger and insults4 ,everything in the countenance and in the attitude expresses grace1 supreme taste1 and affability and amenity rather than sweetness1 a queenly air which she had to assume but which sits naturally upon her and is sustained without too much effort4 ,i might continue and describe many lovely details1 but ,i prefer to stop and send the curious to the model itself3 there they will find a thousand things that ,i scarcely dare to touch upon4 ,such in her best days was this ravishing1 ambitious1 frail1 but sincere woman1 who in her elevation remained good1 faithful 7,i love to believe7 in her sin1 obliging1 so far as she could be1 but vindictive when driven to it2 who was quite one of her own sex after all1 and1 finally1 whose intimate life her lady-in-waiting has been able to show us without being too heavy or crushing a witness against her4 ,in spite of everything1 she was exactly the mistress to suit this reign1 the only one who could have succeeded in turning it to account in the sense of opinion1 the only one who could lessen the crying discord between the least literary of kings and the most literary of epochs4 ,if the ,abb ,galiani1 in a curious page1 loudly preferring the age of ,louis ,,xv4 to that of ,louis ,,xiv41 has been able to say of this age of the human mind so fertile in results3 ,such another reign will not be met with anywhere for a long time1 ,mme4 de ,pompadour certainly contributed to this to some extent4 ,this graceful woman rejuvenated the court by bringing into it the vivacity of her thoroughly ,french tastes1 tastes that were ,parisian4 ,as mistress and friend of the ,prince1 as protectress of the arts1 her mind found itself entirely on a level with her rle and her rank3 as a politician1 she bent1 she did ill1 but perhaps not worse than any other favourite in her place would have done at that period when a real statesman was wanting among us4 ,when she found herself dying after a reign of nineteen years2 when at the age of forty-two years she had to leave these palaces1 these riches1 these marvels of art she had amassed1 this power so envied and disputed1 but which she kept entirely in her own hands to her last day1 she did not say with a sigh1 like ,mazarin1 ,so ,i must leave all this6 ,she faced death with a firm glance1 and as the cur of the ,madeleine1 who had come to visit her at ,versailles1 was about to depart1 she said3 ,wait a moment1 ,monsieur le ,cur1 we will go together4 ,madame de ,pompadour may be considered the last in date of the ,kings' mistresses who were worthy of the name3 after her it would be impossible to descend and enter with any decency into the history of the ,du ,barry4 ,the kings and emperors who have succeeded in ,france1 from that day to this1 have been either too virtuous1 or too despotic1 or too gouty1 or too repentant1 or too much the paterfamilias1 to allow themselves such useless luxuries3 at the utmost1 only a few vestiges have been observable4 ,the race of ,kings' mistresses1 therefore1 may be said to be greatly interrupted1 even if not ended1 and ,mme4 de ,pompadour stands before our eyes in history as the last as well as the most brilliant of all4#ai ,causeries de ,lundi 7,paris1 #ahea-eg71 ,vol4 ,,ii4 ,,footnotes3 #ai ,here is an exact statement of the civil register of the ,state relating to ,mme4 de ,pompadour3 ,jeanne-,antoinette ,poisson1 marquise de ,pompadour1 born in ,paris1 ,dec4 #bi1 #agba 7,saint-,eustache72--married ,march #i1 #agda1 to ,charles-,guillaume ,lenormant1 seigneur d'tioles 7,saint-,eustache72 died ,april #ae1 #agfd2 interred on the #agth at the ,capucines de la place ,vendme4 ,her parish in ,paris was la ,madeleine2 her htel1 in the ,faubourg ,saint-,honor1 now l'lyse4 ,m4 ,le ,roi1 librarian of ,versailles1 has published1 after an authentic manuscript the ,relev des dpenses de ,mme4 de ,pompadour depuis la premire anne de sa faveur jusqu' sa mort4 ,this statement1 which mentions the sums and their uses1 presents a complete picture of the marquise's varied tastes1 and does not try too much to dishonour her memory4 ,,the ,,hay ,,wain 7,,constable7 ,c4,l4 ,,burns ,a little strip of country on the borders of ,essex and ,suffolk1 not ten miles in length1 and but two or three in breadth1 presenting to the casual observer few features more striking than are to be seen in many other parts of ,england1 but hailed with delight by painters for its simple charm1 has exercised a wider influence upon modern landscape painting than all the noble scenery of ,switzerland or the glories of ,italy2 for here was nurtured that last and greatest master of that school of ,english landscape painting1 which made the ,eastern ,counties famous in the annals of art4 ,he was so essentially ,english1 it might be said local1 in his feeling1 that he never left his country1 and produced his greatest works within the narrow limits of his native valley2 in whom love of locality was indeed the very basis of his art4 ,illustration3 ,,the ,,hay ,,wain4 ,constable1 for it was he1 like ,rembrandt1 was the son of a miller1 and was born at a time when the winds and flowing waters were powers in the land1 bearing a golden harvest on their health-giving and invisible currents1 turning sails upon countless hill-tops1 and wheels in every river--before the supplanter1 steam1 was even dreamed of4 ,his earliest recollections were mingled with the busy clatter of wheels1 and the whirr of sails1 as they sped round before the wind1 was the music of his boyhood4 ,his father1 good man of the world as he was1 holding a high opinion of the solid comforts gained by following his own profitable calling1 placed his son1 at the age of seventeen1 in charge of a windmill1 hoping thereby to curb his rising enthusiasm for the more glorious but less substantial pursuit of art4 ,alas6 how little can we predict the effect of our actions4 ,this one1 framed to divert his purpose in life1 was the very means of leading him to study more closely the ever-varying beauties of the sky1 with its matchless combinations of form and colour1 and all the subtle differences of atmosphere1 which in after-life formed a distinctive feature in his work2 and1 for a landscape-painter1 perhaps no early training could have been better4 ,his daily occupation by bringing him continually face to face with ,nature1 and necessitating a constant observance of all her changing phenomena1 trained his heart and eye to discover her secrets1 hidden from the careless1 but revealed to all true lovers of her wisdom4 ,the effect upon a temperament so artistic as ,constable's was as permanent as it was quickly apparent4 ,in less than a year we find his father reluctantly converted to his son's views in the choice of a career1 and consenting to his sojourn in ,london1 to learn the principles and technicalities of his profession1 which he soon strove to forget and subsequently set at defiance4 ,two years of studio work was sufficient to convince him that his school was the open air2 and in his own country1 amid the scenes of his boyhood1 he could shake off the chains of fashion1 which bound the landscape-painter of that day1 and go straight to nature for his inspiration4 ,concerning this he writes3 ,for the last two years ,i have been running after pictures1 and seeing truth at second-hand4 ,i have not endeavoured to represent nature with the same elevation of mind with which ,i set out1 but have rather tried to make my performances look like the work of other men2 ,i shall return to ,bergholt1 where ,i shall get a pure and unaffected manner of representing the scenes which may employ me--there is room for a natural painter2 a prediction which was hardly fulfilled in his lifetime1 for1 with the majority of even intelligent lovers of art1 his works were rarely understood and never popular1 though the appreciative sympathy of an enlightened few kept him from despair4 ,but1 appreciated or not1 he had found his life's work1 and henceforth his mission was to depict the scenes around his old home1 and to express the love he felt so keenly for every stile and stump1 and every lane in dear ,bergholt4 ,painting1 he writes1 is with me but another word for feeling1 and ,i associate my careless boyhood with all that lies on the banks of the ,stour--those scenes made me a painter1 and ,i am grateful4 ,how lovingly he repaid this debt of gratitude to his native valley will be seen by the tender care he bestowed in depicting its beauties2 indeed1 the strongest impression produced after visiting ,constable's country and again turning to a study of his works1 is the marvellous sense of locality he has embodied in them4 ,you seem to breathe the very air of ,suffolk and hear again the sound of water escaping from mill-dams1 and see once more the willows1 the old rotten planks1 the slimy posts1 and brickwork1 he delighted in4 ,in spite of the fifty years which have elapsed since he laid aside his brush for ever1 with all the accidents of time and season1 the subjects he painted are still to be easily found1 and clearly distinguished by anyone at all acquainted with his works4 ,the only exception is in the original of the famous ,cornfield1 now in the ,national ,gallery4 ,here the enemy has been busy1 and by the aid of his children ,growth and ,decay1 has succeeded in transforming the subject out of all recognition1 tearing down the trees on the left1 enlarging the group on the right1 shutting out the view of ,stratford ,church1 and choking up the brook from which the boy is drinking4 ,nor has ,time been idle with this same boy1 who six years ago1 was carried to his last resting-place in ,bergholt ,churchyard1 aged sixty-five4444 ,it is not1 however1 in ,bergholt village that we must seek for the scenes which made ,constable a painter1 but down in the quiet hollow a mile and a half to the eastward on the banks of his much-loved ,stour1 and around the paternal mill of ,flatford1 not improved as is the one at ,dedham into hideousness1 but remaining much as it was in the artist's day4 ,both mills were the property of ,golding ,constable1 witnessed thereto in the latter1 the initials ,g4,c41 carved in irregular characters deep in the huge mill scales1 still legible beneath the dust of a century1 as enduring almost as the memory of his gifted son4 ,a low uneven structure is ,flatford ,mill1 with many gables and queer outbuildings2 standing on an island1 the millhouse backing the main stream and facing a pool formed by the mill-tail1 which1 flowing through the mill1 rejoins the main stream a hundred yards below4 ,to this spot came ,constable many a hundred times1 we may be sure1 fishing in the stream1 or sketching with his close ally1 ,john ,dunthorne1 the village plumber1 and a lover of nature2 their performances with the brush doubtless puzzling old ,willy ,lott--whose farmhouse occupies the opposite side of the pool2 but though his judgment might not have been so technically sound upon art matters as upon the merits of those hornless ,suffolk cattle1 said to have been unconsciously introduced by ,constable into pictures painted in far distant countries1 yet his criticisms would have been worth hearing by virtue of their originality4 ,willy cared but little for the outer world and its mode of thinking1 any curiosity he may have ever had concerning it being amply satisfied by the experiences of four nights1 separated by long intervals1 spent away from his ancestral roof in four-score years4 ,that this house of his possessed a peculiar fascination for ,constable is evident from its forming an important feature in two of his best known works1 the ,hay ,wain and the ,valley ,farm1 besides appearing in numerous sketches4 ,every foot of ground round the old mill seems to have imparted a yearning in him to paint it4 ,the lock in the main stream1 with its tide of life passing through1 busier then than in these days of railways2 the bridge above1 with the picturesque cottages still standing1 all were lingered over1 studied1 and painted with an affection inspired by the recollection of those golden hours of his boyhood4 ,here1 doubtless1 was the scene of those stolen interviews with his future wife1 following the ecclesiastical ban placed on his suit by the lady's grandfather1 ,dr4 ,rhudde1 the ,rector1 whose belief in the preordination of marriage was tempered in this case by a wise discretion on the subject of settlements4 ,to the young painter's inability to satisfy this scruple may be attributed the ,doctor's discouragement of any practical application of the theory4 ,the marriage duly took place despite the old gentleman1 who1 although not apparently reconciled during the remainder of his life1 pleasantly surprised the young couple by leaving his granddaughter four thousand pounds when he died4 ,the mill-tail is used as a thoroughfare1 up which the hay is carted1 from the meadows on the opposite bank of the river1 a shallow and stony bedded back-water meeting it at its junction with the main stream4 ,down this back-water in ,july the heavy cart-horses drag the sweet-scented haywains knee deep and axle deep in water1 leaving feathery wisps of hay hanging from the willows1 and clinging to the tall rushes upon either hand1 the waggoner bravely astride the leader1 while haymakers and children are seated on top of the load1 not a little nervous in mid-stream1 and clinging tightly when the horses are struggling up the deep ascent into the stack-yard4 ,a contrast1 indeed1 is the bustle of the hay-making with the splash of the teams and the merry voices of the children to the solitude which reigns supreme in this silent1 currentless backwater during the rest of the year4 ,winding between the long flat meadows away from the traffic of the river it becomes in early summer a veritable museum of aquatic plants3 lilies choke its passage1 and the ancient gates1 giving access to the adjoining fields1 lie lost in creamy meadow-sweet1 their sodden and decaying posts wreathed in sweet forget-me-nots1 while sword-like rushes rear their points till they part the grey-green willow leaves above4 ,the silence would become oppressive were it not for an indistinct murmur from the working world1 which forms a fitful background to the prevailing stillness2 the distant roar of a train as it rushes on its journey to the palpitating heart of ,london1 the faint sound of a mowing machine in the meadows1 or the crack of a whip up the tow-path as a barge moves up to the primitive lock1 add a touch of human interest without disturbing the sense of restfulness from the eager hurry of ,nineteenth ,century existence4444 ,constable's country may be said to extend along the ,stour valley1 anywhere within walking distance of his home1 ,neyland1 ,stoke1 ,langham1 ,stratford1 and in the opposite direction1 ,harwich1 all having furnished material for his fruitful pencil4 ,but1 despite much admirable work done in each of these places1 it was to the few acres of river and meadow round the old mill at ,flatford that he owed his first awakening to the wonders of nature around him4 ,to these1 his first and truest masters1 his memory was ever turning for inspiration2 and during the life-long battle he waged with all that was untrue1 he was certain of finding there encouragement to victory and solace in disappointment4 ,magazine of ,art 7#ahia74 ,,the ,,surrender ,,of ,,breda 7,,velasquez7 ,,th,,ophile ,,gautier ,the ,surrender of ,breda1 better known under the name of ,las ,lanzas1 mingles in the most exact proportion realism and grandeur4 ,truth pushed to the point of portraiture does not diminish in the slightest degree the dignity of the historical style4 ,a vast and spacious sky full of light and vapour1 richly laid in with pure ultramarine1 mingles its azure with the blue distances of an immense landscape where sheets of water gleam with silver4 ,here and there incendiary smoke ascends from the ground in fantastic wreaths and joins the clouds of the sky4 ,in the foreground on each side1 a numerous group is massed3 here the ,flemish troops1 there the ,spanish troops1 leaving for the interview between the vanquished and victorious generals an open space which ,velasquez has made a luminous opening with a glimpse of the distance where the glitter of the regiments and standards is indicated by a few masterly touches4 ,the ,marquis of ,spinola1 bareheaded with hat and staff of command in hand1 in his black armour damascened with gold1 welcomes with a chivalrous courtesy that is affable and almost affectionate1 as is customary between enemies who are generous and worthy of mutual esteem1 the ,governor of ,breda1 who is bowing and offering him the keys of the city in an attitude of noble humiliation4 ,flags quartered with white and blue1 their folds agitated by the wind1 break in the happiest manner the straight lines of the lances held upright by the ,spaniards4 ,the horse of the ,marquis1 represented almost foreshortened from the rear and with its head turned1 is a skilful invention to tone down military symmetry1 so unfavourable to painting4 ,it would not be easy to convey in words the chivalric pride and the ,spanish grandeur which distinguish the heads of the officers forming the ,general's staff4 ,they express the calm joy of triumph1 tranquil pride of race1 and familiarity with great events4 ,these personages would have no need to bring proofs for their admittance into the orders of ,santiago and ,calatrava4 ,their bearing would admit them1 so unmistakably are they hidalgos4 ,their long hair1 their turned-up moustaches1 their pointed beards1 their steel gorgets1 their corselets or their buff doublets render them in advance ancestral portraits to hang up1 with their arms blazoned on the corner of the canvas1 in the galleries of old castles4 ,no one has known so well as ,velasquez how to paint the gentleman with such superb familiarity1 and1 so to speak1 as equal to equal4 ,he is by no means a poor1 embarrassed artist who only sees his models while they are posing and has never lived with them4 ,he follows them in the privacy of the royal apartments1 on great hunting-parties1 and in ceremonies of pomp4 ,he knows their bearing1 their gestures1 their attitudes1 and their physiognomy2 he himself is one of the ,king's favourites 7privados del rey74 ,like themselves1 and even more than they1 he has les grandes et les petites entres4#bj ,the nobility of ,spain having ,velasquez for a portrait-painter could not say1 like the lion of the fable3 ,ah6 if the lions only knew how to paint4 ,illustration3 ,,the ,,surrender ,,of ,,breda4 ,velasquez4 ,velasquez takes his place naturally between ,titian and ,van ,dyck as a painter of portraits4 ,his colour is solidly and profoundly harmonious1 without any false luxury and with no need of glitter4 ,his magnificence is that of ancient hereditary fortunes4 ,it has tranquillity1 equality1 and intimacy4 ,we find no violent reds1 greens1 nor blues1 no upstart glitter1 no brilliant gew-gaws4 ,all is restrained and subdued1 but with a warm tone like that of old gold1 or with a grey tone like the dead sheen of family silver4 ,gaudy and loud things will do for upstarts1 but ,don ,diego ,velasquez de ,silva is too true a gentleman to make himself an object of remark in that manner1 and1 let us say1 too good a painter also4 ,although a realist1 he brings to his art a lofty grandeur1 a disdain of useless detail1 and an intentional sacrifice that plainly reveal the sovereign master4 ,these sacrifices were not always those that another painter would have made4 ,velasquez chose to put in evidence what1 it sometimes seems1 should have been left in shadow4 ,he extinguishes and he illuminates with apparent caprice1 but the effect always justifies him4 ,the correctness of his eye was such that while he only pretended to be copying1 he brought the soul to the surface and painted the inner and the outer man at the same time4 ,his portraits relate the secret ,mmoires of the ,spanish court better than all the chroniclers4 ,let him represent them in gala dress1 riding their genets1 in hunting-costume1 an arquebuse in their hand1 a greyhound at their feet1 and we recognize in these wan figures of kings1 queens1 and infantas1 with pale faces1 red lips1 and massive chins the degeneracy of ,charles ,v4 and the falling away of exhausted dynasties4 ,although a court-painter1 he has not flattered his royal models4 ,however1 despite the brainlessness of the type1 the quality of these high personages would never be doubted4 ,it is not that he did not know how to paint genius2 the portrait of the ,count-,duke of ,olivares1 so noble1 so imperious1 and so full of authority1 unanswerably proves that1 unable to lend any fire to these sad lords1 he gives them a cold majesty1 a wearied dignity1 a gesture and pose of etiquette1 and then envelops all with his magnificent colour2 that was full payment for the protection of his crowned friend4 ,m4 ,paul de ,saint-,victor has somewhere called ,victor ,hugo ,the ,spanish ,grandee of poetry2 may we not be permitted to call ,velasquez ,the ,spanish ,grandee of painting8 ,no qualification would suit him better4 ,as we have said1 ,velasquez was ,court ,chamberlain1 and it was he who was charged with the preparation of the lodgings of the ,king in the trip that ,philip ,,iv4 made to ,irun to deliver the ,infanta ,doa ,maria-,teresa to the ,king of ,france4 ,it was he who had decorated and ornamented the pavilion where the interview of the two kings took place in the le des ,faisans4 ,velasquez was distinguished among the crowd of courtiers by his personal dignity1 the elegance1 the richness1 and the good taste of his costumes on which he arranged with art the diamonds and jewels1--gifts of the sovereigns2 but on his return to ,madrid1 he fell ill with fatigue and died on the #gth of ,august1 #affj4 ,his widow1 ,doa ,juana ,pacheco1 only survived him seven days and was interred near him in the parish of ,san ,juan4 ,the funeral of ,velasquez was splendid2 great personages1 knights of the military orders1 the ,king's household1 and the artists were present sad and pensive1 as if they felt that with ,velasquez they were interring ,spanish art4 ,guide de l',amateur au ,muse du ,louvre 7,paris1 #ahhb74 ,,footnotes3 #bj ,private audiences of the ,king4 ,,the ,,immaculate ,,conception 7,,murillo7 ,,aim ,,giron ,after her #c1gjj battles with the ,moors and the conquest of ,granada1 ,spain had a splendid outburst of literary and artistic glory4 ,in painting1 the four schools of ,valencia1 ,toledo1 ,madrid1 and ,seville suddenly shone forth with that conception of the real and that care for sharp relief which they owed to the brilliancy of their sunshine1 while amid the fogs of the ,north the outline is more wavering and the vision less clear4 ,under the influence of this original realism1 their works instinctively reproduced that two-fold character which the land of ,spain1 smiling in her valleys and savage in her mountains1 shows in sharp contrast4 ,but the ,spaniards are1 in truth1 much more realistic in their execution than in their inspiration4 ,the school of ,seville1 founded by ,luis de ,vargas1 counted among its illustrious masters the greatest painter of that sunlit and passionate ,andalusia1 ,murillo 7,bartolom-,estban71 #afag-afhb1 ,spain's most popular painter1 the painter of the ,conceptions1 as she called him4 ,illustration3 ,,the ,,immaculate ,,conception4 ,murillo4 ,his uncle1 ,juan del ,castillo1 a mediocre artist but a good teacher1 initiated him into his dry1 stiff1 and hard manner1--that of the old ,florentine school4 ,in his studio young ,estban ,murillo had young ,pedro de ,moya as a fellow-student4 ,one day the former took a fancy to go to ,cadiz1 where1 miserable enough1 he painted on pieces of serge some ,madonnas for traffic in the ,west ,indies1 while the latter went to ,london to work in ,van ,dyck's studio4 ,on his return ,pedro de ,moya brought several studies of the ,flemish master1 and ,murillo1 suddenly revolutionized and suddenly illuminated1 no longer dreamed of anything but of going to ,flanders or ,italy1 passing--happily--through ,madrid4 ,in ,madrid1 the ,velasquez of the ,court of ,charles ,,ii4 stopped him on the way1 gave him admission to the royal collections1 where he copied ,titian1 ,veronese1 and ,rubens1 and then opened his purse to him1 and1 lastly1 revealed the secrets of his mighty art4 ,thus taught and thus inspired1 ,murillo returned to ,seville1 where he settled once for all1 immuring himself in his studio1 where--modest1 timid1 and gentle--he lived with that single love for his art which soon enriched him1 two years later adding to it the adoration of his wife1 a noble lady of ,pilas4 ,it was from this studio that almost all of his laborious1 numerous1 and superb works issued1 sometimes scarcely signed4 ,from the very beginning1 ,murillo possessed all the qualities of a great master1 and henceforth we have only to separate his own personality and originality4 ,murillo had three periods1 as he also had three styles according to the nature of the subjects he had to treat3 the first period1 under the influence of the ,florentine formulas of ,juan del ,castillo1 was somewhat that of happy and masterly imitations2 the second1 under the memories of ,van ,dyck1 brought back by ,pedro de ,moya and of the copies painted at ,madrid1 belongs to the ,flemish school4 ,but1 at thirty-five1 in full possession of his genius1 he reveals himself1 with his superb colouring1 his consummate ease1 his great science1 his rich and inexhaustible imagination1 his exquisite and tender sentiment1 and his harmony1 often produced with feminine delicacy and childish grace1 with his vigour1 his trivialities1 and his mysticism4 ,the genius of ,murillo1 in fact1 obeyed a double current1 which carried him forward1 on the one hand towards the sky1 and on the other towards the earth1 towards the ,catholic ideal or towards vulgar realities1 gentle ,madonnas alternately with knavish beggars4 ,very sincerely and observantly religious1 with the contemplative soul of the land of great men and great mysteries1 ,saint ,john of the ,cross and ,saint ,theresa1 this chaste artist1 who never painted a nude woman1 has the exalted sentiment of faith of the ,spanish artists1 a sentiment which is somewhat ennobled by their realism of nature4 ,why don't you finish that ,christ8 asked one of his friends4 ,i am waiting until he comes to speak to me1 replied ,murillo4 ,with these works he enriched the chapter-house of the ,seville ,cathedral1 the ,hospital de la ,caridad1 that of the ,hospital de los ,venerables1 the convents of the ,capuchins1 the ,augustines1 etc4 ,i have said that ,murillo had three styles1 almost three pencils1 not like the pencils of gold1 of silver1 and of iron that the ,venetians attributed to the unequal genius of ,tintoret1 but in sympathy with the subjects he had to treat4 ,the ,spaniards have distinguished and qualified these styles as follows3 ,frio1 calido y vaporoso1 cold1 warm1 and vaporous4 ,in the cold style he painted broadly1 boldly1 and frankly his beggars and his muchachos1 so true to life and in strong relief1 with a certain brutality almost approaching triviality4 ,a very well-known work of this kind is the ,pouilleux in the ,museum of the ,louvre1 and a masterpiece in the ,pinacothek of ,munich1 the ,grandmother and ,infant4 ,he sought these types in some old ,moorish dwelling1 on the deck of a ship from ,tunis or ,tripoli anchored in a ,spanish harbour1 or in among a band of wandering ,gitanos on the banks of the ,guadalquivir4 ,in the vaporous manner1 which he used in rendering the ecstasies of the saints1 he painted 7under indescribable transparencies of light and atmospheric shade which is really only extinguished light71 ,saint ,francis in ,ecstasy1 ,the ,angel ,kitchen 7,miracle of ,san ,diego7 running through several scales of tones in a marvellous chord and softening all the outlines dulcemente perdidos1 as ,can ,bermudez says4 ,in his warm style1 come his ,annunciations1 ,conceptions1 and all those gentle and graceful ,madonnas1 sweet and poetic young mothers rather than divine ,virgins whom ,jews might kiss and ,infidels adore1 as ,pope says1 and which remind us of ,correggio's effeminacy1 unknown to ,murillo1 and in which he plays with ease with harmonies1 contrasts1 and reflections of colour4 ,the ,immaculate ,conception1 in the ,national ,museum of the ,louvre1 is of this style4 ,certainly it is not more beautiful than the ,conception in ,madrid1 of such extraordinary brilliance1 and of such a virginal expression of innocence1 piety1 and melancholy2 and above all not more beautiful than that of ,seville--,the ,great ,conception1 or the ,pearl of ,conceptions1 making the ,virgin ,mother's face into a beautiful and intense face of an archangel4 ,that had its day of resounding triumph4 ,every one knows that ,marshal ,soult accepted this work in ,spain for the pardon of two monks condemned to be hanged as spies4 ,on the #bith of ,may1 #aheb1 this canvas was sold at auction4 ,around it the greatest nations were represented with their rival gold1 and loud applause accompanied each royal bid4 ,when1 for the sum of #fae1cjj francs1 it was knocked down--,to ,france1 gentlemen6 cried the ,count de ,nieuwerkerke--then broke forth the delirium of a battle won4 ,in a diaphanous atmosphere gilded with an invisible clearness as of ,paradise1 the winged heads and bodies of little angels are moving3 the former gracefully grouped1 the latter boldly and skilfully disposed4 ,the celestial infants have followed all the way to the earth the rays of celestial light in its elusive gradations of colour under its imperceptible glazing4 ,in the centre1 in the act of ascent1 the ,virgin rises in ecstasy4 ,one corner of a cloud1 the crescent moon1 and a masterly group of little angels1 naked and enraptured1 bear the ,immaculate aloft4 ,gracefully and statuesquely posed1 and broadly draped in a white robe with sober folds enriched by an ample scarf of light blue1 she modestly hides her feet under the drapery and chastely crosses her hands over the breast in which she feels the conception of the ,son of ,god operating4 ,her head under its dishevelled waves of black hair1 a little turned back and bending slightly to one side1 is raised to heaven with uplifted eyes and open mouth1 as if to receive in every sense the flow of the spirit4 ,the face1 in the exquisite sweetness of a surrender to piety1 reflects the bliss of ,faith1 of mystical voluptuousness1 and divine ecstasy4 ,the expression is religious1 but the ,virgin is human1 and full of life in the firmness of her lines and the warmth of her flesh-tints4 ,beneath the suppleness of the drawing and the soft touches we recognize in ,mary the ,immaculate1 the woman and even the ,andalusian4 ,the whole work is a most harmonious and well-balanced composition1 of the greatest opulence of colour1 solidly laid in1 and here and there lightly glazed over in the ,venetian manner2 a superb work this1 in which ,murillo has found the right point where his idealism and his materialism meet and mingle4 ,if ,i remember rightly1 we know one hundred and thirty canvases of ,murillo1 to any one of which our admiration hesitates to award the pre-eminence1--and if the crown of laurels which a ,pope laid upon the funeral couch of ,raphael is the consecration of the sovereignty of the painter of ,urbino for ,history1 the universally popular name of ,murillo has also sanctified the incontestable genius of the painter of ,seville4 ,jouin1 ,chefs-d'oeuvre3 ,peinture1 ,sculpture ,architecture 7,paris1 #ahie-ig74 ,,st4 ,,francis ,,before ,,the ,,soldan 7,,giotto7 ,,john ,,ruskin ,it is a characteristic--7as far as ,i know1 quite a universal one7--of the great masters1 that they never expect you to look at them2--seem always rather surprised if you want to2 and not overpleased4 ,tell them you are going to hang their picture at the upper end of the table at the next great ,city dinner1 and that ,mr4 ,so-and-,so will make a speech about it2--you produce no impression upon them whatever1 or an unfavourable one4 ,the chances are ten to one they send you the most rubbishy thing they can find in their lumber-room4 ,but send for one of them in a hurry1 and tell him the rats have gnawed a nasty hole behind the parlour door1 and you want it plastered and painted over2--and he does you a masterpiece which the world will peep behind your door to look at for ever4 ,i have no time to tell you why this is so2 nor do ,i know why1 altogether1 but so it is4 ,giotto1 then1 is sent for1 to paint this high chapel3 ,i am not sure if he chose his own subjects from the life of ,st4 ,francis3 ,i think so1--but of course can't reason on the guess securely4 ,at all events1 he would have much of his own way in the matter4 ,illustration3 ,,st4 ,,francis ,,before ,,the ,,soldan4 ,giotto4 ,now you must observe that painting a ,gothic chapel rightly is just the same thing as painting a ,greek vase rightly4 ,the chapel is merely the vase turned upside-down1 and outside-in4 ,the principles of decoration are exactly the same4 ,your decoration is to be proportioned to the size of your vase2 to be together delightful when you look at the cup1 or chapel1 as a whole2 to be various and entertaining when you turn the cup round2 7you turn yourself round in the chapel27 and to bend its heads and necks of figures about1 as best it can1 over the hollows1 and ins and outs1 so that anyhow1 whether too long or too short--possible or impossible--they may be living1 and full of grace4 ,you will also please take it on my word to-day--in another morning walk you shall have proof of it--that ,giotto was a pure ,etruscan-,greek of the ,thirteenth ,century3 converted indeed to worship ,st4 ,francis instead of ,heracles2 but as far as vase-painting goes1 precisely the ,etruscan he was before4 ,this is nothing else than a large1 beautiful1 coloured ,etruscan vase you have got1 inverted over your heads like a diving-bell4 ,the roof has the symbols of the three virtues of labour--,poverty1 ,chastity1 ,obedience4 ,a4 ,highest on the left side1 looking to the window4 ,the life of ,st4 ,francis begins in his renunciation of the world4 ,b4 ,highest on the right side4 ,his new life is approved and ordained by the authority of the church4 ,c4 ,central on the left side4 ,he preaches to his own disciples4 ,d4 ,central on the right side4 ,he preaches to the heathen4 ,e4 ,lowest on the left side4 ,his burial4 ,f4 ,lowest on the right side4 ,his power after death4 ,besides these six subjects1 there are1 on the sides of the window1 the four great ,franciscan saints1 ,st4 ,louis of ,france1 ,st4 ,louis of ,toulouse1 ,st4 ,clare1 and ,st4 ,elizabeth of ,hungary4 ,the ,soldan1 with an ordinary opera-glass1 you may see clearly enough2 and ,i think it will be first well to notice some technical points in it4 ,if the little virgin on the stairs of the temple reminded you of one composition of ,titian's1 this ,soldan should1 ,i think1 remind you of all that is greatest in ,titian2 so forcibly1 indeed1 that for my own part1 if ,i had been told that a careful early fresco by ,titian had been recovered in ,santa ,croce1 ,i could have believed both report and my own eyes1 more quickly than ,i have been able to admit that this is indeed by ,giotto4 ,it is so great that--had its principles been understood--there was in reality nothing more to be taught of art in ,italy2 nothing to be invented afterwards except ,dutch effects of light4 ,that there is no effect of light here arrived at1 ,i beg you at once to observe as a most important lesson4 ,the subject is ,st4 ,francis challenging the ,soldan's ,magi1--fire-worshippers--to pass with him through the fire1 which is blazing red at his feet4 ,it is so hot that the two ,magi on the other side of the throne shield their faces4 ,but it is represented simply as a red mass of writhing forms of flame2 and casts no firelight whatever4 ,there is no ruling colour on anybody's nose2 there are no black shadows under anybody's chin2 there are no ,rembrandtesque gradations of gloom1 or glitterings of sword-hilt and armour4 ,is this ignorance1 think you1 in ,giotto1 and pure artlessness8 ,he was now a man in middle life1 having passed all his days in painting1 and professedly1 and almost contentiously1 painting things as he saw them4 ,do you suppose he never saw fire cast firelight8--and he the friend of ,dante6 who of all poets is the most subtle in his sense of every kind of effect of light--though he has been thought by the public to know that of fire only4 ,again and again1 his ghosts wonder that there is no shadow cast by ,dante's body2 and is the poet's friend because a painter1 likely1 therefore1 not to have known that mortal substance casts shadow1 and terrestrial flame1 light8 ,nay1 the passage in the ,purgatorio where the shadows from the morning sunshine make the flames redder1 reaches the accuracy of ,newtonian science1 and does ,giotto1 think you1 all the while1 see nothing of the sort8 ,the fact was1 he saw light so intensely that he never for an instant thought of painting it4 ,he knew that to paint the sun was as impossible as to stop it2 and he was no trickster1 trying to find out ways of seeming to do what he did not4 ,i can paint a rose1--yes2 and ,i will4 ,i can't paint a red-hot coal2 and ,i won't try to1 nor seem to4 ,this was just as natural and certain a process of thinking with him1 as the honesty of it1 and true science1 were impossible to the false painters of the ,sixteenth ,century4 ,nevertheless1 what his art can honestly do to make you feel as much as he wants you to feel1 about this fire1 he will do2 and that studiously4 ,that the fire be luminous or not1 is no matter just now4 ,but that the fire is hot1 he would have you to know4 ,now1 will you notice what colours he has used in the whole picture4 ,first1 the blue background1 necessary to unite it with the other three subjects1 is reduced to the smallest possible space4 ,st4 ,francis must be in grey1 for that is his dress2 also the attendant of one of the ,magi is in grey2 but so warm1 that1 if you saw it by itself1 you would call it brown4 ,the shadow behind the throne1 which ,giotto knows he can paint1 and therefore does1 is grey also4 ,the rest of the picture#ba in at least six-sevenths of its area--is either crimson1 gold1 orange1 purple1 or white1 all as warm as ,giotto could paint them2 and set off by minute spaces only of intense black1--the ,soldan's fillet at the shoulders1 his eyes1 beard1 and the points necessary in the golden pattern behind4 ,and the whole picture is one glow4 ,a single glance round at the other subjects will convince you of the special character in this2 but you will recognize also that the four upper subjects in which ,st4 ,francis's life and zeal are shown1 are all in comparatively warm colours1 while the two lower ones--of the death1 and the visions after it--have been kept as definitely sad and cold4 ,necessarily1 you might think1 being full of monks' dresses4 ,not so4 ,was there any need for ,giotto to have put the priest at the foot of the dead body1 with the black banner stooped over it in the shape of a grave8 ,might he not1 had he chosen1 in either fresco1 have made the celestial visions brighter8 ,might not ,st4 ,francis have appeared in the centre of a celestial glory to the dreaming ,pope1 or his soul been seen of the poor monk1 rising through more radiant clouds8 ,look1 however1 how radiant1 in the small space allowed out of the blue1 they are in reality4 ,you cannot anywhere see a lovelier piece of ,giottesque colour1 though here you have to mourn over the smallness of the piece1 and its isolation4 ,for the face of ,st4 ,francis himself is repainted1 and all the blue sky2 but the clouds and four sustaining angels are hardly retouched at all1 and their iridescent and exquisitely graceful wings are left with really very tender and delicate care by the restorer of the sky4 ,and no one but ,giotto or ,turner could have painted them4 ,for in all his use of opalescent and warm colour1 ,giotto is exactly like ,turner1 as1 in his swift expressional power1 he is like ,gainsborough4 ,all the other ,italian religious painters work out their expression with toil2 he only can give it with a touch4 ,all the other great ,italian colourists see only the beauty of colour1 but ,giotto also its brightness4 ,and none of the others1 except ,tintoret1 understood to the full its symbolic power2 but with those--,giotto and ,tintoret--there is always1 not only a colour harmony1 but a colour secret4 ,it is not merely to make the picture glow1 but to remind you that ,st4 ,francis preaches to a fire-worshipping king1 that ,giotto covers the wall with purple and scarlet2--and above1 in the dispute at ,assisi1 the angry father is dressed in red1 varying like passion2 and the robe with which his protector embraces ,st4 ,francis1 blue1 symbolizing the peace of ,heaven4 ,of course certain conventional colours were traditionally employed by all painters2 but only ,giotto and ,tintoret invent a symbolism of their own for every picture4 ,thus in ,tintoret's picture of the fall of the manna1 the figure of ,god the ,father is entirely robed in white1 contrary to all received custom2 in that of ,moses striking the rock1 it is surrounded by a rainbow4 ,of ,giotto's symbolism in colour at ,assisi ,i have given account elsewhere4#bb ,you are not to think1 therefore1 the difference between the colour of the upper and lower frescos unintentional4 ,the life of ,st4 ,francis was always full of joy and triumph4 ,his death1 in great suffering1 weariness1 and extreme humility4 ,the tradition of him reverses that of ,elijah3 living1 he is seen in the chariot of fire2 dying1 he submits to more than the common sorrow of death4 ,there is1 however1 much more than a difference in colour between the upper and lower frescos4 ,there is a difference in manner which ,i cannot account for2 and above all1 a very singular difference in skill1--indicating1 it seems to me1 that the two lower were done long before the others1 and afterwards united and harmonized with them4 ,it is of no interest to the general reader to pursue this question2 but one point he can notice quickly1 that the lower frescos depend much on a mere black or brown outline of the features1 while the faces above are evenly and completely painted in the most accomplished ,venetian manner3--and another1 respecting the management of the draperies1 contains much interest for us4 ,giotto never succeeded1 to the very end of his days1 in representing a figure lying down1 and at ease4 ,it is one of the most curious points in all his character4 ,just the thing which he could study from nature without the smallest hindrance1 is the thing he never can paint2 while subtleties of form and gesture1 which depend absolutely on their momentariness1 and actions in which no model can stay for an instant he seizes with infallible accuracy4 ,not only has the sleeping ,pope1 in the right hand lower fresco1 his head laid uncomfortably on his pillow1 but all the clothes on him are in awkward angles1 even ,giotto's instinct for lines of drapery failing him altogether when he has to lay it on a reposing figure4 ,but look at the folds of the ,soldan's robe over his knees4 ,none could be more beautiful or right2 and it is to me wholly inconceivable that the two paintings should be within even twenty years of each other in date--the skill in the upper one is so supremely greater4 ,we shall find1 however1 more than mere truth in its casts of drapery1 if we examine them4 ,they are so simply right1 in the figure of the ,soldan1 that we do not think of them2--we see him only1 not his dress4 ,but we see dress first1 in the figures of the discomfited ,magi4 ,very fully draped personages these1 indeed1--with trains1 it appears four yards long1 and bearers of them4 ,the one nearest the ,soldan has done his devoir as bravely as he could2 would fain go up to the fire1 but cannot2 is forced to shield his face1 though he has not turned back4 ,giotto gives him full sweeping breadth of fold2 what dignity he can2--a man faithful to his profession1 at all events4 ,the next one has no such courage4 ,collapsed altogether1 he has nothing more to say for himself or his creed4 ,giotto hangs the cloak upon him in ,ghirlandajo's fashion1 as from a peg1 but with ludicrous narrowness of fold4 ,literally1 he is a shut-up ,magus--closed like a fan4 ,he turns his head away1 hopelessly4 ,and the last ,magus shows nothing but his back1 disappearing through the door4 ,opposed to them1 in a modern work1 you would have had a ,st4 ,francis standing as high as he could in his sandals1 contemptuous1 denunciatory2 magnificently showing the ,magi the door4 ,no such thing1 says ,giotto4 ,a somewhat mean man2 disappointing even in presence--even in feature2 ,i do not understand his gesture1 pointing to his forehead--perhaps meaning1 my life1 or my head1 upon the truth of this4 ,the attendant monk behind him is terror-struck2 but will follow his master4 ,the dark ,moorish servants of the ,magi show no emotion--will arrange their masters' trains as usual1 and decorously sustain their retreat4 ,lastly1 for the ,soldan himself4 ,in a modern work1 you would assuredly have had him staring at ,st4 ,francis with his eyebrows up1 or frowning thunderously at the ,magi1 with them bent as far down as they would go4 ,neither of these aspects does he bear according to ,giotto4 ,a perfect gentleman and king1 he looks on his ,magi with quiet eyes of decision2 he is much the noblest person in the room--though an infidel1 the true hero of the scene1 far more so than ,st4 ,francis4 ,it is evidently the ,soldan whom ,giotto wants you to think of mainly1 in this picture of ,christian missionary work4 ,he does not altogether take the view of the ,heathen which you would get in an ,exeter ,hall meeting4 ,does not expatiate on their ignorance1 their blackness1 or their nakedness4 ,does not at all think of the ,florentine ,islington and ,pentonville1 as inhabited by persons in every respect superior to the ,kings of the ,east2 nor does he imagine every other religion but his own to be log-worship4 ,probably the people who really worship logs--whether in ,persia or ,pentonville--will be left to worship logs to their hearts' content1 thinks ,giotto4 ,but to those who worship ,god1 and who have obeyed the laws of heaven written in their hearts1 and numbered the stars of it visible to them1--to these1 a nearer star may rise2 and a higher ,god be revealed4 ,you are to note1 therefore1 that ,giotto's ,soldan is the type of all noblest religion and law1 in countries where the name of ,christ has not been preached4 ,there was no doubt what king or people should be chosen3 the country of the three ,magi had already been indicated by the miracle of ,bethlehem2 and the religion and morality of ,zoroaster were the purest1 and in spirit the oldest1 in the heathen world4 ,therefore1 when ,dante in the nineteenth and twentieth books of the ,paradise1 gives his final interpretation of the law of human and divine justice in relation to the gospel of ,christ--the lower and enslaved body of the heathen being represented by ,st4 ,philip's convert 7,christians like these the ,ethiop shall condemn7--the noblest state of heathenism is at once chosen1 as by ,giotto3 ,what may the ,persians say unto your kings8 ,compare also ,milton1-- ,at the ,soldan's chair1 ,defied the best of ,paynim chivalry4 ,mornings in ,florence 7,sunnyside1 ,orpington1 ,kent1 #ahge74 ,,footnotes3 #ba ,the floor has been repainted2 but though its grey is now heavy and cold1 it cannot kill the splendour of the rest4 #bb ,fors ,clavigera for ,september1 #ahgd4 ,,lilith 7,,rossetti7 ,,algernon ,,charles ,,swinburne ,of ,adam's first wife1 ,lilith1 it is told 7,the witch he loved before the gift of ,eve71 ,that1 ere the snake's her sweet tongue could deceive1 ,and her enchanted hair was the first gold4 ,and still she sits1 young while the earth is old1 ,and1 subtly by herself contemplative1 ,draws men to watch the bright net she can weave1 ,till heart and body and life are in its hold4 ,the rose and poppy are her flowers2 for where ,is he not found1 ,o ,lilith1 whom shed scent ,and soft-shed kisses and soft-shed sleep shall snare8 ,lo6 as that youth's eyes burned at thine1 so went ,thy spell through him1 and left his straight neck bent ,and round his heart one strangling golden hair4 ,dante ,gabriel ,rossetti4 ,it is well-known that the painter of whom ,i now propose to speak has never suffered exclusion or acceptance at the hand of any academy4 ,to such acceptance or such rejection all other men of any note have been and may be liable4 ,it is not less well known that his work must always hold its place as second in significance and value to no work done by any painter of his time4 ,among the many great works of ,mr4 ,d4,g4 ,rossetti1 ,i know of none greater than his two latest4 ,these are types of sensual beauty and spiritual1 the siren and the sibyl4 ,the one is a woman of the type of ,adam's first wife2 she is a living ,lilith with ample splendour of redundant hair2 ,she excels ,all women in the magic of her locks2 ,and when she winds them round a young man's neck ,she will not ever set him free again4 ,illustration3 ,,lilith4 ,rossetti4 ,clothed in soft white garments1 she draws out through a comb the heavy mass of hair like thick spun gold to fullest length2 her head leans back half sleepily1 superb and satiate with its own beauty2 the eyes are languid1 without love in them or hate2 the sweet luxurious mouth has the patience of pleasure fulfilled and complete1 the warm repose of passion sure of its delight4 ,outside1 as seen in the glimmering mirror1 there is full summer2 the deep and glowing leaves have drunk in the whole strength of the sun4 ,the sleepy splendour of the picture is a fit raiment for the idea incarnate of faultless fleshly beauty and peril of pleasure unavoidable4 ,for this serene and sublime sorceress there is no life but of the body2 with spirit 7if spirit there be7 she can dispense4 ,were it worth her while for any word to divide those terrible tender lips1 she too might say with the hero of the most perfect and exquisite book of modern times--,mademoiselle de ,maupin--,je trouve la terre aussi belle que le ciel1 et je pense que la correction de la forme est la vertu4 ,of evil desire or evil impulse she has nothing2 and nothing of good4 ,she is indifferent1 equable1 magnetic2 she charms and draws down the souls of men by pure force of absorption1 in no wise wilful or malignant2 outside herself she cannot live1 she cannot even see3 and because of this she attracts and subdues all men at once in body and in spirit4 ,beyond the mirror she cares not to look1 and could not4 ,ma mia suora ,rahel mai non si smaga1 ,dal suo miraglio1 e siede tutto 'l giorno4 ,so1 rapt in no spiritual contemplation1 she will sit to all time1 passive and perfect3 the outer light of a sweet spring day flooding and filling the massive gold of her hair4 ,by the reflection in a deep mirror of fervent foliage from without1 the chief chord of stronger colour is touched in this picture2 next in brilliance and force of relief is the heap of curling and tumbling hair on which the sunshine strikes2 the face and head of the siren are withdrawn from the full stroke of the light4 ,essays and ,studies 7,london1 #ahge74 ,,adoration ,,of ,,the ,,magi 7,d,,rer7 ,,moriz ,,thausing ,italy1 that beautiful enchantress1 whose irresistible charms have caused many of ,germany's greatest men to forget their native land1 and array themselves beneath her colours1 did not fail to exercise over ,drer1 in the course of the year and more that he spent beyond the ,alps1 that subtle influence which elevates the understanding and expands the mind4 ,he thought1 as did ,goethe after him1 with a sort of shudder1 of his return to cloudy skies1 and of the less easy nature of the life which awaited him at home4 ,but1 though he enjoyed himself very much at ,venice1 and gave in willingly in many external things to the prevailing taste there1 the essential nature of his art remained untouched by foreign influences1 and he returned to ,nuremberg unitalianized1 and true to his original principles4 ,the fame which his works enjoyed in ,italy only encouraged him to continue in the path he had already chosen4 ,perhaps the exuberance of life displayed in ,venetian painting inspired him1 even under the altered circumstances of his home life1 with the determination to devote all his energies to large easel pictures4 ,to the ,adoration of the ,magi in #aejd1 and the ,feast of the ,rosary in #aejf1 succeeded the ,adam and ,eve in #aejg1 the ,martyrdom of the ,ten ,thousand ,saints in #aejh1 the ,assumption of the ,virgin in #aeji1 and the ,all ,saints picture or ,adoration of the ,trinity of #aeaa4 ,drer was at the height of his power when he created these masterpieces1 small1 indeed1 in number1 but remarkable for their conception1 composition1 and entire execution by his own hand4 ,to complete a large picture to his satisfaction1 ,drer required the same time as ,schiller did for a tragedy1 viz41 a whole year4444 ,it was in the year #aejd that ,drer finished the first great picture1 which1 from its excellent state of preservation1 must have been entirely executed with the greatest care by his own hand1 even to the most minute detail4 ,this picture is the ,adoration of the ,magi1 now in the ,tribune of the ,uffizi at ,florence4 ,mary sits on the left1 looking like the happiest of ,german mothers1 with the enchantingly nave ,infant on her knees2 the three ,wise ,men from the ,east1 in magnificent dresses glittering with gold1 approach1 deeply moved1 and with various emotions depicted on their countenances1 while the whole creation around seems to share their joyous greeting1 even to the flowers and herbs1 and to the great stag-beetle and two white butterflies1 which are introduced after the manner of ,wolgemut4 ,the sunny green on copse and mountain throws up the group better than the conventional nimbus could have done4 ,the fair-haired ,virgin1 draped entirely in blue with a white veil1 recalls vividly the same figure in the ,paumgrtner altarpiece4 ,arial and linear perspective are still imperfect1 but the technical treatment of the figures is as finished as in ,drer's best pictures of the later period4 ,the outlines are sharp1 the colours very liquid1 laid on without doubt in tempera1 and covered with oil glazes2 the whole tone exceedingly fresh1 clear1 and brilliant4 ,if it was ,barbari's fine work which incited ,drer to this delicate and careful method of execution1 he has certainly far surpassed the ,venetian1 not only in form and ideas1 but also in the solidity of his technique4 ,this technique is undoubtedly of ,northern origin1 as is also the harmony of colour1 which ,drer here realizes1 and does not soon again abandon4 ,it must not be forgotten1 however1 that the difference between this technique and that practised by ,giovanni ,bellini is one of degree and not of principle2 judging at least by the unfinished painting of ,giovanni's in the ,uffizi1 in which the design is sketched either with the pencil or brush1 and the colours then laid on in tempera1 and afterwards repeatedly covered with oil glazes4 ,drer appears to have owed the opportunity of producing this his first masterpiece in painting to a commission from the ,elector ,frederick of ,saxony4 ,christian ,,ii4 presented it to the ,emperor ,rudolph ,,ii4 in #afjc1 and in the last century it was sent from the imperial gallery1 in exchange for the ,presentation in the ,temple1 by ,fra ,bartolomeo1 to ,florence1 where it now shines as a gem of ,german art amongst the renowned pictures in the ,tribune of the ,uffizi4 ,illustration3 ,,adoration ,,of ,,the ,,magi4 ,drer4 ,the ,life and ,works of ,albert ,drer1 translated from the ,german and edited by ,fred4 ,a4 ,eaton 7,london1 #ahhb74 ,,marriage ,a-,,la-,,mode 7,,hogarth7 ,,austin ,,dobson ,nevertheless1 if the main circumstances of the painter's career should still remain unaltered1 there must always be a side of his work which will continue to need interpretation4 ,in addition to painting the faults and follies of his time1 he was pre-eminently the pictorial chronicler of its fashions and its furniture4 ,the follies endure2 but the fashions pass away4 ,in our day--a day which has witnessed the demolition of ,northumberland ,house1 the disappearance of ,temple ,bar1 and the removal of we know not what other time-honoured and venerated landmarks--much in ,hogarth's plates must seem as obscure as the cartouches on ,cleopatra's ,needle4 ,much more is speedily becoming so2 and without some guidance the student will scarcely venture into that dark and doubtful rookery of tortuous streets and unnumbered houses--the ,london of the ,eighteenth ,century4 ,illustration3 ,,marriage ,a-,,la-,,mode4 ,hogarth4 ,were it not beyond the reasonable compass of a methodical memoir1 it would be a pleasant task to loiter for a while in that vanished ,london of ,hogarth1 of ,fielding1 of ,garrick2--that ,london of ,rocque's famous map of #agdf1 when cits had their country-boxes and gazebos at ,islington and ,hackney1 and fine gentlemen their villas at ,marybone and ,chelsey2 when duels were fought in the fields behind the ,british ,museum1 and there was a windmill at the bottom of ,rathbone ,place4 ,we should find the ,thames swarming with noisy watermen1 and the streets with thick-calved ,irish chairmen2 we should see the old dusky oil-lamps lighted feebly with the oil that dribbled on the ,rake when he went to ,court2 and the great creaking sign-boards that obscured the sky1 and occasionally toppled on the heads of his ,majesty's lieges beneath4 ,we should note the sluggish kennels and the ill-paved streets2 and rejoice in the additional facilities afforded for foot-passengers at the new ,buildings near ,hanover ,square4 ,we might watch ,king ,george ,,ii4 yawning in his ,chapel ,royal of ,st4 ,james's1 or follow ,queen ,caroline of ,anspach in her walk on ,constitution ,hill4 ,or we might turn into the ,mall1 which is filled on summer evenings with a ,beau-,monde of cinnamon-coloured coats and pink ngligs4 ,but the tour of ,covent ,garden 7with its column and dial in the centre7 would take at least a chapter1 and the pilgrimage of ,leicester ,fields another4 ,we should certainly assist at the ,lord ,mayor's ,show2 and we might1 like better folks before us1 be hopelessly engulfed in that westward-faring crowd1 which1 after due warning from the belfry of ,st4 ,sepulchre's1 swept down the old ,tyburn ,road on ,execution ,day to see the last of ,laurence ,shirley1 ,earl ,ferrers1 or the highwayman ,james ,m',lean4 ,it is well1 perhaps1 that our limits are definitely restricted4 ,moreover1 much that we could do imperfectly with the pen1 ,hogarth has done imperishably with the graver4 ,essentially metropolitan in his tastes1 there is little notable in the ,london of his day of which he has not left us some pictorial idea4 ,he has painted the ,green ,park1 the ,mall1 and ,rosamond's ,pond4 ,he has shown us ,covent ,garden and ,st4 ,james's ,street2 ,cheapside and ,charing ,cross2 ,tottenham-,court ,road and ,hog-,lane1 ,st4 ,giles4 ,he has shown us ,bridewell1 ,bedlam1 and the ,fleet ,prison4 ,through a window in one print we see the houses on old ,london ,bridge2 in another it is ,temple ,bar1 surmounted by the blackened and ghastly relics of ,jacobite traitors4 ,he takes us to a cock-fight in ,bird ,cage ,walk1 to a dissection in ,surgeons' ,hall4 ,he gives us reception-rooms in ,arlington ,street1 counting-houses in ,st4 ,mary ,axe1 sky-parlours in ,porridge ,island1 and night-cellars in ,blood-,bowl ,alley4 ,he reproduces the decorations of the ,rose ,tavern or of the ,turk's ,head ,bagnio as scrupulously as the monsters at ,dr4 ,misaubin's museum in ,st4 ,martin's ,lane1 or the cobweb over the poor-box in ,mary-le-bone ,old ,church4 ,the pictures on the walls1 the ,chinese nondescripts on the shelves1 the tables and chairs1 the pipes and punch-bowls1 nay1 the very tobacco and snuff1 have all their distinctive physiognomy and prototypes4 ,he gives us1 unromanced and unidealized1 the form and pressure1 the absolute details and accessories1 the actual mise-en-scne1 of the time in which he lived4#bc ,but he has done much more than this4 ,he has peopled his canvas with its dramatis person1--with vivid portraits of the more strongly-marked actors in that cynical and sensual1 brave and boastful1 corrupt and patriotic age4 ,not1 be it understood1 with its ,wolfes and ,johnsons1--he was a humourist and a satirist1 and goodness was no game for his pencil1--rather with its ,lovats and ,chartres1 its ,sarah ,malcolms and its ,shebbeares4 ,he was a moralist after the manner of eighteenth-century morality1 not savage like ,swift1 not ironical like ,fielding1 not tender-hearted at times like ,johnson and ,goldsmith2 but unrelenting1 uncompromising1 uncompassionate4 ,he drew vice and its consequences in a thoroughly literal and business-like way1 neither sparing nor extenuating its details1 wholly insensible to its seductions1 incapable of flattering it even for a moment1 preoccupied simply with catching its precise contortion of pleasure or of pain4 ,in all his delineations1 as in that famous design of ,prud'hon's1 we see ,justice and ,vengeance following hard upon the criminal4444 ,a hint of the new series had already been given in the ,battle of the ,pictures1 where the second scene1 still inoffensively reposing upon the easel1 is wantonly assaulted by a copy of the ,aldobrandini ,marriage4 ,in ,april following the set of engravings was issued1 the subscription ticket being the etching of heads known as ,characters and ,caricaturas4 ,plates ,i4 and ,,vi4 were engraved by ,scotin1 ,plates ,,ii4 and ,,iii4 by ,baron1 and ,plates ,,iv4 and ,v4 by ,ravenet4 ,exactly two years earlier1 ,hogarth had heralded them by the following notification in the ,london ,daily ,post1 and ,general ,advertiser of ,april #bnd1 #agdc3 ,mr4 ,,hogarth intends to publish by ,subscription1 ,,six ,,prints from ,copper-,plates1 engrav'd by the best ,masters in ,paris1 after his own ,paintings2 representing a ,variety of ,modern ,occurrences in ,high-,life1 and called ,,marriage ,a-,,la-,,mode4 ,particular ,care will be taken1 that there may not be the least ,objection to the ,decency or ,elegancy of the whole ,work1 and that none of the ,characters represented shall be personal4 ,then follow the terms of subscription4 ,the last quoted lines are probably a bark at some forgotten detraction1 and if not actually ironical1 doubtless about as sincere as ,fielding's promise1 in the ,prologue to his first comedy1 not to offend the ladies4 ,those who had found inelegancy and indecency in the previous productions of the painter1 would still discover the same defects in the masterpiece he now submitted to the public4 ,and although it may be said that the characters represented are not personal in a satirical sense1 his precautions1 as he himself tells us1 did not prevent a likeness being found for each head1 for a general character will always bear some resemblance to a particular one4 ,but what1 no doubt1 interested his critical contemporaries even more than these preliminary protestations1 was the painter's promise to represent1 in his new work1 a variety of modern occurrences in high-life4 ,here1 it may be admitted1 was a proposition which certainly savoured of temerity4 ,what could one whose pencil had scarcely travelled beyond the limits of ,st4 ,giles's1 know of the inner secrets of ,st4 ,james's8 ,a ,hervey or a ,beauclerk1 or even a ,fielding1 might have sufficed2 but a ,hogarth of ,leicester ,fields1 whose only pretence to distinction 7as ,high ,life conceives it7 was that he had run away with ,thornhill's handsome daughter1--what special title had he to depict that charmed region of cards and folly1 ringed with its long-resounding knockers1 and flambeau-carrying footmen6 ,this was1 however1 to reckon without genius1 which over-leaps loftier barriers than these4 ,it is true that the ,english ,novel of ,manners1 which has since stimulated so many artists1 had only just made its appearance2 and ,pamela and ,joseph ,andrews but falteringly foreshadowed ,clarissa and ,tom ,jones4 ,yet there is nothing in the story of ,marriage ,a-la-,mode which was beyond the powers of a spectator ab extra1 always provided he were fairly acquainted with the ,modelys and ,wildairs of the stage1 and the satires of ,johnson and ,pope4 ,the plot1 like that of all masterpieces1 is extremely simple4 ,an impoverished nobleman who marries his son to a rich citizen's daughter2 a husband who1 pursuing his own equivocal pleasures1 resigns his wife to the temptations of opportunity2 a foregone sequel and a tragic issue3--this material is of the oldest1 and could make but slender claim to originality4 ,submitted to ,colman or ,garrick as the scenario of a play for ,yates and ,mrs4 ,woffington1 it would probably have been rejected as pitifully threadbare4 ,yet combined and developed under the brush of ,hogarth1 set in an atmosphere that makes it as vivid as nature itself1 decorated with surprising fidelity1 and enlivened by all the resources of the keenest humour1 it passes out of the line of mere transcripts of life1 and1 retaining the merits of the specific and particular1 becomes a representative and typical work1 as articulate to-day1 as direct and unhesitating in its teaching1 as it was when it was first offered to the world4 ,how well-preserved1 even now1 these wonderful pictures are6 ,it would almost seem as if ,time1 unreasoning in his anger1 had determined to ignore in every way the audacious artist who treated him with such persistent indignity4 ,look at them in the ,national ,gallery4 ,look1 too1 at the cracks and fissures in the ,wilkies1 the soiled rainbows of ,turner1--the bituminous riding-habit of ,lady ,douro in ,sir ,edwin's ,story of ,waterloo4 ,but these paintings of ,william ,hogarth are well-nigh as fresh to-day as when1 new from the easel1 they found their fortunate purchaser in ,mr4 ,lane of ,hillingdon4 ,they are not worked like a ,denner1 it is true1 and the artist is often less solicitous about his method than about the result of it2 yet they are soundly1 straight-forwardly1 and skilfully executed4 ,lady ,bingley's red hair1 ,carestini's nostril1 are shown in the simplest and directest manner4 ,everywhere the desired effect is exactly produced1 and without effort4 ,take1 as an illustration1 the inkstand in the first scene1 with its bell and sand-caster4 ,in these days it would be a patient trompe-l'oeil1 probably better done than the figures using it4 ,here it is merely indicated1 not elaborated2 it holds its exact place as a piece of furniture1 and nothing more4 ,and at this point it may be observed that if in the ensuing descriptions we should speak of colour1 the reader will remember we are describing1 not the performances of ,messrs4 ,ravenet and the rest1 but ,hogarth's original pictures at ,trafalgar ,square4 ,it is the more necessary to bear this in mind1 because1 besides being reversed1 the paintings frequently differ in detail from the engravings4 ,the first of the series represents the signing of the marriage contract4 ,the scene1 as the artist is careful to signify by the ostentatious coronets on the furniture and accessories 7they are to be discerned even on the crutches71 is laid in the house of an earl1 who1 with his gouty foot swathed in flannels1 seems with a superb--if somewhat stiff-jointed--dignity to be addressing certain pompous observations respecting himself and his pedigree 7dating from ,william the ,conqueror7 to a sober-looking personage opposite1 who1 horn-spectacles on nose1 is peering at the endorsement of the ,marriage ,settlemt of the ,rt ,honble4 ,lord ,vincent ,squanderfield4#bd ,this second figure1 which is that of a ,london merchant1 with its turned-in toes1 the point of the sword-sheath between the legs1 and the awkward constraint of its attitude1 forms an admirable contrast to the other4 ,a massive gold chain denotes the wearer to be an alderman4 ,between the two is a third person1 perhaps the merchant's confidential clerk or cashier1 who holds out a ,mortgage to the ,earl4 ,gold and notes lie upon the table1 where are also an inkstand1 sealing-wax1 and a lighted candle in which a thief is conspicuous4 ,at the back of this trio is the betrothed couple--the earl's son and the alderman's daughter4 ,it is1 in fact1 an alliance of sacs et parchemins1 in which the young people are involved rather than interested4 ,the lady1 who looks young and pretty in her bridal-dress1 wears a mingled expression of mauvaise honte and distaste for her position1 and trifles with the ring1 which she has strung upon her handkerchief1 while a brisk and well-built young lawyer1 who trims a pen1 bends towards her with a whispered compliment4 ,meantime the ,viscount--a frail1 effeminate-looking figure1 holding an open snuff-box1 from which he affectedly lifts a pinch--turns from his fiance with a smirk of complacent foppery towards a pier-glass at his side4 ,his wide-cuffed coat is light blue1 his vest is loaded with embroidery4 ,he wears an enormous solitaire1 and has high red heels to his shoes4 ,before him1 in happy parody of the ill-matched pair1 are two dogs in coupling-links3--the bitch sits up1 alert and curious1 her companion is lying down4 ,the only other figure is that of an old lawyer1 who1 with a plan in his hand1 and a gesture of contempt or wonder1 looks through an open window at an ill-designed and partly-erected building1 in front of which several idle servants are lounging or sitting4 ,like ,pope's ,visto1 the ,earl has a taste1 and his taste1 interrupted for the moment by lack of funds1 is the ruinous one of bricks and mortar4 ,the pictures on the wall exemplify and satirize the fashion of the time4 ,the largest is a portrait in the ,french style of one of the earl's ancestors1 who traverses the canvas triumphantly4 ,a cannon explodes below him1 a comet is seen above2 and in his right hand1 notwithstanding his cuirass and voluminous ,queen-,anne peruke1 he brandishes the thunderbolt of ,jupiter4 ,judith and ,holofernes1 ,st4 ,sebastian1 ,the ,murder of ,abel1 ,david and ,goliath1 ,the ,martyrdom of ,st4 ,laurence1 are some of the rest1 all of which1 it is perhaps needless to note1 belong to those dismal dark subjects1 neither entertaining nor ornamental1 against which we have already heard the painter inveigh4 ,upon the ceiling1 with a nice sense of decorative fitness1 is ,pharaoh in the ,red ,sea4 ,from a sconce at the side1 a ,gorgon surveys the proceedings with astonishment4 ,hogarth has used a similar idea in the ,strolling ,actresses1 where the same mask seems horrified at the airy freedom of the lightly-clad lady who there enacts the part of ,diana4 ,in the picture of the ,contract1 the young people and ,counsellor ,silvertongue1 as he has been christened by the artist1 are placed in close proximity4 ,these are the real actors in the drama4 ,building immemor sepulcri1 the old earl had but few years to live4 ,henceforth he is seen no more2 and the alderman reappears only at the end of the story4444 ,we have only dealt briefly with these concluding pictures1 the decorations and accessories of which are to the full as minute and effective as those of the one that precede them4 ,the furniture of the bagnio1 with its portrait of ,moll ,flanders humorously continued by the sturdy legs of a ,jewish soldier in the tapestry ,judgment of ,solomon behind1 the half-burned candle flaring in the draught of the open door and window1 the reflection of the lantern on the ceiling and the shadow of the tongs on the floor1 the horror-stricken look on the mask of the lady and the satanic grin on that of her paramour1 all deserve notice4 ,so do the gross ,dutch pictures in the alderman's house1 the sordid pewter plates and the sumptuous silver goblet1 the stained table-cloth1 the egg in rice1 and the pig's head which the half-starved and ravenous dog is stealing4 ,there is no defect of invention1 no superfluity of detail1 no purposeless stroke in this owre true tale4 ,from first to last it progresses steadily to its catastrophe by a forward march of skilfully linked and fully developed incidents4 ,it is like a novel of ,fielding on canvas2 and it seems inconceivable that1 with this magnificent work en vidence1 the critics of that age should have been contented to re-echo the opinion of ,walpole that as a painter ,hogarth had but slender merit1 and to cackle the foot-rule criticisms of the ,rev4 ,william ,gilpin as to his ignorance of composition4 ,but so it was4 ,not until that exhibition of his works at the ,british ,institution in #ahad1 was it thoroughly understood how excellent and individual both as a designer and a colourist was this native artist1 whom ,picture-dealers1 ,picture-cleaners1 ,picture-frame-makers1 and other ,connoisseurs--to use his own graphically ironical words--had been allowed to rank below the third-rate copyists of third-rate foreigners4 ,beyond the remark that the jaded morning countenance of the ,viscount in ,scene ,,ii4 lectures on the vanity of pleasure as audibly as anything in ,ecclesiastics1 ,lamb's incomparable essay in ,the ,reflector makes no material reference to ,marriage ,a-la-,mode4 ,his comments1 besides1 are confined to the engravings4 ,but ,hazlitt1 who saw the pictures in the above-mentioned exhibition in #ahad1 devotes much of his criticism to the tragedy of the ,squanderfields1 chiefly1 it would seem1 because ,lamb had left the subject untouched4 ,hazlitt's own studies as an artist1 his keen insight and his quick enthusiasm1 made him a memorable critic of ,hogarth1 whose general characteristics he defines with admirable exactitude4 ,much quotation has made his description of the young ,lord and ,counsellor ,silvertongue sufficiently familiar4 ,but he is equally good in his vignette of the younger woman in the episode at the ,quack ,doctor's1 a creation which he rightly regards as one of ,hogarth's most successful efforts4 ,nothing1 he says1 can be more striking than the contrast between the extreme softness of her person and the hardened indifference of her character4 ,the vacant stillness1 the docility to vice1 the premature suppression of youthful sensibility1 the doll-like mechanism of the whole figure1 which seems to have no other feeling but a sickly sense of pain--show the deepest insight into human nature1 and into the effects of those refinements in depravity1 by which it has been good-naturedly asserted that 'vice loses half its evil in losing all its grossness4' ,in the death of the ,countess1 again1 he speaks thus of two of the subordinate characters3--,we would particularly refer to the captious1 petulant self-sufficiency of the apothecary1 whose face and figure are constructed on exact physiognomical principles1 and to the fine example of passive obedience1 and non-resistance in the servant1 whom he is taking to task1 and whose coat of green and yellow livery is as long and melancholy as his face4 ,the disconsolate look1 the haggard eyes1 the open mouth1 the comb sticking in the hair1 the broken gapped teeth1 which1 as it were1 hitch in an answer--everything about him denotes the utmost perplexity and dismay4 ,some other of ,hazlitt's comments are more fanciful1 as1 for example1 when he compares ,lady ,squanderfield's curl papers 7in the ,toilet ,scene7 to a wreath of half-blown flowers1 and those of the macaroni-amateur to a chevaux-de-frise of horns1 which adorn and fortify the lack-lustre expression and mild resignation of the face beneath4 ,with his condemnation of the attitude of the husband1 in the scene at the ,turk's ,head ,bagnio1 as one in which it would be impossible for him to stand1 or even fall1 it is difficult to coincide2 and it is an illustration of the contradictions of criticism that this very figure should have been selected for especial praise1 with particular reference to the charges made against the painter of defective drawing1 by another critic who was not only as keenly sympathetic as ,hazlitt1 but was probably a better anatomist--the author of ,rab and his ,friends4 ,to ,hazlitt's general estimate of ,hogarth we shall not now refer4 ,but his comparison of ,hogarth and ,wilkie may fairly be summarized in this place1 because it contains so much excellent discrimination of the former4 ,wilkie1 ,hazlitt contends1 is a simple realist2 ,hogarth is a comic painter4 ,while one is a serious1 prosaic1 literal narrator of facts1 the other is a moral satirist1 exposing vice and folly in their most ludicrous points of view1 and1 with a profound insight into the weak sides of character and manners in all their tendencies1 combinations1 and contrasts4444 ,he is carried away by a passion for the ridiculous4 ,his object is not so much 'to hold the mirror up to nature' as 'to show vice her own feature1 scorn her own image4' ,he is so far from contenting himself with still-life that he is always on the verge of caricature1 though without ever falling into it4 ,he does not represent folly or vice in its incipient1 or dormant1 or grub state2 but full-grown1 with wings1 pampered into all sorts of affectation1 airy1 ostentatious1 and extravagant4444 ,there is a perpetual collision of eccentricities--a tilt and tournament of absurdities2 the prejudices and caprices of mankind are let loose1 and set together by the ears1 as in a bear-garden4 ,hogarth paints nothing but comedy or tragi-comedy4 ,wilkie paints neither one nor the other4 ,hogarth never looks at any object but to find out a moral or a ludicrous effect4 ,wilkie never looks at any object but to see that it is there4444 ,in looking at ,hogarth1 you are ready to burst your sides with laughing at the unaccountable jumble of odd things which are brought together2 you look at ,wilkie's pictures with a mingled feeling of curiosity and admiration at the accuracy of the representation4 ,the distinction thus drawn is1 in the main1 a just one4 ,yet1 at certain points1 ,wilkie comes nearer to ,hogarth than any other ,english artist2 and that elegant amateur1 ,sir ,george ,howland ,beaumont1 reasoned rightly when he judged the painter of ,the ,village ,politicians to be1 in his day1 the only fit recipient of ,hogarth's mahl-stick4 ,to return to ,marriage ,a-la-,mode4 ,notwithstanding that the pictures were1 as stated at the beginning of this chapter1 announced for sale in #agde1 it was five years before they actually found a purchaser1 although1 in the interval1 they seem to have been freely exhibited both at the ,golden ,head and at ,cock's ,auction ,rooms4 ,in #agej1 however1 they were at last disposed of by another of those unfortunate schemes devised by ,hogarth for disposing of his works4 ,the bidding1 said the announcement in the ,daily ,advertiser1 was to be by written notes2 no dealers in pictures were to be admitted as bidders2 and the highest bidder at noon on the #fth ,june was to be the purchaser4 ,whether this mode of sale1 coupled with the characteristic manner of its notification1 disobliged the ,town or not1 it is impossible to say2 but it is certain that when ,mr4 ,lane1 of ,hillingdon1 near ,uxbridge1 who was to become the lucky proprietor of the pictures1 arrived on the date appointed at the ,golden ,head1 he found he was the only bidder who had put in an appearance4#be ,in fact1 there was no one in the room but the painter himself and his friend ,dr4 ,parsons1 ,secretary to the ,royal ,society4 ,the highest written offer having been declared to be #abj1 ,mr4 ,lane1 shortly before twelve1 said he would make the pounds guineas1 but subsequently much to his credit1 offered the artist a delay of some hours to find a better purchaser4 ,an hour passed1 and as1 up to that time1 no one had appeared1 ,hogarth1 much mortified1 surrendered the pictures to ,mr4 ,lane1 who thus became the owner of the artist's best work1 and the finest pictorial satire of the century1 for the modest sum of #abf1 which included ,carlo ,marratti frames that had cost ,hogarth four guineas a-piece4 ,mr4 ,lane1 who readily promised not to sell or clean the pictures without the knowledge of the painter1 left them at his death to his nephew1 ,colonel ,j4,f4 ,cawthorne1 by whom they were put up to auction in ,march1 #agib1 but were bought in again for #iaj guineas4 ,in #agig they were sold at ,christie's for #a1cha to ,mr4 ,john ,julius ,angerstein1 with the rest of whose collection they were acquired in #ahbd for the ,national ,gallery4 ,william ,hogarth 7,new ,york and ,london1 #ahia74 ,,footnotes3 #bc ,it was reserved to ,hogarth to write a scene of furniture4 ,the rake's levee-room1 the nobleman's dining-room1 the apartments of the husband and wife in ,marriage ,a-la-,mode1 the alderman's parlour1 the poet's bed-chamber1 and many others1 are the history of the manners of the age4 ,so says ,horace ,walpole 7,anecdotes1 etc41 #agga1 p4 #gd71 and in this1 at least1 he was an unimpeachable authority4 #bd ,the name is added in the print4 #be ,not the sole bidder1 as ,allan ,cunningham and others have inferred4 ,if this were so1 in making the pounds guineas1 ,mr4 ,lane would be bidding against himself1 a thing which occasionally occurs at auctions1 but is not recommended4 ,we have failed to find any other account of this transaction than that supplied to ,nichols for his second edition of #aghb1 pp4 #bbe-g1 by ,mr4 ,lane himself1 which is summarized above4 ,cunningham seems to have derived his information from the same source2 but he strangely transforms it4 ,we can but surmise that he followed ,ireland's transcript1 in which the highest bid is given as #aaj1 instead of #abj--;a rather unfortunate mistake1 for it appears to have misled a good many people4 ,,the ,,madonna ,,of ,,the ,,rocks 7,,leonardo ,,da ,,vinci7 ,,th,,ophile ,,gautier ,the engraving has popularized the ,vierge aux ,rochers1#bf that composition that exhales the strange and mysterious grace of the master4 ,in a strange spot1 a kind of grotto bristling with stalactites and sharply pointed rocks1 the holy ,virgin presents the little ,saint ,john to the ,infant ,jesus1 who blesses him with uplifted finger4 ,an angel with a proud and charming face1--a celestial hermaphrodite having something of the young maiden and the youth but superior to either in his ideal beauty1--accompanies and supports the little ,jesus like a page of the great household who watches over the child of the king with mingled respect and protection4 ,hair of a thousand crisp curls frames that face so aristocratic and distinguished4 ,certainly this angel occupies a very high rank in the hierarchy of the sky2 he should1 at least1 possess a throne1 a dominion1 or a principality4 ,the ,infant ,jesus draws himself up in a pose that shows great knowledge of foreshortening1 and is a marvel of roundness and fine modelling4 ,the ,virgin is of that charming ,lombard type in which under chaste innocence appears that malicious playfulness which da ,vinci excels in rendering4 ,the colour of this majestic picture has blackened1 particularly in the shadows1 but it has lost nothing of its harmony1 and perhaps it is more ideally poetic than if it had kept its original freshness and the natural tones of life4 ,doubts have been raised regarding this picture4 ,some critics have wished to see here merely a composition by ,leonardo executed by a strange hand1 or even simply the copy of another canvas painted for the chapel of the ,conception of the church of the ,franciscans in ,milan4 ,but none other than ,leonardo could have drawn such firm and pure contours or carried this model through those learned grades that give to the body the roundness of sculpture with all the softness of skin1 or rendered his favourite types so superbly and delicately4444 ,illustration3 ,,the ,,madonna ,,of ,,the ,,rocks4 ,l4 da ,vinci4 ,the ,madonna of the ,rocks1 the engraving of which is so well known1 belongs to and may be considered the type of ,leonardo's second manner4 ,the modelling is pursued with a care not found in those painters who are not familiar with the engraving chisel4 ,the roundness of the bodies obtained by gradation of tints1 the exactness of the shadows and the parsimonious reserve in the light in this unparalleled picture betray the habits of a sculptor4 ,we know that ,leonardo was one1 and he often said3 ,it is only in modelling that the painter can find the science of shadow4 ,for a long time earthen figures which he made use of in his work were preserved4 ,the appearance of the ,madonna of the ,rocks is singular1 mysterious1 and charming4 ,a kind of basaltic grotto shelters the divine group placed on the bank of a spring which shows the stones of its bed through its limpid waters4 ,through the arched grotto we see a rocky landscape dotted with slender trees and traversed by a stream1 on the banks of which is a village2 the colour of all this is as indefinable as those chimerical countries that we pass through in dreams and is marvellously appropriate to set off the figures4 ,what an adorable type is the ,madonna6 ,it is quite peculiar to ,leonardo1 and does not in the least recall the virgins of ,perugino nor those of ,raphael3 the upper part of the head is spherical1 the forehead well developed2 the oval of the cheeks sweeps down to a delicately curved chin2 the eyes with lowered lids are circled with shadow2 the nose1 although fine1 is not in a straight line with the forehead1 like those of the ,greek statues2 the nostrils seem to quiver as if palpitating with respiration4 ,the mouth1 rather large1 has that vague1 enigmatical and delicious smile which da ,vinci gives to all the faces of his women2 faint malice mingles there with the expression of purity and kindness4 ,the hair1 long1 fine1 and silky1 falls in waving locks upon cheeks bathed in shadows and half-tints1 framing them with incomparable grace4 ,it is ,lombard beauty idealized with an admirable execution whose only fault is perhaps too absolute a perfection4 ,and what hands6 especially the one stretched out with the fingers foreshortened4 ,m4 ,ingres alone has succeeded in repeating this tour de force in his figure of ,la ,musique couronnant ,cherubini4 ,the arrangement of the draperies is of that exquisite and precious taste that characterizes da ,vinci4 ,an agrafe in the form of a medallion fastens on the breast the ends of a mantle lifted up by the arms which thus produce folds full of nobility and elegance4 ,the angel who is pointing out the ,infant ,jesus to the little ,saint ,john has the sweetest1 the finest1 and the proudest head that brush ever fixed upon canvas4 ,he belongs1 if we may so express it1 to the highest celestial aristocracy4 ,one might say he was a page of high birth accustomed to place his foot on the steps of a throne4 ,hair in waves and ringlets abounds upon his head1 so pure and delicate in design that it surpasses feminine beauty and gives the idea of a type superior to all that man can dream of2 his eyes are not turned towards the group that he is pointing at1 for he has no need to look in order to see1 and even if he did not have wings on his shoulders1 we should not be deceived regarding his nature4 ,a divine indifference is depicted upon his charming face1 and almost a smile lurks in the corners of his lips4 ,he accomplishes the commission given him by the ,eternal with an impassible serenity4 ,assuredly no virgin1 no woman1 ever had a more beautiful face2 but the most manly spirit and the most dominating intelligence shine in those dark eyes1 fixed vaguely upon the spectator who seeks to penetrate their mystery4 ,we know how difficult it is to paint children4 ,the scarcely settled forms of the earliest age lend themselves awkwardly to art expression4 ,in the little ,saint ,john of the ,madonna of the ,rocks1 ,leonardo da ,vinci has solved this problem with his accustomed superiority4 ,the drawn-up position of the child1 who presents several portions of his body foreshortened1 is full of grace1 a grace sought-for and rare1 like everything else that the sublime artist ever did1 but natural1 nevertheless4 ,it is impossible to find anything more finely modelled than this head with its chubby dimpled cheeks1 than those plump little round arms1 than the body crossed with rolls of fat1 and those legs half folded in the sod4 ,the shadow advances towards the light by gradations of infinite delicacy and gives an extraordinary relief to the figure4 ,half enveloped in transparent gauze1 the divine ,bambino kneels1 joining his hands as if he were already conscious of his mission and understood the gesture which the little ,saint ,john repeats after the angel4 ,with regard to the colour1 if in becoming smoked it has lost its proper value1 it has retained a harmony preferred by delicate minds for the freshness and brilliancy of its shadows4 ,the tones have deadened in such perfect sympathy that the result is a kind of neutral1 abstract1 ideal1 and mysterious tint which clothes the forms like a celestial veil and sets them apart from terrestrial realities4 ,guide de l',amateur au ,muse du ,louvre 7,paris1 #ahhb74 ,,footnotes3 #bf ,the ,national ,gallery and the ,louvre each claims that it possesses the original of this celebrated picture and that its rival is a replica4 ,the former was purchased in ,milan1 in #agif by ,gavin ,hamilton1 who sold it to ,lord ,suffolk1 in whose collection at ,charlton ,park it was long an ornament4 ,it was purchased from him in #ahhj for #i1jjj4 ,the ,louvre picture is first mentioned as belonging to ,francis ,i4 ,designs for it are in ,turin and ,windsor1 and in these the outstretched hand of the angel appears4 ,this does not occur in the ,london ,madonna of the ,rocks1 which differs in several details2 for example1 there are halos above the heads of the figures and ,john the ,baptist carries a cross4--,e4,s4 ,,beatrice ,,cenci 7,,guido ,,reni7 ,,percy ,,bysshe ,,shelley ,on my arrival at ,rome ,i found that the story of the ,cenci was a subject not to be mentioned in ,italian society without awakening a deep and breathless interest3 and that the feelings of the company never failed to incline to a romantic pity for the wrongs1 and a passionate exculpation of the horrible deed to which they urged her who has been mingled two centuries with the common dust4 ,all ranks of people knew the outlines of this history1 and participated in the overwhelming interest which it seems to have the magic of exciting in the human heart4 ,i had a copy of ,guido's picture of ,beatrice1 which is preserved in the ,colonna ,palace1 and my servant instantly recognized it as the portrait of ,la ,cenci4444 ,the portrait of ,beatrice at the ,colonna ,palace is most admirable as a work of art3 it was taken by ,guido during her confinement in prison4 ,but it is most interesting as a just representation of one of the loveliest specimens of the workmanship of ,nature4 ,there is a fixed and pale composure upon the features2 she seems sad and stricken-down in spirit1 yet the despair thus expressed is lightened by the patience of gentleness4 ,her head is bound with folds of white drapery1 from which the yellow strings of her golden hair escape1 and fall about her neck4 ,the moulding of her face is exquisitely delicate2 the eyebrows are distinct and arched2 the lips have that permanent meaning of imagination and sensibility which suffering has not repressed1 and which it seems as if death scarcely could extinguish4 ,her forehead is large and clear2 her eyes1 which we are told were remarkable for their vivacity1 are swollen with weeping1 and lustreless1 but beautifully tender and serene4 ,in the whole mien there is a simplicity and dignity which1 united with her exquisite loveliness and deep sorrow1 are inexpressibly pathetic4 ,beatrice ,cenci appears to have been one of those rare persons in whom energy and gentleness dwell together without destroying one another3 her nature was simple and profound4 ,the crimes and miseries in which she was an actor and a sufferer are as the mask and mantle in which circumstances clothed her for her impersonation on the scene of the world4 ,the ,cenci ,palace is of great extent2 and1 though in part modernized1 there yet remains a vast and gloomy pile of feudal architecture in the same state as during the dreadful scenes which are the subject of this tragedy4 ,the palace is situated in an obscure corner of ,rome1 near the quarter of the ,jews2 and from the upper windows you see the immense ruins of ,mount ,palatine1 half hidden under their profuse overgrowth of trees4 ,there is a court in one part of the palace 7perhaps that in which ,cenci built the chapel to ,st4 ,thomas7 supported by granite columns1 and adorned with antique friezes of fine workmanship1 and built up1 according to the ancient ,italian fashion1 with balcony over balcony of open work4 ,one of the gateways of the palace1 formed of immense stones1 and leading through a passage dark and lofty1 and opening into gloomy subterranean chambers1 struck me particularly4444 ,illustration3 ,,portrait ,,of ,,beatrice ,,cenci4 ,guido ,reni4 ,the most wicked life which the ,roman nobleman1 ,francesco ,cenci1 led in this world not only occasioned his own ruin and death1 but also that of many others and brought down the destruction of his house4 ,concerning his religion1 it is sufficient to state that he never frequented any church2 and1 although he caused a small chapel1 dedicated to the ,apostle ,st4 ,thomas1 to be built in the court of his palace1 his intention in so doing was to bury there all his children1 whom he cruelly hated4 ,he cursed his sons and often also struck and ill-treated his daughters4 ,the eldest of these1 being unable any longer to support the cruelty of her father1 exposed her miserable condition to the ,pope and supplicated him either to marry her according to his choice1 or shut her up in a monastery1 that by any means she might be liberated from the cruel oppression of her parent4 ,her prayer was heard1 and the ,pope1 in pity to her unhappiness1 bestowed her in marriage to ,signore ,carlo ,gabrielli1 one of the first gentlemen of the city of ,gubbio1 and obliged ,francesco to give her a fitting dowry of some thousand crowns4 ,francesco1 fearing that his youngest daughter would1 when she grew up1 follow the example of her sister1 bethought himself how to hinder this design1 and for that purpose shut her up alone in an apartment of the palace1 where he himself brought her food1 so that no one might approach her2 and imprisoned her in this manner for several months1 often inflicting on her blows with a stick4 ,in the meantime ensued the death of his two sons1 ,rocco and ,cristoforo--one being assassinated by a surgeon1 and the other by ,paolo ,corso1 while he was attending mass4 ,the inhuman father showed every sign of joy on hearing this news2 saying that nothing would exceed his pleasure if all his children died1 and that1 when the grave should receive the last1 he would1 as a demonstration of joy1 make a bonfire of all that he possessed4 ,and on the present occasion1 as a further sign of his hatred1 he refused to pay the slightest sum towards the funeral expenses of his murdered sons4444 ,beatrice1 finding it impossible to continue to live in so miserable a manner1 followed the example of her sister2 she sent a well-written supplication to the ,pope1 imploring him to exercise his authority in withdrawing her from the violence and cruelty of her father4 ,but this petition1 which might1 if listened to1 have saved the unfortunate girl from an early death1 produced not the least effect4 ,francesco1 having discovered this attempt on the part of his daughter1 became more enraged1 and redoubled his tyranny2 confining with vigour not only ,beatrice1 but also his wife4 ,at length1 these unhappy women1 finding themselves without hope of relief1 driven to desperation1 resolved to plan his death4444 ,beatrice communicated the design to her eldest brother1 ,giacomo1 without whose concurrence it was impossible that they should succeed4 ,this latter was easily drawn into consent1 since he was utterly disgusted with his father1 who ill-treated him1 and refused to allow him a sufficient support for his wife and children4444 ,giacomo1 with the understanding of his sister and mother-in-law1 held various consultations and finally resolved to commit the murder of ,francesco to two of his vassals1 who had become his inveterate enemies2 one called ,marzio1 and the other ,olimpio3 the latter1 by means of ,francesco1 had been deprived of his post as castellan of the ,rock of ,petrella4444 ,he ,francesco received an honourable burial2 and his family returned to ,rome to enjoy the fruits of their crime4 ,they passed some time there in tranquillity4 ,but ,divine ,justice1 which would not allow so atrocious a wickedness to remain hid and unpunished1 so ordered it that the ,court of ,naples1 to which the account of the death of ,cenci was forwarded1 began to entertain doubts concerning the mode by which he came by it1 and sent a commissary to examine the body and to take informations4444 ,the ,pope1 after having seen all the examinations and the entire confessions1 ordered that the delinquents should be drawn through the streets at the tails of horses and afterward decapitated4 ,many cardinals and priests interested themselves1 and entreated that at least they might be allowed to draw up their defence4 ,the ,pope at first refused to comply1 replying with severity1 and asking these intercessors what defence had been allowed to ,francesco when he had been so barbarously murdered in his sleep4444 ,the sentence was executed the morning of ,saturday the #aath of ,may4 ,the messengers charged with the communication of the sentence1 and the ,brothers of the ,consorteria1 were sent to the several prisons at five the preceding night2 and at six the sentence of death was communicated to the unhappy brothers while they were placidly sleeping4 ,beatrice1 on hearing it broke into a piercing lamentation1 and into passionate gesture1 exclaiming1 ,how is it possible1 ,o my ,god1 that ,i must so suddenly die8 ,lucretia1 as prepared and already resigned to her fate1 listened without terror to the reading of this terrible sentence1 and with gentle exhortations induced her daughter-in-law to enter the chapel with her2 and the latter1 whatever excess she might have indulged in on the first intimation of a speedy death1 so much the more now courageously supported herself1 and gave every one certain proofs of a humble resignation4 ,having requested that a notary might be allowed to come to her1 and her request being granted1 she made her will1 in which she left #ae1jjj crowns to the ,fraternity of the ,sacre ,stimmate1 and willed that all her dowry should be employed in portioning for marriage fifty maidens2 and ,lucretia1 imitating the example of her daughter-in-law1 ordered that she should be buried in the church of ,s4 ,gregorio at ,monte ,celio1 with #cb1jjj crowns for charitable uses1 and made other legacies2 after which they passed some time in the ,consorteria1 reciting psalms and litanies and other prayers with so much fervour that it well appeared that they were assisted by the peculiar grace of ,god4 ,at eight o'clock they confessed1 heard mass1 and received the holy communion4 ,beatrice1 considering that it was not decorous to appear before the judges and on the scaffold with their splendid dresses1 ordered two dresses1 one for herself and the other for her mother-in-law1 made in the manner of the nuns--gathered up1 and with long sleeves of black cotton for ,lucretia1 and of common silk for herself1 with a large cord girdle4 ,when these dresses came1 ,beatrice rose1 and1 turning to ,lucretia--,mother1 said she1 the hour of our departure is drawing near2 let us dress therefore in these clothes1 and let us mutually aid one another in this last office4 ,lucretia readily complied with this invitation1 and they dressed1 each helping the other1 showing the same indifference and pleasure as if they were dressing for a feast4444 ,the funereal procession passed through the ,via dell' ,orso1 by the ,apollinara1 thence through the ,piazza ,navona2 from the church of ,s4 ,pantalio to the ,piazza ,pollarolla1 through the ,campo di ,fiori1 ,s4 ,carlo a ,catinari1 to the ,arco de' ,conti ,cenci2 proceeding1 it stopped under the ,palace ,cenci1 and then finally rested at the ,corte ,savilla1 to take the two ladies4 ,when these arrived1 ,lucretia remained last1 dressed in black1 as has been described1 with a veil of the same colour1 which covered her as far as her girdle4 ,beatrice was beside her1 also covered with a veil4 ,they wore velvet slippers1 with silk roses and gold fastenings2 and1 instead of manacles1 their wrists were bound by a silk cord1 which was fastened to their girdles in such a manner as to give them almost the free use of their hands4 ,each had in her left hand the holy sign of benediction1 and in the right hand a handkerchief1 with which ,lucretia wiped her tears1 and ,beatrice the perspiration from her forehead4 ,being arrived at the place of punishment1 ,bernardo was left on the scaffold1 and the others were conducted to the chapel4 ,during this dreadful separation1 this unfortunate youth1 reflecting that he was soon going to behold the decapitation of his nearest relatives1 fell down in a dreadful swoon1 from which1 however1 he was at last recovered1 and seated opposite the block4444 ,while the scaffold was being arranged for ,beatrice1 and whilst the ,brotherhood returned to the chapel for her1 the balcony of a shop filled with spectators fell1 and five of those underneath were wounded1 so that two died a few days after4 ,beatrice1 hearing the noise1 asked the executioner if her mother had died well1 and1 being replied that she had1 she knelt before the crucifix1 and spoke thus3 ,be thou everlastingly thanked1 ,o my most gracious ,saviour1 since1 by the good death of my mother1 thou hast given me assurance of thy mercy towards me4 ,then1 rising1 she courageously and devoutly walked towards the scaffold1 repeating by the way several prayers with so much fervour of spirit that all who heard her shed tears of compassion4 ,ascending the scaffold1 while she arranged herself1 she also turned her eyes to ,heaven1 and thus prayed3 ,most beloved ,jesus1 who1 relinquishing thy divinity1 becamest a man1 and didst through love purge my sinful soul also of its original sin with thy precious blood2 deign1 ,i beseech thee1 to accept that which ,i am about to shed1 at thy most merciful tribunal1 as a penalty which may cancel my many crimes1 and spare me a part of that punishment justly due to me4 ,then she placed her head under the axe1 which1 at one blow1 was divided from her body as she was repeating the second verse of the psalm ,de profundis1 at the words fiant aures tu4 ,the blow gave a violent motion to her body1 and discomposed her dress4 ,the executioner raised the head to the view of the people2 and in placing it in the coffin placed underneath1 the cord by which it was suspended slipped from its hold1 and the head fell to the ground1 shedding a great deal of blood1 which was wiped up with water and sponges4444 ,the bodies of ,lucretia and ,beatrice were left at the end of the bridge until the evening1 illuminated by two torches1 and surrounded by so great a concourse of people that it was impossible to cross the bridge4 ,an hour after dark1 the body of ,beatrice was placed in a coffin1 covered by a black velvet pall richly adorned with gold3 garlands of flowers were placed1 one at her head1 and another at her feet2 and the body was strewed with flowers4 ,it was accompanied to the church of ,s4 ,peter in ,montorio by the ,brotherhood of the ,order of ,mercy1 and followed by many ,franciscan monks1 with great pomp and innumerable torches4 ,she was there buried before the high altar1 after the customary ceremony had been performed4 ,by reason of the distance of the church from the bridge1 it was four hours after dark before the ceremony was finished4 ,afterwards1 the body of ,lucretia1 accompanied in the same manner1 was carried to the church of ,s4 ,gregorio upon the ,celian hill2 where1 after the ceremony1 it was honourably buried4 ,beatrice was rather tall1 of a fair complexion1 and she had a dimple on each cheek1 which1 especially when she smiled1 added a grace to her lovely countenance that transported every one who beheld her4 ,her hair appeared like threads of gold2 and1 because they were extremely long1 she used to tie it up1 and when afterwards she loosened it1 the splendid ringlets dazzled the eyes of the spectator4 ,her eyes were of a deep blue1 pleasing1 and full of fire4 ,to all these beauties she added1 both in words and action1 a spirit and a majestic vivacity that captivated every one4 ,she was twenty years of age when she died4 ,the ,cenci3 ,poetical ,works of ,percy ,bysshe ,shelley1 edited by ,william ,m4 ,rossetti 7,london #ahgh74 ,,the ,,transfiguration 7,,raphael7 ,,mrs4 ,,jameson ,the ,transfiguration is an early subject in ,christian ,art1 and has gone through different phases4 ,it is given in the mosaics of ,s4 ,apollinare in ,classe1 at ,ravenna 7,sixth ,century71 in that reticence of form and emblematical character significant of classic ,art4 ,by the uninitiated the subject would not be readily deciphered4 ,in the centre of the domed apse is a large jewelled cross1 in the middle of which is the head of ,christ4 ,this represents the ,lord4 ,on each side are bust-lengths of ,moses and ,elijah1 while below are three sheep1 emblems of the three disciples4 ,another form is seen in early miniatures--for instance1 in a magnificent ,evangelium preserved in the ,cathedral at ,aix-la-,chapelle4 ,here ,christ is seen with three rays above ,him2 at ,his side are the full-length figures of ,moses and ,elijah2 below are the three disciples--two crouching low in terror1 while ,peter raises himself1 saying ,lord1 it is good for us to be here1 etc4 ,the next form is that given by early ,byzantine artists1 of a very formal and conventional character4 ,christ is in the mandorla1 from which five rays of glory proceed4 ,these five rays touch the prophets at ,his side1 and the disciples1 all three crouching low at ,his feet4 ,we see ,giotto scarcely emerging from this convention in his series in the ,accademia4 ,fra ,angelico has a more fanciful representation4 ,the ,christ has his arms extended1 as a type of the death ,he was to suffer on the ,cross4 ,the disciples retain the traditional ,byzantine positions4 ,at the sides are the mere heads of the prophets1 while the painter's adoration of the ,virgin1 and his homage toward ,st4 ,domenic1 the founder of his order1 are shown by their attendant figures4 ,it must be allowed that there could be no more daring or more difficult undertaking in ,art than to represent by any human medium this transcendent manifestation of the superhuman character of the ,redeemer4 ,it has been attempted but seldom1 and of course1 however reverent and poetical the spirit in which the attempt has been made1 it has proved1 in regard to the height of the theme1 only a miserable failure4 ,i should observe1 however1 that the early artists hardly seem to have aimed at anything beyond a mere indication of an incident too important to be wholly omitted4 ,in all these examples the representation of a visible fact has been predominant1 the aim in the mind of the artist being to comply with some established conventional or theological rule4 ,only in one instance has the vision of heavenly beatitude been used to convey the sublimest lesson to humanity1 and thus the inevitable failure has been redeemed nobly1 or1 we might rather say1 converted into a glorious success4 ,when ,raphael1 in the last year of his life1 was commissioned by the ,cardinal de' ,medici to paint an altar-piece for the ,cathedral of ,narbonne1 he selected for his subject the ,transfiguration of our ,lord4 ,illustration3 ,,the ,,transfiguration4 ,raphael4 ,every one knows that this picture has a world-wide fame2 it has1 indeed1 been styled the greatest picture in the world2 it has also been criticised as if ,raphael1 the greatest artist who ever lived1 had been here unmindful of the rules of ,art4 ,but it is clear that of those who have enthusiastically praised or daringly censured1 few have interpreted its real significance4 ,some have erred in ignorantly applying the rules of ,art where they were in no respect applicable4 ,others1 not claiming to know anything1 or care anything about rules of ,art1 insisting on their right to judge what is or is not intelligible to them1 have given what ,i must needs call very absurd opinions about what they do not understand4 ,it has been objected by one set of critics that there is a want of unity1 that the picture is divided in two1 and that these two parts not only do not harmonize1 but mutually hurt each other4 ,others say that the spiritual beatitude above1 and the contortions of the afflicted boy below1 present a shocking contrast4 ,others sneer at the little hillock or platform which they suppose is to stand for ,mount ,tabor1 think the group above profane1 and the group below horrible4 ,such as these1 with a courage quite superior to all artistic criticism1 and undazzled by the accumulated fame of five centuries1 venture on a fiat which reminds one of nothing so much as ,voltaire's ridicule of ,hamlet1 and his denunciation of that barbare1 that imbcile de ,shakespeare1 who would not write so as to be appreciated by a ,french critic4 ,now1 in looking at the ,transfiguration 7and ,i hope the reader1 if the original be far off1 will at least have a good print before him while going over these following remarks71 we must bear in mind that it is not an historical but a devotional picture--that the intention of the painter was not to represent a scene1 but to excite religious feelings by expressing1 so far as painting might do it1 a very sublime idea1 which it belongs to us to interpret4 ,i can best accomplish this1 perhaps1 by putting down naturally my own impressions1 when ,i last had the opportunity of studying this divine picture4 ,if we remove to a certain distance from it1 so that the forms shall become vague1 indistinct1 and only the masses of colour and the light and shade perfectly distinguishable1 we shall see that the picture is indeed divided as if horizontally1 the upper half being all light1 and the lower half comparatively all dark4 ,as we approach nearer1 step by step1 we behold above1 the radiant figure of the ,saviour floating in mid air1 with arms outspread1 garments of transparent light1 glorified visage upturned as in rapture1 and the hair uplifted and scattered as ,i have seen it in persons under the influence of electricity4 ,on the right1 ,moses2 on the left1 ,elijah2 representing1 respectively1 the old law and the old prophecies1 which both testified of ,him4 ,the three disciples lie on the ground1 terror-struck1 dazzled4 ,there is a sort of eminence or platform1 but no perspective1 no attempt at real locality1 for the scene is revealed as in a vision1 and the same soft transparent light envelops the whole4 ,this is the spiritual life1 raised far above the earth1 but not yet in heaven4 ,below is seen the earthly life1 poor humanity struggling helplessly with pain1 infirmity1 and death4 ,the father brings his son1 the possessed1 or1 as we should now say1 the epileptic boy1 who ofttimes falls into the water or into the fire1 or lies grovelling on the earth1 foaming and gnashing his teeth2 the boy struggles in his arms--the rolling eyes1 the distorted features1 the spasmodic limbs are at once terrible and pitiful to look on4 ,such is the profound1 the heart-moving significance of this wonderful picture4 ,it is1 in truth1 a fearful approximation of the most opposite things2 the mournful helplessness1 suffering1 and degradation of human nature1 the unavailing pity1 are placed in immediate contrast with spiritual light1 life1 hope--nay1 the very fruition of heavenly rapture4 ,it has been asked1 who are the two figures1 the two saintly deacons1 who stand on each side of the upper group1 and what have they to do with the mystery above1 or the sorrow below8 ,their presence shows that the whole was conceived as a vision1 or a poem4 ,the two saints are ,st4 ,lawrence and ,st4 ,julian1 placed there at the request of the ,cardinal de' ,medici1 for whom the picture was painted1 to be offered by him as an act of devotion as well as munificence to his new bishopric2 and these two figures commemorate in a poetical way1 not unusual at the time1 his father1 ,lorenzo1 and his uncle1 ,giuliano de' ,medici4 ,they would be better away2 but ,raphael1 in consenting to the wish of his patron that they should be introduced1 left no doubt of the significance of the whole composition--that it is placed before worshippers as a revelation of the double life of earthly suffering and spiritual faith1 as an excitement to religious contemplation and religious hope4 ,in the ,gospel1 the ,transfiguration of our ,lord is first described1 then the gathering of the people and the appeal of the father in behalf of his afflicted son4 ,they appear to have been simultaneous2 but painting only could have placed them before our eyes1 at the same moment1 in all their suggestive contrast4 ,it will be said that in the brief record of the ,evangelist1 this contrast is nowhere indicated1 but the painter found it there and was right to use it--just the same as if a man should choose a text from which to preach a sermon1 and1 in doing so1 should evolve from the inspired words many teachings1 many deep reasonings1 besides the one most obvious and apparent4 ,but1 after we have prepared ourselves to understand and to take into our heads all that this wonderful picture can suggest1 considered as an emanation of the mind1 we find that it has other interests for us1 considered merely as a work of ,art4 ,it was the last picture which came from ,raphael's hand2 he was painting on it when seized with his last illness4 ,he had completed all the upper part of the composition1 all the ethereal vision1 but the lower part of it was still unfinished1 and in this state the picture was hung over his bier1 when1 after his death1 he was laid out in his painting-room1 and all his pupils and his friends1 and the people of ,rome1 came to look upon him for the last time2 and when those who stood round raised their eyes to the ,transfiguration1 and then bent them on the lifeless form extended beneath it1 every heart was like to burst with grief 7faceva scoppiare l' anima di dolore a ognuno che quivi guardava71 as1 indeed1 well it might4 ,two-thirds of the price of the picture1 #fee duccati di camera1 had already been paid by the ,cardinal de' ,medici2 and1 in the following year1 that part of the picture which ,raphael had left unfinished was completed by his pupil ,giulio ,romano1 a powerful and gifted but not a refined or elevated genius4 ,he supplied what was wanting in the colour and chiaroscuro according to ,raphael's design1 but not certainly as ,raphael would himself have done it4 ,the sum which ,giulio received he bestowed as a dowry on his sister1 when he gave her in marriage to ,lorenzetto the sculptor1 who had also been a pupil and friend of ,raphael4 ,the ,cardinal did not send the picture to ,narbonne1 but1 unwilling to deprive ,rome of such a masterpiece1 he presented it to the ,church of ,san ,pietro in ,montorio1 and sent in its stead the ,raising of ,lazarus1 by ,sebastian del ,piombo1 now in our ,national ,gallery4 ,the ,french carried off the ,transfiguration to ,paris in #agig1 and1 when restored1 it was placed in the ,vatican1 where it now is4 ,the ,communion of ,st4 ,jerome1 by ,domenichino1 is opposite to it1 and it is a sort of fashion to compare them1 and with some to give the preference to the admirable picture by ,domenichino2 but the two are so different in aim and conception1 the merits of each are so different in kind1 that ,i do not see how any comparison can exist between them4 ,the ,history of ,our ,lord1 as exemplified in ,works of ,art1 continued and completed by ,lady ,eastlake 7#bnd ed41 ,london1 #ahfe74 ,,the ,,bull 7,,paul ,,potter7 ,,eug,,ne ,,fromentin ,the ,lesson in ,anatomy1 ,the ,night ,watch1 and ,paul ,potter's ,bull are the most celebrated things in ,holland4 ,to the latter the ,museum at ,the ,hague owes a great part of the interest it inspires4 ,it is not the largest of ,paul ,potter's canvases2 but it is1 at least1 the only one of his great pictures that merits serious attention4 ,the ,bear ,hunt in the ,museum of ,amsterdam 7supposing it to be authentic71 even by ridding it of the retouches which disfigure it1 has never been anything else save the extravagance of a young man1 the greatest mistake he committed4 ,the ,bull is not priced4 ,estimating it according to the present value of ,paul ,potter's other works1 nobody doubts that in a ,european auction it would fetch a fabulous sum4 ,then is it a beautiful picture8 ,by no means4 ,does it deserve the importance attached to it8 ,incontestably4 ,then is ,paul ,potter a very great painter8 ,very great4 ,does it follow that he really does paint as well as is commonly supposed8 ,not exactly4 ,that is a misapprehension that it will be well to dissipate4 ,illustration3 ,,the ,,bull4 ,paul ,potter4 ,on the day when this suppositious auction of which ,i speak opened1 and consequently when every one had the right freely to discuss the merits of this famous work1 if anyone dared to let the truth be heard1 he would speak very nearly as follows3 ,the reputation of the picture is very much exaggerated and at the same time very legitimate2 it is contradictory4 ,it is considered as an incomparable specimen of painting1 and that is a mistake4 ,people think it is an example to be followed1 a model to be copied1 one in which ignorant generations may learn the technical secrets of their art4 ,in that again they deceive themselves entirely4 ,the work is ugly and very ill-conceived1 and the painting is monotonous1 thick1 heavy1 dull1 and dry4 ,the arrangement is of the poorest4 ,unity is lacking in this picture1 which begins one knows not where1 does not end anywhere1 receives light without being illuminated1 and distributes it at random1 escapes on every side and runs out of the frame1 so exactly like flowered linen prints does it seem to be painted4 ,the space is too crowded without being occupied4 ,neither the lines1 nor the colour1 nor the distribution of the effects1 give it even those first conditions of existence which are essential to any fairly well-ordered work4 ,the animals are ridiculous in their size4 ,the painting of the fawn cow with the white head is very hard4 ,the ewe and the ram are modelled in plaster4 ,as for the shepherd1 no one would think of defending him4 ,only two portions of this picture seem to be intended for our notice1 the great sky and the enormous bull4 ,the cloud is well in place3 it is lighted up where it should be1 and it is also properly tinted according to the demands of the principal object1 its purpose being to accompany or serve as a relief to the latter4 ,with a wise understanding of the law of contrasts1 the painter has beautifully graded the strong tints and the dark shading of the animal4 ,the darkest part is opposed to the light portion of the sky1 and the most energetic and ingrained characteristic of the bull is opposite to all that is most limpid in the atmosphere4 ,but this is hardly a merit1 considering the simplicity of the problem4 ,the rest is simply a surplus that we might cut away without regret1 to the great advantage of the picture4 ,that would be a brutal criticism1 but an exact one4 ,and yet public opinion1 less punctilious or more clear-sighted1 would say that the signature was well worth the price4 ,public opinion never goes entirely astray4 ,by uncertain roads1 often by those not most happily chosen1 it arrives definitely at the expression of a true sentiment4 ,the motives that lead it to acclaim any one are not always of the best1 but there are always other good reasons that justify this expression4 ,it is deceived regarding titles1 sometimes it mistakes faults for excellencies1 it estimates a man for his manner1 and that is the least of all his merits2 it believes that a painter paints well when he paints badly and because he paints minutely4 ,what is astonishing in ,paul ,potter is the imitation of objects carried to the point of eccentricity4 ,people do not know1 or do not notice1 that in such a case the soul of the painter is of more worth than the work1 and that his manner of feeling is of infinitely greater importance than the result4 ,when he painted ,the ,bull in #afdg1 ,paul ,potter was not twenty-three years of age4 ,he was a very young man2 and according to the usual run of young men of twenty-three years1 he was a child4 ,to what school did he belong8 ,to none4 ,had he any masters8 ,we do not know of any other teachers than his father ,pieter ,simonsz ,potter1 an obscure painter1 and ,jacob de ,wet 7of ,haarlem71 who had no force to influence a pupil either for good or evil4 ,paul ,potter then found around his cradle and afterwards in the studio of his second master nothing but simple advice and no doctrines2 very strange to say1 the pupil did not need anything more4 ,until #afdg ,paul ,potter divided his time between ,amsterdam and ,haarlem1 that is to say1 between ,frans ,hals and ,rembrandt in the focus of the most active1 the most inspiring and the richest art of celebrated masters that the world had ever known except during the preceding century in ,italy4 ,professors were not lacking1 the choice was only too embarrassing4 ,wynants was forty-six2 ,cuyp1 forty-two2 ,terburg1 thirty-nine2 ,ostade1 thirty-seven2 ,metzu1 thirty-two2 ,wouwerman1 twenty-seven2 and ,berghem1 about his own age1 was twenty-three years of age4 ,many of the youngest even were members of the ,guild of ,st4 ,luke4 ,finally1 the greatest of all1 the most illustrious1 ,rembrandt1 had already produced the ,night ,watch1 and he was a master to tempt one4 ,what became of ,paul ,potter8 ,how did he isolate himself in the heart of this rich and swarming school1 where practical ability was extreme1 talent universal1 style somewhat similar1 and1 nevertheless--a beautiful thing at that happy time--the methods of feeling were very individual8 ,had he any fellow-pupils8 ,we do not see them4 ,his friends are unknown4 ,he was born1--it is the utmost we can do to be sure of the exact year4 ,he reveals himself early1 signing a charming etching at fourteen2 at twenty-two he is ignorant on many points1 but on others his maturity is unexampled4 ,he laboured and produced work upon work2 doing some things admirably4 ,he accumulated them in a few years in haste and abundance1 as if death were at his heels1 and yet with an appreciation and a patience which render this prodigious labour miraculous4 ,he married1 young1 for any one else but very late for him1 for it was on ,july #c1 #afej2 and on ,august #d1 #afed1 four years afterwards1 death seized him in the height of his glory1 but before he had learned his whole ground4 ,what could be simpler1 shorter1 and more fully accomplished8 ,genius and no lessons1 ardent study1 an ingenuous and able product1 attentive observation and reflection2 add to this great natural charm1 the gentleness of a meditative mind1 the appreciation of a conscience filled with scruples1 the sadness inseparable from solitary labour1 and1 perhaps1 the natural melancholy belonging to sickly beings1 and you very nearly have all ,paul ,potter4 ,to this extent1 if we except its charm1 ,the ,bull at ,the ,hague represents him wonderfully well4 ,it is a great study1 too great from the common-sense point of view1 not too great for the research of which it was the object1 nor for the instruction that the painter drew from it4 ,reflect that ,paul ,potter1 compared with his brilliant contemporaries1 was ignorant of all the skill of the handicraft3 ,i do not speak of the tricks of which his frankness can never be suspected4 ,he especially studied forms and aspects in their absolute simplicity4 ,the least artifice was an embarrassment which would have spoiled him1 because it would have altered his clear view of things4 ,a great bull in a vast plain1 an immense sky1 and no horizon1 so to speak1--what better opportunity is there for a student to learn once for all a host of very difficult things1 and to know them1 as they say1 by rule and compass4 ,the action is very simple2 he did not fail with it2 the movement is true1 and the head admirably full of life4 ,the beast has his age1 his type1 his character1 his disposition1 his length1 his height1 his joints1 his bones1 his muscles1 his hair rough or smooth1 in flocks or curls1 his hide loose or stretched1--all is perfection4 ,the head1 the eye1 the neck and shoulders1 the chest1 from the point of view of a nave and powerful observation1 form a very rare specimen1 perhaps1 really without an equal4 ,i do not say that the pigment is beautiful1 nor that the colour is well chosen2 pigment and colour are here subordinated too visibly to preoccupations of form for us to exact much on that head1 when the designer has given all1 or nearly all1 under another4 ,moreover1 the work in that field accomplished with such force results in rendering nature exactly as she is1 in her reliefs1 her nuances1 and her power1 and almost in her mysteries4 ,it is not possible to aim at a more circumscribed but more formal result and attain it with more success4 ,people say ,paul ,potter's ,bull1 and that is not enough1 ,i assure you3 they might say ,the ,bull1 and1 in my opinion1 that would be the greatest eulogy that could be bestowed upon this work1 so mediocre in its weak parts and yet so decisive4 ,les ,matres d',autrefois 7,paris1 #ahgf7 ,,cor,,sus ,,and ,,callirho 7,,fragonard7 ,,edmond ,,and ,,jules ,,de ,,goncourt ,poets were lacking in the last century4 ,i do not say rhymers1 versifiers and mechanical arrangers of words2 ,i say poets4 ,poetry1 taking the expression in the truth and height of its meaning2 poetry1 which is an elevation or an enchantment of the imagination1 the contribution of an ideal of reverie or gaiety to human thought2 poetry1 which carries away and suspends above the world the soul of a period and the spirit of a people1 was unknown to the ,france of the ,eighteenth ,century1 and her two only poets were two painters3 ,watteau and ,fragonard4 ,watteau1 the man of the ,north1 the child of ,flanders1 the great poet of ,love6 the master of sweet serenity and tender ,paradises1 whose work may be likened to the ,elysian ,field of ,passion6 ,watteau1 the melancholy enchanter who has made nature sigh so heavily in his autumn woods1 full of regret around dreamful pleasure6 ,watteau1 the ,pensieroso of the ,regency2 ,fragonard1 the little poet of the ,art of ,love of the time4 ,have you noticed in ,l',embarquement de ,cythre all those naked little forms of saucy and knavish ,loves half lost in the heights of the sky8 ,where are they going8 ,they are going to play at ,fragonard's and to put on his palette the hues of their butterfly wings4 ,illustration3 ,,cor,,sus ,,and ,,callirho4 ,fragonard4 ,fragonard is the bold narrator1 the gallant amoroso1 the rogue with ,gallic malice1 nearly ,italian in genius but ,french in spirit2 the man of foreshortened mythology and roguish undress1 of skies made rosy by the flesh of goddesses and alcoves lighted with female nudity4 ,upon a table beside a bunch of roses let us allow the leaves of his work to be ruffled by the wind of a lovely day3 from landscapes where robes of satin are escaping in coquettish flight1 our glance skips to meadows guarded by ,annettes of fifteen years1 to granges where the somersaults of love upset the painter's easel1 to pastures where the milk-maid of the milk-jug reveals her bare legs and weeps like a nymph over her broken urn1 for her sheep1 her flocks1 and her vanished dream4 ,upon another page a maiden in love is writing a beloved name on the bark of a tree on a lovely summer evening4 ,the breeze is always turning them over3 now a shepherd and shepherdess are embracing before a sun-dial which little ,cupids make into a pleasure-dial4 ,it keeps on turning them2 and now we have the beautiful dream of a pilgrim sleeping with his staff and gourd beside him1 and to whom appears a host of young fays skimming a huge pot4 ,does it not seem that your eye is upon a vision of a fte by ,boucher1 shown by his pupil in ,tasso's garden8 ,adorable magic lantern6 where ,clorinde follows ,fiammette1 where the gleams of an epic poem mingle with the smiles of the novellieri6 ,tales of the fay ,urgle1 little comic jests1 rays of gayety and sunshine which one might say were thrown upon the cloth upon which ,broalde de ,verville made his cherry-gatherer walk4 ,tasso1 ,cervantes1 ,boccaccio1 ,ariosto 7,ariosto as he has drawn him1 inspired by ,love and ,folly71 it recalls all his genii of happiness4 ,it laughs with the liberties of ,la ,fontaine4 ,it goes from ,properce to ,grcourt1 from ,longus to ,favart1 from ,gentil-,bernard to ,andr ,chnier4 ,it has1 so to speak1 the heart of a lover and the hand of a charming rascal4 ,in it the breath of a sigh passes into a kiss and it is young with immortal youth3 it is the poem of ,desire1 a divine poem6 ,it is enough to have written it like ,fragonard for him to remain what he will always be3 the ,cherubino of erotic painting4444 ,he leaped into success and fame at one bound1 with his picture of ,callirho1 that painting of universal approbation1 which caused him to be received into the ,acadmie by acclamation2 that painting which aroused public enthusiasm at the ,salon in the month of ,august1 and which had the honour of a ,royal command for its reproduction upon ,gobelin tapestry4 ,imagine a large picture nine feet high by twelve feet long1 where the human figures are of natural size1 the architecture in its proper proportion and the crowd and sky have their own space4 ,between two columns of a shining marble with its iris-coloured reflections1 above the heavy purple of a tapestry with golden fringe spread out and broken by the ridge of two steps1 opens the scene of an antique drama which seems to be under the curtain of a theatre4 ,on this tapestry1 on this pagan altar-cloth1 stands a copper crater near an urn of black marble half veiled with white linen4 ,a column cuts in half a large candelabra smoking with incense and ornamented with goats' heads1 a superb bronze which must have been taken from the lava of ,herculaneum4 ,a young priest has thrown himself on his knees against this candelabra and embraces its pedestal2 in terror he has allowed his censer to fall to the earth4 ,standing by his side is ,corsus1 the high priest1 crowned with ivy1 enveloped in draperies1 and seemingly floating in the sacerdotal whiteness of his vestments2 a beardless priest1 of doubtful sex1 of androgynous grace1 an enervated ,adonis1 the shadow of a man4 ,with a backward turn of one hand he plunges the knife in his breast2 with the other he has the appearance of casting his life into the heavens1 whilst across his effeminate face pass the weakness of the agony and grief of violent death4 ,opposite the dying high-priest is the living though fainting victim1 nearly dead at the belief that she is about to die4 ,with her head resting on her shoulder1 she has glided before the smoking altar4 ,her body has lost all rigidity on her bending legs1 her arms hang down at her side2 her glance is distracted2 she has lost all volition in the use of her limbs2 and she is there1 sinking motionless1 her throat scarcely distending with a breath1 turning white under her crown of roses1 which the painter's brush has made to pale in sympathy4 ,between her body and the altar a young priest is leaning in horrified curiosity4 ,another1 upon one knee1 perfectly terrified1 with fixed gaze and parted lips1 holds before the young girl the basin used to receive the blood of the victims4 ,in the background are visible figures of old grey-bearded priests1 aghast at the horrible spectacle4 ,above them the smoke of the temple1 the flames1 the perfumes1 and the incense of the altar mingle with the cloudy sky1 a sky of a night of miracles and hell1 wild and rolling1 a sky of fiery and sombre whirlwind1 in which a genie brandishing a torch and dagger bears ,love away in sombre flight enveloped in a black mantle4 ,from that shadow1 let us go to the shadow at the base of the picture3 two women1 writhing with fear1 shrink back veiling their faces2 a little boy clings about their knees and holds fast to them1 and a ray of sunlight1 falling across the arm of one of the women1 illumines the hair and the little rosy hands of the child4 ,such is ,fragonard's great composition1 that striking unexpected production1 for which he must have taken the idea1 and1 perhaps1 even the effect from one of the revivals of ,callirho by the poet ,roy2#bg a painting of the opera1 and demanding from the opera its soul and its light4 ,but what a magnificent illusion this picture presents6 ,it must be seen in the ,louvre so that the eyes may feast upon the clear and warm splendour of the canvas1 the milky radiance of all those white priestly robes1 the virginal light inundating the centre of the scene1 palpitating and dying away on ,callirho1 enveloping her fainting body like the fading of day1 and caressing that failing throat4 ,the rays of light and the smoke all melt into one another2 the temple smokes and the mists of incense ascend everywhere4 ,night is rolling above the day4 ,the sun falls into the gloom and casts a reflected glare4 ,the gleams of sulphur flames illuminate the faces and the throng4 ,fragonard lavishly threw the lights of fairyland upon his masterpiece3 it is ,rembrandt combined with ,ruggieri4 ,and what movement1 what action are in this agitated and convulsive painting6 ,the clouds and the garments whirl1 the gestures are rapid1 the attitudes are despairing1 horror shudders in every pose and on every lip1 and a great mute cry seems to rise throughout this entire temple and throughout this entire lyrical composition4 ,this cry of a picture1 so new for the ,eighteenth ,century1 is ,passion4 ,fragonard introduces it into his time in this picture so full of tragic tenderness where we might fancy the entombment of ,iphigenia4 ,the phantasmagoria raises his art to the level of the emotion of the ,alceste of ,euripides2 it reveals a future for ,french painting3 pathos4 ,l',art du ,dix-,huitime ,sicle 7#c;d ed41 ,paris1 #ahhb74 ,,footnotes3 #bg ,callirho by ,pierre-,charles ,roy1 was written in #agab4--;,e4,s4 ,,the ,,market-,,cart 7,,gainsborough7 ,,richard ,,and ,,samuel ,,redgrave ,it is said that ,sir ,joshua at an ,academy dinner gave the health of ,mr4 ,gainsborough1 the greatest landscape painter of the day1 to which ,wilson1 in his blunt1 grumbling way1 retorted1 ,ay1 and the greatest portrait painter1 too4 ,in ,gainsborough's own time1 the world of ,art patrons seem to have employed his talents as a portrait painter1 but to have disregarded his landscape art4 ,beechey said that in ,gainsborough's house in ,pall ,mall the landscapes stood ranged in long lines from his hall to his painting-room1 and that those who came to sit to him for his portraits1 on which he was chiefly occupied1 rarely deigned to honour them with a look as they passed them4 ,after his death1 however1 and the eulogium ,reynolds had pronounced on his landscapes and rustic children1 these came to be considered his finest works1 and it is usual now to speak of him as a landscape rather than as a portrait painter4 ,but it is more than doubtful whether ,wilson did not judge more truly of his talent than ,sir ,joshua2 and without wishing to place him above ,reynolds in that painter's peculiar branch1 it is certain that ,gainsborough1 in his finest portraits1 formed a style equally original1 and produced works that are every way worthy to take rank with those of the great ,president4 ,they contrast with the latter in being more silvery and pure1 and in the absence of that impasto and richness in which ,reynolds indulged1 but his figures are surrounded by air and light1 and his portraits generally are easy and graceful without affectation4444 ,illustration3 ,,the ,,market-,,cart4 ,gainsborough ,reynolds says3 ,it is difficult to determine whether ,gainsborough's portraits were most admirable for exact truth of resemblance1 or his landscapes for a portrait-like representation of ,nature1--a strange judgment1 written more with a view to a well-rounded period than to any true criticism on his rival's landscape art4 ,it is certainly true that ,gainsborough put aside altogether the early foundation of ,dutch landscape on which he had begun to build1 and took an entirely original view of ,nature1 both as to treatment and handling4 ,yet in the sense in which the artists of our day paint portrait-like representations of ,nature1 ,gainsborough's art was anything but portrait-like4 ,it has been objected to the great ,italian landscape painters that they did not discriminate between one tree and another1 but indulged in a painter's tree4 ,there is far more variety in those of our native artist1 yet it would puzzle a critic to say what his trees really are1 and to point out in his landscapes the distinctive differences between oak and beech1 and elm4 ,the weeds1 too1 in his foregrounds1 have neither form nor species4 ,on the margins of his brooks or pools a few sword-shaped dashes tell of reeds and rushes2 on the banks of his road-side some broad-leaved forms catch the straggling sun-ray1 but he cared little to go into botanical minuti1 or to enable us to tell their kind4 ,his rocks are certainly not truly stratified or geologically correct--how should they be8--he studied them1 perhaps1 in his painting-room from broken stones and bits of coal4 ,the truth is1 however1 that he gave us more of ,nature than any merely imitative rendering could do4 ,as the great portrait painter looks beyond the features of his sitter to give the mind and character of the man1 often thereby laying himself open to complaint as to his mere likeness painting2 so the great landscape painter will at all times sink individual imitation in seeking to fill us with the greater truths of his art4 ,it may be the golden sunset or the breezy noon1 the solemn breadth of twilight1 or the silvery freshness of morn--the something of colour1 of form1 of light and shade1 floating rapidly away1 that makes the meanest and most commonplace view at times startle us with wonder at its beauty1 when treated by the true artist4 ,and did he study such merely from broken stones and pieces of coal1 from twigs and weeds in his painting-room8 ,vain idea6 these were but the memoria technica1 that served to call up in his mind the thoughts he had fed on in many a lonely walk and leisure moment1 when they of common clay plodded on and saw nothing--brooded on with a nature tuned to the harmonies of colour and of form1 organized in a high degree to receive and retain impressions of beauty2 and gifted with the power to place vividly before us by his art objects which had so delighted and pleased himself4 ,does any one think otherwise--let him try what can be got out of stones and coals2 let him try how his memory will aid him1 with such feeble helps as broken twigs and dry mosses1 and then he may be able to appreciate1 in a degree1 how this man had won the mastery of paint and canvas and turned their dross into the fine gold of true ,art4 ,but in the history of ,british ,art1 the great merit of ,gainsborough is1 to have broken us entirely loose from old conventions4 ,wilson had turned aside from ,dutch art to ennoble landscape by selecting from the higher qualities of ,italian art2 but ,gainsborough early discarded all he had learned from the bygone schools1 and gave himself up wholly to ,nature2 he was capable of delicate handling and minute execution1 but he resolutely cast them aside lest any idol should interfere between him and his new religion4 ,there may be traced a lingering likeness in his landscapes to those of ,rubens2 but this arose more from his generalization of details1 his sinking the parts in the whole1 than to any imitation of the great ,fleming4 ,it is like the recollection of some sweet melody which the musician weaves into his theme1 all unconscious that it is a memory and not a child of his own creation4 ,the pictures of ,gainsborough1 on the whole1 stand better far than those by ,reynolds4 ,landscape with ,cattle1 a picture belonging to the ,marquis of ,lansdowne1 is lovely for colour and freshness2 it has been lined and repaired1 but evidently had parted widely in the lights4 ,could any closeness of individual imitation give the truth1 beauty of colour1 and luminous sunlight of this picture8 ,it somewhat reminds one of ,zuccarelli1 but how completely has ,gainsborough sucked the honey and left the comb of the master6 ,viewed near1 this picture is somewhat loose in texture1 and hesitating in execution2 the colour obtained by semi-transparents1 as yellow-ochre1 terra-verte1 and ultramarine2 while viewed at a proper distance1 it is in perfect harmony4 ,in examining the landscapes of this painter1 much must1 however1 be allowed for the present state of some of his works4 ,many are covered with a dark-brown varnish1 obscuring the silvery freshness of their first state4 ,this has cracked up in the darks and quite changed them4 ,the ,market-,cart and the ,watering-,place1 as well as others in the ,national collection1 are in a very different condition to that in which they left the easel4 ,the world1 however1 has become so conservative1 and has such belief in the picture-vamper's golden tones1 that so they must remain4 ,it would be most impolitic to touch them until they have become too dark to be seen at all4 ,a ,century of ,painters of the ,english ,school 7,london1 #ahff74 ,,bacchus ,,and ,,ariadne 7,,tintoret7 ,,hippolyte ,,adolphe ,,taine ,it is more difficult for me to speak to you of the ,venetian painters than of any others4 ,before their pictures one has no desire to analyze or reason2 if one does this1 it is by compulsion4 ,the eyes enjoy1 and that is all3 they enjoy as the ,venetians enjoyed in the ,sixteenth ,century2 for ,venice was not at all a literary or critical city like ,florence2 there painting was nothing more than the complement of the environing pleasure1 the decoration of a banqueting-hall or of an architectural alcove4 ,in order to understand this you must place yourself at a distance1 shut your eyes and wait until your sensations are dulled2 then your mind performs its work4444 ,there are certain families of plants1 the species of which are so closely allied that they resemble more than they differ from each other3 such are the ,venetian painters1 not only the four celebrities1 ,giorgione1 ,titian1 ,tintoret1 and ,veronese1 but others less illustrious1 ,palma il vecchio1 ,bonifazio1 ,paris ,bordone1 ,pordenone1 and that host enumerated by ,ridolfi in his ,lives1 contemporaries1 relatives1 and successors of the great men1 ,andrea ,vicentino1 ,palma il giovine1 ,zelotti1 ,bazzaco1 ,padovinano1 ,bassano1 ,schiavone1 ,moretto1 and many others4 ,what first appeals to the eye is the general and common type2 the individual and personal traits remain for a time in shadow4 ,they have worked together and by turns in the ,ducal ,palace1 but by the involuntary concord of their talents their pictures make an harmonious whole4 ,at first our eyes are astonished2 with the exception of three or four halls1 the apartments are low and small4 ,the ,hall of ,council of the ,ten and those surrounding it#bh are gilded habitations1 insufficient for the figures that dwell therein2 but after a moment one forgets the habitation and sees only the figures4 ,power and voluptuousness blaze there1 unbridled and superb4 ,in the angles nude men1 painted caryatides1 jut out in such high relief that at the first glance one takes them for statues2 a colossal breath swells their chests2 their thighs and their shoulders writhe4 ,on the ceiling a ,mercury1 entirely nude1 is almost a figure by ,rubens1 but of a more gross sensuality4 ,a gigantic ,neptune urges before him his sea-horses which plash through the waves2 his foot presses the edge of his chariot2 his enormous and ruddy body is turned backwards2 he raises his conch with the joy of a bestial god2 the salt wind blows through his scarf1 his hair1 and his beard2 one could never imagine1 without seeing it1 such a furious lan1 such an overflowing of animal spirit1 such a joy of pagan flesh1 such a triumph of free and shameless life in the open air and broad sunlight4 ,what an injustice to limit the ,venetians to the painting of merely happy scenes and to the art of simply pleasing the eye6 ,they have also painted grandeur and heroism2 the mere energetic and active body has attracted them2 like the ,flemings1 they have their colossi also4 ,their drawing1 even without colour1 is capable by itself of expressing all the solidity and all the vitality of the human structure4 ,look in this same hall at the four grisailles by ,veronese--five or six women veiled or half-nude1 all so strong and of such a frame that their thighs and arms would stifle a warrior in their embrace1 and1 nevertheless1 their physiognomy is so simple or so proud that1 despite their smile1 they are virgins like ,raphael's ,venuses and ,psyches4 ,illustration3 ,,bacchus ,,and ,,ariadne4 ,tintoret4 ,the more we consider the ideal figures of ,venetian art1 the more we feel the breath of an heroic age behind us4 ,those great draped old men with the bald foreheads are the patrician kings of the ,archipelago1 ,barbaresque sultans who1 trailing their silken simars1 receive tribute and order executions4 ,the superb women in sweeping robes1 bedizened and creased1 are empress-daughters of the ,republic1 like that ,catherina ,cornaro from whom ,venice received ,cyprus4 ,there are the muscles of fighters in the bronzed breasts of the sailors and captains2 their bodies1 reddened by the sun and wind1 have dashed against the athletic bodies of janizaries2 their turbans1 their pelisses1 their furs1 their sword-hilts constellated with precious stones1--all the magnificence of ,asia is mingled on their bodies with the floating draperies of antiquity and with the nudities of ,pagan tradition4 ,their straight gaze is still tranquil and savage1 and the pride and the tragic grandeur of their expression announce the presence of a life in which man was concentrated in a few simple passions1 having no other thought than that of being master so that he should not be a slave1 and to kill so that he should not be killed4 ,such is the spirit of a picture by ,veronese which1 in the ,hall of the ,council of the ,ten1 represents an old warrior and a young woman2 it is an allegory1 but we do not trouble ourselves about the subject4 ,the man is seated and leans forward1 his chin upon his hand1 with a savage air2 his colossal shoulders1 his arm1 and his bare leg encircled with a cnemis of lions' heads protrudes from his ample drapery2 with his turban1 his white beard1 his thoughtful brow1 and his traits of a wearied lion1 he has the appearance of a ,pacha who is tired of everything4 ,she1 with downcast eyes1 places her hands upon her soft breast2 her magnificent hair is caught up with pearls2 she seems a captive awaiting the will of her master1 and her neck and bowed face are strongly empurpled in the shadow that encircles them4 ,nearly all the other halls are empty2 the paintings have been taken into an interior room4 ,we go to find the curator of the ,museum2 we tell him in bad ,italian that we have no letters of introduction1 nor titles1 nor any rights whatsoever to be admitted to see them4 ,thereupon he has the kindness to conduct us into the reserved hall1 to lift up the canvases1 one after the other1 and to lose two hours in showing them to us4 ,i have never had greater pleasure in ,italy2 these canvases are now standing before our eyes2 we can look at them as near as we please1 at our ease1 and we are alone4 ,there are some browned giants by ,tintoret1 with their skin wrinkled by the play of the muscles1 ,saint ,andrew and ,saint ,mark1 real colossi like those of ,rubens4 ,there is a ,saint ,christopher by ,titian1 a kind of bronzed and bowed ,atlas with his four limbs straining to bear the weight of a world1 and on his neck by an extraordinary contrast1 the tiny1 soft1 and laughing bambino1 whose infantine flesh has the delicacy and grace of a flower4 ,above all1 there are a dozen mythological and allegorical paintings by ,tintoret and ,veronese1 of such brilliancy and such intoxicating fascination that a veil seems to fall from our eyes and we discover an unknown world1 a paradise of delights situated beyond all imagination and all dreams4 ,when the ,old ,man of the ,mountain transported into his harem his sleeping youths to render them capable of extreme devotion1 doubtless it was such a spectacle that he furnished4 ,upon the coast at the margin of the infinite sea1 serious ,ariadne receives the ring of ,bacchus1 and ,venus1 with a crown of gold1 has come through the air to celebrate their marriage4 ,here is the sublime beauty of bare flesh1 such as it appears coming out of the water1 vivified by the sun and touched with shadows4 ,the goddess is floating in liquid light and her twisted back1 her flanks and her curves are palpitating1 half enveloped in a white1 diaphanous veil4 ,with what words can we paint the beauty of an attitude1 a tone1 or an outline8 ,who will describe the healthy and roseate flesh under the amber transparency of gauze8 ,how shall we represent the soft plenitude of a living form and the curves of limbs which flow into the leaning body8 ,truly she is swimming in the light like a fish in its lake1 and the air1 filled with vague reflections1 embraces and caresses her4 ,voyage en ,italie 7,paris1 #ahff74 ,,footnotes3 #bh ,painted by ,veronese and by ,zelotti and ,bazzaco under his direction4 ,,bacchus ,,and ,,ariadne ,,anonymous ,titian's magnificent pictures in the ,ducal ,palace were1 all but one1 destroyed by fire the year after his death2 but his impetuous rival1 ,tintoretto1 is abundantly represented there4 ,with regard to him1 as usual1 our admiration for frequent manifestations of extraordinary power is but too commonly checked and chilled by coarse1 heavy painting1 and the unexpressive wholly uninteresting character of many of his allegorical or celestial groups1 which seem introduced merely as exercises or exhibitions of technical skill1 rather than as appeals to our imagination or finer feelings4444 ,on the whole you are again tempted to be somewhat out of conceit with ,tintoretto1 till you pause in the ,ante ,collegio1 or guard-room1 before a picture of his so poetically conceived and admirably wrought1 indeed so pleasing in all respects1 that you wonder still more at the dull1 uninteresting character of so many of the others4 ,yes1 here ,il ,furioso ,tintoretto1 leaving ostentatious1 barren displays of technical power1 has once again had the gentleness and patience to make himself thoroughly agreeable4 ,ariadne1 a beautiful and noble figure1 is seated undraped on a rock1 and ,bacchus1 profusely crowned with ivy1 advances from the sea1 and offers her the nuptial ring2 whilst above1 ,venus1 her back towards you1 lying horizontally in the pale blue air1 as if the blue air were her natural couch1 spreads or rather kindles1 a chaplet or circlet of stars round ,ariadne's head4 ,here1 those who luxuriate in what is typical1 may tell us1 and probably not without truth1 that ,tintoretto wished to convey a graceful hint of ,venice crowned by beauty and blessed with joy and abundance4 ,bacchus arising from the sea well signifies these latter gifts1 and the watery path by which they come to her2 and the lonely island nymph to whom he presents the wedding-ring1 may be intended to refer to the situation and original forlornness of ,venice herself1 when she sat in solitude amidst the sandy isles of the lagune1 aloof from her parental shores1 ravaged by the ,hun or the ,lombard4 ,the pale yellow sunshine on these nude figures and their light transparent shadows1 and the mild temperate blue of the calm sea and air1 almost completing the most simple arrangement of the colouring of the picture1 are still beautiful1 and no doubt were far more so before its lamentable fading1 occasioned1 it seems1 by too much exposure to light2 you feel quite out of doors1 all on the airy cliffs1 as you look on it1 and almost taste the very freshness of the sea-breeze4 ,the ,art ,journal 7,london1 #aheg74 ,,la ,,cruche ,,cass,e 7,,greuze7 ,,th,,ophile ,,gautier ,one might say of ,greuze1 as of ,hogarth1 that the moral scenes which he represents appear to have been posed for and acted by excellent actors rather than copied directly from nature4 ,this is the truth1 but seen1 however1 through an interpretation and under a travesty of rusticity4 ,all is reasoned out1 full of purpose1 and leading to an end4 ,there is in every stroke what the littrateurs call ideas when they talk about painting4 ,thus ,diderot has celebrated ,greuze in the most lyric strain4 ,greuze1 however1 is not a mediocre artist3 he invented a genre unknown before his time1 and he possesses veritable qualities of a painter4 ,he has colour1 he has touch1 and his heads1 modelled by square plans and1 so to speak1 by facets1 have relief and life4 ,his draperies1 or rather his rumpled linen1 torn and treated grossly in a systematic fashion to give full value to the delicacy of the flesh1 reveal in their very negligence an easy brush4 ,la ,maldiction ,paternelle and ,le ,fils ,maudit are homilies that are well painted and of a practical moral1 but we prefer ,l',accorde du ,village1 on account of the adorable head of the fiance2 it is impossible to find anything younger1 fresher1 more innocent and more coquettishly virginal1 if these two words may be connected4 ,greuze1 and this is the cause of the renown which he enjoys now after the eclipse of his glory caused by the intervention of ,david and his school1 has a very individual talent for painting woman in her first bloom1 when the bud is about to burst into the rose and the child is about to become a maiden4 ,as in the ,eighteenth ,century all the world was somewhat libertine1 even the moralists1 ,greuze1 when he painted an ,innocence1 always took pains to open the gauze and give a glimpse of the curve of the swelling bosom2 he puts into the eyes a fiery lustre and upon the lips a dewy smile that suggests the idea that ,innocence might very easily become ,voluptuousness4 ,illustration3 ,,la ,,cruche ,,cass,e4 ,greuze4 ,la ,cruche ,casse is the model of this genre4 ,the head has still the innocence of childhood1 but the fichu is disarranged1 the rose at the corsage is dropping its leaves1 the flowers are only half held in the fold of the gown and the jug allows the water to escape through its fissure4 ,guide de l',amateur au ,muse du ,louvre 7,paris1 #ahhb74 ,,portrait ,,of ,,lady ,,cockburn ,,and ,,her ,,children 7,,reynolds7 ,,frederic ,g4 ,,stephens ,the number of ,reynolds's portraits of ladies has never been given1 probably it cannot be ascertained with precision2 it is beyond all question marvellous1 but not less so is the variety of the attitudes in which he placed the sitters1 that of the ideas he expressed1 and of the accessories with which they are surrounded2 to this end1 and to show how successfully he fitted things together1 background and figure1 compare the portrait of ,elizabeth ,hamilton1 ,countess of ,derby splendidly engraved by ,w4 ,dickinson1 with that of ,lady ,betty ,delm4 ,it is the same everywhere4 ,we believe that ,reynolds1 of that ,english school of portrait-painters of which he was the founder1 was the happiest in introducing backgrounds to his works2 to him we are for the most part indebted for that aptitude of one to the other which has so great an effect in putting the eye and mind of the observer into harmonious relationship with what may be called the motive of the portrait1 which1 indeed1 elevates a mere likeness to the character of a picture1 and affords a charming field for the display of art in pathos1 which is too often neglected1 if not utterly ignored1 by ,reynolds's successors4 ,we think he exhibited more of this valuable characteristic than any other contemporary artist4 ,lawrence aimed at it1 but with effect only commensurate to his success in painting4 ,of old1 as before the ,seventeenth ,century in ,germany and ,italy1 the art of landscape-painting per se was inefficiently cultivated1 at least expressed with irregularity1 although occasionally with force enough to show that the pathos as well as the beauty of nature were by no means unappreciated or neglected to anything like the extent which has been commonly represented by writers on ,art4 ,reynolds probably took the hint1 as he did many others of the kind1 from ,vandyck1 and gave apt backgrounds to his figures3 between these painters no one did much1 or even well in the pathetic part of the achievement4 ,since ,reynolds1 none have approached him in success4 ,it will be understood that the object of these remarks is not to suggest for the reader's consideration who painted the best landscape backgrounds as landscapes1 but who most happily adapted them to his more important themes4 ,we believe ,reynolds did so1 and will conclude our remarks by another example4 ,the landscape in the distance of ,the ,age of ,innocence is as thoroughly in keeping with the subject as it can be3 thus here are fields easy to traverse1 a few village elms1 and just seen above their tops the summits of habitations1--the hint is thus given that the child1 all innocent as she is1 has not gone far from home1 or out of sight of the household to which she belongs4444 ,illustration3 ,,portrait ,,of ,,lady ,,cockburn ,,and ,,her ,,children4 ,reynolds4 ,it has been alleged that ,reynolds never1 or rarely painted the landscape backgrounds to his pictures1 and that they were the work of ,peter ,toms1 ,r4,a41 one of his ablest assistants1 or of others who were more potent with that branch of ,art than the ,president himself4444 ,it is hard to deny to the mind which conceived the ruling idea of such pictures that honour which is assuredly due to some one1 and to whom more probably than to the painter of the faces and designer of the attitudes1 which are in such perfect harmony with the subordinate elements about them as to be completed only when the alliance is made4 ,without this alliance1 this harmony of parts1 half the significance of many of ,reynolds's pictures is obscured4 ,when we have noted this the result is at least instructive1 if not convincing1 that one mind designed1 if one hand did not invariably execute1 the whole of any important portrait by our subject4 ,our own belief is1 that whenever the landscapes or other accessories of his productions are essential to the idea expressed by the work as a whole1 then undoubtedly ,reynolds wrought these minor parts almost wholly1 if not entirely1 with his own brushes4 ,few1 if any1 of ,reynolds's family groups equals in beauty1 variety1 and spirit1 the famous ,cornelia and her ,children1 or rather ,lady ,cockburn and her three ,infants1--a work so charming1 that we can well conceive the feelings of the ,royal ,academicians of #aggd1 that long-past time1 when it was brought to be hung in the ,exhibition1 and received with clapping of hands1 as men applaud a successful musical performance1 or the fine reading of a poem4 ,every ,royal ,academician then present--the scene must have been a very curious one--stepped forward1 and in this manner saluted the work of the ,president2 they did so1 not because it was his1 but on account of its charming qualities4 ,conceive the painters1 each in his swallow-tailed coat1 his ruffles and broad cuffs1 his knee-breeches1 buckles1 long waistcoat1 and the rest of his garments of those days1 thus uniting in one acclaim4 ,the reader may judge whether or not such applause was deserved by the picture1 which tells its own story4 ,the parrot in the background was occasionally used by ,reynolds2 see the portrait of ,elizabeth1 ,countess of ,derby1 and the engraving from it by ,w4 ,dickinson4#bi ,it has been said that the only example of ,reynolds's practice in signing pictures on the border of the robes of his sitters appears in ,mrs4 ,siddons as the ,tragic ,muse2 nevertheless1 this picture of ,cornelia shows at least one exception to that asserted rule4 ,the border of ,lady ,cockburn's dress in the original is inscribed in a similar manner thus3--#agge1 ,reynolds pinxit4 ,the picture was begun in #aggc1 and is now in the possession of ,sir ,james ,hamilton1 of ,portman ,square1 who married the daughter of ,general ,sir ,james ,cockburn1 one of the boys in the picture4 ,it is noteworthy that all these children successively inherited the baronetcy2 one of them--the boy who looks over his mother's shoulder--was ,admiral ,sir ,george ,cockburn1 ,bart41 on board whose ship1 the ,northumberland1 ,napoleon was conveyed to ,st4 ,helena4 ,sir ,james1 the eldest brother1 was afterwards seventh baronet2 ,sir ,william1 the third brother1 was eighth baronet of the name1 was ,dean of ,york1 and married a daughter of ,sir ,r4 ,peel4 ,the lady was ,augusta ,anne1 daughter of the ,rev4 ,frances ,ascough1 ,d4,d41 ,dean of ,bristol1 married in #agfi1 the second wife of ,sir ,james ,cockburn1 sixth baronet of ,langton1 in the county of ,berwick1 ,m4,p4 ,she was niece of ,lord ,lyttleton4 ,for this picture in ,march1 #aggd1 ,reynolds received #ahc #aes4 ,this was probably the whole price1 and for a work of no great size1 but wealthy in matter1 the amount was small indeed4 ,it includes four portraits4 ,after comparison of the facts that the engravings1 by ,c4,w4 ,wilkin1 in stipple1 and by ,s4,w4 ,reynolds1 mezzotint1 are dated1 on the robe as aforesaid1 #agge1 and its exhibition in #aggd1 the year in which it was paid for1 we may guess that the signature and date were added by the painter after exhibiting it1 and probably while he worked on it1 with the advantage of having compared the painting with others in the ,royal ,academy4 ,the landscape recalls that glimpse of halcyon country of which we caught sight in ,the ,infant ,academy--its trees1 its glowing sky1 are equally adaptable to both subjects4 ,the picture was exhibited at the ,british ,institution in #ahdc1 and was then the property of ,sir ,james ,cockburn1 ,bart41 whose portrait it contains4 ,english ,children as painted by ,sir ,joshua ,reynolds 7,london1 #ahfg74 ,,footnotes3 #bi ,rather we should say1 see the engraving only4 ,the picture is one of the very few prime works by ,reynolds which has disappeared without records of its loss4 ,,st4 ,,cecilia 7,,raphael7 ,,percy ,,bysshe ,,shelley ,i have seen a quantity of things here--churches1 palaces1 statues1 fountains1 and pictures2 and my brain is at this moment like a portfolio of an architect1 or a print-shop1 or a common-place book4 ,i will try to recollect something of what ,i have seen2 for indeed it requires1 if it will obey1 an act of volition4 ,first1 we went to the ,cathedral1 which contains nothing remarkable1 except a kind of shrine1 or rather a marble canopy1 loaded with sculptures1 and supported on four marble columns4 ,we went then to a palace--,i am sure ,i forget the name of it--where we saw a large gallery of pictures4 ,of course1 in a picture gallery you see three hundred pictures you forget1 for one you remember4 ,i remember1 however1 an interesting picture by ,guido1 of the ,rape of ,proserpine1 in which ,proserpine casts back her languid and half-unwilling eyes1 as it were1 to the flowers she had left ungathered in the fields of ,enna4 ,we saw besides one picture of ,raphael--,st4 ,cecilia2 this is in another and higher style2 you forget that it is a picture as you look at it2 and yet it is most unlike any of those things which we call reality4 ,it is of the inspired and ideal kind1 and seems to have been conceived and executed in a similar state of feeling to that which produced among the ancients those perfect specimens of poetry and sculpture which are the baffling models of succeeding generations4 ,there is a unity and a perfection in it of an incommunicable kind4 ,the central figure1 ,st4 ,cecilia1 seems rapt in such inspiration as produced her image in the painter's mind2 her deep1 dark1 eloquent eyes lifted up2 her chestnut hair flung back from her forehead--she holds an organ in her hands--her countenance1 as it were1 calmed by the depth of its passion and rapture1 and penetrated throughout with the warm and radiant light of life4 ,she is listening to the music of heaven1 and1 as ,i imagine1 has just ceased to sing1 for the four figures that surround her evidently point1 by their attitudes1 towards her2 particularly ,st4 ,john1 who1 with a tender yet impassioned gesture1 bends his countenance towards her1 languid with the depth of his emotion4 ,at her feet lie various instruments of music1 broken and unstrung4 ,of the colouring ,i do not speak2 it eclipses nature1 yet has all her truth and softness4 ,letters from ,italy4 ,the ,prose ,works of ,percy ,bysshe ,shelley1 edited by ,harry ,buxton ,forman 7,london1 #ahhj74 ,illustration3 ,,st4 ,,cecilia4 ,raphael4 ,,the ,,last ,,supper 7,,leonardo ,,da ,,vinci7 ,,johann ,,wolfgang ,,von ,,goethe ,we will now turn to ,the ,last ,supper1 which was painted on the wall of the refectory of ,st4 ,maria delle ,gratie in ,milan4 ,the place where this picture is painted must first be considered3 for here the knowledge of this artist is focussed4 ,could anything more appropriate1 or noble1 be devised for a refectory than a parting meal which the whole world will reverence for ever8 ,several years ago when travelling we beheld this dining-room still undestroyed4 ,opposite the entrance on the narrow end on the floor of the hall stands the prior's table with a table for the monks on either side1 all three raised a step above the ground1 and now when the visitor turns around he sees painted on the wall1 above the not very high doors1 a fourth table1 at which are seated ,christ and ,his disciples1 as if they also belonged to this company4 ,it must have been an impressive sight at meal times when the tables of ,christ and the prior looked upon each other like two pictures1 and the monks found themselves enclosed between them4 ,and1 for this very reason1 the artist's judgment selected the tables of the monks for a model4 ,also the table-cloth1 with its creased folds1 embroidered stripes1 and tied corners1 was taken from the linen-room of the monastery1 while the dishes1 plates1 drinking-vessels1 and other utensils are similarly copied from those used by the monks4 ,here1 also1 no attempt was made to depict an uncertain and antiquated custom4 ,it would have been extremely unsuitable in this place to permit the holy company to recline upon cushions4 ,no6 it should be made contemporary4 ,christ should take ,his ,last ,supper with the ,dominicans in ,milan4 ,in many other respects also the picture must have produced a great effect4 ,about ten feet above the floor the thirteen figures1 each one half larger than life-size1 occupy a space twenty-eight ,parisian feet long4 ,only two of these can be seen at full length at the opposite ends of the table1 the others are half-figures1 and here1 too1 the artist found great advantage in the conditions4 ,every moral expression belongs solely to the upper part of the body1 and the feet1 in such cases1 are always in the way2 the artist has created here eleven half-figures1 whose laps and knees are hidden by the table and table-cloth under which the feet in the deep shadow are scarcely visible4 ,now1 let us transport ourselves to this place and room1 imagine the extreme moral repose which reigns in such a monastic dining-hall1 and marvel at the strong emotion and impassioned action that the painter has put into his picture whilst he has kept his work of art close to nature1 bringing it immediately in contrast with the neighbouring actual scene4 ,the exciting means which the artist employed to agitate the tranquil and holy ,supper-,table are the ,master's words3 ,there is one amongst you that betrays me4 ,the words are spoken1 and the entire company falls into consternation2 but ,he inclines ,his head with downcast looks2 the whole attitude1 the motion of the arms1 the hands1 and everything repeat with heavenly resignation which the silence itself confirms1 ,verily1 verily1 there is one amongst you that betrays ,me4 ,illustration3 ,,the ,,last ,,supper4 ,l4 da ,vinci4 ,before going any farther we must point out a great expedient1 by means of which ,leonardo principally animated this picture3 it is the motion of the hands2 only an ,italian would have discovered this4 ,with his nation the whole body is expressive1 all the limbs take part in describing an emotion1 not only passion but also thought4 ,by various gestures he can express3 ,what do ,i care8--,come here6--,this is a rascal1 beware of him6 ,he shall not live long6 ,this is a main point4 ,take heed of this1 my hearers6 ,to such a national trait1 ,leonardo1 who observed every characteristic with the greatest attention1 must have turned his searching eye2 in this the present picture is unique and one cannot observe it too much4 ,the expression of every face and every gesture is in perfect harmony1 and yet a single glance can take in the unity and the contrast of the limbs rendered so admirably4 ,the figures on both sides of our ,lord may be considered in groups of three1 and each group may be regarded as a unit1 placed in relation and still held in connection with its neighbours4 ,on ,christ's immediate right are ,john1 ,judas1 and ,peter4 ,peter1 the farthest1 on hearing the words of our ,lord1 rises suddenly1 in conformity with his vehement character1 behind ,judas1 who1 looking up with terrified countenance1 leans over the table1 tightly clutching the purse with his right hand1 whilst with the left he makes an involuntary nervous motion as if to say3 ,what may this mean8 ,what is to happen8 ,peter1 meanwhile1 with his left hand has seized the right shoulder of ,john1 who is bending towards him1 and points to ,christ1 at the same time urging the beloved disciple to ask3 ,who is the traitor8 ,he accidentally touches ,judas's side with the handle of a knife held in his right hand1 which occasions the terrified forward movement upsetting the salt-cellar1 so happily brought out4 ,this group may be considered as the one first thought of by the artist2 it is the most perfect4 ,while now on the right hand of the ,lord a certain degree of emotion seems to threaten immediate revenge1 on the left1 the liveliest horror and detestation of the treachery manifest themselves4 ,james the ,elder starts back in terror1 and with outspread arms gazes transfixed with bowed head1 like one who imagines that he already beholds with his eyes what his ears have heard4 ,thomas appears behind his shoulder1 and approaching the ,saviour raises the forefinger of his right hand to his forehead4 ,philip1 the third of this group1 rounds it off in the most pleasing manner2 he has risen1 he bends forward towards the ,master1 lays his hands upon his breast1 and says with the greatest clearness3 ,it is not ,i1 ,lord1 ,thou knowest it6 ,thou knowest my pure heart1 it is not ,i4 ,and now the three last figures on this side give us new material for reflection4 ,they are discussing the terrible news4 ,matthew turns his face eagerly to his two companions on the left1 hastily stretching out his hands towards the ,master1 and thus1 by an admirable contrivance of the artist1 he is made to connect his own group with the preceding one4 ,thaddus shows the utmost surprise1 doubt1 and suspicion2 his left hand rests upon the table1 while he has raised the right as if he intended to strike his left hand with the back of his right1 a very common action with simple people when some unexpected occurrence leads them to say3 ,did ,i not tell you so8 ,did ,i not always suspect it8--,simon sits at the end of the table with great dignity1 and we see his whole figure2 he is the oldest of all and wears a garment with rich folds1 his face and gesture show that he is troubled and thoughtful but not excited1 indeed1 scarcely moved4 ,if we now turn our eyes to the opposite end of the table1 we see ,bartholomew1 who rests on his right foot with the left crossed over it1 supporting his inclined body by firmly resting his hands upon the table4 ,he is probably trying to hear what ,john will ask of the ,lord3 this whole side appears to be inciting the favourite disciple4 ,james the ,younger1 standing near and behind ,bartholomew1 lays his left hand on ,peter's shoulder1 just as ,peter lays his on ,john's shoulder1 but ,james mildly requests the explanation whilst ,peter already threatens vengeance4 ,and as ,peter behind ,judas1 so ,james the ,younger stretches out his hand behind ,andrew1 who1 as one of the most prominent figures expresses1 with his half-raised arms and his hands stretched out directly in front1 the fixed horror that has seized him1 an attitude occurring but once in this picture1 while in other works of less genius and less reflection1 it is too often repeated4444 ,it is sad to reflect that unfortunately even when the picture was painted1 its ruin might have been predicted from the character and situation of the building4 ,duke ,louis1 out of malice or caprice1 compelled the monks to renovate their decaying monastery in this unfavourable location1 wherefore it was ill-built and as if by forced feudal labour4 ,in the old galleries we see miserable meanly-wrought columns1 great arches with small ill-assorted bricks1 the materials from old pulled-down buildings4 ,if then what is visible on the exterior is so bad1 it is also to be feared that the inner walls1 which were plastered over1 were constructed still worse4 ,this is saying nothing of weather-beaten bricks and other minerals saturated with hurtful salts which absorbed the dampness of the locality and destructively exhaled it again4 ,farther away stood the unfortunate walls to which such a great treasure was entrusted1 towards the north1 and1 moreover in the vicinity of the kitchen1 the pantry1 and the scullery2 and how sad1 that so careful an artist1 who could not select and refine his colours and clear his glaze and varnish too carefully1 was compelled by the circumstances1 or rather by the place and situation in which the picture had to stand1 to overlook the chief point upon which everything depended1 or not to take it sufficiently to heart6 ,however1 despite all this1 if the monastery had stood upon high ground1 the evil would not have been so great4 ,it lies so low1 and the ,refectory lower than the rest of the building1 that in the year #ahjj1 during a long rain1 the water stood to a depth of three palms1 which leads us also to believe that the frightful floods of #aejj also extended to this place4 ,it is to be remembered that the monks did their best to dry out this room1 but unfortunately there remained enough humidity to penetrate it through and through2 and they were even sensible of this in ,leonardo's time4 ,about ten years after the completion of the picture1 a terrible plague overran the good city1 and how could we expect that the afflicted monks1 forsaken by all the world and in fear of death1 should think of the picture in their dining-room8 ,war and numerous other misfortunes which overtook ,lombardy in the first half of the ,sixteenth ,century were the cause of the complete neglect of such works as the one we are speaking of2 the white-washed wall being especially unfavourable3 perhaps1 indeed1 the very style of painting lent itself to speedy destruction4 ,in the second half of the ,sixteenth ,century a traveller says that the picture is half spoiled2 another sees in it only a tarnished blot2 people complain that the picture is already lost1 assuredly it can scarcely be seen2 another calls it perfectly useless1 and so speak all the later authors of this period4 ,but the picture was still there1 even if it was the shadow of its former self4 ,now1 however1 from time to time fear arises lest it be lost entirely2 the cracks are increasing and run into one another1 and the great and precious surface is splitting into numberless small flakes and threatening to fall piece by piece4 ,touched by this state of affairs1 ,cardinal ,frederick ,borromeo had a copy of it made in #afab1 and we are grateful for his forethought4 ,not only did it suffer by the lapse of time1 in connection with the above-mentioned circumstances1 but the owners1 themselves1 who should have kept and preserved it1 wrought its greatest ruin and therefore have covered their memory with eternal shame4 ,it seemed to them necessary to have doors that they might pass in and out of the ,refectory2 so these were cut symmetrically through the wall upon which the picture stood4 ,they desired an impressive entrance into the room which was so precious to them4 ,a door much larger than was necessary was broken through the middle1 and1 without any feeling of reverence either for the painter or the holy company1 they ruined the feet of several apostles1 indeed1 even of ,christ4 ,and from this1 the ruin of the picture really dates4 ,now1 in order to build an arch1 a much larger opening had to be made in the wall than even for the door2 and not only was a large portion of the picture lost1 but the blows of hammers shook the picture in its own field1 and in many places the crust was loosened and some pieces were fastened on again with nails4 ,at a later period1 by a new form of bad taste1 the picture was obscured1 inasmuch as a national escutcheon was fastened under the ceiling1 almost touching the forehead of ,christ2 thus by the door from below1 so now from above also1 the ,lord's presence was cramped and degraded4 ,from this time forward the restoration was again spoken of which was undertaken at a later period4 ,but what real artist would care to undertake such a responsibility8 ,unfortunately1 in the year #agbf1 ,bellotti presented himself1 poor in art1 but at the same time1 as is usual1 with an abundant supply of presumption4 ,he1 like a charlatan1 boasted of a secret process with which he could restore the picture to its original state4 ,by means of a small sample of his work he deluded the ignorant monks who yielded to his discretion this treasure1 which he immediately surrounded with scaffolding1 and1 hidden behind it1 he painted over the entire picture with a hand shaming to art4 ,the little monks wondered at the secret1 which he communicated in a common varnish to delude them1 and gave them to understand that with this they would be able to save it from spoiling for ever4 ,whether1 on the clouding of the picture after a short time1 the monks made use of this costly remedy or not1 is unknown1 but it certainly was freshened up several times1 and indeed with water-colours in certain parts4 ,meanwhile the picture had become constantly more decayed1 and again the question arose how far it could still be preserved1 but not without much contention among artists and directors4 ,de ,giorgi1 a modest man of moderate talent1 but intelligent and zealous and with a knowledge of true art1 steadfastly refused to set his hand forward where ,leonardo had withheld his own4 ,at last1 in #aggj1 on a well-meaning order but one void of discretion1 through the indulgence of a courtly prior1 the work was transferred to a certain ,mazza1 who botched it in a masterly manner4 ,the few old original spots remaining1 although twice muddied by a foreign hand1 were an impediment to his free brush2 so he scraped them with iron and prepared bare places for the free play of his own impudent daubing1 indeed1 several heads were handled in this way4 ,friends of art were now aroused against that in ,milan1 and patrons and clients were openly blamed4 ,enthusiasm fed the fire and the fermentation became general4 ,mazza1 who had begun to paint on the right of the ,saviour1 had by this arrived at the left1 and only the heads of ,matthew1 ,thaddus1 and ,simon remained untouched4 ,he thought to cover ,bellotti's work and to vie with him in the name of a hero4 ,but ,fate willed otherwise1 for the pliant prior having been transferred1 his successor1 a friend of art1 did not delay to dismiss ,mazza forthwith2 through which step three heads were so far saved that we can accordingly judge of ,bellotti4 ,and1 indeed1 this circumstance probably gave rise to the saying3 ,there are still three heads of the genuine original remaining4 ,in #agif1 the ,french host crossed the ,alps triumphantly1 led by ,general ,bonaparte4 ,young1 crowned with fame and seeking fame1 he was drawn by the name of ,leonardo to the place that has now held us so long4 ,he immediately gave orders that no encampment should be made here lest other damage should happen1 and signed the order on his knee before he mounted his horse4 ,shortly afterwards another general disregarded these orders1 had the doors broken in1 and turned the hall into a stable4 ,mazza's coating had already lost some of its freshness and the horse steam which was worse than the steam from viands on monkish sideboards lastingly impregnated the walls1 and added new mould to the picture2 indeed1 dampness collected so heavily that it ran down leaving white streaks4 ,later1 this room was used for storing hay1 and sometimes for other purposes connected with the military1 by whom it was abused4 ,finally the ,administration succeeded in closing the place1 and even walling it in1 so that for a long time those who wished to see ,the ,last ,supper were obliged to climb a ladder leading to the pulpit from which the ,reader discoursed at meal times4 ,in the year #ahjj1 a great flood produced still more dampness4 ,in #ahja1 on the recommendation of ,vossi1 who took it upon himself to assume the ,secretaryship of the ,academy1 a door was built and the board of governors promised more care in the future4 ,finally1 in #ahjg1 the ,viceroy of ,italy gave orders that the place should be renovated and duly honoured4 ,windows were put in and scaffolding was erected in some parts to examine if there was anything more that could be done4 ,the door was transferred to the side1 and since then no considerable changes have been noticed1 although to the minute observer its dullness varies according to the state of the atmosphere4 ,although the work itself is as good as lost1 may it yet leave some slight trace to the sad but pious memory of future generations6 ,werke 7,stuttgart and ,tbingen1 #ahca71 ,vol4 ,,xxxix4 ,,the ,,children ,,of ,,charles ,i4 7,,van ,,dyck7 ,,jules ,,guiffrey ,upon his arrival in ,england ,anthonius was temporarily lodged at the house of ,edward ,norgate1 a protg of the ,earl of ,arundel1 charged by the ,king to provide for all the needs of his guest4 ,another such installation could not be repeated4 ,the sovereign himself took pains to find a suitable establishment for his painter4 ,mr4 ,carpenter cites a very curious note on this subject4 ,charles ,i4 wrote with his own hand1--,to speak with ,inigo ,jones concerning a house for ,vandike4 ,this house demanded the combination of certain conditions very difficult to meet with4 ,it was necessary that the artist should be comfortably established2 and1 on the other hand1 the ,king wished him not to be too far from the palace4 ,the architect was able to satisfy all these requirements4 ,a winter residence was found for ,van ,dyck in ,blackfriars on the right bank of the ,thames4 ,from his palace in ,whitehall1 ,charles ,i41 crossing the river in his barge1 could conveniently reach the studio of his favourite painter4 ,he took great pleasure in watching him at work and loved to forget himself during the long hours charmed by the wit and innate distinction of his entertainer4 ,during the summer season1 ,van ,dyck lived at ,eltham in the county of ,kent4 ,he probably occupied an apartment or some dependency of one of the palaces of the ,crown4 ,an annual pension of two hundred pounds sterling was assigned to him1 first of all to enable him to support a household worthy of the title bestowed upon him1--,principal ,painter in ,ordinary4 ,the portraits commanded by the ,king were paid for independently4 ,the remuneration for his works finally provided the artist with that brilliant and gorgeous life which had been his ambition for so long and which an assiduous industry had not been able to procure for him in ,flanders4 ,he had no less than six servants and several horses2 at all periods1 as we know1 he always bestowed much care and refinement upon his toilet4 ,frequenting an elegant and frivolous court could not but develop this natural disposition for all the quests of luxury4 ,illustration3 ,,portrait ,,of ,,the ,,children ,,of ,,charles ,i4 ,van ,dyck4 ,three months after his arrival1 ,van ,dyck was included in a creation of knights made on ,july #e1 #afcb4 ,charles ,i4 added still more to this favour by the gift of a chain of gold bearing a miniature of himself enriched with diamonds4 ,in many of his portraits the artist is represented with this mark of royal munificence4 ,it now devolved upon him to justify the high position to which he found himself so rapidly elevated4 ,an act of the ,privy ,seal pointed out by ,mr4 ,carpenter shows us that ,van ,dyck lost no time in satisfying the impatience of his royal protector4 ,on ,august #h1 #afcb1 the sum of #bbd was allowed him from the royal treasury for various works of painting4 ,the enumeration of these pictures furnishes precious details for the price of the artist's works4 ,it seems that from the very beginning1 a kind of tariff was adopted with common accord1 according to the size of each portrait4 ,the price of a whole length portrait was #be2 other canvases only fetched #bj2 that refers probably to personages at half length4 ,finally1 a large family picture1 representing the ,king1 the ,queen1 and their two children attained the sum of #ajj4 ,at a later period1 these figures were increased and the price of a full length portrait was raised to #dj4 ,but how many of these works1 in which1 however1 very great qualities shine1 pale before a canvas of the ,master preserved in the ,museum of ,turin6 ,we mean the picture in which the three young children of ,charles ,i4 are grouped--the ,prince of ,wales1 the ,princess ,henrietta ,maria who became the ,duchess of ,orleans1 and the ,duke of ,york4 ,all three are still in long dresses1 therefore the eldest was about five or six years old at most2 all three are standing up1 and for that reason we cannot give the youngest less than eighteen months or two years4 ,this circumstance dates the picture--it was painted in #afce4 ,we know the various portraits of the children of ,charles ,i4 disseminated in the museums and palaces of ,europe2 we have seen and admired the picture in ,dresden1 those at ,windsor1 the sketch in the ,louvre1 and the canvas in ,berlin1 a copy of the great composition which belongs to the ,queen of ,england4 ,very well6 there is not the slightest hesitation possible--not one of these pictures is comparable to that in ,turin4 ,nowhere does there exist a work of ,van ,dyck's so delicate1 so well preserved1 and so perfect in all its points4 ,with what care and worship this picture is surrounded no one can imagine4 ,the most watchful precautions and the most respectful regard are at its service4 ,we have been told that the directors of the ,museum constantly refuse to move it for the convenience of photographers4 ,a little detail hardly worth mentioning1 one would say6 ,we do not think so4 ,we consider that the authorities of the ,museum are right a thousand times1 when they possess such a chef-d'oeuvre1 not to neglect any precaution1 however insignificant it may appear1 to assure it a longer duration4 ,a fine engraving of this incomparable jewel gives a very exact idea of the arrangement and dominating qualities of the picture2 but how can we translate in black and white the shimmering of material1 the delicacy of tone1 the colouring of those robes1 rose1 blue1 and white1 of exquisite harmony and incomparable finesse4 ,what shall we say of the physiognomy1 of the grace1 and also the penetrating charm of those three child figures8 ,such a work would alone suffice for the glory of a museum1 above all when it has kept its freshness like the flowering of genius4 ,every moment of the painter was consecrated to the various members of the royal family4 ,that was natural enough4 ,charles ,i4 never desisted from watching his clever protg at work1 and spending his leisure in his studio1--the habitual rendez-vous of the young gentlemen and the beauties of fashion4 ,the establishment of the artist permitted him to receive such guests becomingly4 ,hired musicians were instructed to divert his aristocratic models during the hours of work4 ,thus he was enabled to attract and hold at his home the very best society in ,london4 ,every day at his table sat numerous guests chosen from the lite of the artists and littrateurs mingled with the greatest personages4 ,carried into the whirlwind of this light world so full of entertainment1 ,van ,dyck hastened to enjoy all the pleasures and exhaust all the delights1 without considering his strength1 or hoarding his health4444 ,the ,king would never let him stop painting the pictures of his children4 ,on his side1 ,van ,dyck brought to this task all his art1 we might say all his heart4 ,doubtless1 he derived from ,rubens and also from ,van ,balen that very lively intelligence for the graces of childhood4 ,also1 when he occupied himself in rendering those delicious faces of rosy and chubby babies1 in the midst of glimmering stuffs1 he found colours of incomparable freshness4444 ,every artist of high degree carries within himself the ideal type whose expression he pursues without pause4 ,this search imprints upon each of his works the characteristic mark of genius3 originality4 ,thus we recognize at the first glance the giants that sprang from the brain of ,michael ,angelo1 the enigmatical sirens of da ,vinci1 and those superhuman figures with which ,raphael has peopled his immortal compositions4 ,titian lived in a world of kings and magnificent princes4 ,correggio's individuality is grace of form and charm of colour2 his portion is not to be scorned4 ,the exuberant nature of ,rubens betrays itself in his least important canvases4 ,the personages of his innumerable pictures share in common the affinities of race and family which make them recognizable everywhere4 ,anthonius ,van ,dyck obeys1 likewise1 the common law4 ,each of his works is marked by that sign of originality1 which in him consists of the incessant pursuit of elegance and distinction4 ,distinction1--that is the gift par excellence1 the dominating quality of this artist1 that which constitutes his individuality1 that which marks with an indelible imprint all his glorious works1 from the first gropings of the pupil of ,rubens to those immortal images of ,charles ,i41 his family1 and his court4 ,whether he belongs to the highest spheres of society or whether he comes from the simple bourgeoisie of ,antwerp1 the model receives from ,van ,dyck's brush the most aristocratic mien4 ,one would insist that the painter spent his life only in a world of gentlemen and patricians4 ,never does he surprise even the men that he knows the best1 his most intimate friends1 in the familiar carelessness of their daily occupations4 ,rarely1 very rarely1 does it come into his mind to group them in some intimate interior scene4 ,everybody is made to pose before posterity2 each sitter has the smile to give his or her descendants the most exalted idea of his or her station and manners4 ,not one is vulgar1 not one dares to show himself in his ordinary work1 or in the careless good nature of daily life4 ,nothing alters their immutable serenity2 nothing troubles the unalterable placidity of their physiognomy4 ,let others paint the people of taverns1 the world of kermesses and peasants6 ,van ,dyck wished to be and to live for ever the painter of aristocracy4 ,antoine ,van ,dyck--sa vie et sonnoeuvre4 7,paris1 #ahhb74 ,,the ,,fighting ,t,m,,raire ,,tugged ,,to ,,her ,,last ,,berth ,,to ,,be ,,broken ,,up1 #ahch 7,,turner7 ,,john ,,ruskin ,the flag which braved the battle and the breeze ,no longer owns her4 ,exhibited at the ,academy in #ahci1 with the above lines cited in the ,catalogue4 ,of all ,turner's pictures in the ,national ,gallery this is perhaps the most notable4 ,for1 first it is the last picture he ever painted with perfect power--the last in which his execution is as firm and faultless as in middle life2 the last in which lines requiring exquisite precision1 such as those of the masts and yards of shipping1 are drawn rightly at once4 ,when he painted the ,tmraire ,turner could1 if he liked1 have painted the ,shipwreck or the ,ulysses over again2 but when he painted the ,sun of ,venice1 though he was able to do different1 and in some sort more beautiful things1 he could not have done those again4 ,his period of central power thus begins with the ,ulysses and closes with the ,tmraire4 ,the one picture1 it will be observed1 is of sunrise1 the other of sunset4 ,the one of a ship entering on its voyage1 and the other of a ship closing its course for ever4 ,the one1 in all the circumstance of the subject1 unconsciously illustrative of his own life in its triumph1 the other1 in all the circumstances of its subject1 unconsciously illustrative of his own life in its decline4 ,accurately as the first sets forth his escape to the wild brightness of nature1 to reign amidst all her happy spirits1 so does the last set forth his returning to die by the shore of the ,thames4 ,and besides having been painted in ,turner's full power1 the ,tmraire is of all his large pictures the best preserved4 ,secondly1 the subject of the picture is1 both particularly and generally1 the noblest that in an ,english ,national ,gallery could be4 ,the ,tmraire was the second ship in ,nelson's line at the ,battle of ,trafalgar2 and this picture is the last of the group which ,turner painted to illustrate that central struggle in our national history4 ,the part played by the ,tmraire in the battle will be found detailed below4 ,and1 generally1 she is a type of one of ,england's chief glories4 ,it will be always said of us1 with unabated reverence1 ,they built ships of the line4 ,take it all in all1 a ,ship of the ,line is the most honourable thing that man as a gregarious animal1 has ever produced4 ,by himself1 unhelped1 he can do better things than ships of the line2 he can make poems and pictures1 and other such concentrations of what is best in him4 ,but as a being living in flocks1 and hammering out1 with alternate strokes and mutual agreement1 what is necessary for him in those flocks1 to get or produce1 the ship of the line is his first work4 ,and as the subject was the noblest ,turner could have chosen so also was his treatment of it4 ,of all pictures of subjects not visibly involving human pain1 this is1 ,i believe1 the most pathetic that was ever painted4 ,the utmost pensiveness which can ordinarily be given to a landscape depends on adjuncts of ruin2 but no ruin was ever so affecting as this gliding of the vessel to her grave4 ,a ruin cannot be so1 for whatever memories may be connected with it1 and whatever witness it may have borne to the courage and glory of men1 it never seems to have offered itself to their danger1 and associated itself with their acts1 as a ship of battle can4 ,the mere facts of motion1 and obedience to human guidance1 double the interest of the vessel3 nor less her organized perfectness1 giving her the look1 and partly the character of a living creature1 that may indeed be maimed in limb or decrepit in frame1 but must either live or die1 and cannot be added to nor diminished from--heaped up and dragged down--as a building can4 ,and this particular ship1 crowned in the ,trafalgar hour of trial with chief victory--prevailing over the fatal vessel that had given ,nelson death--surely1 if ever anything without a soul deserved honour or affection1 we owed them here4 ,those sails that strained so full bent into the battle--that broad bow that struck the surf aside1 enlarging silently in steadfast haste full front to the shot--resistless and without reply--those triple ports whose choirs of flame rang forth in their courses1 into the fierce revenging monotone1 which1 when it died away1 left no answering voice to rise any more upon the sea against the strength of ,england--those sides that were wet with the long runlets of ,english life-blood1 like press planks at vintage1 gleaming goodly crimson down to the cast and clash of the washing foam--those pale masts that stayed themselves up against the war-ruin1 shaking out their ensigns through the thunder1 till sail and ensign drooped--steeped in the death-stilled pause of ,andalusian air1 burning with its witness-clouds of human souls at rest1--surely1 for these some sacred care might have been left in our thoughts1 some quiet space amidst the lapse of ,english waters8 ,nay1 not so4 ,we have stern keepers to trust her glory to--the fire and the worm4 ,never more shall sunset lay golden robe on her1 nor starlight tremble on the waves that part at her gliding4 ,perhaps1 where the low gate opens to some cottage-garden1 the tired traveller may ask1 idly1 why the moss grows so green on its rugged wood2 and even the sailor's child may not answer1 nor know1 that the night-dew lies deep in the war-rents of the wood of the old ,tmraire4 ,and1 lastly1 the pathos of the picture--the contrast of the old ship's past glory with her present end2 and the spectacle of the old order of the ship of the line whose flag had braved the battle and the breeze1 yielding place to the new1 in the little steam-tug--these pathetic contrasts are repeated and enforced by a technical tour de force in the treatment of the colours which is without a parallel in art4 ,and the picture itself thus combines the evidences of ,turner's supremacy alike in imagination and in skill4 ,the old masters1 content with one simple tone1 sacrificed to its unity all the exquisite gradations and varied touches of relief and change by which nature unites her hours with each other4 ,they gave the warmth of the sinking sun1 overwhelming all things in its gold1 but they did not give those gray passages about the horizon1 where1 seen through its dying light1 the cool and the gloom of night gather themselves for their victory4444 ,but in this picture1 under the blazing veil of vaulted fire1 which lights the vessel on her last path1 there is a blue1 deep1 desolate hollow of darkness out of which you can hear the voice of the night wind1 and the dull boom of the disturbed sea2 the cold deadly shadows of the twilight are gathering through every sunbeam1 and moment by moment1 as you look1 you will fancy some new film and faintness of the night has risen over the vastness of the departing form4 7,compiled from ,modern ,painters1 ,vol4 ,i4 pt4 ii4 ,sec4 ,i4 ch4 vii4 #df n41 ,sec4 ,,ii4 ch i4 #ba2 ,harbours of ,england1 p4 #ab2 and ,notes on the ,turner ,gallery1 pp4 #ge-hj47 ,illustration3 ,,the ,,fighting ,t,m,,raire4 ,turner4 ,finally a few words about the history of the picture itself may be interesting4 ,the subject of it was suggested to ,turner by ,clarkson ,stanfield 7who himself1 it will be remembered1 had painted a ,battle of ,trafalgar74 ,they were going down the river by boat1 to dine1 perhaps1 at ,greenwich1 when the old ship1 being tugged to her last berth at ,deptford1 came in sight4 ,there's a fine subject1 ,turner1 said ,stanfield4 ,this was in #ahch4 ,next year the picture was exhibited at the ,academy1 but no price was put upon it4 ,a would-be purchaser offered ,turner #cjj guineas for it4 ,he replied that it was his #bjj guinea size only1 and offered to take a commission at that price for any subject of the same size1 but with the ,tmraire itself he would not part4 ,another offer was subsequently made from ,america1 which again ,turner declined4 ,he had already mentally included the picture1 it would seem1 amongst those to be bequeathed to the nation2 and in one of the codicils to his will1 in which he left each of his executors a picture to be chosen by them in turn1 the ,tmraire was specially excepted from the pictures they might choose4#cj ,edward ,t4 ,cook1 ,a ,popular ,handbook to the ,national ,gallery4 ,,footnotes3 #cj ,mr4 ,w4 ,hale ,white recently drew up for ,mr4 ,ruskin1 from official records1 the following history of the ,tmraire4 ,to him and to ,mr4 ,ruskin ,i am indebted for permission to insert the history here4 ,it will be seen that ,turner was right in calling his picture the ,fighting ,tmraire and the critic who induced him to change the title in the engraving to the ,old ,tmraire wrong3-- ,the ,tmraire1 second-rate1 ninety-eight guns1 was begun at ,chatham1 ,july1 #agic1 and launched on the #aath ,september1 #agih4 ,she was named after an older ,tmraire taken by ,admiral ,boscawen from the ,french in #agei1 and sold in ,june1 #aghd4 ,the ,chatham ,tmraire was fitted at ,plymouth for a prison ship in #ahab1 and in #ahai she became a receiving ship and was sent to ,sheerness4 ,she was sold on the #afth ,august1 #ahch1 to ,mr4 ,j4 ,beatson for #e1ecj4 ,the ,tmraire was at the ,battle of ,trafalgar on the #bast ,october1 #ahje4 ,she was next to the ,victory1 and followed ,nelson into action2 commanded by ,captain ,elias ,harvey1 with ,thomas ,kennedy as first lieutenant4 ,her maintopmast1 the head of her mizzenmast1 her foreyard1 her starboard1 cathead and bumpkin1 and her fore and main topsail yards were shot away2 her fore and main masts so wounded as to render them unfit to carry sail1 and her bowsprit shot through in several places4 ,her rigging of every sort was cut to pieces2 the head of her rudder was taken off by the fire of the ,redoutable2 eight feet of the starboard side of the lower deck abreast of the mainmast were stove in1 and the whole of her quarter-galleries on both sides carried away4 ,forty-six men on board of her were killed1 and seventy-six wounded4444 ,the ,tmraire was built with a beakhead1 or1 in other words1 her upper works were cut off across the catheads2 a peculiarity which can be observed in ,turner's picture4 ,it was found by experience in the early part of the ,french war that this mode of construction exposed the men working the guns to the enemy's fire1 and it was afterwards abandoned4 ,it has been objected1 adds ,mr4 ,white1 that the masts and yards in the picture are too light for a ninety-eight gun ship2 but the truth is that when the vessel was sold she was juryrigged as a receiving ship1 and ,turner1 therefore1 was strictly accurate4 ,he might have seemed more accurate by putting heavier masts and yards in her2 but he painted her as he saw her4 ,this is very important1 as it gets rid of the difficulty which ,i myself have felt and expressed1 that it was very improbable that she was sold all standing in sea-going trim1 as ,i imagined ,turner intended us to believe she was sold1 and answers also the criticism just mentioned as to the disproportion between the weight of the masts and yards and the size of the hull4 ,part of the ,tmraire1 ,mr4 ,white tells me1 is still in existence4 ,messrs4 ,castle1 the shipbuilders of ,millbank1 have the two figures of ,atlas which supported the sterngallery4 ,,spring 7,,botticelli7 ,,marcel ,,reymond ,of all the ancient ,italian painters1 ,botticelli has1 for several years1 been the master most in fashion4 ,why8 ,the first reason should be sought in that reaction against the pseudo-classic style of the ,renaissance which has seemed to be the dominant tendency of art in the ,nineteenth ,century4 ,but this explanation does not suffice to tell us for what reasons the favour of the public has specially fallen upon ,botticelli4 ,why select ,botticelli rather than any other artist of the ,fourteenth or ,fifteenth ,century8 ,why ,botticelli and not ,giotto1 or ,fra ,angelico1 or1 to cite none but his contemporaries1 why not ,signorelli1 or ,ghirlandajo8 ,it is because ,fra ,angelico's art is too religious for our century and ,giotto's art too philosophical1 or1 at least1 it is because our century no longer thinks of demanding from its artists1 as in the time of ,giotto and ,fra ,angelico1 the expression of the moral questions with which it is occupied4 ,and if we seem to-day somewhat indifferent to the art of ,ghirlandajo1 or ,signorelli1 it is because their thought is too grave and because we desire before all else that art shall bring smiles into our laborious life2 we demand that it shall give repose to our tired brains by charming us with the vision of all terrestrial beauties1 without exacting any labour or any effort from our minds4 ,in this quest of beauty1 our curious minds1 which know so many things and which have been able to compare the works of the most diverse civilizations1 are perpetually seeking novelty1 eager for rare forms1 and inimical to everything banal and to everything that ordinary life brings before our eyes4 ,and in our fin de sicle we have been so much the more prone to subtle pursuits because for some time our ,french art has seemed to take delight in the forms of a gross realism4 ,this refinement of art1 this intimate analysis of form and thought1 this love of sensual beauty1 had appeared at the court of the ,medici by the same causes that prompt us to seek them2 they are the fruit of a society that has attained the highest degree of well-being1 wealth and knowledge4 ,this kind of art lasted only for a moment in ,florence4 ,it is correct to say that ,florentine art did not seem destined to speak the charms of feminine beauty4 ,from its beginning1 this school had been stamped by ,giotto with the philosophic impress1 and for two centuries its artists had been before everything else1 thinkers1 occupied more with moral ideas than with the beauty of form4 ,the first in ,florence to be enthralled by the charm of beautiful eyes was the poor ,filippo ,lippi4 ,it was he who created that new form of art which was to continue with ,botticelli1 his pupil1 and which attained its perfection under the hands of ,leonardo4 ,if1 to the ,lucrezia ,buti of ,filippo ,lippi1 we join ,botticelli's ,simonetta and ,leonardo's ,monna ,lisa1 we should have the poem of love sung by ,florentine genius under its most exquisite form4 ,illustration3 ,,spring4 ,botticelli4 ,what ,botticelli was1 ,spring will tell us2 and this work is so significant1 its essence expresses the thought of the master so clearly that it has preserved all its charm for us1 although its particular meaning is not known to us4 ,we call it ,spring1 but if one of the figures in the picture really represents ,spring1 it is only an accessory figure2 and1 moreover1 this name given to the picture is entirety modern4 ,vasari says that it represents ,venus surrounded by the ,graces1 but if we find the three ,graces in the picture1 it is not likely that the principal figure represents ,venus4 ,in my opinion1 it is that principal figure that is the key to the picture2 it is for this figure that everything has been done1 and this it is1 above all1 that we must interrogate if we wish to know ,botticelli's meaning4 ,evidently it is neither ,venus1 nor ,spring2 and the precision of the features1 and the fidelity of the smallest details of the costume make us believe that we are in the presence of a veritable portrait4444 ,around her1 ,nature adorns herself with flowers2 ,spring and the ,graces surround her like a train of ,fays4 ,here is one of the familiar poetical forms of the ,fifteenth ,century2 and1 doubtless1 by attentively reading the ,florentine poets1 we should discover the meaning of all the allegorical figures that ,botticelli has united in his work and which we do not understand4#ca ,but whatever may be the particular meaning of each of these figures1 it is certain that here we have to do with love and beauty1 and that perhaps in no other work may we find the charm of woman described in more passionate accents4 ,in this world of feminine fascination ,botticelli loved everything4 ,he knows the attraction of the toilet and of jewels1 but he knows above all that no gem and no invention of man can rival the beauty of the female form4 ,he was the first to understand the exquisite charm of silhouettes1 the first to linger in expressing the joining of the arm and body1 the flexibility of the hips1 the roundness of the shoulders1 the elegance of the leg1 the little shadow that marks the springing of the neck1 and1 above all1 the exquisite carving of the hand4 ,but1 even more1 he understood le prestige insolent des grands yeux1--large eyes1 full1 restless1 and sad1 because they are filled with love4 ,look at these young maidens of ,botticelli's4 ,what a heavenly vision6 ,did ,alfred de ,musset know these veiled forms that seem to float over the meadow and did he think of them in the sleeplessness of his nights of ,may8 ,did he think of that young girl whose arm rises supple as the stem of a flower1 of that young ,grace so charming in the frame of her fair hair confined by strings of pearls1 or1 indeed1 of that ,primavera1 who advances so imperiously beautiful1 in her long robe of brocade1 scattering handfuls of flowers that she makes blossom1 or of that young mother more charming still in her modest grace1 with her beautiful eyes full of infinite tenderness4 ,and around this scene1 what a beautiful frame of verdure and flowers6 ,nature has donned her richest festal robes2 the inanimate things1 like the human beings1 all speak of love and happiness1 and tell us that the master of this world is that little child with bandaged eyes1 who amuses himself by shooting his arrows of fire4 ,to say a word about the technique of this work1 we should remark that ,botticelli always painted in fresco or distemper1 and that he did not seek the supple modelling that painting in oil affords2 and1 on the other hand1 he submitted profoundly to the influence of ,pollaiolo2 he observed ,nature with the eyes of a goldsmith2 and he painted his works as if1 working a niello or enamel1 he had to set each figure in gold-wire4 ,finally1 is it necessary to speak of the date of the ,primavera8 ,this would occasion a long discussion if the space were accorded me4 ,let it suffice to say that the biography written by ,vasari merits no credence1 that it has been unfortunately accepted by the majority of historians1 and that we have not yet a good chronology of ,botticelli's works1 nor even a simple catalogue4 ,as for the chronology1 most historians1 relying upon ,vasari1 place nearly all of ,botticelli's works before his trip to ,rome in #adha4 ,i think1 on the contrary1 and ,i will prove it elsewhere1 that the great productive period of ,botticelli belongs to the ten last years of the century and that the ,primavera should be classed in this period4 ,the ,primavera represents1 with ,the ,birth of ,venus and ,the ,adoration of the ,magi1 the culminating point of ,botticelli's art4 ,jouin1 ,chefs-d'oeuvre2 ,peinture1 ,sculpture1 ,architecture 7,paris1 #ahie-ig74 ,,footnotes3 #ca ,see notably the ,stanze of ,politian1 where one will find nearly all the details of ,botticelli's picture2 the shady grove1 the flowery meadow1 even the attitudes and the garments of the personages4 ,is it not a figure of ,botticelli's which is thus described3 ,she is white and white is her robe1 ,all painted with flowers1 roses1 and blades of grass4 ,transcriber's ,notes3 a ,possible typo for sinister8 b ,van die ,beroerlicke ,tijden in die ,nederlanden4 ,tijden appears in text as ,tij den4 ,other sources give ,tyden as another spelling4 ,most of the illustrations in this book have links to colored images on other sites on the internet4 ,if the links don't work1 try the ,web ,gallery of ,art at http3_/_/www4wga4hu_/ ,then search for the artist or painting of interest4 ,since this is not an html file1 you may wish to copy to link you are interested in1 into your browser1 where you can view the related image4 ,,botticelli ,the ,birth of ,venus ,florence #f http3_/_/www4wga4hu_/art_/b_/botticel_/# e;allegor_/#cj;birth4jpg ,,veronese ,the ,queen of ,sheba ,turin #af ,,michael ,,angelo ,the ,last ,judgment ,rome #ah http3_/_/gallery4euroweb4hu_/art_/m_/mic helan_/#csistina_/lastjudg_/#jlastjud4jp g ,,correggio ,magdalen ,dresden #bh ,,van ,,der ,,helst ,the ,banquet of the ,arquebusiers ,amsterdam #cd http3_/_/gallery4euroweb4hu_/art_/h_/hel st_/celebrat4jpg ,,watteau ,l',embarquement pour l'le de ,cythre ,paris #ch http3_/_/gallery4euroweb4hu_/art_/w_/wat teau_/antoine_/#a_/jg;cythe#a4;jpg ,,raphael ,the ,sistine ,madonna ,dresden #df http3_/_/gallery4euroweb4hu_/art_/r_/rap hael_/#eroma_/#b_/jcsisti4jpg ,,carpaccio ,the ,dream of ,st4 ,ursula ,venice #eh http3_/_/gallery4euroweb4hu_/art_/c_/car pacci_/#aursula_/#b_/ej;dream4jpg ,,rubens ,the ,descent from the ,cross ,antwerp #fb http3_/_/gallery4euroweb4hu_/art_/r_/rub ens_/#aareligi_/#jg;desce#a4;jpg ,,titian ,bacchus and ,ariadne ,london #gb http3_/_/gallery4euroweb4hu_/art_/t_/tiz iano_/mytholo#a_/;bacchus4jpg ,,fra ,,angelico ,the ,coronation of the ,virgin ,paris #gh http3_/_/gallery4euroweb4hu_/art_/a_/ang elico_/altar_/angelic#a4;jpg ,,botticelli ,judith ,florence #hj http3_/_/gallery4euroweb4hu_/art_/b_/bot ticel_/painting_/judith4jpg ,,hobbema ,the ,avenue of ,middelharnais ,london #hh http3_/_/gallery4euroweb4hu_/art_/h_/hob bema_/alley4jpg ,,andrea ,,del ,,sarto ,the ,dance of the ,daughter of ,herodias ,florence #id ,,fabriano ,the ,adoration of the ,magi ,florence #ih http3_/_/gallery4euroweb4hu_/art_/g_/gen tile_/adormag4jpg ,,holbein ,portrait of ,georg ,gisze ,berlin #ajb http3_/_/gallery4euroweb4hu_/art_/h_/hol bein_/hansy_/#aece_/b;gisze4jpg ,,tintoret ,paradise ,venice #ajf ,,guido ,,reni ,aurora ,rome #aad http3_/_/gallery4euroweb4hu_/art_/r_/ren i_/#a_/;aurora4jpg ,,titian ,the ,assumption of the ,virgin ,venice #abj ,,rembrandt ,the ,night ,watch ,amsterdam #abd http3_/_/gallery4euroweb4hu_/art_/r_/rem bran_/painting_/group_/nightwa4jpg ,,gozzoli ,the ,rape of ,helen ,london #ach ,l4 ,,da ,,vinci ,monna ,lisa ,paris #adb http3_/_/gallery4euroweb4hu_/art_/l_/leo nardo_/#jd_/amonali4jpg ,,van ,,eyck ,the ,adoration of the ,lamb ,ghent #aed http3_/_/www4wga4hu_/art_/e_/eyckvan_/ja n_/#ji;ghent_/#aopen#c_/l#c;adora4jpg ,,piero ,,di ,,cosimo ,the ,death of ,procris ,london #afh http3_/_/gallery4euroweb4hu_/art_/p_/pie ro_/cosimo_/allegory_/procris4jpg ,,tintoret ,the ,marriage in ,cana ,venice #agb http3_/_/www4wga4hu_/art_/t_/tintoret_/# breligio_/marriage4jpg ,,de ,,la ,,tour ,portrait of ,madame de ,pompadour ,paris #agh ,,constable ,the ,hay ,wain ,london #ahd http3_/_/www4wga4hu_/art_/c_/constabl_/h aywain4jpg ,,velasquez ,the ,surrender of ,breda ,madrid #aib http3_/_/gallery4euroweb4hu_/art_/v_/vel azque_/#afca-ce_/jd;breda4jpg ,,murillo ,the ,immaculate ,conception ,paris #aif http3_/_/gallery4euroweb4hu_/art_/m_/mur illo_/#affa-_/;immacula4jpg ,,giotto ,st4 ,frances before the ,soldan ,florence #bjb http3_/_/gallery4euroweb4hu_/art_/g_/gio tto_/scroce_/#b;bardi_/scenes#b_/;franci #f4;jpg ,,rossetti ,lilith ,rockford1 ,del4 #bab http3_/_/www4victorianweb4org_/painting_ /dgr_/paintings_/#d4;jpg ,d,,rer ,the ,adoration of the ,magi ,florence #baf http3_/_/gallery4euroweb4hu_/art_/d_/dur er_/#a_/jd_/b;adorat4jpg ,,hogarth ,the ,marriage ,a-la-,mode ,london #bah http3_/_/gallery4euroweb4hu_/art_/h_/hog arth_/marriag#a4;jpg ,l4 ,,da ,,vinci ,the ,madonna of the ,rocks ,paris #bcd http3_/_/gallery4euroweb4hu_/art_/l_/leo nardo_/#jb_/bvirgp4jpg ,,guido ,,reni ,portrait of ,beatrice ,cenci ,rome #bdj http3_/_/gallery4euroweb4hu_/art_/s_/sir ani_/bcenci4jpg ,,raphael ,the ,transfiguration ,rome #bej http3_/_/gallery4euroweb4hu_/art_/r_/rap hael_/#eroma_/#e_/ajtrans4jpg ,,paul ,,potter ,the ,bull ,the ,hague #bef http3_/_/gallery4euroweb4hu_/art_/p_/pot ter_/ybull4jpg ,,fragonard ,corsus and ,callirho ,paris #bfb http3_/_/gallery4euroweb4hu_/art_/f_/fra gonar_/#a_/jf;coresu4jpg ,,gainsborough ,the ,market-,cart ,london #bfh ,,tintoret ,bacchus and ,ariadne ,venice #bgd http3_/_/gallery4euroweb4hu_/art_/t_/tin toret_/#dmytholo_/ariadne4jpg ,,greuze ,la ,cruche ,casse ,paris #bhj http3_/_/gallery4euroweb4hu_/art_/g_/gre uze_/brokenj4jpg ,,reynolds ,portrait of ,lady ,cockburn and her ,children ,london #bhb http3_/_/gallery4euroweb4hu_/art_/r_/rey nolds_/cockburn4jpg ,,raphael ,st4 ,cecilia ,naples #bhh http3_/_/www4abcgallery4com_/,r_/raphael _/raphael#de4;,,jpg ,l4 ,,da ,,vinci ,the ,last ,supper ,milan #bij http3_/_/gallery4euroweb4hu_/art_/l_/leo nardo_/#jc_/dlastsu#b4;jpg ,,van ,,dyck ,portrait of the ,children of ,charles ,i4 ,turin #cjj http3_/_/www4abcgallery4com_/,v_/vandyck _/vandyck#bh4;,,jpg ,,turner ,the ,fighting ,tmraire ,london #cjf http3_/_/www4j-m-w-turner4co4uk_/artist_ /gifetc_/tameria4jpg ,,botticelli ,spring ,florence #cad http3_/_/gallery4euroweb4hu_/art_/b_/bot ticel_/allegory_/primaver4jpg