file which includes the original illustrations4 ,see #bdfej-;h4htm or #bdfej-;h4zip3 7https3_/_/www4gutenberg4org_/dirs_/#b_/ d_/f_/e_/bdfej_/bdfej-;h_/#bdfej-;h4htm7 or 7https3_/_/www4gutenberg4org_/dirs_/#b_/ d_/f_/e_/bdfej_/bdfej-;h4zip7 ,transcriber's notes3 ,obvious printer's errors have been corrected4 ,all other inconsistencies are as in the original4 ,the author's spelling has been retained4 ,page #agj3 ,the end punctuation of ,what means this affectation of navet4 has been changed to ,what means this affectation of navet84 ,all illustrations are sketches of 7possibly7 ,butterflies4 ,,the ,,gentle ,,art ,,of ,,making ,,enemies by ,,james ,,abbott ,,mcneill ,,whistler ,illustration ,,the ,,gentle ,,art ,,of ,,making ,,enemies ,illustration ,chelsea ,,an ,,extraordinary ,,piratical ,,plot ,sidenote3 ,american ,register1 ,paris1 ,march #h1 #ahij4 ,a most curiously well-concocted piratical scheme to publish1 without his knowledge or consent1 a complete collection of ,mr4 ,whistler's writings1 letters1 pamphlets1 lectures1 c41 has been nipped in the bud on the very eve of its accomplishment4 ,it appears that the book was actually in type and ready for issue1 but the plan was to bring out the work simultaneously in ,england and ,america4 ,this caused delay1 the plates having to be shipped to ,new ,york1 and the strain of secrecy upon the conspirators during the interval would seem to have been too great4 ,in any case indications of surrounding mystery1 quite sufficient to arouse ,mr4 ,whistler's attention1 brought about his rapid action4 ,messrs4 ,lewis and ,lewis were instructed to take out immediate injunction against the publication in both ,england and ,america1 and this information1 at once cabled across1 warning all publishers in the ,united ,states1 exploded the plot1 effectually frustrating the elaborate machinations of those engaged in it4 ,,seizure ,,of ,,mr ,,whistler',s ,,pirated ,,writings ,sidenote3 ,new ,york ,herald1 ,london ,edition1 ,march #bc1 #ahij4 ,this pirated collection of letters1 writings1 c41 to whose frustrated publication in this country and ,america we have already alluded1 was seized in ,antwerp1 at the printers'1 on ,friday last--the very day of its contracted delivery4 ,the persistent and really desperate speculator in this volume of difficult birth1 baffled in his attempt to produce it in ,london and ,new ,york had been tracked to ,antwerp by ,messrs4 ,lewis and ,lewis2 and he was finally brought down by ,matre ,maeterlinck1 the distinguished lawyer of that city4 ,,the ,,exploded ,,plot ,sidenote3 ,pall ,mall ,gazette1 ,march #bg1 #ahij4 ,with regard to this matter1 to which we have already alluded on a previous occasion1 ,messrs4 ,lewis and ,lewis have received the following letter from ,messrs4 ,field and ,tuer1 of the ,leadenhall ,press1 dated ,march #be1 #ahij3-- ,we have seen the paragraph in yesterday's ',pall ,mall ,gazette' relating to the publication of ,mr4 ,whistler's letters4 ,you may like to know that we recently put into type for a certain person a series of ,mr4 ,whistlers letters and other matter1 taking it for granted that ,mr4 ,whistler had given permission4 ,quite recently1 however1 and fortunately in time to stop the work being printed1 we were told that ,mr4 ,whistler objected to his letters being published4 ,we then sent for the person in question1 and told him that until he obtained ,mr4 ,whistler's sanction we declined to proceed further with the work1 which1 we may tell you1 is finished and cast ready for printing1 and the type distributed4 ,from the time of this interview we have not seen or heard from the person in question1 and there the matter rests4 ,,mr4 ,,whistler',s ,,paper ,,hunt ,sidenote3 ,sunday ,times1 ,march #cj1 #ahij4 ,the fruitless attempt to publish without his consent1 or rather in spite of his opposition1 the collected writings of ,mr4 ,whistler has developed into a species of chase from press to press1 and from country to country4 ,with an extraordinary fatality1 the unfortunate fugitive has been invariably allowed to reach the very verge of achievement before he was surprised by the long arm of ,messrs4 ,lewis and ,lewis4 ,each defeat has been consequently attended with infinite loss of labour1 material and money4 ,our readers have been told how the ,london venture came to nought1 and how it was frustrated in ,america4 ,the venue was then changed1 and ,belgium1 as a neutral ground1 was supposed possible2 but here again1 on the very day of its delivery1 the edition of #bjjj vols4 was seized by ,m4 le ,procureur du ,roi1 and under the nose of the astounded and discomfited speculator1 the packed and corded bales1 of which he was about to take possession1 were carried off in the ,government van6 ,the upshot of the untiring efforts of this persistent adventurer at length results in furnishing ,mr4 ,whistler with the first and only copy of this curious work1 which was certainly anything but the intention of its compiler1 who clearly1 judging from its contents1 had reserved for him an unpleasing if not crushing surprise6 ,a ,,great ,,literary ,,curiosity ,sidenote3 ,pall ,mall ,gazette4 ,march #ahij4 ,i have to-day seen the printed book itself of the ,collected ,writings of ,mr4 ,whistler1 whose publication has proved so comically impossible4 ,the style of the preface and accessory comments is in the worst style of ,western editorship2 while the disastrous effect of ,mr4 ,whistler's literature upon the one who has burned his fingers with it1 is amusingly shown4 ,in the index occur such well-known names as ,mr4 ,j4 ,c4 ,horsley1 ,r4,a41 ,mr4 ,labouchere1 ,mr4 ,ruskin1 ,mr4 ,linley ,sambourne1 ,mr4 ,swinburne1 ,tom ,taylor1 ,mr4 ,frith1 and ,rossetti4 ,the famous catalogue of the ,second ,exhibition of ,venice ,etchings1 ,february #ai1 #ahhc1 in which ,mr4 ,whistler quotes the critics1 is also given4 ,a ,,last ,,effort ,sidenote3 ,pall ,mall ,gazette1 ,april #i1 #ahij4 ,we hear that a third attempt has been made to produce the pirated copy of ,mr4 ,whistler's collected writings4 ,messrs4 ,lewis and ,lewis have at once taken legal steps to stop the edition 7printed in ,paris7 at the ,customs4 ,a cablegram has been received by ,mr4 ,whistler's solicitors stating that ,messrs4 ,stokes's name has been affixed to the title-page of the pirated book without the sanction of those publishers4 ,,the ,,gentle ,,art ,,of ,,making ,,enemies ,,as ,,pleasingly ,,exemplified ,,in ,,many ,,instances1 ,,wherein ,,the ,,serious ,,ones ,,of ,,this ,,earth1 ,,carefully ,,exasperated1 ,,have ,,been ,,prettily ,,spurred ,,on ,,to ,,unseemliness ,,and ,,indiscretion1 ,,while ,,overcome ,,by ,,an ,,undue ,,sense ,,of ,,right ,illustration ,a ,,new ,,edition ,,london ,,mdcccxcii ,,william ,,heinemann ,rights of ,translation and ,reproduction reserved4 ,illustration ,to ,the rare ,few1 who1 early in ,life1 have rid ,themselves of the ,friendship of the ,many1 these pathetic ,papers are inscribed ,,messieurs ,,les ,,ennemis6 ,illustration ,prologue ,sidenote3 ,professor ,john ,ruskin in ,fors ,clavigera1 ,july #b1 #ahgg4 ,for ,mr4 ,whistler's own sake1 no less than for the protection of the purchaser1 ,sir ,coutts ,lindsay ought not to have admitted works into the gallery in which the ill-educated conceit of the artist so nearly approached the aspect of wilful imposture4 ,i have seen1 and heard1 much of cockney impudence before now2 but never expected to hear a coxcomb ask two hundred guineas for flinging a pot of paint in the public's face4 ,,john ,,ruskin4 ,the ,action ,sidenote3 ,lawsuit for ,libel against ,mr4 ,ruskin ,nov4 #ae1 #ahgh4 ,in the ,court of ,exchequer ,division on ,monday1 before ,baron ,huddleston and a special jury1 the case of ,whistler v4 ,ruskin came on for hearing4 ,in this action the plaintiff claimed #ajjj damages4 ,mr4 ,serjeant ,parry and ,mr4 ,petheram appeared for the plaintiff2 and the ,attorney-,general and ,mr4 ,bowen represented the defendant4 ,mr4 ,,serjeant ,,parry1 in opening the case on behalf of the plaintiff1 said that ,mr4 ,whistler had followed the profession of an artist for many years1 both in this and other countries4 ,mr4 ,ruskin1 as would be probably known to the gentlemen of the jury1 held perhaps the highest position in ,europe and ,america as an art critic1 and some of his works were1 he might say1 destined to immortality4 ,he was1 in fact1 a gentleman of the highest reputation4 ,in the ,july number of ,fors ,clavigera there appeared passages in which ,mr4 ,ruskin criticised what he called the modern school1 and then followed the paragraph of which ,mr4 ,whistler now complained1 and which was3 ,for ,mr4 ,whistler's own sake1 no less than for the protection of the purchaser1 ,sir ,coutts ,lindsay ought not to have admitted works into the gallery in which the ill-educated conceit of the artist so nearly approached the aspect of wilful imposture4 ,i have seen1 and heard1 much of cockney impudence before now2 but never expected to hear a coxcomb ask two hundred guineas for flinging a pot of paint in the public's face4 ,that passage1 no doubt1 had been read by thousands1 and so it had gone forth to the world that ,mr4 ,whistler was an ill-educated man1 an impostor1 a cockney pretender1 and an impudent coxcomb4 ,mr4 ,,whistler1 cross-examined by the ,,attorney-,,general1 said3 ,i have sent pictures to the ,academy which have not been received4 ,i believe that is the experience of all artists4444 ,the nocturne in black and gold is a night piece1 and represents the fireworks at ,cremorne4 ,not a view of ,cremorne8 ,if it were called a view of ,cremorne1 it would certainly bring about nothing but disappointment on the part of the beholders4 7,laughter47 ,it is an artistic arrangement4 ,it was marked two hundred guineas4 ,is not that what we1 who are not artists1 would call a stiffish price8 ,i think it very likely that that may be so4 ,but artists always give good value for their money1 don't they8 ,i am glad to hear that so well established4 7,a laugh47 ,i do not know ,mr4 ,ruskin1 or that he holds the view that a picture should only be exhibited when it is finished1 when nothing can be done to improve it1 but that is a correct view2 the arrangement in black and gold was a finished picture1 ,i did not intend to do anything more to it4 ,now1 ,mr4 ,whistler4 ,can you tell me how long it took you to knock off that nocturne8 444 ,i beg your pardon8 7,laughter47 ,oh6 ,i am afraid that ,i am using a term that applies rather perhaps to my own work4 ,i should have said1 ,how long did you take to paint that picture8 ,oh1 no6 permit me1 ,i am too greatly flattered to think that you apply1 to work of mine1 any term that you are in the habit of using with reference to your own4 ,let us say then how long did ,i take to--'knock off1' ,i think that is it--to knock off that nocturne2 well1 as well as ,i remember1 about a day4 ,only a day8 ,well1 ,i won't be quite positive2 ,i may have still put a few more touches to it the next day if the painting were not dry4 ,i had better say then1 that ,i was two days at work on it4 ,oh1 two days6 ,the labour of two days1 then1 is that for which you ask two hundred guineas6 ,no2--,i ask it for the knowledge of a lifetime4 7,applause47 ,you have been told that your pictures exhibit some eccentricities8 ,yes2 often4 7,laughter47 ,you send them to the galleries to incite the admiration of the public8 ,that would be such vast absurdity on my part1 that ,i don't think ,i could4 7,laughter47 ,you know that many critics entirely disagree with your views as to these pictures8 ,it would be beyond me to agree with the critics4 ,you don't approve of criticism then8 ,i should not disapprove in any way of technical criticism by a man whose whole life is passed in the practice of the science which he criticises2 but for the opinion of a man whose life is not so passed ,i would have as little regard as you would1 if he expressed an opinion on law4 ,you expect to be criticised8 ,yes2 certainly4 ,and ,i do not expect to be affected by it1 until it becomes a case of this kind4 ,it is not only when criticism is inimical that ,i object to it1 but also when it is incompetent4 ,i hold that none but an artist can be a competent critic4 ,you put your pictures upon the garden wall1 ,mr4 ,whistler1 or hang them on the clothes line1 don't you--to mellow8 ,i do not understand4 ,do you not put your paintings out into the garden8 ,oh6 ,i understand now4 ,i thought1 at first1 that you were perhaps again using a term that you are accustomed to yourself4 ,yes2 ,i certainly do put the canvases into the garden that they may dry in the open air while ,i am painting1 but ,i should be sorry to see them 'mellowed4' ,why do you call ,mr4 ,irving 'an arrangement in black'8 7,laughter47 ,mr4 ,,baron ,,huddleston3 ,it is the picture and not ,mr4 ,irving that is the arrangement4 ,a discussion ensued as to the inspection of the pictures1 and incidentally ,baron ,huddleston remarked that a critic must be competent to form an opinion1 and bold enough to express that opinion in strong terms if necessary4 ,the ,,attorney-,,general complained that no answer was given to a written application by the defendant's solicitors for leave to inspect the pictures which the plaintiff had been called upon to produce at the trial4 ,the ,,witness replied that ,mr4 ,arthur ,severn had been to his studio to inspect the paintings1 on behalf of the defendant1 for the purpose of passing his final judgment upon them and settling that question for ever4 ,cross-examination continued3 ,what was the subject of the nocturne in blue and silver belonging to ,mr4 ,grahame8 ,a moonlight effect on the river near old ,battersea ,bridge4 ,what has become of the nocturne in black and gold8 ,i believe it is before you4 7,laughter47 ,the picture called the nocturne in blue and silver1 was now produced in ,court4 ,that is ,mr4 ,grahame's picture4 ,it represents ,battersea ,bridge by moonlight4 ,,baron ,,huddleston3 ,which part of the picture is the bridge8 7,laughter47 ,his ,lordship earnestly rebuked those who laughed4 ,and witness explained to his ,lordship the composition of the picture4 ,do you say that this is a correct representation of ,battersea ,bridge8 ,i did not intend it to be a 'correct' portrait of the bridge4 ,it is only a moonlight scene and the pier in the centre of the picture may not be like the piers at ,battersea ,bridge as you know them in broad daylight4 ,as to what the picture represents that depends upon who looks at it4 ,to some persons it may represent all that is intended2 to others it may represent nothing4 ,the prevailing colour is blue8 ,perhaps4 ,are those figures on the top of the bridge intended for people8 ,they are just what you like4 ,is that a barge beneath8 ,yes4 ,i am very much encouraged at your perceiving that4 ,my whole scheme was only to bring about a certain harmony of colour4 ,what is that gold-coloured mark on the right of the picture like a cascade8 ,the 'cascade of gold' is a firework4 ,a second nocturne in blue and silver was then produced4 ,,witness3 ,that represents another moonlight scene on the ,thames looking up ,battersea ,reach4 ,i completed the mass of the picture in one day4 ,the ,court then adjourned4 ,during the interval the jury visited the ,probate ,court to view the pictures which had been collected in the ,westminster ,palace ,hotel4 ,after the ,court had re-assembled the ,nocturne in ,black and ,gold was again produced1 and ,mr4 ,,whistler was further cross-examined by the ,,attorney-,,general3 ,the picture represents a distant view of ,cremorne with a falling rocket and other fireworks4 ,it occupied two days1 and is a finished picture4 ,the black monogram on the frame was placed in its position with reference to the proper decorative balance of the whole4 ,you have made the study of ,art your study of a lifetime4 ,now1 do you think that anybody looking at that picture might fairly come to the conclusion that it had no peculiar beauty8 ,i have strong evidence that ,mr4 ,ruskin did come to that conclusion4 ,do you think it fair that ,mr4 ,ruskin should come to that conclusion8 ,what might be fair to ,mr4 ,ruskin ,i cannot answer4 ,then you mean1 ,mr4 ,whistler1 that the initiated in technical matters might have no difficulty in understanding your work4 ,but do you think now that you could make me see the beauty of that picture8 ,the witness then paused1 and examining attentively the ,attorney-,general's face and looking at the picture alternately1 said1 after apparently giving the subject much thought1 while the ,court waited in silence for his answer3 ,no6 ,do you know ,i fear it would be as hopeless as for the musician to pour his notes into the ear of a deaf man4 7,laughter47 ,i offer the picture1 which ,i have conscientiously painted1 as being worth two hundred guineas4 ,i have known unbiassed people express the opinion that it represents fireworks in a night-scene4 ,i would not complain of any person who might simply take a different view4 ,the ,court then adjourned4 ,the ,,attorney-,,general1 in resuming his address on behalf of the defendant on ,tuesday1 said he hoped to convince the jury1 before his case closed1 that ,mr4 ,ruskin's criticism upon the plaintiff's pictures was perfectly fair and bon fide2#a and that1 however severe it might be1 there was nothing that could reasonably be complained of4444 ,let them examine the nocturne in blue and silver1 said to represent ,battersea ,bridge4 ,what was that structure in the middle8 ,was it a telescope or a fire-escape8 ,was it like ,battersea ,bridge8 ,what were the figures at the top of the bridge8 ,and if they were horses and carts1 how in the name of fortune were they to get off8 ,now1 about these pictures1 if the plaintiff's argument was to avail1 they must not venture publicly to express an opinion1 or they would have brought against them an action for damages4 ,note #a3 ,enter now the great room with the ,veronese at the end of it1 for which the painter 7quite rightly7 was summoned before the ,inquisition of ,state4--,prof4 ,,john ,,ruskin3 ,guide to ,principal ,pictures1 ,academy of ,fine ,arts1 ,venice4 ,after all1 ,critics had their uses4#b ,he should like to know what would become of ,poetry1 of ,politics1 of ,painting1 if ,critics were to be extinguished8 ,every ,painter struggled to obtain fame4 ,note #b3 ,i have now given up ten years of my life to the single purpose of enabling myself to judge rightly of art 444 earnestly desiring to ascertain1 and to be able to teach1 the truth respecting art2 also knowing that this truth was by time and labour definitely ascertainable4--,prof4 ,,ruskin3 ,modern ,painters1 ,vol4 ,,iii4 ,thirdly1 that ,,truths ,,of ,,colour ,,are ,,the ,,least ,,important ,,of ,,all ,,truths4--,mr4 ,,ruskin1 ,prof1 of ,art3 ,modern ,painters1 ,vol4 ,i4 ,chap4 ,v4 ,and that colour is indeed a most unimportant characteristic of objects1 would be further evident on the slightest consideration4 ,the colour of plants is constantly changing with the season 444 but the nature and essence of the thing are independent of these changes4 ,an oak is an oak1 whether green with spring1 or red with winter2 a dahlia is a dahlia1 whether it be yellow or crimson2 and if some monster hunting florist should ever frighten the flower blue1 still it will be a dahlia2 but not so if the same arbitrary changes could be effected in its form4 ,let the roughness of the bark and the angles of the boughs be smoothed or diminished1 and the oak ceases to be an oak2 but let it retain its universal structure and outward form1 and though its leaves grow white1 or pink1 or blue1 or tri-colour1 it would be a white oak1 or a pink oak1 or a republican oak1 but an oak still4--,,john ,,ruskin1 ,esq41 ,m4,a41 ,teacher and ,slade ,prof4 of ,fine ,arts3 ,modern ,painters4 ,no ,artist could obtain fame1 except through criticism4#c ,note #c3 ,canaletto1 had he been a great painter1 might have cast his reflections wherever he chose 444 but he is a little and a bad painter4--,mr4 ,,ruskin1 ,art ,critic4 ,i repeat there is nothing but the work of ,prout which is true1 living1 or right in its general impression1 and nothing1 therefore1 so inexhaustively agreeable 7sic74--,j4 ,,ruskin1 ,art ,professor3 ,modern ,painters4 444 ,as to these pictures1 they could only come to the conclusion that they were strange fantastical conceits1 not worthy to be called works of ,art4 444 ,coming to the libel1 the ,attorney-,general said it had been contended that ,mr4 ,ruskin was not justified in interfering with a man's livelihood4 ,but why not8 ,then it was said1 ,oh6 you have ridiculed ,mr4 ,whistler's pictures4 ,if ,mr4 ,whistler disliked ridicule1 he should not have subjected himself to it by exhibiting publicly such productions4 ,if a man thought a picture was a daub#d he had a right to say so1 without subjecting himself to a risk of an action4 ,note #d3 ,now it is evident that in ,rembrandt's system1 while the contrasts are not more right than with ,veronese1 the colours are all wrong from beginning to end4--,,john ,,ruskin1 ,art ,authority4 ,sidenote3 ,,reflection3 ,in conduct and in conversation1 ,it did a sinner good to hear ,him deal in ratiocination6 ,illustration ,he would not be able to call ,mr4 ,ruskin1 as he was far too ill to attend2 but1 if he had been able to appear1 he would have given his opinion of ,mr4 ,whistler's work in the witness-box4 ,he had the highest appreciation for completed pictures2#e and he required from an ,artist that he should possess something more than a few flashes of genius6#f ,note #e3 ,i was pleased by a little unpretending modern ,german picture at ,dusseldorf1 by ,bosch1 representing a boy carving a model of his sheep dog in wood4--,j4 ,,ruskin3 ,modern ,painters4 ,note #f3 ,i have just said that every class of rock1 earth and cloud must be known by the painter with geologic and meteorologic accuracy4--,slade ,prof4 ,,ruskin3 ,modern ,painters4 ,sidenote3 ,,reflection3 ,be not righteous overmuch1 neither make thyself overwise2 why shouldest thou destroy thyself6 ,illustration ,mr4 ,ruskin entertaining those views1 it was not wonderful that his attention should be attracted to ,mr4 ,whistler's pictures4 ,he subjected the pictures1 if they chose1#g to ridicule and contempt4 ,then ,mr4 ,ruskin spoke of the ill-educated#h conceit of the artist1 so nearly approaching the action of imposture4 ,if his pictures were mere extravagances1 how could it redound to the credit of ,mr4 ,whistler to send them to the ,grosvenor ,gallery to be exhibited8 ,some artistic gentleman from ,manchester1 ,leeds1 or ,sheffield might perhaps be induced to buy one of the pictures because it was a ,whistler1 and what ,mr4 ,ruskin meant was that he might better have remained in ,manchester1 ,sheffield1 or ,leeds1 with his money in his pocket4 ,it was said that the term ill-educated conceit ought never to have been applied to ,mr4 ,whistler1 who had devoted the whole of his life to educating himself in ,art2#i but ,mr4 ,ruskin's views#aj as to his success did not accord with those of ,mr4 ,whistler4 ,the libel complained of said also1 ,i never expected to hear a coxcomb ask two hundred guineas for flinging a pot of paint in the public's face4 ,what was a coxcomb8 ,he had looked the word up1 and found that it came from the old idea of the licensed jester who wore a cap and bells with a cock's comb in it1 who went about making jests for the amusement of his master and family4 ,if that were the true definition1 then ,mr4 ,whistler should not complain1 because his pictures had afforded a most amusing jest6 ,he did not know when so much amusement had been afforded to the#aa ,british ,public as by ,mr4 ,whistler's pictures4 ,he had now finished4 ,mr4 ,ruskin had lived a long life without being attacked1 and no one had attempted to control his pen through the medium of a jury4 ,mr4 ,ruskin said1 through him1 as his counsel1 that he did not retract one syllable of his criticism1 believing it was right4 ,of course1 if they found a verdict against ,mr4 ,ruskin1 he would have to cease writing1#ab but it would be an evil day for ,art1 in this country1 when ,mr4 ,ruskin would be prevented from indulging in legitimate and proper criticism1 by pointing out what was beautiful and what was not4#ac ,note #g3 ,vulgarity1 dulness1 or impiety will indeed always express themselves through art1 in brown and gray1 as in ,rembrandt4--,prof4 ,,john ,,ruskin3 ,modern ,painters4 ,note #h3 ,it is physically impossible1 for instance1 rightly to draw certain forms of the upper clouds with a brush2 nothing will do it but the palette knife with loaded white after the blue ground is prepared4--,,john ,,ruskin1 ,prof4 of ,painting4 ,note #i3 ,and thus we are guided1 almost forced1 by the laws of nature1 to do right in art4 ,had granite been white and marble speckled 7and why should this not have been1 but by the definite ,divine appointment for the good of man871 the huge figures of the ,egyptian would have been as oppressive to the sight as cliffs of snow1 and the ,venus de ,medicis would have looked like some exquisitely graceful species of frog4--,slade ,professor ,,john ,,ruskin4 ,note #aj3 ,the principal object in the foreground of ,turner's ',building of ,carthage' is a group of children sailing toy boats4 ,the exquisite choice of this incident 444 is quite as appreciable when it is told1 as when it is seen--it has nothing to do with the technicalities of painting2 444 such a thought as this is something far above all art4--,,john ,,ruskin1 ,art ,professor3 ,modern ,painters4 ,note #aa3 ,it is especially to be remembered that drawings of this simple character ,prout's and ,w4 ,hunt's were made for these same middle classes1 exclusively2 and even for the second order of middle classes1 more accurately expressed by the term 'bourgeoisie4' ,they gave an unquestionable tone of liberal-mindedness to a suburban villa1 and were the cheerfullest possible decorations for a moderate sized breakfast parlour1 opening on a nicely mown lawn4--,,john ,,ruskin1 ,art ,professor3 ,notes on ,s4 ,prout and ,w4 ,hunt4 ,note #ab3 ,it seems to me1 and seemed always probable1 that ,i might have done much more good in some other way4--,prof4 ,,john ,,ruskin1 ,art ,teacher3 ,modern ,painters1 ,vol4 ,v4 ,note #ac3 ,give thorough examination to the wonderful painting1 as such1 in the great ,veronese 444 and then1 for contrast with its reckless power1 and for final image to be remembered of sweet ,italian art in its earnestness 444 the ,beata ,catherine ,vigri's ,st4 ,ursula1 444 ,i will only say in closing1 as ,i said of the ,vicar's picture in beginning1 that it would be well if any of us could do such things nowadays--and more especially if our vicars and young ladies could4--,,john ,,ruskin1 ,prof4 of ,fine ,art3 ,guide to ,principal ,pictures1 ,academy of ,fine ,arts1 ,venice4 ,evidence was then called on behalf of the defendant4 ,witnesses for the defendant1 ,messrs4 ,edward ,burne-,jones1 ,frith1 and ,tom ,taylor4 ,mr4 ,,edward ,,burne-,,jones called4 ,mr4 ,,bowen1 by way of presenting him properly to the consideration of the ,court1 proceeded to read extracts of eulogistic appreciation of this artist from the defendant's own writings4 ,sidenote3 ,of the estimate which shall be formed of ,mr4 ,jones's own work4444 ,his work1 first1 is simply the only art-work at present produced in ,england which will be received by the future as 'classic' in its kind--the best that has been or could be4--,prof4 ,,ruskin3 ,fors ,clavigera1 ,july #b1 #ahgg4 ,the examination of witness then commenced2 and in answer to ,mr4 ,,bowen1 ,mr4 ,,jones said3 ,i am a painter1 and have devoted about twenty years to the study4 ,i have painted various works1 including the ',days of ,creation' and ',venus's ,mirror1' both of which were exhibited at the ,grosvenor ,gallery in #ahgg4 ,i have also exhibited ',deferentia1' ',fides1' ',st4 ,george1' and ',sybil4' ,i have one work1 ',merlin and ,vivian1' now being exhibited in ,paris4 ,in my opinion complete finish ought to be the object of all artists4 ,a picture ought not to fall short of what has been for ages considered complete finish4 ,mr4 ,,bowen3 ,do you see any art quality in that nocturne1 ,mr4 ,jones8 ,mr4 ,,jones3 ,yes 444 ,i must speak the truth1 you know4444 7,emotion47 ,mr4 ,,bowen3 444 ,yes4 ,well1 ,mr4 ,jones1 what quality do you see in it8 ,mr4 ,,jones3 ,colour4 ,it has fine colour1 and atmosphere4 ,mr4 ,,bowen3 ,ah4 ,well1 do you consider detail and composition essential to a work of ,art8 ,mr4 ,,jones3 ,most certainly ,i do4 ,mr4 ,,bowen3 ,then what detail and composition do you find in this nocturne8 ,mr4 ,,jones3 ,absolutely none4#ad ,note #ad3 ,,reflection3 ,there is a cunning condition of mind that requires to know4 ,on the ,stock ,exchange this insures safe investment4 ,in the painting trade this would induce certain picture-makers to cross the river at noon1 in a boat1 before negotiating a ,nocturne1 in order to make sure of detail on the bank1 that honestly the purchaser might exact1 and out of which he might have been tricked by the ,night6 ,illustration ,mr4 ,,bowen3 ,do you think two hundred guineas a large price for that picture8 ,mr4 ,,jones3 ,yes4 ,when you think of the amount of earnest work done for a smaller sum4 ,examination continued3 ,does it show the finish of a complete work of art8 ,sidenote3 ,the action of imagination of the highest power in ,burne ,jones1 under the conditions of scholarship1 of social beauty1 and of social distress1 which necessarily aid1 thwart1 and colour it in the nineteenth century1 are alone in art1--unrivalled in their kind2 and ,i know that these will be immortal1 as the best things the mid-nineteenth century in ,england could do1 in such true relations as it had1 through all confusion1 retained with the paternal and everlasting ,art of the world4--,,john ,,ruskin1 ,,ll4,d43 ,fors ,clavigera1 ,july #b1 #ahgg4 ,not in any sense whatever4 ,the picture representing a night scene on ,battersea ,bridge1 is good in colour1 but bewildering in form2 and it has no composition and detail4 ,a day or a day and a half seems a reasonable time within which to paint it4 ,it shows no finish--it is simply a sketch4 ,the nocturne in black and gold has not the merit of the other two pictures1 and it would be impossible to call it a serious work of art4 ,mr4 ,whistler's picture is only one of the thousand failures to paint night4 ,the picture is not worth two hundred guineas4 ,mr4 ,,bowen here proposed to ask the witness to look at a picture of ,titian1#ae in order to show what finish was4#af ,note #ae3 ,i believe the world may see another ,titian1 and another ,raffaelle1 before it sees another ,rubens4--,mr4 ,,ruskin4 ,note #af3 444 ,the ,butcher's ,dog1 in the corner of ,mr4 ,mulready's ',butt1' displays1 perhaps1 the most wonderful1 because the most dignified1 finish 444 and assuredly the most perfect unity of drawing and colour which the entire range of ancient and modern art can exhibit4 ,albert ,durer is1 indeed1 the only rival who might be suggested4--,,john ,,ruskin ,slade ,professor of ,art3 ,modern ,painters4 ,mr4 ,,serjeant ,,parry objected4 ,mr4 ,,baron ,,huddleston3 ,you will have to prove that it is a ,titian4 ,mr4 ,,bowen3 ,i shall be able to do that4 ,mr4 ,,baron ,,huddleston3 ,that can only be by repute4 ,i do not want to raise a laugh1 but there is a well-known case of 'an undoubted' ,titian being purchased with a view to enabling students and others to find out how to produce his wonderful colours4 ,with that object the picture was rubbed down1 and they found a red surface1 beneath which they thought was the secret1 but on continuing the rubbing they discovered a full length portrait of ,george ,,iii4 in uniform6 ,the witness was then asked to look at the picture1 and he said3 ,it is a portrait of ,doge ,andrea ,gritti1 and ,i believe it is a real ,titian4 ,it shows finish4 ,it is a very perfect sample of the highest finish of ancient art4#ag ,the flesh is perfect1 the modelling of the face is round and good4 ,that is an 'arrangement in flesh and blood6' ,note #ag3 444 ,i feel entitled to point out that the picture by ,titian1 produced in the case of ,whistler v4 ,ruskin1 is an early specimen of that master1 and does not represent adequately the style and qualities which have obtained for him his great reputation--one obvious point of difference between this and his more mature work being the far greater amount of finish--,i do not say completeness--exhibited in it 444 and as the picture was brought forward with a view to inform the jury as to the nature of the work of the greatest painter1 and more especially as to the high finish introduced in it1 it is evident that it was calculated to produce an erroneous impression on their minds1 if indeed any one present at the inquiry can hold that those gentlemen were in any way fitted to understand the issues raised therein4--,i am1 ,sir1 your obedient servant1 ,a4 ,,moore4 ,nov4 #bh4 ,extract of a letter to the ,editor of the ,echo4 ,the witness having pointed out the excellences of that portrait1 said3 ,i think ,mr4 ,whistler had great powers at first1 which he has not since justified4 ,he has evaded the difficulties of his art1 because the difficulty of an artist increases every day of his professional life4 ,cross-examined3 ,what is the value of this picture of ,titian8--,that is a mere accident of the saleroom4 ,is it worth one thousand guineas8--,it would be worth many thousands to me4 ,sidenote3 ,it was just a toss up whether ,i became an ,artist or an ,auctioneer4--,w4 ,p4 ,,frith1 ,r4,a4 ,,reflection3 ,he must have tossed up4 ,illustration ,mr4 ,,frith was then examined3 ,i am an ,r4,a42 and have devoted my life to painting4 ,i am a member of the ,academies of various countries4 ,i am the author of the ',railway ,station1' ',derby ,day1' and ',rake's ,progress4' ,i have seen ,mr4 ,whistler's pictures1 and in my opinion they are not serious works of art4 ,the nocturne in black and gold is not a serious work to me4 ,i cannot see anything of the true representation of water and atmosphere in the painting of ',battersea ,bridge4' ,there is a pretty colour which pleases the eye1 but there is nothing more4 ,to my thinking1 the description of moonlight is not true4 ,the picture is not worth two hundred guineas4 ,composition and detail are most important matters in a picture4 ,in our profession men of equal merit differ as to the character of a picture4 ,one may blame1 while another praises1 a work4 ,i have not exhibited at the ,grosvenor ,gallery4 ,i have read ,mr4 ,ruskin's works4 ,sidenote3 ,,reflection3 ,a decidedly honest man--,i have not heard of him since4 ,illustration ,mr4 ,frith here got down4 ,mr4 ,,tom ,,taylor--,poor ,law ,commissioner1 ,editor of ,punch1 and so forth--and so forth3--,i am an art critic of long standing4 ,i have been engaged in this capacity by the ,times1 and other journals1 for the last twenty years4 ,i edited the ',life of ,reynolds1' and ',haydon4' ,i have always studied art4 ,i have seen these pictures of ,mr4 ,whistler's when they were exhibited at the ,dudley and the ,grosvenor ,galleries4 ,the ',nocturne' in black and gold ,i do not think a serious work of art4 ,the witness here took from the pockets of his overcoat copies of the ,times1 and with the permission of the ,court1 read again with unction his own criticism1 to every word of which he said he still adhered4 ,all ,mr4 ,whistler's work is unfinished4 ,it is sketchy4 ,he1 no doubt1 possesses artistic qualities1 and he has got appreciation of qualities of tone1 but he is not complete1 and all his works are in the nature of sketching4 ,i have expressed1 and still adhere to the opinion1 that these pictures only come 'one step nearer pictures than a delicately tinted wall-paper4' ,sidenote3 ,,reflection3 ,to perceive in ,ruskin's army ,tom ,taylor1 his champion--whose opinion he prizes--,mr4 ,frith1 his ideal--was gratifying4 ,but to sit and look at ,mr4 ,burne ,jones1 in common cause with ,tom ,taylor--whom he esteems1 and ,mr4 ,frith--whom he respects--conscientiously appraising the work of a confrre--was a privilege66 ,illustration ,this ended the case for the defendant4 ,verdict for plaintiff4 ,damages one farthing4 ,illustration ,professor ,ruskin's ,group ,my dear ,sambourne--,i know ,i shall be only charmed1 as ,i always am1 by your work1 and if ,i am myself its subject1 ,i shall only be flattered in addition4 ,sidenote3 ,the ,world1 ,dec4 #aa1 #ahgh4 ,sidenote3 ,a pleasant rsum of the situation--in reply to ,mr4 ,sambourne's expressed hope that his historical cartoon in ,punch might not offend4 ,punch in person sat upon me in the box2 why should not the most subtle of his staff have a shot8 ,moreover1 whatever delicacy and refinement ,tom ,taylor may still have left in his pocket 7from which1 in ,court1 he drew his ammunition7 ,i doubt not he will urge you to use1 that it may not be wasted4 ,meanwhile you must not throw away sentiment upon what you call this trying time4 ,to have brought about an ,arrangement in ,frith1 ,jones1 ,punch and ,ruskin1 with a touch of ,titian1 is a joy6 and in itself sufficient to satisfy even my craving for curious combinations4--,ever yours1 ,illustration ,whistler v4 ,ruskin ,,art ,,art ,,critics ,illustration ,chelsea1 ,dec4 #ahgh4 ,illustration ,dedicated to ,,albert ,,moore ,whistler v4 ,ruskin3 ,art and ,art ,critics ,the fin mot and spirit of this matter seems to have been utterly missed1 or perhaps willingly winked at1 by the journals in their comments4 ,their correspondents have persistently1 and not unnaturally as writers1 seen nothing beyond the immediate case in law--viz41 the difference between ,mr4 ,ruskin and myself1 culminating in the libel with a verdict for the plaintiff4 ,now the war1 of which the opening skirmish was fought the other day in ,westminster1 is really one between the brush and the pen2 and involves literally1 as the ,attorney-,general himself hinted1 the absolute raison d'tre of the critic4 ,the cry1 on their part1 of ,il faut vivre1 ,i most certainly meet1 in this case1 with the appropriate answer1 ,je n'en vois pas la ncessit4 ,far from me1 at that stage of things1 to go further into this discussion than ,i did1 when1 cross-examined by ,sir ,john ,holker1 ,i contented myself with the general answer1 that one might admit criticism when emanating from a man who had passed his whole life in the science which he attacks4 ,the position of ,mr4 ,ruskin as an art authority we left quite unassailed during the trial4 ,to have said that ,mr4 ,ruskin's pose among intelligent men1 as other than a littrateur is false and ridiculous1 would have been an invitation to the stake2 and to be burnt alive1 or stoned before the verdict1 was not what ,i came into court for4 ,over and over again did the ,attorney-,general cry out aloud1 in the agony of his cause1 ,what is to become of painting if the critics withhold their lash8 ,as well might he ask what is to become of mathematics under similar circumstances1 were they possible4 ,i maintain that two and two the mathematician would continue to make four1 in spite of the whine of the amateur for three1 or the cry of the critic for five4 ,we are told that ,mr4 ,ruskin has devoted his long life to art1 and as a result--is ,slade ,professor at ,oxford4 ,in the same sentence1 we have thus his position and its worth4 ,it suffices not1 ,messieurs6 a life passed among pictures makes not a painter--else the policeman in the ,national ,gallery might assert himself4 ,as well allege that he who lives in a library must needs die a poet4 ,let not ,mr4 ,ruskin flatter himself that more education makes the difference between himself and the policeman when both stand gazing in the ,gallery4 ,there they might remain till the end of time2 the one decently silent1 the other saying1 in good ,english1 many high-sounding empty things1 like the cracking of thorns under a pot--undismayed by the presence of the ,masters with whose names he is sacrilegiously familiar2 whose intentions he interprets1 whose vices he discovers with the facility of the incapable1 and whose virtues he descants upon with a verbosity and flow of language that would1 could he hear it1 give ,titian the same shock of surprise that was ,balaam's1 when the first great critic proffered his opinion4 ,this one instance apart1 where collapse was immediate1 the creature ,critic is of comparatively modern growth--and certainly1 in perfect condition1 of recent date4 ,to his completeness go qualities evolved from the latest lightnesses of to-day--indeed1 the fine fleur of his type is brought forth in ,paris1 and beside him the ,englishman is but rough-hewn and blundering after all2 though not unkindly should one say it1 as reproaching him with inferiority resulting from chances neglected4 ,the truth is1 as compared with his brother of the ,boulevards1 the ,briton was badly begun by nature4 ,to take himself seriously is the fate of the humbug at home1 and destruction to the jaunty career of the art critic1 whose essence of success lies in his strong sense of his ephemeral existence1 and his consequent horror of ennuyering his world--in short1 to perceive the joke of life is rarely given to our people1 whilst it forms the mainspring of the ,parisian's savoir plaire4 ,the finesse of the ,frenchman1 acquired in long loafing and clever caf cackle--the glib go and easy assurance of the petit crev1 combined with the chic of great habit--the brilliant blague of the ateliers--the aptitude of their argot--the fling of the ,figaro1 and the knack of short paragraphs1 which allows him to print of a picture ,c'est bien crit6 and of a subject1 ,c'est bien dit6--these are elements of an ensemble impossible in this island4 ,still1 we are various in our specimens1 and a sense of progress is noticeable when we look about among them4 ,indications of their period are perceptible1 and curiously enough a similarity is suggested1 by their work1 between themselves and the vehicles we might fancy carrying them about to their livelihood4 ,tough old ,tom1 the busy ,city ',bus1 with its heavy jolting and many halts2 its steady1 sturdy1 stodgy continuance on the same old much worn way1 every turning known1 and freshness unhoped for2 its patient dreary dulness of daily duty to its cheap company--struggling on to its end1 nevertheless1 and pulling up at the ,bank6 with a flourish from the driver1 and a joke from the cad at the door4 ,then the contributors to the daily papers3 so many hansoms bowling along that the moment may not be lost1 and the propos gone for ever4 ,the one or two broughams solemnly rolling for reviews1 while the lighter bicycle zigzags irresponsibly in among them for the happy ,halfpennies4 ,what a commerce it all is1 to be sure6 ,no sham in it either6--no bigod nonsense6 they are all doing good--yes1 they all do good to ,art4 ,poor ,art6 what a sad state the slut is in1 an these gentlemen shall help her4 ,the artist alone1 by the way1 is to no purpose1 and remains unconsulted2 his work is explained and rectified without him1 by the one who was never in it--but upon whom ,god1 always good1 though sometimes careless1 has thrown away the knowledge refused to the author--poor devil6 ,the ,attorney-,general said1 ,there are some people who would do away with critics altogether4 ,i agree with him1 and am of the irrationals he points at--but let me be clearly understood--the art critic alone would ,i extinguish4 ,that writers should destroy writings to the benefit of writing is reasonable4 ,who but they shall insist upon beauties of literature1 and discard the demerits of their brother littrateurs8 ,in their turn they will be destroyed by other writers1 and the merry game goes on till truth prevail4 ,shall the painter then--,i foresee the question--decide upon painting8 ,shall he be the critic and sole authority8 ,aggressive as is this supposition1 ,i fear that1 in the length of time1 his assertion alone has established what even the gentlemen of the quill accept as the canons of art1 and recognise as the masterpieces of work4 ,let work1 then1 be received in silence1 as it was in the days to which the penmen still point as an era when art was at its apogee4 ,and here we come upon the oft-repeated apology of the critic for existing at all1 and find how complete is his stultification4 ,he brands himself as the necessary blister for the health of the painter1 and writes that he may do good to his art4 ,in the same ink he bemoans the decadence about him1 and declares that the best work was done when he was not there to help it4 ,no6 let there be no critics6 they are not a necessary evil1 but an evil quite unnecessary1 though an evil certainly4 ,harm they do1 and not good4 ,furnished as they are with the means of furthering their foolishness1 they spread prejudice abroad2 and through the papers1 at their service1 thousands are warned against the work they have yet to look upon4 ,and here one is tempted to go further1 and show the crass idiocy and impertinence of those whose dicta are printed as law4 ,how he of the ,times#ah has found ,velasquez slovenly in execution1 poor in colour--being little but a combination of neutral greys and ugly in its forms--how he grovelled in happiness over a ,turner--that was no ,turner at all1 as ,mr4 ,ruskin wrote to show--,ruskin6 whom he has since defended4 ,ah6 ,messieurs1 what our neighbours call la malice des choses was unthought of1 and the sarcasm of fate was against you4 ,how ,gerard ,dow's broom was an example for the young2 and ,canaletti and ,paul ,veronese are to be swept aside--doubtless with it4 ,how ,rembrandt is coarse1 and ,carlo ,dolci noble--with more of this kind4 ,but what does it matter8 ,note #ah3 ,june #f1 #ahgd ,what does anything matter6 ,the farce will go on1 and its solemnity adds to the fun4 ,mediocrity flattered at acknowledging mediocrity1 and mistaking mystification for mastery1 enters the fog of dilettantism1 and1 graduating connoisseur1 ends its days in a bewilderment of bric--brac and ,brummagem6 ,taste has long been confounded with capacity1 and accepted as sufficient qualification for the utterance of judgment in music1 poetry1 and painting4 ,art is joyously received as a matter of opinion2 and that it should be based upon laws as rigid and defined as those of the known sciences1 is a supposition no longer to be tolerated by modern cultivation4 ,for whereas no polished member of society is at all affected at admitting himself neither engineer1 mathematician1 nor astronomer1 and therefore remains willingly discreet and taciturn upon these subjects1 still would he be highly offended were he supposed to have no voice in what is clearly to him a matter of ,taste2 and so he becomes of necessity the backer of the critic--the cause and result of his own ignorance and vanity6 ,the fascination of this pose is too much for him1 and he hails with delight its justification4 ,modesty and good sense are revolted at nothing1 and the millennium of ,taste sets in4 ,the whole scheme is simple3 the galleries are to be thrown open on ,sundays1 and the public1 dragged from their beer to the ,british ,museum1 are to delight in the ,elgin ,marbles1 and appreciate what the early ,italians have done to elevate their thirsty souls6 ,an inroad into the laboratory would be looked upon as an intrusion2 but before the triumphs of ,art1 the expounder is at his ease1 and points out the doctrine that ,raphael's results are within the reach of any beholder1 provided he enrol himself with ,ruskin or hearken to ,colvin in the provinces4 ,the people are to be educated upon the broad basis of ,taste1 forsooth1 and it matters but little what gentleman and scholar undertake the task4 ,eloquence alone shall guide them--and the readiest writer or wordiest talker is perforce their professor4 ,the ,observatory at ,greenwich under the direction of an ,apothecary6 ,the ,college of ,physicians with ,tennyson as ,president6 and we know that madness is about4 ,but a school of art with an accomplished littrateur at its head disturbs no one6 and is actually what the world receives as rational1 while ,ruskin writes for pupils1 and ,colvin holds forth at ,cambridge4 ,still1 quite alone stands ,ruskin1 whose writing is art1 and whose art is unworthy his writing4 ,to him and his example do we owe the outrage of proffered assistance from the unscientific--the meddling of the immodest--the intrusion of the garrulous4 ,art1 that for ages has hewn its own history in marble1 and written its own comments on canvas1 shall it suddenly stand still1 and stammer1 and wait for wisdom from the passer-by8--for guidance from the hand that holds neither brush nor chisel8 ,out upon the shallow conceit6 ,what greater sarcasm can ,mr4 ,ruskin pass upon himself than that he preaches to young men what he cannot perform6 ,why1 unsatisfied with his own conscious power1 should he choose to become the type of incompetence by talking for forty years of what he has never done6 ,let him resign his present professorship1 to fill the chair of ,ethics at the university4 ,as master of ,english literature1 he has a right to his laurels1 while1 as the populariser of pictures he remains the ,peter ,parley of painting4 ,illustration ,the ,art ,critic of the ,times ,sidenote3 ,mr4 ,tom ,taylor's acknowledgment of presentation copy of ,mr4 ,whistler's ,art and ,art ,critics1 with ,sans rancune inscribed upon fly-leaf by the author4 ,sans rancune1 by all means1 my dear ,whistler2 but you should not have quoted from my article1 of ,june #fth1 #ahgd1 on ,velasquez1 in such a way as to give exactly the opposite impression to that which the article1 taken as a whole1 conveys4 ,sidenote3 ,the ,world1 ,jan4 #ae1 #ahgi4 ,i appreciate and admire ,velasquez as entirely1 and allow me to say1 as intelligently1 as yourself4 ,i have probably seen and studied more of his work than you have4 ,and ,i maintain that the article you have garbled in your quotation gives a fair and adequate account of the picture it deals with--,las ,meninas--and one which any artist who knows the picture would1 in essentials1 subscribe to4 ,god help the artists if ever the criticism of pictures falls into the hands of painters6 ,it would be a case of vivisection all round4 ,your pamphlet is a very natural result of your late disagreeable legal experiences1 though not a very wise one4 ,if the critics are not better qualified to deal with the painters than the painter in your pamphlet shows himself qualified to deal with the critics1 it will be a bad day for art when the hands that have been trained to the brush lay it aside for the pen4#ai ,note #ai368 ,if you had read my article on ,velasquez1 ,i cannot but say that you have made an unfair use of it1 in quoting a detached sentence1 which1 read with the context1 bears exactly the opposite sense from that you have quoted it as bearing4 ,this is a bad throw-off in the critical line2 whether it affect le premier littrateur venu or yours always1 ,,tom ,,taylor4 ,p4,s4--,as your attack on my article is public1 ,i reserve to myself the right of giving equal publicity to this letter4 ,,lavender ,,sweep1 ,jan1 #f1 #ahgi4 ,the ,position ,dead for a ducat1 dead6 my dear ,tom3 and the rattle has reached me by post4 ,sidenote3 ,the ,world1 ,jan4 #ae1 #ahgi4 ,sans rancune1 say you8 ,bah6 you scream unkind threats and die badly4 ,why squabble over your little article8 ,you did print what ,i quote1 you know1 ,tom2 and it is surely unimportant what more you may have written of the ,master4 ,that you should have written anything at all is your crime4 ,no2 shrive your naughty soul1 and give up ,velasquez1 and pass your last days properly in the ,home ,office4 ,set your house in order with the ,government for arrears of time and paper1 and leave vengeance to the ,lord1 who will forgive my garbling ,tom ,taylor's writing4 ,,the ,,white ,,house1 ,jan4 #h1 #ahgi4 ,illustration ,serious ,sarcasm ,pardon me1 my dear ,whistler1 for having taken you au srieux even for a moment4 ,i ought to have remembered that your penning1 like your painting1 belongs to the region of chaff4 ,i will not forget it again2 and meantime remain yours always1 ,,tom ,,taylor4 ,,lavender ,,sweep1 ,jan4 #i1 #ahgi4 ,final ,why1 my dear old ,tom1 ,i never was serious with you1 even when you were among us4 ,indeed1 ,i killed you quite1 as who should say1 without seriousness1 ,a rat6 ,a rat6 you know1 rather cursorily4 ,sidenote3 ,the ,world1 ,jan4 #ae1 #ahgi ,chaff1 ,tom1 as in your present state you are beginning to perceive1 was your fate here1 and doubtless will be throughout the eternity before you4 ,with ages at your disposal1 this truth will dimly dawn upon you2 and as you look back upon this life1 perchance many situations that you took au srieux 7art-critic1 who knows8 expounder of ,velasquez1 and what not7 will explain themselves sadly--chaff6 ,go back6 ,,the ,,white ,,house1 ,jan4 #aj1 #ahgi4 ,illustration ,balaam's ,ass ,sidenote3 ,vanity ,fair1 ,jan #aa1 #ahgi4 ,mr4 ,whistler has written a discord in black and white4 ,it is a strong saying1 excellent in diction1 broadly and boldly set down in slashing words4444 ,the point ,mr4 ,whistler raises and enforces is that criticism of painting other than by painters is monstrous1 and not to be tolerated4444 ,mr4 ,ruskin's high sounding empty things would1 he says1 give ,titian the same shock of surprise that was ,balaam's when the first great critic proffered his opinion4 444 ,the inference 444 is that all the world1 competent and incompetent together1 must receive the painter's work in silence1 under pain of being classed with ,balaam's ass4444 ,if1 finding himself ill received or ill understood1 he has to say1 ,you cannot understand me1 he must also say1 ,i did not understand myself and you1 to whom ,i speak1 sufficiently well to make you understand me4 ,there could be no better illustration of all this than that ,mr4 ,whistler has suggested of ,balaam's ass4 ,for the ,ass was right1 although1 nay1 because he was an ass4 ,what have ,i done unto thee1 said he1 that thou hast smitten me these three times8 ,because thou hast mocked me1 replies ,balaam--,whistler2 whereupon the ,angel of the ,lord rebukes him and says1 ,the ass saw me1 so that ,balaam is constrained to bow his head and fall flat on his face4 ,and thus indeed it is4 ,the ass sees the ,angel of the ,lord there where the wise prophet sees nothing1 and1 by her seeing1 saves the life of the very master who1 for reward1 smites her grievously and wishes he had a sword that he might kill her4 ,let ,balaam not forget that after all he rides upon the ass1 that she has served him well ever since she was his until this day1 and that even now he is on his way with her to be promoted unto very great honour by the ,princes of ,balak4 ,and let him remember that whatever can speak may at any moment have a word to say to him which it were best he should hear4 ,,rasper4 ,the ,point acknowledged ,sidenote3 ,vanity ,fair1 ,jan4 #ah1 #ahgi4 ,well hit6 my dear ,vanity1 and ,i find1 on searching again1 that historically you are right4 ,the fact1 doubtless1 explains the conviction of the race in their mission1 but ,i fancy you will admit that this is the only ,ass on record who ever did see the ,angel of the ,lord6 and that we are past the age of miracles4 ,yours always1 ,,the ,,white ,,house1 ,jan4 #aa1 #ahgi4 ,illustration ,critic's ,analysis ,sidenote3 ,the ,saturday ,review1 ,june #a1 #ahfg4 ,p4 ,g4 ,hamerton4 ,in the ,symphony in ,white ,no4 ,,iii4 by ,mr4 ,whistler there are many dainty varieties of tint1 but it is not precisely a symphony in white4 ,one lady has a yellowish dress and brown hair and a bit of blue ribbon1 the other has a red fan1 and there are flowers and green leaves4 ,there is a girl in white on a white sofa1 but even this girl has reddish hair2 and of course there is the flesh colour of the complexions4 ,the ,critic's ,mind ,considered ,how pleasing that such profound prattle should inevitably find its place in print6 ,not precisely a symphony in white 444 for there is a yellowish dress 444 brown hair1 etc4444 another with reddish hair 444 and of course there is the flesh colour of the complexions4 ,bon ,dieu6 did this wise person expect white hair and chalked faces8 ,and does he then1 in his astounding consequence1 believe that a symphony in ,f contains no other note1 but shall be a continued repetition of ,f1 ,f1 ,f48444 ,fool6 ,chelsea1 ,june #ahfg4 ,illustration ,a ,troubled ,one ,sidenote3 ,the ,world1 ,july #c1 #ahgh4 ,the ,season ,number of ,vanity ,fair contains 444 ,mr4 ,whistler's etching of ,st4 ,james's ,street is sadly disappointing4 ,full ,absolution ,sidenote3 ,the ,world1 ,july #aj1 #ahgh4 ,dear ,world--,atlas1 overburdened with the world and its sins1 may well be relieved from the weight of one wee error--a sort of last straw that bothers his back4 ,the impression in ,vanity ,fair that disappoints him is not an etching at all1 but a reproduction for that paper by some transfer process4 ,atlas has the wisdom of ages1 and need not grieve himself with mere matters of art4 ,il n'est pas ncessaire que vous sachiez ces choses-l1 mon rvrend pre6 ,chelsea4 ,illustration ,confidences with an ,editor ,,to ,,the ,,editor ,,of ,,the ,,hour4 ,sir1--,i have read the intelligent remarks of your critic upon my pictures1 and am happy to be able to remove1 ,i think1 the melancholy impression left upon his mind by the supposition that the best works are not of recent date4 ,permit me to reassure him1 for the paintings he speaks of in glowing terms--notably the full-length portrait of a young girl1 which he overwhelms me by comparing to ,velasquez1 as well as the two life-size portraits in black1 in which there is an almost entire negation of colour 7though ,i1 who am1 he says1 a colourist1 did not know it7--are my latest works1 and but just completed4 ,may ,i still farther correct a misconception8 ,the etchings and dry-points in the gallery do not form a complete set4 ,there are only fifty exhibited1 making about half the number ,i have executed4 ,again1 it was from no feeling that my works were not seen to advantage when placed in juxtaposition with those of an essentially different kind1 that ,i determined to have an exhibition of my own1 where no discordant elements should distract the spectator's attention4 ,it is true that occasionally it has been borne in upon my mind that those whose works are of an essentially different kind1 are unwilling to place mine in juxtaposition with their own4 ,my wish has been1 though1 to prove that the place in which works of art are shown may be made as free from discordant elements which distract the spectators' attention as the works themselves4 ,marvelling greatly that the principle that has led me 7in his eyes at least7 to paint so that he speaks of me in the same breath with ,velasquez1 should be founded on fallacy1--,i remain1 sir1 your obedient servant1 ,june #aj1 #ahgd4 ,illustration ,critics ,copy ,sidenote3 ,the ,world1 ,dec4 #h1 #ahhj4 ,at the ,gallery of the ,fine ,art ,society in ,new ,bond ,street1 an exhibition has been opened of the etchings of ,venice1 executed by ,mr4 ,whistler4 ,exhibitions are sometimes of slender constitution nowadays4 ,mr4 ,whistler's etchings are twelve in number1 of unimportant dimensions1 and of the slightest workmanship4 ,they convey a certain sense of distance and atmosphere1 otherwise it cannot be said that they are of particular value or originality4 ,they rather resemble vague first intentions1 or memoranda for future use1 than designs completely carried out4 ,probably every artist coming from ,venice brings with him some such outlines as these in his sketch-books4 ,apparently1 so far as his twelve etchings are to be considered as evidence in the matter1 ,venice has not deeply stirred either ,mr4 ,whistler or his art4 ,a ,proposal ,sidenote3 ,the ,world1 ,dec4 #bi1 #ahhj4 ,atlas1 mon bon1 mfiez-vous de vos gens6 ,your art gentleman says that ,mr4 ,whistler exhibits twelve etchings1 slight in execution and unimportant in size4 ,now the private assassin you keep1 for us1 need not be hampered by mere connoisseurship in the perpetration of his duty--therefore1 passe1 for the execution--but he should not compromise his master's reputation for brilliancy1 and print things that he who runs may scoff at4 ,seriously1 then1 my ,atlas1 an etching does not depend1 for its importance1 upon its size4 ,i am not arguing with you--,i am telling you4 ,as well speak of one of your own charming mots as unimportant in length6 ,look to it1 ,atlas4 ,be severe with your man4 ,tell him his job should be neatly done4 ,i could cut my own throat better2 and if need be1 in case of his dismissal1 ,i offer my services4 ,meanwhile1 yours joyously1 ,illustration ,the ,painter-,etcher ,papers ,sidenote3 ,a ,storm in an sthetic ,teapot4 ,the ,cuckoo1 ,april #aa1 #ahha4 ,the exhibition of etchings at the ,hanover ,gallery has been the occasion of one of those squabbles which amuse everybody--perhaps1 even including the quarrellers themselves4 ,some etchings1 exceedingly like ,mr4 ,whistler's in manner1 but signed ,frank ,duveneck1 were sent to the ,painter-,etchers' ,exhibition from ,venice4 ,the ,painter-,etchers appear to have suspected for a moment that the works were really ,mr4 ,whistler's2 and1 not desiring to be the victims of an easy hoax on the part of that gentleman1 three of their members--,dr4 ,seymour ,haden1 ,dr4 ,hamilton1 and ,mr4 ,legros--went to the ,fine ,art ,society's ,gallery1 in ,new ,bond ,street1 and asked one of the assistants there to show them some of ,mr4 ,whistler's ,venetian plates4 ,from this assistant they learned that ,mr4 ,whistler was under an arrangement to exhibit and sell his ,venetian etchings only at the ,fine ,art ,society's ,gallery2 but1 even if these ,painter-,etchers really believed that ,frank ,duveneck was only another name for ,james ,whistler1 this information about the ,fine ,art ,society's arrangement with him need not have shaken that belief1 for the nom de plume might easily have been adopted with the concurrence of the society's leading spirits4 ,nor is it altogether certain that the ,painter-,etchers did anything more than compare1 for their own satisfaction as connoisseurs1 the works of ,mr4 ,whistler and ,frank ,duveneck4 ,the motive of their doing so may have been misunderstood by the ,fine ,art ,society's assistant with whom they conferred4 ,be that as it may1 this assistant thought fit to repeat to ,mr4 ,whistler what had passed1 and also his own impressions as to the motive of the comparison and the inquiries which the ,painter-,etchers had instituted4 ,whereupon ,mr4 ,whistler has addressed a letter to ,mr4 ,seymour ,haden 7who is1 by the way1 his brother-in-law71 of which all that need be here said1 is that it is extremely characteristic of ,mr4 ,whistler4 ,later ,sidenote3 ,the ,cuckoo1 ,april #cj1 #ahha4 ,some time ago ,i referred to a storm in an sthetic tea-pot that was brewed and had burst in the ,fine ,art ,society's ,gallery1 in ,bond ,street1 in re ,mr4 ,whistler's ,venice ,etchings4 ,it seems to me that ,mr4 ,seymour ,haden1 ,mr4 ,legros1 and ,mr4 ,hamilton stumbled on an artistic mare's nest1 that they rashly suggested that ,mr4 ,whistler had been guilty of gross misfeasance in publishing etchings in an assumed name1 and that they are now trying to get out of the scrape as best they may4 ,this is1 however1 simply an opinion formed on perusal of the following documents1 which ,i here present to my readers to judge of3 ,the following paragraph was some time ago sent to me with this letter3-- ,if the ,editor of the ',cuckoo' should see his way to the publication of the accompanying paragraph as it stands1 twenty copies may be sent1 for circulation among the ,council of the ,society of ,painter-,etchers1 to ,mr4 ,piker1 newsvendor1 ,shepherd's ,market4 ,,mr4 ,,whistler ,,and ,,the ,,painter-,,etchers4--,our explanation of this ',storm in a ,tea-pot' turns out to have been in the main correct4 ,it appears that not only were the three gentlemen who went to the ,fine ,art ,society's ,gallery to look at ,mr4 ,whistler's etchings guiltless of offence1 but that the object of their going there was actually less to show that ,mr4 ,whistler was than that he was not the author of the etchings which for a moment had puzzled them4 ,for this1 indeed1 they seem to have given each other--in the presence of the blundering assistant1 of course--three very distinct reasons4 ,firstly1 that1 as already stated1 ,mr4 ,seymour ,haden had quite seriously written to ,mr4 ,duveneck to buy the etchings4 ,secondly1 that they at once accepted as satisfactory and sufficient the explanation given them of ,mr4 ,whistler's obligations to the ,fine ,art ,society2 and1 thirdly1 though this count appears to have somehow slipped altogether out of the indictment--they were one and all of opinion that1 taken all round1 the ,duveneck etchings were the best of the two 7sic7666 ,it is a pity a clever man like ,mr4 ,whistler is yet not clever enough to see that while habitual public attacks on a near relative cannot fail to be1 to the majority of people1 unpalatable1 they are likely to be1 when directed against a brother etcher1 even suspecte4 ,i did not at the time see my way to publishing the paragraph as it stands1 but1 having subsequently received the following correspondence1 ,i think it only right to give ,mr4 ,piker's paragraph publicity1 along with the letters subjoined3-- ,,the ,,fine ,,art ,,society1 #adh ,,new ,,bond ,,street4 ,march #ah1 #ahha4 ,sidenote3 ,letter from ,mr4 ,huish to ,mr4 ,haden4 ,to ,seymour ,haden1 ,esq4--,my dear ,sir1--,mr4 ,whistler has called upon me respecting your visit here yesterday with ,mr4 ,legros and ,dr4 ,hamilton1 the purport of which had been communicated to him by ,mr4 ,brown4 ,he is naturally indignant that1 knowing1 as you apparently did1 that he was under an engagement not to publish for a certain time any etchings of ,venice except those issued by us1 you should suggest that they were his work1 and had been sent in by him under a nom de plume4 ,he considers that it is damaging to his reputation in connection with us1 and he requests me to write and ask you whether you adhere to your opinion or retract it4 ,believe me to remain1 yours faithfully1 ,,marcus ,b4 ,,huish4 #ch ,,hertford ,,street1 ,,mayfair1 ,w4 ,march #ba1 #ahha4 ,sidenote3 ,letter from ,mr4 ,haden to ,mr4 ,huish4 ,to ,m4 ,huish1 ,esq4--,dear ,sir1--,i am in receipt of a letter from you1 dated the #ahth inst41 in which you first impute to me an opinion which ,i have never held1 and then call me to account for that opinion4 ,to a peremptory letter so framed1 ,i shall not be misunderstood if ,i simply decline to plead4 ,meanwhile1 that ,i was not of opinion that the etchings in our hands were by ,mr4 ,whistler is conclusively proved by the fact that on the day after their reception ,i had written to ,mr4 ,duveneck to arrange for their purchase6 ,be this1 however1 as it may1 ,i can have no hesitation on the part both of myself and of the gentlemen engaged with me in a necessary duty1 in expressing our sincere regret if1 by a mistaken representation of our proceedings1 ,mr4 ,whistler has been led to believe that we had said or implied anything which could give him pain or reflect in any way on his reputation either with you or your directors4 ,faithfully yours1 ,f4 ,,seymour ,,haden4 ,,arts ,,club1 ,,hanover ,,square4 ,sidenote3 ,letter from ,j4 ,m',n4 ,whistler to ,mr4 ,haden4 ,march #bi1 #ahha4 ,to ,seymour ,haden1 ,esq4--,sir--,mr4 ,huish handed me your letter of the #bast inst41 since when ,i have waited in vain for the true version that1 ,i doubted not1 would follow the 'mistaken representation' you regret ,i should have received4 ,now ,i must ask that you will1 if possible1 without further delay1 give me a thorough explanation of your visit to the ,fine ,art ,society's ,gallery on ,friday evening1 the #agth inst41--involving1 as it did1 a discussion of my private affairs4 ,did you1 accompanied by ,m4 ,legros and ,dr4 ,hamilton1 call at the ,fine ,art ,society's rooms on that date1 and ask to see ,mr4 ,whistler's etchings8 ,did you there proceed to make a careful and minute examination of these1 and then ask ,mr4 ,brown if ,mr4 ,whistler had done other etchings of ,venice8 ,upon his answer in the affirmative1 did you ask ,mr4 ,brown if any of the other plates were large ones1 and1 notably1 whether ,mr4 ,whistler had done any other plate of the subject called ',the ,riva'8 ,did you ask to see the early states of ,mr4 ,whistler's etchings8 ,did you say to ,mr4 ,brown1 ',now1 is not ,mr4 ,whistler under an engagement with the ,fine ,art ,society to publish no ,venice etchings for a year8' or words to that effect8 and upon ,mr4 ,brown's assurance that such was the case1 did you request him to go with you to the ,hanover ,gallery8 ,did you there produce for his inspection three large ,venice etchings1 and among them the ',riva' subject8 ,did you then incite ,mr4 ,brown to detect1 in these works1 the hand of ,mr4 ,whistler8 ,did you point out details of execution which1 in your opinion1 betrayed ,mr4 ,whistler's manner8 ,did you say1 ',you see these etchings are signed ,frank ,duveneck1 and ,i have written to that name and address for their purchase1 but ,i don't believe in the existence of such a person1' or words to that effect8 ,if this be not so1 ,why did you take ,mr4 ,brown over to the ,hanover ,gallery8 ,why did you show him ,mr4 ,duveneck's ,venice etchings8 ,why did you question him about my engagement with the ,fine ,art ,society8 ,is it officially1 as the ,painter-,etchers' ,president1 that you pry about the town8 ,does the ,committee sanction your suggestions8 and have you permitted yourself these 'proceedings' with the full knowledge and approval of the 'dozen or more distinguished men seated in serious council1' as described by yourself in the ,pall ,mall ,gazette8 ,of what nature1 pray1 is the 'necessary duty' that has led two medical men and a ,slade ,professor to fail as connoisseurs1 and blunder as detectives8 ',vat shall de honest man do in my closet8 ,dere is no honest man dat shall come in my closet6' ,illustration ,copies of this correspondence will be sent to members of your ,committee4 ,to this last letter1 ,mr4 ,seymour ,haden has not as yet sent any answer1 and here the matter rests4 ,as requested1 we have sent ,mr4 ,piker the copies he requires for distribution4 ,,the ,,editor ,,of ,,the ,,cuckoo4 ,la ,suite ,,arts ,,club1 ,may #aj1 #ahha4 ,to the ,committee of the ,painter-,etchers' ,society3 ,sidenote3 ,letter to the ,committee of ,painter-,etchers' ,society4 ,gentlemen1--,i have hitherto1 in vain1 written to ,sir ,william ,drake1 as secretary of the ,painter-,etchers' ,society1 and feeling convinced that his elaborate silence cannot possibly be the expression of any intended discourtesy on the part of the ,committee1 as a body1 but that it would rather indicate that they had not been consulted in the matter at all1 ,i now address myself to you1 and beg that you will kindly inform me whether the ,committee1 as represented by their officers1 endorse the late acts of their ,president1 or whether they intend taking any steps towards refusing to share the shame and ridicule that have accrued from certain proceedings described by ,mr4 ,haden as a necessary duty1 in the exercise of which he was officially engaged in conjunction with ,dr4 ,hamilton and ,m4 ,legros4 ,that you may clearly see how current the matter has become1 ,i have the honour1 ,gentlemen1 to send you herewith1 for your serious consideration1 extracts from the daily press1 and thus1 as you will read1 carry out myself the first intention of a certain speculative ,piker1 newsvendor1 ,shepherd's ,market1 who had purposed circulating among you twenty copies of the enclosed literary venture--curtailed1 it is true1 to the original ,piker paragraph1 and unaccompanied by the ,piker twenty-penny prospect2 the printing of which may--who knows8--have caused a wavering on the part of ,piker1 and have left you deprived of his labour after all4 ,piker offers matter with authority--and here ,i would point out the close proximity of ,shepherd's ,market to ,hertford ,street1 ,mayfair6--most suggestive is such contiguity4 ,the newsvendor's stall and the doctor's office within hail of each other6 ,surely ,i may1 without indiscretion1 congratulate the ,president upon ,piker's ,english and also upon the ,pecksniffian whine about the brother-in-law--rather telling in its way--but shallow6 shallow6--for after all1 ,gentlemen1 a brother-in-law is not a connection calling for sentiment--in the abstract1 rather an intruder than a near relation--indeed1 near relation is mere swagger6 ,meanwhile1 the insinuation of jealousy of the brother-etcher is1 as ,piker puts it1 suspecte--very6--and modest6--and transparent6 ,to the last paper ,i have added the cutting from the former ,cuckoo 7,piker's earlier effort7 so that you have the occasion of perceiving how the progressive ,piker party have gained in courage--until1 in direct contradiction to their first anxiety and hesitation1 we reach the final overwhelming certainty of the three representative gentlemen1 whose visit to the ,fine ,art ,society's rooms1 it would now appear1 was absolutely to prove to the blundering assistant that some etchings he had never seen1 and1 consequently never had questioned2--of the very existence of which1 in short1 he was utterly unconscious1--were by a ,mr4 ,duveneck1 of whom he had never heard1 and not by ,mr4 ,whistler6--a fact that in his whole life he had never been in a position to dispute--and of which the three ,painter-,etchers themselves were the only people who had ever had any doubt6 ,really1 they either doubted ,duveneck1 or they didn't doubt ,duveneck6--,now1 if the ,piker party didn't doubt ,duveneck1 who the devil did the ,piker party doubt8 ,and why1 may ,i ask1 does ,mr4 ,haden1 two days after the disastrous blunder in ,bond ,street1 volunteer the following note of explanation to ,mr4 ,brown1 the assistant8-- 7,,copy47 #ch ,,hertford ,,street1 ,,mayfair1 ,w4 ,march #ai1 #ahha4 ,to ,ernest ,brown1 ,esq4--,dear ,sir1--,we know all about ,mr4 ,frank ,duveneck1 and are delighted to have his etchings4--,yours faithfully1 ,f4 ,,seymour ,,haden4 ,it will be remembered that the little expedition to the ,fine ,art ,society's ,gallery took place on ,thursday evening1 the #agth of ,march4 ,on ,friday1 the #ahth1 ,mr4 ,huish wrote to ,mr4 ,haden demanding an explanation2 and on ,saturday1 the #aith1 this over-diplomatic and criminating note was sent to ,mr4 ,brown1--altogether unasked for1 and curiously difficult to excuse6--,methinks1 he doth protest too much6 ,further comment ,i believe to be unnecessary4 ,i refer you1 ,gentlemen1 to my letter of ,march #bith1 which ,mr4 ,haden has never been able to answer--and merely point out that1 the blundering assistant was the only one who did not blunder at all--since he alone1 refrained from folly1 and1 notwithstanding all exhortation1 steadily refused1 in the presence of cunning connoisseurs1 to mistake the work of one man for that of another4 ,i have1 ,gentlemen1 the honour to be1 ,your obedient servant1 ,j4 ,,mcneill ,,whistler4 ,may #ah1 #ahha4 ,,to ,,the ,,committee ,,of ,,the ,,painter-,,etchers' ,,society4 ,may ,i1 without impertinence1 ask what really does constitute the ,painter-,etcher all round1 as ,piker has it8--for1 of these three gentlemen who have so markedly distinguished themselves in that character1 two certainly are not painters--and one doesn't etch6 ,illustration ,a ,correction ,sidenote3 ,the ,world1 ,nov4 #ad1 #ahhc4 ,a supposititious conversation in ,punch brought about the following interchange of telegrams3-- ,from ,oscar ,wilde1 ,exeter1 to ,j4 ,mc,neill ,whistler1 ,tite ,street4--,punch too ridiculous--when you and ,i are together we never talk about anything except ourselves4 ,from ,whistler1 ,tite ,street1 to ,oscar ,wilde1 ,exeter4--,no1 no1 ,oscar1 you forget--when you and ,i are together1 we never talk about anything except me4 ,illustration ,a ,warning ,sidenote3 ,the ,world1 ,june #a1 #ahha4 ,sidenote3 ,,reflection3 ,a foolish man's foot is soon in his neighbour's house2 but a man of experience is ashamed of him4 ,illustration ,my dear ,james1--,i see from a weekly paper that your late residence1 the ,white ,house1 in ,tite ,street1 is now occupied by ,mr4 ,harry ,quilter1 the excellent art critic and writer on art1 or words to that effect4 ,this is the great man who has succeeded ,mr4 ,tom ,taylor on the ,times1 and whose vagaries in art criticism you and ,i1 my dear ,james1 have previously noticed4444 ,,atlas4 ,naf ,enfant ,sidenote3 ,the ,times1 ,may #b1 #ahha4 ,close to this is another portrait of extreme interest1 and1 though of another kind1 it is not inappropriately near ,mr4 ,hunt's work4 ,this is ,mr4 ,john ,ruskin1 painted by ,mr4 ,herkomer4 ,it is difficult to dissociate this picture1 as regards the merit of its painting1 from the interest which attaches to it as being the first oil portrait we have ever seen of our great art critic4444 ,the picture remains a singularly fine one1 and is1 in our opinion1 ,mr4 ,herkomer's best portrait4 ,a ,straight ,tip ,sidenote3 ,the ,world1 ,may #ah1 #ahha4 ,ne pas confondre intelligence avec gendarmes--but surely1 dear ,atlas1 when the art critic of the ,times1 suffering possibly from chronic catarrh1 is wafted in at the ,grosvenor without guide or compass1 and cannot by mere sense of smell distinguish between oil and water colour1 he ought1 like ,mark ,twain1 to inquire4 ,had he asked the guardian or the fireman in the gallery1 either might have told him not to say that one of the chief interests of ,mr4 ,herkomer's large water-colour drawing of ,mr4 ,ruskin attaches to it as being the first oil portrait we have ever seen of our great art critic6 ,adieu4 ,illustration ,an ,eager ,authority ,sidenote3 ,the ,world1 ,feb4 #i1 #ahha4 ,mr4 ,whistler knows how to defend himself so perkily that it is a pleasure to attack him4 ,i hasten1 therefore1 with joy1 to submit to you1 dear ,atlas1 who are growing so very clever at your languages1 the following crotchets and quavers--shall ,i call them8 for ,mr4 ,whistler is just now full of notes--in ,american-,italian2 they are from his delightful brown-paper catalogue4 ,to begin with1 ,santa ,margharita is wrong2 it must be either ,margarita or ,margherita2 the other is impossible ,italian4 ,then who or what is ,san ,giovanni ,apostolo et ,evangelist8 ,does the sprightly and shrill ,mc,neill mean this for ,latin8 ,and is the ,caf ,orientale intended to be ,french or ,italian8 ,it has an e too many for ,french1 and an f too few for ,italian4 ,piazetta1 furthermore1 does duty for ,piazzetta4 ,finally ,i give up ,campo ,sta4 ,martin4 ,i don't know what that can be4 ,the ,italian ,calendar has a ,san ,martino and a ,santa ,martina1 but ,sta4 ,martin is very curious4 ,the catalogue is exceedingly short1 but a few of the names are right4 ,an ,admission ,sidenote3 ,the ,world1 ,feb4 #af1 #ahha ,touch6--and my compliments to your ,correspondent1 ,atlas1 chri--far from me to justify spelling of my own6 ,but who could possibly have supposed an orthographer loose6 ,evidently too ung vieulx qui a moult roul en ,palestine et aultres lieux6 ,what it is to be prepared1 though6 ,atlas1 mon pauvre ami1 you know the story of the witness who1 when asked how far he stood from the spot where the deed was done1 answered unhesitatingly--,sixty-three feet seven inches6 ,how1 sir1 cried the prosecuting lawyer--how can you possibly pretend to such accuracy8 ,well1 returned the man in the box1 you see ,i thought some d----d fool would be sure to ask me1 and so ,i measured4 ,illustration ',arry in the ,grosvenor ,atlas--,in spite of the ,kyrle ,society1 ,i don't appeal to the middle classes2 for ,i read in the ,times that ',arry won't have me4 ,i am ranked with the caviare of his betters1 and add not to the relish of his winkles and tea4 ,also1 why troubles he about many things8 ,sidenote3 ,the ,world1 ,may #ag1 #ahhb4 ,but1 alas6 as is aptly remarked in one of the weekly papers1 ',arry has taken to going to the ,grosvenor2 and ce n'est pas tout que d'tre honnte1 he says1 lightly paraphrasing ,alfred de ,musset1 il faut tre joli garon6 ,and so he blooms into an sthete of his own order4 ,to have seen him1 ,o my wise ,atlas1 was my privilege and my misery2 for he stood under one of my own harmonies--already with difficulty gasping its gentle breath--himself an amazing arrangement in strong mustard-and-cress1 with bird's-eye belcher of ,reckitt's blue2 and then and there destroyed absolutely1 unintentionally1 and once for all1 my year's work6 ,atlas1 shall these things be8 ,illustration ,encouragement ,,to ,,oscar ,,on ,,his ,,tour4 ,sidenote3 ,the ,world1 ,feb4 #ae1 #ahhb4 ,oscar--,we1 of ,tite ,street and ,beaufort ,gardens1 joy in your triumphs and delight in your success2 but we are of opinion that1 with the exception of your epigrams1 you talk like ,s---- ,c---- in the provinces2 and that1 with the exception of your knee-breeches1 you dress like ',arry ,quilter4 ,chelsea4 ,illustration ,a ,remonstrance ,atlas1 how could you6 ,sidenote3 ,the ,world1 ,feb4 #bb1 #ahhb4 ,i know you carry the ,world on your back1 and am not surprised that my note to ,oscar1 on its way1 should have fallen from your shoulders into your dainty fingers2 but why present it in the state of puzzle8 ,besides1 your caution is one-sided and unfair2 for if you print ,s---- ,c----1 why not ,a---- ,q----8 ,why not ,x ,y ,z at once8 ,and how unlike me6 ,instead of the frank recklessness which has unfortunately become a characteristic1 ,i am1 for the first time1 disguised in careful timidity1 and discharge my insinuating initials from the ambush of innuendo4 ,my dear ,atlas1 if ,i may not always call a spade a spade1 may ,i not call a ,slade ,professor1 ,sidney ,colvin8 ,illustration ,propositions ,sidenote3 ,with compliments to the ,committee of the ,hoboken ,etching ,club upon the occasion of receiving an invitation to compete in an etching tourney whose first condition was that the plate should be at least two feet by three4 ,illustration ,i4 ,that in ,art1 it is criminal to go beyond the means used in its exercise4 ,,ii4 ,that the space to be covered should always be in proper relation to the means used for covering it4 ,,iii4 ,that in etching1 the means used1 or instrument employed1 being the finest possible point1 the space to be covered should be small in proportion4 ,,iv4 ,that all attempts to overstep the limits insisted upon by such proportion1 are inartistic thoroughly1 and tend to reveal the paucity of the means used1 instead of concealing the same1 as required by ,art in its refinement4 ,v4 ,that the huge plate1 therefore1 is an offence--its undertaking an unbecoming display of determination and ignorance--its accomplishment a triumph of unthinking earnestness and uncontrolled energy--endowments of the duffer4 ,,vi4 ,that the custom of ,remarque emanates from the amateur1 and reflects his foolish facility beyond the border of his picture1 thus testifying to his unscientific sense of its dignity4 ,,vii4 ,that it is odious4 ,,viii4 ,that1 indeed1 there should be no margin on the proof to receive such ,remarque4 ,,ix4 ,that the habit of margin1 again1 dates from the outsider1 and continues with the collector in his unreasoning connoisseurship--taking curious pleasure in the quantity of paper4 ,x4 ,that the picture ending where the frame begins1 and1 in the case of the etching1 the white mount1 being inevitably1 because of its colour1 the frame1 the picture thus extends itself irrelevantly through the margin to the mount4 ,,xi4 ,that wit of this kind would leave six inches of raw canvas between the painting and its gold frame1 to delight the purchaser with the quality of the cloth4 ,illustration ,an ,unanswered ,letter ,,pr ,,charmoy1 ,,autun1 ,,sa,,ne ,,et ,,loire1 ,,france1 ,sept4 #ac1 #ahfg4 ,sir--,i am at present engaged upon a book on etching and should be glad to give a full account of what you have done1 but find a difficulty1 which is that1 although ,i have seen many of your etchings1 ,i have not fully and fairly studied them4 ,i wonder whether you would object to lend me a set of proofs for a few weeks4 ,as the book is already advanced1 ,i should be glad of an early reply4 ,my opinion of your work is1 on the whole1 so favourable that your reputation could only gain by your affording me the opportunity of speaking of your work at length4 ,i remain1 ,sir1 ,your obedient servant1 ,p4 ,g4 ,,hamerton4 ,,james ,,whistler1 ,esq4 ,inconsequences ,sidenote3 ,the book on etching4 ,james ,whistler is of ,american extraction1 and studied painting in ,france4 ,as a student he was capricious and irregular1 and did not leave the impression amongst his fellow-pupils that his future would be in any way distinguished 444 his artistic education seems to have been mainly acquired by private and independent study4444 ,mr4 ,whistler seems to be aware that etchings are usually sought as much for their rarity as their excellence1 and to have determined that his own plates shall be rare already4 ,i have been told that1 if application is made by letter to ,mr4 ,whistler for a set of his etchings1 he may1 perhaps1 if he chooses to answer the letter1 do the applicant the favour to let him have a copy for about the price of a good horse4444 ,whistler's etchings are not generally remarkable for poetical feeling4444 ,p4 ,g4 ,,hamerton1#bj ,etching and ,etchers4 ,note #bj3 ,if beauty were the only province of art1 neither painters nor etchers would find anything to occupy them in the foul stream that washes the ,london wharfs--,p4 ,g4 ,,hamerton1 ,etching and ,etchers4 ,uncovered ,opinions ,mr4 ,whistler's famous ,woman in ,white is amongst the rejected pictures4444 ,the hangers must have thought her particularly ugly1 for they have given her a sort of place of honour1 before an opening through which all pass1 so that nobody misses her4 ,i watched several parties1 to see the impression the ,woman in ,white made on them4 ,they all stopped instantly1 struck with amazement4 ,this for two or three seconds2 then they always looked at each other and laughed4 ,here1 for once1 ,i have the happiness to be quite of the popular way of thinking4 #ba,p4 ,g4 ,,hamerton1 ,fine ,arts ,quarterly4 ,note #ba3 ,corot is one of the most celebrated landscape painters in ,france4 ,the first impression of an ,englishman1 on looking at his works1 is that they are the sketches of an amateur2 it is difficult at first sight to consider them the serious performances of an artist4444 ,i understand ,corot now1 and think his reputation1 if not well deserved1 at least easily accounted for4444 ,corot must be an early riser4--,p4 ,g4 ,,hamerton1 ,fine ,arts ,quarterly4 ,note #ba3 ,dor 7,gustave ,paul74444 ,he is a great and marvellous genius--a poet such as a nation produces once in a thousand years4 ,he is the most imaginative1 the profoundest1 the most productive poet that has ever sprung from the ,french race4--,p4 ,g4 ,,hamerton1 ,fine ,arts ,quarterly4 ,note #ba3 ,daubigny 7,charles ,franois74--,if landscape can be satisfactorily painted without either drawing or colour--,daubigny is the man to do it4--,p4 ,g4 ,,hamerton1 ,fine ,arts ,quarterly4 ,note #ba3 ,m4 ,courbet is looked upon as the representative of ,realism in ,france4 ,the truth is that ,edouard ,frre1 the ,bonheurs1 and many others are to the full as realistic as ,courbet but they produce beautiful pictures4444 ,it is difficult to speak of ,courbet1 without losing patience4 ,everything he touches becomes unpleasant4--,p4 ,g4 ,,hamerton1 ,fine ,arts ,quarterly4 ,the ,fate of an ,anecdote ,,to ,,the ,,editor3 ,sidenote3 ,new ,york ,tribune1 ,sept4 #ab1 #ahhj ,sir--,in ,scribner's ,magazine for this month there appears an article on ,mr4 ,seymour ,haden1 the eminent surgeon etcher1 by a ,mr4 ,hamerton1 and in this article ,i have stumbled upon a curious statement concerning1 strangely enough1 my own affairs1 offered pleasantly in the disguise of an anecdote habitually narrated by the ,doctor himself1 and printed effectively in inverted commas1 as here shown3 444 ,a parallel anecdote is narrated by ,mr4 ,haden3 ',the most exquisite series of plates which ,whistler ever did--his sixteen ,thames subjects--were originally printed by a steel-plate printer1 and so badly that the owner thought the plates were worn out1 and sold them for a small sum in comparison to their real worth4 ,the purchaser took them to ,goulding1 the best printer of etchings in ,england1 and it was found that they were not only perfect1 but that they produced impressions which had never before been approached even by ,delatre4' ,putting gently aside the question of these plates being superior to all previous or subsequent work1 and dealing merely with facts1 ,i have to say that they were not originally printed by a steel-plate printer2 that the impressions were not so bad that the owner thought the plates worn out2 and1 flattering as is the supposition that they were sold for a small sum in comparison to their real worth1 ,i am obliged to reject even this palatable assertion1 as ,i received for the plates the price that ,i asked1 knowing full well their exact condition4 ,instead of the steel-plate printer1 ,delatre1 then at his prime1 had himself printed these etchings--a fact which1 amusingly enough1 ,mr4 ,haden admits further on1 in direct contradiction to his first broad statement4 ,moreover1 ,i had myself pulled proofs of them all2 indeed1 one in the set of sixteen plates1 a drypoint1 called ,the ,forge 7for by the way they were not all of the ,thames71 ,i alone printed4 ,when the plates left my hands they were not taken to ,goulding1 who at that moment had1 ,i fancy1 barely begun his career as the best printer of etchings in ,england 7and a capital printer he certainly is72 and it was not found that they produced impressions never before approached even by ,delatre--here we have the contradiction alluded to--no6 this theatrical denouement ,i must also put aside with sorrow4 ,the plates were brought out by ,messrs4 ,ellis1 who had them printed by some one in ,london1 whose work was certainly not to be compared to that of ,delatre1 whom ,i should undoubtedly have recommended2 so that it was only long after the sale had been completed and the plates had ceased to be in my possession1 that inferior impressions were produced4 ,the understanding on my part with those publishers was that the plates were to be destroyed after one hundred impressions had been taken1 but very recently they reappeared1 and were sold to their present possessors1 who did take them to ,mr4 ,goulding4 ,and here ,i am obliged to explain away the last element of astonishment1 for ,mr4 ,goulding naturally found the etchings in their original perfect condition simply because ,i had had them steeled in their full bloom when ,i had satisfied myself by my own proofs4 ,goulding's impressions of these plates are very excellent1 but to say they were quite unapproached by ,delatre is not only needless exaggeration1 but an unkindness to ,mr4 ,goulding4 ,surely there must be some misunderstanding between ,mr4 ,haden and his biographer--a misdeal of data--an accident with the anecdotes--because no one was more keenly alive to all relating to these plates and their various states than ,mr4 ,haden himself1 whose strong sense of the importance of printing was acquired while watching the progress of these same plates1 and the previous ,french set1 as they were proved by me and printed by ,delatre1 to whom ,i introduced him4 ,far from me to spoil a good story2 but for the life of me ,i cannot see what any sympathizing raconteur will regret in the destruction of this mere jumble of statistics that ,mr4 ,hamerton calls ,mr4 ,haden's anecdote4 ,,venice1 ,aug4 #af1 #ahhj4 ,illustration ,in ,excelsis ,mr4 ,hamerton presents his compliments to ,mr4 ,whistler1 and begs to inform him that he has read ,mr4 ,whistler's very unbecoming and improper letter in the ,new ,york ,tribune4 ,mr4 ,hamerton in his article in ,scribner's ,monthly simply quoted a passage from one of ,mr4 ,haden's lectures on ,etching1 published in ,cassell's ,magazine of ,art2 consequently ,mr4 ,hamerton did not offer matter to his readers under any disguise whatever4 ,mr4 ,hamerton has answered ,mr4 ,whistler's letter in the same journal in which it appeared4 ,,pr ,,charmoy1 ,,autun1 ,,sa,,ne ,,et ,,loire1 ,sept4 #bh1 #ahhj4 ,a ,suspicion ,it is possibly too much to expect--upon the principle of trumps not turning up twice--but ,mr4 ,whistler does hope that ,mr4 ,hamerton's letter to the ,new ,york ,tribune will be as funny as his note to ,mr4 ,whistler1 which has just been forwarded from ,london4 ,,venice1 ,oct4 #g4 ,,caf ,,florian1 ,,place ,,san ,,marc4 ,pardon6 ,is ,mr4 ,whistler right in supposing1 from the droll little irritation shown in ,mr4 ,hamerton's note1 that ,mr4 ,hamerton is perhaps--another ,art ,critic8 ,illustration ,conviction ,,to ,,the ,,editor3 ,sidenote3 ,new ,york ,tribune1 ,oct4 #aa1 #ahhj4 ,sir--,a friend in ,america has sent me the letter from ,mr4 ,whistler which refers to my article in ,scribner on ,mr4 ,haden's etchings4 ,the letter begins as follows3 ,in ,scribner's ,magazine for this month there appears an article on ,mr4 ,seymour ,haden1 the eminent surgeon etcher by a ,mr4 ,hamerton1 and in this article ,i have stumbled upon a curious statement concerning--strangely enough--my own affairs1 offered pleasantly in the disguise of an anecdote habitually 'narrated' by the ,doctor himself1 and printed effectively in inverted commas1 as here shown4 ,here ,mr4 ,whistler accuses me of disguising something which ,i chose to tell1 as if it came from ,mr4 ,haden1 by printing it in inverted commas4 ,the statement is offered pleasantly in the disguise of an anecdote1 and printed effectively in inverted commas4 ,i used inverted commas because it is the custom to do so when making a quotation4 ,i quoted ,mr4 ,haden's own words from one of his lectures on etching1 and they will be found printed1 as ,i quoted them1 in ,cassell's ,magazine of ,art4 ,i beg to be permitted to observe that a writer who quotes a passage1 as ,i did1 in perfect good faith1 ought not to be accused of offering matter in disguise4 ,there was no disguise about it4 ,mr4 ,haden's words may be compared with my quotation4 ,again1 to prevent any possible inaccuracy1 a proof of the article in ,scribner was sent to ,mr4 ,haden before it was published4#bb ,it is scarcely necessary that ,i should allude to ,mr4 ,whistler's studied discourtesy in calling me a ,mr4 ,hamerton4 ,it does me no harm1 but it is a breach of ordinary good manners in speaking of a well-known writer6 ,note #bb3 ,,reflection3 ,queen's evidence4 ,sidenote3 ,,reflection3 ,q4 ,e4 ,d4 ,illustration ,yours obediently1 ,p4 ,g4 ,,hamerton4 ,,autun1 ,sept4 #bi1 #ahhj4 ,,mr4 ,,whistler ,,and ,,his ,,critics ,a ,,catalogue ,illustration ,out of their own mouths shall ye judge them4 ,who breaks a butterfly upon a wheel8 ,illustration ,etchings and ,dry-points ,his pictures form a dangerous precedent4 99 99 99 99 99 ,,venice4 ,another crop of ,mr4 ,whistler's little jokes4 ,truth4 #a4--,,murano--,,glass ,,furnace4 ,criticism is powerless here4--,knowledge4 #b4--;,,doorway ,,and ,,vine4 ,he must not attempt to palm off his deficiencies upon us as manifestations of power4 ,daily ,telegraph4 #c4--,,wheelwright4 ,their charm depends not at all upon the technical qualities so striking in his earlier work4 ,st4 ,james's ,gazette4 #d4--,,san ,,biagio4 ,so far removed from any accepted canons of art as to be beyond the understanding of an ordinary mortal4--,observer4 #e4--;,,bead ,,stringers4 ,sidenote3 ,,reflection3 ,et voil comme on crit l'histoire4 ,illustration ',impressionistes1' and of these the various schools are represented by ,mr4 ,whistler1 ,mr4 ,spencer ,stanhope1 ,mr4 ,walter ,crane1 and ,mr4 ,strudwick4 #f4--;,,fish ,,shop4 ,those who feel painfully the absence in these works of any feeling for the past glories of ,venice4 ',arry in the ,spectator4 ,whistler is eminently vulgar4--,glasgow ,herald4 #g4--,,turkeys4 ,they say very little to the mind4--,f4 ,wedmore4 ,it is the artist's pleasure to have them there1 and we can't help it4--,edinburgh ,courant4 #h4--,,nocturne ,,riva4 ,the ,nocturne is intended to convey an impression of night4--,p4 ,g4 ,hamerton4 ,the subject did not admit of any drawing4 ,p4 ,g4 ,hamerton4 ,we have seen a great many representations of ,venetian skies1 but never saw one before consisting of brown smoke with clots of ink in diagonal lines4 #i4--;,,fruit ,,stall4 ,the historical or poetical associations of cities have little charm for ,mr4 ,whistler and no place in his art4 #aj4--,,san ,,giorgio4 ,an artist of incomplete performance4 ,f4 ,wedmore4 #aa4--,,the ,,dyer4 ,by having as little to do as possible with tone and light and shade1 ,mr4 ,whistler evades great difficulties4--,p4 ,g4 ,hamerton4 ,all those theoretical principles of the art1 of which we have heard so much from ,messrs4 ,haden1 ,hamerton787#bc and ,lalauze1 are abandoned4 ,st4 ,james's ,gazette4 ,note #bc3 ,calling me 'a ,mr4 ,hamerton' does me no harm--but it is a breach of ordinary good manners in speaking of a well-known writer4 ,yours obediently1 ,p4 ,g4 ,,hamerton4 ,sept4 #bi1 #ahhj4 ,to the ,editor of the ,new ,york ,tribune4 #ab4--,,nocturne ,,palaces4 ,pictures in darkness are contradictions in terms4 ,literary ,world4 #ac4--,,the ,,doorway4 ,there is seldom in his ,etchings any large arrangement of light and shade4--,p4 ,g4 ,hamerton4 ,short1 scratchy lines4--,st4 ,james's ,gazette4 ,the architectural ornaments and the interlacing bars of the gratings are suggested rather than drawn4 ,st4 ,james's ,gazette4 ,amateur prodige4--,saturday ,review4 #ad4--,,long ,,lagoon4 ,we think that ,london fogs and the muddy old ,thames supply ,mr4 ,whistler's needle with subjects more congenial than do the ,venetian palaces and lagoons4--,daily ,news4 #ae4--,,temple4 ,the work does not feel much4--,times4 #af4--,,little ,,salute4--7,,dry-,,point47 ,as for the lucubrations of ,mr4 ,whistler1 they come like shadows and will so depart1 and it is unnecessary to disquiet one's self about them4 #ag4--,,the ,,bridge4 ,these works have been done with a swiftness and dash that precludes anything like care and finish4 ,these ,etchings of ,mr4 ,whistler's are nothing like so satisfactory as his earlier ,chelsea ones2 they neither convey the idea of space nor have they the delicacy of handling and treatment which we see in those4 ,he looked at ,venice never in detail4 ,f4 ,wedmore4 #ah4--,,wool ,,carders4 ,they have a merit of their own1 and ,i do not wish to understand it4#bd--;,f4 ,wedmore4 ,note #bd3 ,mr4 ,wedmore is the lucky discoverer of the following3-- ,vigour and exquisiteness are denied--are they not8--even to a ,velasquez6 #ai4--,,upright ,,venice4 ,little to recommend them save the eccentricity of their titles4 #bj4--,,little ,,venice4 ,the ,little ,venice is one of the slightest of the series4--,st4 ,james's ,gazette4 ,in the ,little ,venice and the ,little ,lagoon ,mr4 ,whistler has attempted to convey impressions by lines far too few for his purposes4--,daily ,news4 ,our river is naturally full of effects in black and white and bistre4 ,venetian skies and marbles have colour you cannot suggest with a point and some printer's ink4--,daily ,news4 ,it is not the ,venice of a maiden's fancies4--',arry4 #ba4--,,little ,,court4 ,merely technical triumphs4--,standard4 #bb4--,,regent',s ,,quadrant4 ,there may be a few who find genius in insanity4 #bc4--,,lobster ,,pots4 ,so little in them4#be--,p4 ,g4 ,hamerton4 ,note #be3 ,the same ,critic holds3 ,the ,thames is beautiful from ,maidenhead to ,kew1 but not from ,battersea to ,sheerness4 #bd4--,,riva ,no4 #b4 ,in all his former ,etchings he was careful to give a strong foundation of firm drawing4 ,in these plates1 however1 he has cast aside this painstaking method4 ,st4 ,james's ,gazette4 #be4--;,,islands4 ,an artist who has never mastered the subtleties of accurate form4#bf--;,f4 ,wedmore4 ,note #bf3 ,elsewhere ,mr4 ,wedmore is inspired to say-- ,the true collector must gradually and painfully acquire the eye to judge of the impression4 ,sidenote3 ,,reflection3 ,this is possibly the process through which the preacher is passing4 ,illustration #bf4--,,the ,,little ,,lagoon4 ,well1 little new came of it1 in etching2 nothing new that was beautiful4--,f4 ,wedmore4 #bg4--,,nocturne ,,shipping4 ,sidenote3 ,amazing6 ,illustration ,this ,archimago of the iconographic aoraton1 or graphiology of the ,hidden4--,daily ,telegraph4 ,popularity is the only insult that has not yet been offered to ,mr4 ,whistler4--,oscar ,wilde4 #bh4--,,two ,,doorways4 ,it is trying to any sketch without tone to be hung upon a wall as these have been4--,p4 ,g4 ,hamerton4 #bi4--,,old ,,women4 ,he is never literary4--,p4 ,g4 ,hamerton4 #cj4--,,riva4 ,sidenote3 ,,reflection3 ,like ,eno's ,fruit ,salt or the ,anti-mal-de-,mer4 ,illustration ,he took from ,london to ,venice his happy fashion of suggesting lapping water4--,f4 ,wedmore4 ,even such a well-worn subject as the ,riva degli ,schiavoni is made original 787 by being taken from a high point of view1 and looked at lengthwise1 instead of from the canal4 #ca4--;,,drury ,,lane4 ,in ,mr4 ,whistler's productions one might safely say that there is no culture4--,athenum4 #cb4--,,the ,,balcony4 ,his colour is subversive4--,russian ,press4 #cc4--;,,alderney ,,street4 ,the best art may be produced with trouble4 ,f4 ,wedmore4#bg ,note #bg3 ,i am not a ,mede nor a ,persian4--,f4 ,,wedmore4 #cd4--,,the ,,smithy4 ,they produce a disappointing impression4 ,his ,etchings seem weak when framed4#bh ,p4 ,g4 ,hamerton4 ,note #bh3 ,mr4 ,hamerton does also say3 ,indifference to beauty is however compatible with splendid success in etching1 as the career of ,rembrandt proved4--,etching and ,etchers4 #ce4--,,stables4 ,an unpleasing thing1 and framed in ,mr4 ,whistler's odd fashion4--,city ,press4 #cf4--,,the ,,mast4 ,sidenote3 ,,reflection3 ,at the service of critics of unequal sizes4 ,illustration ,the ,mast and the ,little ,mast are dependent for much of their interest1 on the drawing of festoons of cord hanging from unequal heights4 ,p4 ,g4 ,hamerton4 #cg4--,,traghetto4 ,the artist's present principles seem to deny him any effective chiaroscuro4--,p4 ,g4 ,hamerton4 ,sidenote3 ,,reflection3 ,sometimes generally always4 ,illustration ,mr4 ,whistler's figure drawings1 generally defective and always incomplete4 #ch4--;,,fishing ,,boat4 ,subjects unimportant in themselves4 ,p4 ,g4 ,hamerton4 #ci4--,,ponte ,,piovan4 ,want of variety in the handling4 ,st4 ,james's ,gazette4 #dj4--;,,garden4 ,an art which is happier in the gloom of a doorway than in the glow of the sunshine1 and turns with a pleasant blindness from whatsoever in ,nature or ,man is of perfect beauty or noble thought4--',arry4 #da4--,,the ,,rialto4 ,mr4 ,whistler has etched too much for his reputation4--,f4 ,wedmore4 ,sidenote3 ,,reflection3 ,this critic1 true1 is a ,slade ,professor4 ,illustration ,scampering caprice4--,s4 ,colvin4 ,mr4 ,whistler's drawing1 which is sometimes that of a very slovenly master4 #db4--,,long ,,venice4 ,after all1 there are certain accepted canons about what constitutes good drawing1 good colour1 and good painting2 and when an artist deliberately sets himself to ignore or violate all of these1 it is desirable that his work should not be classed with that of ordinary artists4--',arry4 #dc4--,,nocturne ,,salute4 ,the utter absence1 as far as my eye#bi may be trusted1 of gradation4--,f4 ,wedmore4 ,note #bi38 ,illustration ,there are many things in a painter's art which even a photographer cannot understand4 ,laudatory notice in ,provincial ,press4 #dd4--;,,furnace ,,nocturne4 ,there is no moral element in his chiaroscuro4 ,richmond ,eagle4 #de4--,,piazetta4 ,whistler does not take much pains with his work4 ,new ,york ,paper4 ,a sort of transatlantic impudence in his cleverness4 ,his pictures do not claim to be accurate4 #df4--,,the ,,little ,,mast4 ,form and line are of little account to him4 #dg4--,,quiet ,,canal4 ,herr ,whistler stellt ganz wunderbare ,productionen aus1 die auf ,gesetze der ,form und der ,farbe gegrndet scheinen1 die dem ,uneingeweihten unverstndlich sind4--,wiener ,presse4 ,this new manner of ,mr4 ,whistler's is no improvement upon that which helped him to win his fame in this field of art4 #dh4--,,palaces4 ,the absence1 seemingly1 of any power of drawing the forms of water4#cj--;,f4 ,wedmore4 ,note #cj3 ,see ,no4 #cj1 ,the ,riva4 ,he has never1 so far as we know1 attempted to transfer to copper any of the more ambitious works of the architect4--,pall ,mall ,gazette4 ,he has been content to show us what his eyes can see1 and not what his hand can do4 ,st4 ,james's ,gazette4 #di4--,,salute ,,dawn4 ,too sensational4--,athenum4 ,pushing a single artistic principle to the verge of affectation4--,sidney ,colvin4 #ej4--;,,beggars4 ,in the character of humanity he has not time to be interested4--,standard4 ,general absence of tone4--,p4 ,g4 ,hamerton4 #ea4--,,lagoon3 ,,noon4 ,years ago ,james ,whistler was a person of high promise4--,f4 ,wedmore4 ,what the art of ,mr4 ,whistler yields is a tertium quid4#ca--,sidney ,colvin4 ,note #ca3 ,,reflection3 ,the quid of sweet and bitter fancy4 ,illustration ,all of which gems1 ,i am sincerely thankful to say1 ,i cannot appreciate4 ,as we have hinted1 the series does not represent any ,venice that we much care to remember2 for who wants to remember the degradation of what has been noble1 the foulness of what has been fair8 ',arry#cb in the ,times4 ,note #cb3 ,,reflection3 ,the labour of the foolish wearieth every one of them because he knoweth not how to go to the ,city4 ,illustration ,disastrous failures4--,f4 ,wedmore4 ,failures that are complete and failures that are partial4--,f4 ,wedmore4 ,a publicity rarely bestowed upon failures at all4 ,f4 ,wedmore1 ,nineteenth ,century4 ,sidenote3 ,voil ce que l'on dit de moi ,dans la ,gazette de ,hollande4 ,therefore is judgment far from us1 neither doth justice overtake us4 ,we wait for light1 but behold obscurity2 for brightness1 but we walk in darkness4 ,we grope for the wall like the blind1 and we grope as if we had no eyes2 we stumble at noonday as in the night4 ,we roar all like bears4 ,illustration ,taking the ,bait ,sidenote3 ,the ,academy1 ,feb4 #bd1 #ahhc4 ,by the simple process of applying snippets of published sentences to works of art to which the original comments were never meant to have reference1 and sometimes1 too1 by lively misquotation--as when a writer who did not wish to understate ,mr4 ,whistler's merit is made to say he did not wish to understand it1 ,mr4 ,whistler has counted on good-humouredly confounding criticism4 ,he has entertained but not persuaded2 and if his literary efforts with the scissors and the paste-pot might be taken with any seriousness we should have to rebuke him for his feat4 ,but we are far from doing so4 ,he desired1 it seems1 to say that he and ,velasquez were both above criticism4 ,an artist in literature would have said it in fewer words2 but indulgence may fairly be granted to the less assured methods of an amateur in authorship4 ,f4 ,,wedmore4 ,an ,apology ,sidenote3 ,the ,world1 ,feb4 #bh1 #ahhc4 ,atlas--,there are those1 they tell me1 who have the approval of the people--and live6 ,for them the succs d'estime2 for me1 ,o ,atlas1 the succs d'excration--the only tribute possible from the ,mob to the ,master6 ,this ,i have now nobly achieved4 ,glissons6 ,in the hour of my triumph let me not neglect my ambulance4 ,mr4 ,frederick ,wedmore--a critic--one of the wounded--complains that by dexterously substituting understand for understate1 ,i have dealt unfairly by him1 and wrongly rendered his writing4 ,let me hasten to acknowledge the error1 and apologise4 ,my carelessness is culpable1 and the misprint without excuse2 for naturally ,i have all along known1 and the typographer should have been duly warned1 that with ,mr4 ,wedmore1 as with his brethren1 it is always a matter of understating1 and not at all one of understanding4 ,quant aux autres--well1 with the exception of ',arry1 who really is dead1 they will recover4 ,scalped and disfigured1 they are not mortally hurt2 and--would you believe it8--possessed with an infinite capacity for continuing1 they have already returned1 nothing doubting1 to their limited literature1 of which ,i have exhausted the stock4--,yours1 en passant1 ,chelsea4 ,illustration ,jeux ,innocents in ,tite ,street ,sidenote3 ,the ,world1 ,dec4 #bf1 #ahhc4 ,mr4 ,whistler's final breakfast of the year was given on ,sunday last4 ,the hospitable master has fresh wonders in store for his friends in the new year2 for1 not content with treating his next-door critic after the manner that ,portuguese sailors treat the ,apostle ,judas at ,easter-tide1 he is said to have perfected a new instrument of torture4 ,this invention is of the nature of a camera obscura1 whereby1 by a crafty arrangement of reflectors1 he promises to display in his own studio1 to his friends1 ',arry at the ,white ,house1 under all the appropriate circumstances that might be expected of a ,celebrity at ,home4 ,,atlas4 ,a ,line from the ,lands ,end ,sidenote3 ,the ,world1 ,jan4 #b1 #ahhd4 ,delightful6 ,atlas--,i have read here1 to the idle miners--culture in their manners curiously1 at this season1 blended with intoxication--your brilliant and graphic description of ',arry at the other end of my arrangement in telescopic lenses4 ,the sensitive sons of the ,cornish caves1 by instinct refined1 revel in the writhing of the resurrected ',arry4 ,our natures are evidently of the same dainty brutality4 ,cruelty to the critic after demise1 is a revelation1 and the story of ',arry pursued with post-mortem1 and1 for ,sunday demonstration1 kept by galvanism from his grave1 is to them most fascinating4 ,i have1 my sympathetic ,atlas1 the success that might have been ,edgar ,poe's1 could he have read to such an audience the horrible ,case of ,mr4 ,waldemar4 ,my invention and machinery1 by the way1 these warm-hearted people believe to be something after the fashion of their own sluice-boxes--and ,i dare not undeceive them4 ,atlas1 je te la souhaite bonne et heureuse6 ,,st4 ,,ives1 ,,cornwall1 ,dec4 #bg4 ,illustration ,the ,easy ,expert ,atlas--,they have sent me the ,spectator--a paper upon which our late ',arry lingered to the last as art critic4 ,in its columns ,i find a correspondent calling aloud for our kind intervention4 ,present me1 brave ,atlas1 to the editor1 that ,i may say to him3 ,sidenote3 ,the ,world1 ,jan4 #cj1 #ahhd4 ,,good ,,sir1--',your ,reviewer' is doubtless my unburied ',arry4 ,why1 then1 should 'his mistaking a photogravure reproduction of a pen-and-ink drawing by ,samuel ,palmer for a finished etching by the same hand' seem1 'to say the least of it1 astounding'8 ,not at all6 ,by this sort of thing was he known among us1 poor chap--and so was he our fresh gladness and continued surprise4 ,did ,i not make historical his enchanting encounter with ,mr4 ,herkomer's water-colour drawing of ,mr4 ,ruskin at the ,grosvenor1 which he described as the 'first oil portrait we have of the great master'8 ,amazing that1 if you like6 ,do not all remember how we leaped for joy at the reading of it8 ,even ,atlas himself laughed aloud1 and1 handicapped as he is with the ,world1 and weighted with wisdom1 danced upon his plinth1 a slow measure of reckless acquiescence1 as ,i set down in the chronicles of all time that ',arry1 'unable1 by mere sense of smell1 to distinguish between oil and water-colour1 might at least have inquired2 and that either the fireman or the guardian in the ,gallery could have told him not to blunder in the ,times4' ,but no1 he never would ask--he liked his potshots at things2 it used to give a sort of sporting interest to his speculations upon pictures4 ,and so he was ever obstinate--or any one at the ,fine ,art ,society would have told him the difference between an etching and a photograph4--,i am1 good sir1 yours1 etc4 ,atlas1 bientt4 ,,st4 ,,ives1 ,,cornwall1 ,jan4 #be1 #ahcd4 ,illustration ,propositions--,no4 #b ,a picture is finished when all trace of the means used to bring about the end has disappeared4 ,to say of a picture1 as is often said in its praise1 that it shows great and earnest labour1 is to say that it is incomplete and unfit for view4 ,industry in ,art is a necessity--not a virtue--and any evidence of the same1 in the production1 is a blemish1 not a quality2 a proof1 not of achievement1 but of absolutely insufficient work1 for work alone will efface the footsteps of work4 ,the work of the master reeks not of the sweat of the brow--suggests no effort--and is finished from its beginning4 ,the completed task of perseverance only1 has never been begun1 and will remain unfinished to eternity--a monument of goodwill and foolishness4 ,there is one that laboureth1 and taketh pains1 and maketh haste1 and is so much the more behind4 ,the masterpiece should appear as the flower to the painter--perfect in its bud as in its bloom--with no reason to explain its presence--no mission to fulfil--a joy to the artist--a delusion to the philanthropist--a puzzle to the botanist--an accident of sentiment and alliteration to the literary man4 ,illustration ,a ,hint ,sidenote3 ,the ,world1 ,feb4 #ag1 #ahhf4 ,please to take note1 my dear ,mr4 ,james ,mc,n4 ,w41 that your dearest foe1 ',arry1 is a candidate for the ,slade ,chair of ,art in the ,university of ,cambridge6 ,this is said to be the age of testimonials4 ,a few words from you1 my dear ,james1 addressed to the distinguished trustees1 could not fail to give ',arry a lift4 ,,atlas4 ,a ,distinction ,atlas1 you provoke me6 ,the wisdom of ages means but little--,i have said it4 ,faut tre dans le mouvement1 you dear old thing1 or you are absolutely out of it6 ,sidenote3 ,the ,world1 ,feb4 #bd1 #ahhf4 ,you are misled1 and mistake mere fact for the fiction of history1 which is truth--and instructs--and is beautiful4 ,now1 in truth1 ',arry is dead--very dead4 ,did ,i not1 from between your shoulders1 sally forth and slay him8--thereby instructing--and making history--and avenging the beautiful4 ,if within the distant ,aden1 you can't descry1 with sorrow laden1 the tiny soul of ',arry1 it is because you no longer read your own small print1 my ,atlas6 and the microbes of ,eternity escape you4 ,moreover1 are not these things written in the chronicles of ,chelsea1 adown whose ,embankment ,i still1 ,achilles-like1 do drag the body of an afternoon8 ,this practice has doubtless completed the confusion of the wearied ones of ,slade--and they of the ,schools1 accustomed to the culture of ,colvin1 whose polished scalp ,i with difficulty collected1 ceasing to distinguish between the quick and the dead1 will probably prop up our late ',arry as professor1 long to remain undetected in the ,chair6 ,atlas1 tais-toi6--,let us not interfere6 ,illustration ,a ,document ,atlas--,i have come upon the posthumous paper of ',arry--his certificate of character1 and printed pretension to the ,professorship of ,slade--and ,o6 the shame of it--and the indiscretion of it6 ,read1 ,atlas1 and seek in your past for a parallel3 ,sidenote3 ,the ,world1 ,march #bd1 #ahhf4 ,to the ,electors of the ,slade ,professor of ,fine ,art for the ,university of ,cambridge4--,my ,lord and ,gentlemen1--,i beg to submit my name as a candidate for the ,slade ,professorship1 and enclose herewith a few testimonials 444 ,i have also received favourable letters from the following gentlemen 444 ,alma-,tadema1 ,r4,a41 ,marcus ,stone1 ,r4,a41 ,briton ,rivire1 ,r4,a41 ,john ,brett1 ,a4,r4,a41 444 and others4 ,what6 is the ,immaculate impure8--and shall the ,academy have coquetted with the unclean8 ,had ,alma the classic aught in common with this ',arry of commerce8 ,believe him not1 ,atlas6 ,o ,alma6 ,o ,ichabod6 forgive us the thought of it6 ,surely also the pots of the ,forty do boil before the ,lord1 and the flames of the chosen were unfanned by the feather of ',arry's goose-quill4 ,again3 ,my experience in art matters has been briefly as follows3 ,i have worked at the subject continually in ,italy1 having for that purpose travelled and stayed in that country--at least a dozen times4 ,i have also painted in ,france1 ,germany1 and ,belgium1 in which last-mentioned country ,i was in a portrait painter's studio4--7,a portrait by ',arry67 ,there are several pictures of mine being exhibited in ,london at the present time4 76667 ,i have also executed a good deal of distemper4444 ,i have also travelled for a year in the ,east4 7',arry in the ,east667 ,i have had1 as a lecturer upon ,art1 considerable experience--at working men's clubs-- 444 and at the ,rev4 ,stopford ,a4 ,brooke's ,college for men1 women1 and children4 ,for the last ten years ,i have written every article upon art which has appeared in the ,spectator newspaper--a confession1 ,atlas1 clearly a confession6 ,in #ahhj1 ,i wrote a critical life of ,giotto--he did indeed1 ,atlas6--,i saw it--a book in blue--his own1 and ,reckitt's--all bold with brazen letters3 ,,giotto ,,by ',,arry --of which two editions were published--bless him--and then ,i killed him6 and1 ,i am1 ,gentlemen1 ,your most obedient servant1 ',,arry1 ,m4,a4 ,trin4 ,coll4 ,camb41 ,esquire4 ,the pride of it6 ,illustration ,sacrilege ,o ,atlas6 ,what of the ,society for the ,preservation of ,beautiful ,buildings8 ,sidenote3 ,upon the ,alterations of the ,white ,house4 ,where is ,ruskin8 and what do ,morris and ,sir ,william ,drake8 ,sidenote3 ,the ,world1 ,oct4 #ag1 #ahhc4 ,for1 behold6 beside the ,thames1 the work of desecration continues1 and the ,white ,house swarms with the mason of contract4 ,the architectural galbe that was the joy of the few1 and the bedazement of the ,board1 crumbles beneath the pick1 as did the north side of ,st4 ,mark's1 and history is wiped from the face of ,chelsea4 ,shall no one interfere8 ,shall the interloper1 even after his death1 prevail8 ,shall ',arry1 whom ,i have hewn down1 still live among us by outrage of this kind1 and impose his memory upon our pavement by the public perpetration of his posthumous philistinism8 ,shall the birthplace of art become the tomb of its parasite in ,tite ,street8 ,see to it1 ,atlas6 lest1 when ,time1 the healer of all the wounds ,i have inflicted1 shall for me have exacted those honours the prophet may not expect while alive1 and the inevitable blue disc1 imbedded in the walls1 shall proclaim that ,here once dwelt the gentle ,master of all that is flippant and fine in ,art1 some anxious student1 reading1 fall out with ,providence in his vain effort to reconcile such joyous reputation with the dank and hopeless appearance of this model lodging1 bequeathed to the people by the arrogance of ',arry4 ,illustration ,the ,red ,rag ,sidenote3 ,mr4 ,whistler1 ,cheyne ,walk4 ,sidenote3 ,the ,world1 ,may #bb1 #ahgh4 ,why should not ,i call my works symphonies1 arrangements1 harmonies1 and nocturnes8 ,i know that many good people think my nomenclature funny and myself eccentric4 ,yes1 eccentric is the adjective they find for me4 ,the vast majority of ,english folk cannot and will not consider a picture as a picture1 apart from any story which it may be supposed to tell4 ,my picture of a ,harmony in ,grey and ,gold is an illustration of my meaning--a snow scene with a single black figure and a lighted tavern4 ,i care nothing for the past1 present1 or future of the black figure1 placed there because the black was wanted at that spot4 ,all that ,i know is that my combination of grey and gold is the basis of the picture4 ,now this is precisely what my friends cannot grasp4 ,they say1 ,why not call it ',trotty ,veck1' and sell it for a round harmony of golden guineas8--navely acknowledging that1 without baptism1 there is no 444 market6 ,but even commercially this stocking of your shop with the goods of another would be indecent--custom alone has made it dignified4 ,not even the popularity of ,dickens should be invoked to lend an adventitious aid to art of another kind from his4 ,i should hold it a vulgar and meretricious trick to excite people about ,trotty ,veck when1 if they really could care for pictorial art at all1 they would know that the picture should have its own merit1 and not depend upon dramatic1 or legendary1 or local interest4 ,as music is the poetry of sound1 so is painting the poetry of sight1 and the subject-matter has nothing to do with harmony of sound or of colour4 ,the great musicians knew this4 ,beethoven and the rest wrote music--simply music2 symphony in this key1 concerto or sonata in that4 ,on ,f or ,g they constructed celestial harmonies--as harmonies--as combinations1 evolved from the chords of ,f or ,g and their minor correlatives4 ,this is pure music as distinguished from airs--commonplace and vulgar in themselves1 but interesting from their associations1 as1 for instance1 ,yankee ,doodle1 or ,partant pour la ,syrie4 ,art should be independent of all clap-trap--should stand alone1 and appeal to the artistic sense of eye or ear1 without confounding this with emotions entirely foreign to it1 as devotion1 pity1 love1 patriotism1 and the like4 ,all these have no kind of concern with it2 and that is why ,i insist on calling my works arrangements and harmonies4 ,take the picture of my mother1 exhibited at the ,royal ,academy as an ,arrangement in ,grey and ,black4 ,now that is what it is4 ,to me it is interesting as a picture of my mother2 but what can or ought the public to care about the identity of the portrait8 ,the imitator is a poor kind of creature4 ,if the man who paints only the tree1 or flower1 or other surface he sees before him were an artist1 the king of artists would be the photographer4 ,it is for the artist to do something beyond this3 in portrait painting to put on canvas something more than the face the model wears for that one day2 to paint the man1 in short1 as well as his features2 in arrangement of colours to treat a flower as his key1 not as his model4 ,this is now understood indifferently well--at least by dressmakers4 ,in every costume you see attention is paid to the key-note of colour which runs through the composition1 as the chant of the ,anabaptists through the ,prophte1 or the ,huguenots' hymn in the opera of that name4 ,illustration ,a ,rebuke ,sidenote3 ,the ,world1 ,dec4 #i1 #ahhe4 ,no ,birmingham election1 no ,chamberlain speech1 no ,reynolds or ,dispatch article1 could bring the aristocracy more strongly into ridicule and contempt than does the coarsely coloured cartoon of ,newmarket accompanying the winter number of ,vanity ,fair4 ,from it one learns that the ,dukes1 ,duchesses1 and turf persons generally1 frequenting the ,heath1 are a set of blob-headed stumpy dwarfs4444 ,,atlas4 ,les points sur les i ,sidenote3 ,the ,world1 ,dec4 #af1 #ahhe4 ,i agree with you1 ,o ,atlas of ages1 that completeness is a reason for ceasing to exist2 but even indignation might be less vague than is your righteous anger at ,vanity's ,christmas cartoon4 ,surely you might have helped the people1 who scarcely distinguish between the original and impudent imitation1 to know that this faded leaf is not from the book of ,carlo ,pellegrini1 the master who has taught them all--that they can never learn8 ,illustration ,,mr4 ,,whistler',s ,,ten ,o',,clock ,illustration ,london1 #ahhh ,illustration ,delivered in ,london ,feb4 #bj1 #ahhe ,at ,cambridge ,march #bd ,at ,oxford ,april #cj ,,ladies ,,and ,,gentlemen3 ,it is with great hesitation and much misgiving that ,i appear before you1 in the character of ,the ,preacher4 ,if timidity be at all allied to the virtue modesty1 and can find favour in your eyes1 ,i pray you1 for the sake of that virtue1 accord me your utmost indulgence4 ,i would plead for my want of habit1 did it not seem preposterous1 judging from precedent1 that aught save the most efficient effrontery could be ever expected in connection with my subject--for ,i will not conceal from you that ,i mean to talk about ,art4 ,yes1 ,art--that has of late become1 as far as much discussion and writing can make it1 a sort of common topic for the tea-table4 ,art is upon the ,town6--to be chucked under the chin by the passing gallant--to be enticed within the gates of the householder--to be coaxed into company1 as a proof of culture and refinement4 ,if familiarity can breed contempt1 certainly ,art--or what is currently taken for it--has been brought to its lowest stage of intimacy4 ,the people have been harassed with ,art in every guise1 and vexed with many methods as to its endurance4 ,they have been told how they shall love ,art1 and live with it4 ,their homes have been invaded1 their walls covered with paper1 their very dress taken to task--until1 roused at last1 bewildered and filled with the doubts and discomforts of senseless suggestion1 they resent such intrusion1 and cast forth the false prophets1 who have brought the very name of the beautiful into disrepute1 and derision upon themselves4 ,alas6 ladies and gentlemen1 ,art has been maligned4 ,she has naught in common with such practices4 ,she is a goddess of dainty thought--reticent of habit1 abjuring all obtrusiveness1 purposing in no way to better others4 ,she is1 withal1 selfishly occupied with her own perfection only--having no desire to teach--seeking and finding the beautiful in all conditions and in all times1 as did her high priest ,rembrandt1 when he saw picturesque grandeur and noble dignity in the ,jews' quarter of ,amsterdam1 and lamented not that its inhabitants were not ,greeks4 ,as did ,tintoret and ,paul ,veronese1 among the ,venetians1 while not halting to change the brocaded silks for the classic draperies of ,athens4 ,as did1 at the ,court of ,philip1 ,velasquez1 whose ,infantas1 clad in insthetic hoops1 are1 as works of ,art1 of the same quality as the ,elgin marbles4 ,no reformers were these great men--no improvers of the way of others6 ,their productions alone were their occupation1 and1 filled with the poetry of their science1 they required not to alter their surroundings--for1 as the laws of their ,art were revealed to them they saw1 in the development of their work1 that real beauty which1 to them1 was as much a matter of certainty and triumph as is to the astronomer the verification of the result1 foreseen with the light given to him alone4 ,in all this1 their world was completely severed from that of their fellow-creatures with whom sentiment is mistaken for poetry2 and for whom there is no perfect work that shall not be explained by the benefit conferred upon themselves4 ,humanity takes the place of ,art1 and ,god's creations are excused by their usefulness4 ,beauty is confounded with virtue1 and1 before a work of ,art1 it is asked3 ,what good shall it do8 ,hence it is that nobility of action1 in this life1 is hopelessly linked with the merit of the work that portrays it2 and thus the people have acquired the habit of looking1 as who should say1 not at a picture1 but through it1 at some human fact1 that shall1 or shall not1 from a social point of view1 better their mental or moral state4 ,so we have come to hear of the painting that elevates1 and of the duty of the painter--of the picture that is full of thought1 and of the panel that merely decorates4 99 99 99 99 99 ,a favourite faith1 dear to those who teach1 is that certain periods were especially artistic1 and that nations1 readily named1 were notably lovers of ,art4 ,so we are told that the ,greeks were1 as a people1 worshippers of the beautiful1 and that in the fifteenth century ,art was engrained in the multitude4 ,that the great masters lived in common understanding with their patrons--that the early ,italians were artists--all--and that the demand for the lovely thing produced it4 ,that we1 of to-day1 in gross contrast to this ,arcadian purity1 call for the ungainly1 and obtain the ugly4 ,that1 could we but change our habits and climate--were we willing to wander in groves--could we be roasted out of broadcloth--were we to do without haste1 and journey without speed1 we should again require the spoon of ,queen ,anne1 and pick at our peas with the fork of two prongs4 ,and so1 for the flock1 little hamlets grow near ,hammersmith1 and the steam horse is scorned4 ,useless6 quite hopeless and false is the effort6--built upon fable1 and all because a wise man has uttered a vain thing and filled his belly with the ,east wind4 ,listen6 ,there never was an artistic period4 ,there never was an ,art-loving nation4 ,in the beginning1 man went forth each day--some to do battle1 some to the chase2 others1 again1 to dig and to delve in the field--all that they might gain and live1 or lose and die4 ,until there was found among them one1 differing from the rest1 whose pursuits attracted him not1 and so he stayed by the tents with the women1 and traced strange devices with a burnt stick upon a gourd4 ,this man1 who took no joy in the ways of his brethren--who cared not for conquest1 and fretted in the field--this designer of quaint patterns--this deviser of the beautiful--who perceived in ,nature about him curious curvings1 as faces are seen in the fire--this dreamer apart1 was the first artist4 ,and when1 from the field and from afar1 there came back the people1 they took the gourd--and drank from out of it4 ,and presently there came to this man another--and1 in time1 others--of like nature1 chosen by the ,gods--and so they worked together2 and soon they fashioned1 from the moistened earth1 forms resembling the gourd4 ,and with the power of creation1 the heirloom of the artist1 presently they went beyond the slovenly suggestion of ,nature1 and the first vase was born1 in beautiful proportion4 ,and the toilers tilled1 and were athirst2 and the heroes returned from fresh victories1 to rejoice and to feast2 and all drank alike from the artists' goblets1 fashioned cunningly1 taking no note the while of the craftsman's pride1 and understanding not his glory in his work2 drinking at the cup1 not from choice1 not from a consciousness that it was beautiful1 but because1 forsooth1 there was none other6 ,and time1 with more state1 brought more capacity for luxury1 and it became well that men should dwell in large houses1 and rest upon couches1 and eat at tables2 whereupon the artist1 with his artificers1 built palaces1 and filled them with furniture1 beautiful in proportion and lovely to look upon4 ,and the people lived in marvels of art--and ate and drank out of masterpieces--for there was nothing else to eat and to drink out of1 and no bad building to live in2 no article of daily life1 of luxury1 or of necessity1 that had not been handed down from the design of the master1 and made by his workmen4 ,and the people questioned not1 and had nothing to say in the matter4 ,so ,greece was in its splendour1 and ,art reigned supreme--by force of fact1 not by election--and there was no meddling from the outsider4 ,the mighty warrior would no more have ventured to offer a design for the temple of ,pallas ,athene than would the sacred poet have proffered a plan for constructing the catapult4 ,and the ,amateur was unknown--and the ,dilettante undreamed of6 ,and history wrote on1 and conquest accompanied civilisation1 and ,art spread1 or rather its products were carried by the victors among the vanquished from one country to another4 ,and the customs of cultivation covered the face of the earth1 so that all peoples continued to use what the artist alone produced4 ,and centuries passed in this using1 and the world was flooded with all that was beautiful1 until there arose a new class1 who discovered the cheap1 and foresaw fortune in the facture of the sham4 ,then sprang into existence the tawdry1 the common1 the gewgaw4 ,the taste of the tradesman supplanted the science of the artist1 and what was born of the million went back to them1 and charmed them1 for it was after their own heart2 and the great and the small1 the statesman and the slave1 took to themselves the abomination that was tendered1 and preferred it--and have lived with it ever since6 ,and the artist's occupation was gone1 and the manufacturer and the huckster took his place4 ,and now the heroes filled from the jugs and drank from the bowls--with understanding--noting the glare of their new bravery1 and taking pride in its worth4 ,and the people--this time--had much to say in the matter--and all were satisfied4 ,and ,birmingham and ,manchester arose in their might--and ,art was relegated to the curiosity shop4 99 99 99 99 99 ,nature contains the elements1 in colour and form1 of all pictures1 as the keyboard contains the notes of all music4 ,but the artist is born to pick1 and choose1 and group with science1 these elements1 that the result may be beautiful--as the musician gathers his notes1 and forms his chords1 until he bring forth from chaos glorious harmony4 ,to say to the painter1 that ,nature is to be taken as she is1 is to say to the player1 that he may sit on the piano4 ,that ,nature is always right1 is an assertion1 artistically1 as untrue1 as it is one whose truth is universally taken for granted4 ,nature is very rarely right1 to such an extent even1 that it might almost be said that ,nature is usually wrong3 that is to say1 the condition of things that shall bring about the perfection of harmony worthy a picture is rare1 and not common at all4 ,this would seem1 to even the most intelligent1 a doctrine almost blasphemous4 ,so incorporated with our education has the supposed aphorism become1 that its belief is held to be part of our moral being1 and the words themselves have1 in our ear1 the ring of religion4 ,still1 seldom does ,nature succeed in producing a picture4 ,the sun blares1 the wind blows from the east1 the sky is bereft of cloud1 and without1 all is of iron4 ,the windows of the ,crystal ,palace are seen from all points of ,london4 ,the holiday-maker rejoices in the glorious day1 and the painter turns aside to shut his eyes4 ,how little this is understood1 and how dutifully the casual in ,nature is accepted as sublime1 may be gathered from the unlimited admiration daily produced by a very foolish sunset4 ,the dignity of the snow-capped mountain is lost in distinctness1 but the joy of the tourist is to recognise the traveller on the top4 ,the desire to see1 for the sake of seeing1 is1 with the mass1 alone the one to be gratified1 hence the delight in detail4 ,and when the evening mist clothes the riverside with poetry1 as with a veil1 and the poor buildings lose themselves in the dim sky1 and the tall chimneys become campanili1 and the warehouses are palaces in the night1 and the whole city hangs in the heavens1 and fairyland is before us--then the wayfarer hastens home2 the working man and the cultured one1 the wise man and the one of pleasure1 cease to understand1 as they have ceased to see1 and ,nature1 who1 for once1 has sung in tune1 sings her exquisite song to the artist alone1 her son and her master--her son in that he loves her1 her master in that he knows her4 ,to him her secrets are unfolded1 to him her lessons have become gradually clear4 ,he looks at her flower1 not with the enlarging lens1 that he may gather facts for the botanist1 but with the light of the one who sees in her choice selection of brilliant tones and delicate tints1 suggestions of future harmonies4 ,he does not confine himself to purposeless copying1 without thought1 each blade of grass1 as commended by the inconsequent1 but1 in the long curve of the narrow leaf1 corrected by the straight tall stem1 he learns how grace is wedded to dignity1 how strength enhances sweetness1 that elegance shall be the result4 ,in the citron wing of the pale butterfly1 with its dainty spots of orange1 he sees before him the stately halls of fair gold1 with their slender saffron pillars1 and is taught how the delicate drawing high upon the walls shall be traced in tender tones of orpiment1 and repeated by the base in notes of graver hue4 ,in all that is dainty and lovable he finds hints for his own combinations1 and thus is ,nature ever his resource and always at his service1 and to him is naught refused4 ,through his brain1 as through the last alembic1 is distilled the refined essence of that thought which began with the ,gods1 and which they left him to carry out4 ,set apart by them to complete their works1 he produces that wondrous thing called the masterpiece1 which surpasses in perfection all that they have contrived in what is called ,nature2 and the ,gods stand by and marvel1 and perceive how far away more beautiful is the ,venus of ,melos than was their own ,eve4 99 99 99 99 99 ,for some time past1 the unattached writer has become the middleman in this matter of ,art1 and his influence1 while it has widened the gulf between the people and the painter1 has brought about the most complete misunderstanding as to the aim of the picture4 ,for him a picture is more or less a hieroglyph or symbol of story4 ,apart from a few technical terms1 for the display of which he finds an occasion1 the work is considered absolutely from a literary point of view2 indeed1 from what other can he consider it8 ,and in his essays he deals with it as with a novel--a history--or an anecdote4 ,he fails entirely and most naturally to see its excellences1 or demerits--artistic--and so degrades ,art1 by supposing it a method of bringing about a literary climax4 ,it thus1 in his hands1 becomes merely a means of perpetrating something further1 and its mission is made a secondary one1 even as a means is second to an end4 ,the thoughts emphasised1 noble or other1 are inevitably attached to the incident1 and become more or less noble1 according to the eloquence or mental quality of the writer1 who looks the while1 with disdain1 upon what he holds as mere execution--a matter belonging1 he believes1 to the training of the schools1 and the reward of assiduity4 ,so that1 as he goes on with his translation from canvas to paper1 the work becomes his own4 ,he finds poetry where he would feel it were he himself transcribing the event1 invention in the intricacy of the mise en scne1 and noble philosophy in some detail of philanthropy1 courage1 modesty1 or virtue1 suggested to him by the occurrence4 ,all this might be brought before him1 and his imagination be appealed to1 by a very poor picture--indeed1 ,i might safely say that it generally is4 ,meanwhile1 the painter's poetry is quite lost to him--the amazing invention that shall have put form and colour into such perfect harmony1 that exquisiteness is the result1 he is without understanding--the nobility of thought1 that shall have given the artist's dignity to the whole1 says to him absolutely nothing4 ,so that his praises are published1 for virtues we would blush to possess--while the great qualities1 that distinguish the one work from the thousand1 that make of the masterpiece the thing of beauty that it is--have never been seen at all4 ,that this is so1 we can make sure of1 by looking back at old reviews upon past exhibitions1 and reading the flatteries lavished upon men who have since been forgotten altogether--but1 upon whose works1 the language has been exhausted1 in rhapsodies--that left nothing for the ,national ,gallery4 99 99 99 99 99 ,a curious matter1 in its effect upon the judgment of these gentlemen1 is the accepted vocabulary of poetic symbolism1 that helps them1 by habit1 in dealing with ,nature3 a mountain1 to them1 is synonymous with height--a lake1 with depth--the ocean1 with vastness--the sun1 with glory4 ,so that a picture with a mountain1 a lake1 and an ocean--however poor in paint--is inevitably lofty1 vast1 infinite1 and glorious--on paper4 99 99 99 99 99 ,there are those also1 sombre of mien1 and wise with the wisdom of books1 who frequent museums and burrow in crypts2 collecting--comparing--compiling--classi fying--contradicting4 ,experts these--for whom a date is an accomplishment--a hall mark1 success6 ,careful in scrutiny are they1 and conscientious of judgment--establishing1 with due weight1 unimportant reputations--discovering the picture1 by the stain on the back--testing the torso1 by the leg that is missing--filling folios with doubts on the way of that limb--disputatious and dictatorial1 concerning the birthplace of inferior persons--speculating1 in much writing1 upon the great worth of bad work4 ,true clerks of the collection1 they mix memoranda with ambition1 and1 reducing ,art to statistics1 they file the fifteenth century1 and pigeon-hole the antique6 99 99 99 99 99 ,then the ,preacher appointed6 ,he stands in high places--harangues and holds forth4 ,sage of the ,universities--learned in many matters1 and of much experience in all1 save his subject4 ,exhorting--denouncing--directing4 ,filled with wrath and earnestness4 ,bringing powers of persuasion1 and polish of language1 to prove--nothing4 ,torn with much teaching--having naught to impart4 ,impressive--important--shallow4 ,defiant--distressed--desperate4 ,crying out1 and cutting himself--while the gods hear not4 ,gentle priest of the ,philistine withal1 again he ambles pleasantly from all point1 and through many volumes1 escaping scientific assertion--babbles of green fields4 99 99 99 99 99 ,so ,art has become foolishly confounded with education--that all should be equally qualified4 ,whereas1 while polish1 refinement1 culture1 and breeding1 are in no way arguments for artistic result1 it is also no reproach to the most finished scholar or greatest gentleman in the land that he be absolutely without eye for painting or ear for music--that in his heart he prefer the popular print to the scratch of ,rembrandt's needle1 or the songs of the hall to ,beethoven's ,c minor ,symphony4 ,let him have but the wit to say so1 and not feel the admission a proof of inferiority4 ,art happens--no hovel is safe from it1 no ,prince may depend upon it1 the vastest intelligence cannot bring it about1 and puny efforts to make it universal end in quaint comedy1 and coarse farce4 ,this is as it should be--and all attempts to make it otherwise are due to the eloquence of the ignorant1 the zeal of the conceited4 ,the boundary line is clear4 ,far from me to propose to bridge it over--that the pestered people be pushed across4 ,no6 ,i would save them from further fatigue4 ,i would come to their relief1 and would lift from their shoulders this incubus of ,art4 ,why1 after centuries of freedom from it1 and indifference to it1 should it now be thrust upon them by the blind--until wearied and puzzled1 they know no longer how they shall eat or drink--how they shall sit or stand--or wherewithal they shall clothe themselves--without afflicting ,art4 ,but1 lo6 there is much talk without6 ,triumphantly they cry1 ,beware6 ,this matter does indeed concern us4 ,we also have our part in all true ,art6--for1 remember the 'one touch of ,nature' that 'makes the whole world kin4' ,true1 indeed4 ,but let not the unwary jauntily suppose that ,shakespeare herewith hands him his passport to ,paradise1 and thus permits him speech among the chosen4 ,rather1 learn that1 in this very sentence1 he is condemned to remain without--to continue with the common4 ,this one chord that vibrates with all--this one touch of ,nature that calls aloud to the response of each--that explains the popularity of the ,bull of ,paul ,potter--that excuses the price of ,murillo's ,conception--this one unspoken sympathy that pervades humanity1 is--,vulgarity6 ,vulgarity--under whose fascinating influence the many have elbowed the few1 and the gentle circle of ,art swarms with the intoxicated mob of mediocrity1 whose leaders prate and counsel1 and call aloud1 where the ,gods once spoke in whisper6 ,and now from their midst the ,dilettante stalks abroad4 ,the amateur is loosed4 ,the voice of the sthete is heard in the land1 and catastrophe is upon us4 ,the meddler beckons the vengeance of the ,gods1 and ridicule threatens the fair daughters of the land4 ,and there are curious converts to a weird culte1 in which all instinct for attractiveness--all freshness and sparkle--all woman's winsomeness--is to give way to a strange vocation for the unlovely--and this desecration in the name of the ,graces6 ,shall this gaunt1 ill-at-ease1 distressed1 abashed mixture of mauvaise honte and desperate assertion call itself artistic1 and claim cousinship with the artist--who delights in the dainty1 the sharp1 bright gaiety of beauty8 ,no6--a thousand times no6 ,here are no connections of ours4 ,we will have nothing to do with them4 ,forced to seriousness1 that emptiness may be hidden1 they dare not smile-- ,while the artist1 in fulness of heart and head1 is glad1 and laughs aloud1 and is happy in his strength1 and is merry at the pompous pretension--the solemn silliness that surrounds him4 ,for ,art and ,joy go together1 with bold openness1 and high head1 and ready hand--fearing naught1 and dreading no exposure4 ,know1 then1 all beautiful women1 that we are with you4 ,pay no heed1 we pray you1 to this outcry of the unbecoming--this last plea for the plain4 ,it concerns you not4 ,your own instinct is near the truth--your own wit far surer guide than the untaught ventures of thick heeled ,apollos4 ,what6 will you up and follow the first piper that leads you down ,petticoat ,lane1 there1 on a ,sabbath1 to gather1 for the week1 from the dull rags of ages wherewith to bedeck yourselves8 that1 beneath your travestied awkwardness1 we have trouble to find your own dainty selves8 ,oh1 fie6 ,is the world1 then1 exhausted8 and must we go back because the thumb of the mountebank jerks the other way8 ,costume is not dress4 ,and the wearers of wardrobes may not be doctors of taste6 ,for by what authority shall these be pretty masters8 ,look well1 and nothing have they invented--nothing put together for comeliness' sake4 ,haphazard from their shoulders hang the garments of the hawker--combining in their person the motley of many manners with the medley of the mummers' closet4 ,set up as a warning1 and a finger-post of danger1 they point to the disastrous effect of ,art upon the middle classes4 99 99 99 99 99 ,why this lifting of the brow in deprecation of the present--this pathos in reference to the past8 ,if ,art be rare to-day1 it was seldom heretofore4 ,it is false1 this teaching of decay4 ,the master stands in no relation to the moment at which he occurs--a monument of isolation--hinting at sadness--having no part in the progress of his fellow men4 ,he is also no more the product of civilisation than is the scientific truth asserted dependent upon the wisdom of a period4 ,the assertion itself requires the man to make it4 ,the truth was from the beginning4 ,so ,art is limited to the infinite1 and beginning there cannot progress4 ,a silent indication of its wayward independence from all extraneous advance1 is in the absolutely unchanged condition and form of implement since the beginning of things4 ,the painter has but the same pencil--the sculptor the chisel of centuries4 ,colours are not more since the heavy hangings of night were first drawn aside1 and the loveliness of light revealed4 ,neither chemist nor engineer can offer new elements of the masterpiece4 99 99 99 99 99 ,false again1 the fabled link between the grandeur of ,art and the glories and virtues of the ,state1 for ,art feeds not upon nations1 and peoples may be wiped from the face of the earth1 but ,art is4 ,it is indeed high time that we cast aside the weary weight of responsibility and co-partnership1 and know that1 in no way1 do our virtues minister to its worth1 in no way do our vices impede its triumph6 ,how irksome6 how hopeless6 how superhuman the self-imposed task of the nation6 ,how sublimely vain the belief that it shall live nobly or art perish4 ,let us reassure ourselves1 at our own option is our virtue4 ,art we in no way affect4 ,a whimsical goddess1 and a capricious1 her strong sense of joy tolerates no dulness1 and1 live we never so spotlessly1 still may she turn her back upon us4 ,as1 from time immemorial1 she has done upon the ,swiss in their mountains4 ,what more worthy people6 ,whose every ,alpine gap yawns with tradition1 and is stocked with noble story2 yet1 the perverse and scornful one will none of it1 and the sons of patriots are left with the clock that turns the mill1 and the sudden cuckoo1 with difficulty restrained in its box6 ,for this was ,tell a hero6 ,for this did ,gessler die6 ,art1 the cruel jade1 cares not1 and hardens her heart1 and hies her off to the ,east1 to find1 among the opium-eaters of ,nankin1 a favourite with whom she lingers fondly--caressing his blue porcelain1 and painting his coy maidens1 and marking his plates with her six marks of choice--indifferent in her companionship with him1 to all save the virtue of his refinement6 ,he it is who calls her--he who holds her6 ,and again to the ,west1 that her next lover may bring together the ,gallery at ,madrid1 and show to the world how the ,master towers above all2 and in their intimacy they revel1 he and she1 in this knowledge2 and he knows the happiness untasted by other mortal4 ,she is proud of her comrade1 and promises that in after-years1 others shall pass that way1 and understand4 ,so in all time does this superb one cast about for the man worthy her love--and ,art seeks the ,artist alone4 ,where he is1 there she appears1 and remains with him--loving and fruitful--turning never aside in moments of hope deferred--of insult--and of ribald misunderstanding2 and when he dies she sadly takes her flight1 though loitering yet in the land1 from fond association1 but refusing to be consoled4#cc ,note #cc3 ,and so have we the ephemeral influence of the ,master's memory--the afterglow1 in which are warmed1 for a while1 the worker and disciple4 ,with the man1 then1 and not with the multitude1 are her intimacies2 and in the book of her life the names inscribed are few--scant1 indeed1 the list of those who have helped to write her story of love and beauty4 ,from the sunny morning1 when1 with her glorious ,greek relenting1 she yielded up the secret of repeated line1 as1 with his hand in hers1 together they marked in marble1 the measured rhyme of lovely limb and draperies flowing in unison1 to the day when she dipped the ,spaniard's brush in light and air1 and made his people live within their frames1 and stand upon their legs1 that all nobility and sweetness1 and tenderness1 and magnificence should be theirs by right1 ages had gone by1 and few had been her choice4 ,countless1 indeed1 the horde of pretenders6 ,but she knew them not4 ,a teeming1 seething1 busy mass1 whose virtue was industry1 and whose industry was vice6 ,their names go to fill the catalogue of the collection at home1 of the gallery abroad1 for the delectation of the bagman and the critic4 99 99 99 99 99 ,therefore have we cause to be merry6--and to cast away all care--resolved that all is well--as it ever was--and that it is not meet that we should be cried at1 and urged to take measures6 ,enough have we endured of dulness6 ,surely are we weary of weeping1 and our tears have been cozened from us falsely1 for they have called out woe6 when there was no grief--and1 alas6 where all is fair6 ,we have then but to wait--until1 with the mark of the ,gods upon him--there come among us again the chosen--who shall continue what has gone before4 ,satisfied that1 even were he never to appear1 the story of the beautiful is already complete--hewn in the marbles of the ,parthenon--and broidered1 with the birds1 upon the fan of ,hokusai--at the foot of ,fusi-yama4 ,illustration ,rengaines6 ,sidenote3 ,pall ,mall ,gazette1 ,feb4 #ba1 #ahhe4 ,last night1 at ,prince's ,hall1 ,mr4 ,whistler made his first public appearance as a lecturer on ,art4444 ,there were some arrows 444 shot off 444 and 7,o1 mea culpa67 at dress reformers most of all4444 ,that an artist will find beauty in ugliness1 le beau dans l'horrible1 is now a commonplace of the schools4444 ,i differ entirely from ,mr4 ,whistler4 ,an ,artist is not an isolated fact2 he is the resultant of a certain milieu and a certain entourage1 and can no more be born of a nation that is devoid of any sense of beauty than a fig can grow from a thorn or a rose blossom from a thistle4444 ,the poet is the supreme ,artist1 for he is the master of colour and of form1 and the real musician besides1 and is lord over all life and all arts2 and so to the poet beyond all others are these mysteries known2 to ,edgar ,allan ,poe and ,baudelaire1 not to ,benjamin ,west and ,paul ,delaroche4444 ,,oscar ,,wilde4 ,sidenote3 ,,reflection3 ,it is not enough that our simple ,sunflower thrive on his thistle--he has now grafted ,edgar ,poe on the rose tree of the early ,american ,market in a certain milieu of dry goods and sympathy2 and a certain entourage of worship and wooden nutmegs4 ,born of a ,nation1 not absolutely devoid of any sense of beauty--,their idol--cherished--listened to--and understood6 ,foolish ,baudelaire6--,mistaken ,mallarm6 ,illustration ,tenderness in ,tite ,street ,,to ,,the ,,poet3 ,sidenote3 ,the ,world4 ,oscar--,i have read your exquisite article in the ,pall ,mall4 ,nothing is more delicate1 in the flattery of the ,poet to the ,painter1 than the navet of the ,poet1 in the choice of his ,painters--,benjamin ,west and ,paul ,delaroche6 ,you have pointed out that the ,painter's mission is to find le beau dans l'horrible1 and have left to the ,poet the discovery of l'horrible dans le beau6 ,chelsea4 ,illustration ,,to ,,the ,,painter3 ,sidenote3 ,the ,world4 ,dear ,butterfly--,by the aid of a biographical dictionary1 ,i made the discovery that there were once two painters1 called ,benjamin ,west and ,paul ,delaroche1 who rashly lectured upon ,art4 ,as of their works nothing at all remains1 ,i conclude that they explained themselves away4 ,sidenote3 ,,reflection3 ,i do know a bird1 who1 like ,oscar1 with his head in the sand1 still believes in the undiscovered6 ,if to be misunderstood is to be great1 it was rash in ,oscar to reveal the source of his inspirations3 the ,biographical ,dictionary6 ,illustration ,be warned in time1 ,james2 and remain1 as ,i do1 incomprehensible4 ,to be great is to be misunderstood4--,tout vous1 ,,oscar ,,wilde4 ,to the ,committee of the ,national ,art ,exhibition ,sidenote3 ,letter read at a meeting of this ,society1 associated for purposes of ,art reform4 ,sidenote3 ,the ,world1 ,nov4 #ag1 #ahhh4 ,gentlemen--,i am naturally interested in any effort made among ,painters to prove that they are alive--but when ,i find1 thrust in the van of your leaders1 the body of my dead ',arry1 ,i know that putrefaction alone can result4 ,when1 following ',arry1 there comes on ,oscar1 you finish in farce1 and bring upon yourselves the scorn and ridicule of your confrres in ,europe4 ,what has ,oscar in common with ,art8 except that he dines at our tables and picks from our platters the plums for the pudding he peddles in the provinces4 ,oscar--the amiable1 irresponsible1 esurient ,oscar--with no more sense of a picture than of the fit of a coat1 has the courage of the opinions 444 of others6 ,sidenote3 ,enclosed to the ,poet1 with a line3 ,oscar1 you must really keep outside 'the radius'6 ,illustration ,with ',arry and ,oscar you have avenged the ,academy4 ,i am1 ,gentlemen1 yours obediently1 ,illustration ,quand mme6 ,sidenote3 ,the ,world1 ,nov4 #bd1 #ahhf4 ,atlas1 this is very sad6 ,with our ,james vulgarity begins at home1 and should be allowed to stay there4-- vous1 ,,oscar ,,wilde ,,to ,,whom3 ,a poor thing1 ,oscar6--but1 for once1 ,i suppose your own4 ,illustration ,philanthropy and ,art ,the ,saturday ,review has not thought it disgraceful to once more justify its title to be called the ,saturday ,reviler4 ,this time it is not to break upon the wheel some poor butterfly of a lady traveller or novelist1 but to scoff at an aged painter of the highest repute--,mr4 ,herbert--upon his retirement to the rank of ,honorary ,academician1 after a career such as few1 if any1 painters living can boast4 ,this it pleases the ,reviler to congratulate artists upon as good news1 without a word or a thought of what the retiring ,academician has done in art1 except to utter the contemptible untruth that his resignation means that he has found out that he is beaten1 not by the natural failing of old age1 but because he failed to impress such a writer as this with the special exhibition of the works of his long life1 that was made some few years back to mark the completion of his last great picture for the ,house of ,lords1 ,the ,judgment of ,daniel4 ,that exhibition1 which most people1 who know anything about painting in its highest style of religious and monumental art1 thought a most interesting display of a painter's career1 is described by this most genial of critics as acres of pallid purple canvases1 with wizened saints and virgins in attitudinizing groups4 ,whether that collection of ,mr4 ,herbert's works had merit or not is matter of opinion which ,i am not concerned to dispute2 but1 as a matter of fact1 there were only three small pictures in which the virgin or any saints appeared2 the other pictures1 besides the two large works of ,the ,delivery of the ,law and ,the ,judgment of ,daniel1 painted for the nation1 being historical subjects1 such as the ,lear ,disinheriting ,cordelia1 a fresco of which is in the ,house of ,lords2 ,the ,acquittal of the ,seven ,bishops1 which the ,corporation of ,salford purchased for their gallery of art2 and several fine works of his youth1 such as the ,brides of ,venice1 a ,procession in ,venice1 #aebh1 and others1 which won for him his election to the ,academy forty-five years ago1 when he had to compete with such men as are1 unfortunately1 not to be found now among the candidates--,etty--,maclise--,dyce--,egg --and ,elmore4 ,but the ,saturday's art critic1 if he ever saw this exhibition at all1 didn't go to see these pictures4 ,as ,goethe says1 the eye sees what it came to see1 and he went to see the acres of purple canvases1 with their wizened saints1 which were not there4 ,no matter--it suits his purpose to declare that they were1 just as it does to cram into a paragraph more ignorance1 insolence1 and false assertions combined than is often to be met with even in this locality of literature1 where the editor seems to be surrounded with all the prigs1 and the pumps1 and the snobs of the literary profession4 ,truth1 ,aug4 #ai1 #ahhf4 ,nous avons chang tout cela6 ,sidenote3 ,truth1 ,sept4 #b1 #ahhf4 ,hoity-toity6 my dear ,henry6--,what is all this8 ,how can you startle the ,constant ,reader1 of this cold world1 by these sudden dashes into the unexpected8 ,perceive also what happens4 ,sweet in the security of my own sense of things1 and looking upon you surely as the typical ,sapem of modern progress and civilization1 here do ,i1 in full ,paris1 l'heure de l'absinthe1 upon mischievous discussion intent1 call aloud for ,truth4 ,vous allez voir1 ,i say to the brilliant brethren gathered about my table1 you shall hear the latest beautiful thing and bold1 said by our great ,henry--'capable de tout1' beside whom 'ce coquin d',habacuc' was mild indeed and usual6 ,and straightway to my stultification1 ,i find myself translating paragraphs of pathos and indignation1 in which a colourless old gentleman of the ,academy is sympathized with1 and made a doddering hero of1 for no better reason than that he is old--and those who would point out the wisdom and comfort of his withdrawal into the wigwam of private life1 sternly reproved and anathematized and threatened with shame--until they might well expect to find themselves come upon by the bears of the aged and irascible1 though bald-headed1 ,prophet1 whom the children had thoughtfully urged to go up4 ,fancy the ,frenchmen's astonishment as ,i read1 and their placid amusement as ,i attempted to point out that it was meant drolly--that enfin you were a mystificateur6 ,henry1 why should ,i thus be mortified8 ,also1 why this new pose1 this cheap championship of senility8 ,how1 in the name of all that is incompetent1 do you find much virtue in work spreading over more time6 ,what means this affectation of navet8 ,we all know that work excuses itself only by reason of its quality4 ,if the work be foolish1 it surely is not less foolish because an honest and misspent lifetime has been passed in producing it4 ,what matters it that the offending worker has grown old among us1 and has endeared himself to many by his caprices as ratepayer and neighbour8 ,personally1 he may have claims upon his surroundings2 but1 as the painter of poor pictures1 he is damned for ever4 ,you see1 my ,henry1 that it is not sufficient to be1 as you are in wit and wisdom1 among us1 amazing and astute2 a very ,daniel in your judgment of many vexed questions2 of a frankness and loyalty withal in your crusade against abuses1 that makes of the keen litigator a most dangerous ,quixote4 ,this peculiar temperament gives you that superb sense of right1 outside the realms of art1 that amounts to genius1 and carries with it continued success and triumph in the warfare you wage4 ,but here it helps you not4 ,and so you find yourself1 for instance1 pleasantly prattling in print of ,english ,art4 ,learn1 then1 ,o6 ,henry1 that there is no such thing as ,english ,art4 ,you might as well talk of ,english ,mathematics4 ,art is ,art1 and ,mathematics is ,mathematics4 ,what you call ,english ,art1 is not ,art at all1 but produce1 of which there is1 and always has been1 and always will be1 a plenty1 whether the men producing it are dead and called ----1 or 7,i refer you to your own selection1 far be it from me to choose7--or alive and called ----1 whosoever you like as you turn over the ,academy catalogue4 ,the great truth1 you have to understand1 is that it matters not at all whom you prefer in this long list4 ,they all belong to the excellent army of mediocrity2 the differences between them being infinitely small--merely microscopic--as compared to the vast distance between any one of them and the ,great4 ,they are the commercial travellers of ,art1 whose works are their wares1 and whose exchange is the ,academy4 ,they pass and are forgotten1 or remain for a while in the memory of the worthies who knew them1 and who cling to their faith in them1 as it flatters their own place in history--famous themselves--the friends of the famous6 ,speak of them1 if it please you1 with uncovered head--even as in ,france you would remove your hat as there passes by the hearse--but remember it is from the conventional habit of awe alone1 this show of respect1 and called forth generally by the casual corpse of the commonest kind4 ,,paris1 ,aug4 #ba1 #ahhf4 ,illustration ,the ,inevitable ,sidenote3 ,truth1 ,sept4 #i1 #ahhf4 ,when ,i suggested you as the ,sapeur of modern progress1 my dear ,henry1 ,i thought to convey delicately my appreciation1 wrapped in graceful compliment4 ,when ,i am made to say that you are the ,sapem of civilisation--whatever that may mean--,i would seem to insinuate an impertinence clothed in classic error4 ,i trust that1 if you forgive me1 you will never pardon the printer4--,always1 ,illustration ,noblesse oblige ,sidenote3 ,the ,world1 ,dec4 #ca1 #ahhd4 ,atlas1 look at this6 ,it has been culled from the ,plumber and ,decorator1 of all insidious prints1 and forwarded to me by the untiring people who daily supply me with the thinkings of my critics4 ,read1 ,atlas1 and let me execute myself3 ,the ',peacock' drawing-room of a well-to-do shipowner1 of ,liverpool1 at ,queen's ,gate1 ,london1 is hand-painted1 representing the noble bird with wings expanded1 painted by an ,associate of the ,royal ,academy1 at a cost of #gjjj1 and fortunate in claiming his daughter as his bride1 and is one of the finest specimens of high art in decoration in the kingdom4 ,the mansion is of modern construction4 ,he is not guilty1 this honest ,associate6 ,it was ,i1 ,atlas1 who did this thing--alone ,i did it--,i hand-painted this room in the mansion of modern construction4 ,woe is me6 ,i secreted1 in the provincial shipowner's home1 the noble bird with wings expanded--,i perpetrated1 in harmless obscurity1 the finest specimen of high-art decoration--and the ,academy is without stain in the art of its member4 ,also the immaculate character of that ,royal body has been falsely impugned by this wicked ,plumber6 ,mark these things1 ,atlas1 that justice may be done1 the innocent spared1 and history cleanly written4 ,bon soir6 ,chelsea4 ,illustration ,early ,laurels ,,to ,,the ,,editor3 ,sidenote3 ,the ,observer1 ,april #aa1 #ahhf4 ,sir--,in your report of the ,graham sale of pictures at ,messrs4 ,christie and ,manson's rooms1 ,i read the following3 ,the next work1 put upon the easel1 was a ',nocturne in blue and silver1' by ,j4 ,m4 ,whistler4 ,it was received with hisses4 ,may ,i beg1 through your widely spread paper1 to acknowledge the distinguished1 though ,i fear unconscious1 compliment so publicly paid4 ,it is rare that recognition1 so complete1 is made during the lifetime of the painter1 and ,i would wish to have recorded my full sense of this flattering exception in my favour4 ,chelsea4 ,illustration ,a ,further ,proposition ,sidenote3 ,art ,journal1 #ahhg4 ,the notion that ,i paint flesh lower in tone than it is in nature1 is entirely based upon the popular superstition as to what flesh really is--when seen on canvas2 for the people never look at nature with any sense of its pictorial appearance--for which reason1 by the way1 they also never look at a picture with any sense of nature1 but1 unconsciously from habit1 with reference to what they have seen in other pictures4 ,now1 in the usual pictures of the year there is but one flesh1 that shall do service under all circumstances1 whether the person painted be in the soft light of the room or out in the glare of the open4 ,the one aim of the unsuspecting painter is to make his man stand out from the frame--never doubting that1 on the contrary1 he should really1 and in truth absolutely does1 stand within the frame--and at a depth behind it equal to the distance at which the painter sees his model4 ,the frame is1 indeed1 the window through which the painter looks at his model1 and nothing could be more offensively inartistic than this brutal attempt to thrust the model on the hither-side of this window6 ,yet this is the false condition of things to which all have become accustomed1 and in the stupendous effort to bring it about1 exaggeration has been exhausted--and the traditional means of the incompetent can no further go4 ,lights have been heightened until the white of the tube alone remains--shadows have been deepened until black alone is left4 ,scarcely a feature stays in its place1 so fierce is its intention of firmly coming forth2 and in the midst of this unseemly struggle for prominence1 the gentle truth has but a sorry chance1 falling flat and flavourless1 and without force4 ,the ,master from ,madrid1 himself1 beside this monster success of mediocrity1 would be looked upon as mild3 beau bien sure1 mais pas dans le mouvement6 ,whereas1 could the people be induced to turn their eyes but for a moment1 with the fresh power of comparison1 upon their fellow-creatures as they pass in the gallery1 they might be made dimly to perceive 7though ,i doubt it1 so blind is their belief in the bad71 how little they resemble the impudent images on the walls6 how quiet in colour they are6 how grey6 how low in tone4 ,and then it might be explained to their riveted intelligence how they had mistaken meretriciousness for mastery1 and by what mean methods the imposture had been practised upon them4 ,illustration ,an ,opportunity ,cher ,monsieur--,m4 ---- m'a remis votre petite planche--port d',amsterdam avec une preuve4 ,elle est charmante et je serais fort heureux de la faire paratre dans l'article consacr vos eaux fortes4 ,seulement1 je crois que vous avez mal interprt ma demande et que par le fait nous ne nous entendons pas bien4 ,vous me demandez #fc guines pour cette planche1 soit plus de #bjjj francs1 outre que le prix dpasse celui de la planche la plus chre parue dans la ,gazette depuis sa fondation1 y compris les chefs-d'oeuvre de ,jacquemart et de ,gaillard1 il n'est pas dans les habitudes de la maison1 de payer les planches d'artistes qui accompagnent un compte-rendu de leur oeuvre4 ,c'est ainsi que nous avons agi avec ,mryon1 ,seymour ,haden1 ,edwards1 ,evershed1 ,legros1 c4 ,du reste1 la planche pourrait rester votre proprit4 ,nous vous la remettrions aprs avoir fait notre tirage4 ,il est entendu qu'elle serait aciere4 ,si ces conditions vous agrent1 cher monsieur1 je me ferai un vrai plaisir de faire dans la ,gazette un article sur votre beau talent d'aquafortiste4 ,dans le cas contraire1 je me verrais avec mille regrets1 dans la necessit de vous renvoyer la planche que je me fusse fait cependant un vritable honneur de publier4 ,veuillez agrer1 cher monsieur1 l'expression de mes meilleurs sentiments4 ,,le ,,directeur de la ,gazette des ,beaux-,arts4 ,,paris1 le #ab ,juin #ahgh4 ,the ,opportunity ,neglected ,cher ,monsieur--,je regrette infiniment que mes moyens ne me permettent pas de natre dans votre ,journal4 ,l'article que vous me proposez1 comme berceau1 me coterait trop cher4 ,il me faudrait donc reprendre ma planche et rester inconnu jusqu' la fin des choses1 puisque je n'aurais pas t invent par la ,gazette des ,beaux ,arts4--,recevez1 ,monsieur1 ,illustration ,nostalgia ,sidenote3 ,extract from a letter propos of ,mr4 ,whistler's contemplated visit to his native land4 444 ,quite true--now that it is established as an improbability1 it becomes true6 ,sidenote3 ,the ,world1 ,oct4 #ac1 #ahhf4 ,they tell me that ,december has been fixed upon1 by the ,fates1 for my arrival in ,new ,york--and1 if ,i escape the ,atlantic1 ,i am to be wrecked by the reporter on the pier4 ,i shall be in his hands1 even as is the sheep in the hands of his shearer--for ,i have learned nothing from those who have gone before--and been lost too6 ,what will you6 ,i know ,matthew ,arnold1 and am told that he whispered ,truth exquisite1 unheeded in the haste of ,america4 ,and these others who have crossed the seas1 that they might fasten upon the hurried ones at home and gird at them with wisdom1 hysterically acquired1 and administered1 unblushingly1 with a suddenness of purpose that prevented their ever being listened to here1--must ,i follow in their wake1 to be met with suspicion by my compatriots1 and resented as the invading instructor8 ,heavens6--who knows6--also in the papers1 where naturally ,i read only of myself1 ,i gather a general impression of offensive aggressiveness1 that1 coupled with ,chase's monstrous lampoon1 has prepared me for the tomahawk on landing4 ,how dared he1 ,chase1 to do this wicked thing8--and ,i who was charming1 and made him beautiful on canvas--the ,masher of the ,avenues4 ,however1 ,i may not put off until the age of the amateur has gone by1 but am to take with me some of those works which have won for me the execration of ,europe1 that they may be shown to a country in which ,i cannot be a prophet1 and where ,i1 who have no intention of being other than joyous--improving no one--not even myself--will say again my ,ten o',clock1 which ,i refused to repeat in ,london--,j'ai dit6 ,this is no time for hesitation--one cannot continually disappoint a ,continent6 ,illustration ,an ,insinuation ,,to ,,the ,,editor3 ,sidenote3 ,the ,daily ,news1 ,nov4 #bb1 #ahhf4 ,my attention has been directed to a paragraph that has gone the round of the papers1 to the effect that ,mr4 ,john ,burr and ,mr4 ,reid have withdrawn from the ,society of ,british ,artists4 ,this tardy statement acquires undue significance at this moment1 with a tendency to mislead1 implying1 as it might1 that these resignations were in consequence of1 and intended as a marked disapproval of1 the determined stand made by the ,society in excluding from their coming exhibition the masses of commonplace work hitherto offered to the public in their galleries4 ,no such importance attaches1 however1 to their resignations1 as these two gentlemen left ,suffolk ,street six months ago4 ,illustration ,an ,imputation ,,to ,,the ,,editor3 ,sidenote3 ,the ,daily ,news1 ,nov4 #bd1 #ahhf4 ,sir--,mr4 ,whistler denies that the recent policy of the ,society of ,british ,artists was the cause of the secession of ,messrs4 ,burr and ,reid from the ranks of that ,society1 and mentions in proof of his correction that their resignation took place six months ago4 ,he might have gone further1 and added that their secession corresponded in time with his own election as president4 ,it is well known to artists that one1 if not both1 of these gentlemen left the ,society knowing that changes of policy1 of which they could not approve1 were inevitable under the presidency of ,mr4 ,whistler4 ,it will be for the patrons of the ,suffolk ,street ,gallery to decide whether the more than half-uncovered walls which will be offered to their view next week are more interesting than the work of many artists of more than average merit which will be conspicuous by its absence1 owing to the selfish policy inaugurated4 ,a ,,british ,,artist4 ,autre ,temps autre ,moeurs ,,to ,,the ,,editor3 ,sidenote3 ,the ,daily ,news1 ,nov4 #bf1 #ahhf4 ,sir--,the anonymous ,british ,artist says that ,mr4 ,whistler denies that the recent policy of the ,society of ,british ,artists was the cause of the secession of ,messrs4 ,reid and ,burr from the ranks of that ,society4 ,far from me to propose to penetrate the motives of such withdrawal1 but what ,i did deny was that it could possibly be caused--as its strangely late announcement seemed sweetly to insinuate--by the strong determination to tolerate no longer the mediocre work that had hitherto habitually swarmed the walls of ,suffolk ,street4 ,this is a plain question of date1 and ,i pointed out that these two gentlemen left the ,society six months ago--long before the supervising committee were called upon to act at all1 or make any demonstration whatever4 ,your correspondent regrets that ,i do not go further1 and straightway goes further himself1 and scarcely fares better1 when1 with a quaintness of navet rare at this moment1 he proposes that it will be for the patrons of the gallery to decide whether the more than half-uncovered walls are more interesting than the works of many artists of more than the average merit4 ,now it will be for the patrons to decide absolutely nothing4 ,it is1 and will always be1 for the gentlemen of the hanging committee alone1 duly chosen1 to decide whether empty space be preferable to poor pictures--whether1 in short1 it be their duty to cover walls1 merely that walls may be covered--no matter with what quality of work4 ,indeed1 the period of the patron has utterly passed away1 and the painter takes his place--to point out what he knows to be consistent with the demands of his art--without deference to patrons or prejudice to party4 ,beyond this1 whether the policy of ,mr4 ,whistler and his following be selfish or no1 matters but little2 but if the policy of your correspondent's following find itself among the ruthlessly rejected1 his letter is more readily explained4 ,illustration ,talent in a ,napkin ,sidenote3 ,lecture before the ,church ,congress1 ,oct4 #g1 #ahhe4 ,if those who talk and write so glibly as to the desirability of artists devoting themselves to the representation of the naked human form1 only knew a tithe of the degradation enacted before the model is sufficiently hardened to her shameful calling1 they would for ever hold their tongues and pens in supporting the practice4 ,is not clothedness a distinct type and feature of our ,christian faith8 ,all art representations of nakedness are out of harmony with it4 ,j4 ,c4 ,,horsley1 ,r4,a4 ,the ,critic ,catching on ,sidenote3 ,pall ,mall ,gaz4 ,dec4 #h1 #ahhe4 ,mr4 ,whistler is again1 in a sense1 the mainstay of the ,society 7,british ,artists71 partly through his own individuality and partly through the innovations he has introduced4444 ,he has several oil and pastel pictures1 very slight in themselves1 of the female nude1 dignified and graceful in line and charmingly chaste1 entitled ,harmony1 ,caprice1 and ,note4 ,beneath the latter ,mr4 ,whistler has written1 ,horsley soit qui mal y pense4 ,sidenote3 ,,reflection3 ,meant friendly4 ,this is not1 said the artist1 what people are sure to call it1 ',whistler's little joke4' ,on the contrary1 it is an indignant protest against the idea that there is any immorality in the nude4 ,ingratitude ,sidenote3 ,pall ,mall ,gazette1 ,dec4 #aj1 #ahhe4 ,no1 kind sir--trop de zle on the part of your representative--for ,i surely never explain1 and ,art certainly requires no indignant protest against the unseemliness of senility4 ,horsley soit qui mal y pense is meanwhile a sweet sentiment--why more--and why morality8 ,illustration ,the ,complacent ,one ,sidenote3 ,magazine of ,art1 ,dec4 #ahhg4 ,mr4 ,whistler has issued a brown-paper portfolio of half a dozen ,notes1 reproduced in marvellous facsimile4 ,these ,notes are delightful sketches in ,indian ink and crayon1 masterly so far as they go--but1 then1 they go such a little way 444 the ,notes can only be regarded as painter's raw material1 interesting as correct sketches1 but unworthy the glories of facsimile reproduction1 and imposing margin4444 ,the chief honours of the portfolio belong to the publishers4444 ,the ,critic-flneur ,sidenote3 ,sunday ,times1 ,jan4 #ae1 #ahhh4 ,sir1--,you1 who are1 ,i perceive1 in your present brilliant incarnation1 an undaunted and undulled pursuer of pleasing truths1 listen1 ,i pray you1 while again ,i indicate1 with sweet argument1 the alternative of the bewildered one4 ,notably1 it is not necessary that the ,art ,critic should distinguish between the real and the reproduction1 or otherwise understand anything of the matter of which he writes--for much shall be forgiven him--yet surely1 as ,i have before now pointed out1 he might inquire4 ,had the expounder of exhibitions1 travelling for the ,magazine of ,art1 asked the ,secretary in the galleries of the ,royal ,society of ,british ,artists1 he would have been told that the ,notes on the staircase1 and in the vestibule1 are not delightful sketches in ,indian ink and crayon 444 reproduced in marvellous facsimile by ,boussod1 ,valadon ,co4444 unworthy the glories of facsimile reproduction1 and imposing margin 444 while the chief honours of the portfolio1 however1 belong to the publishers--but are1 disconcerting as ,i acknowledge it to be1 themselves the lithographs from nature1 drawn on the stone upon the spot4 ,thus easily provided with paragraph1 he would also have been spared the mortification of rebuke from his well-meaning and embarrassed employers4 ,let the gentleman be warned--let him learn that the foolish critic only1--looks--and brings disaster1 upon his paper--the safe and well-conducted one informs himself4 ,yours1 ,sir1 gently1 ,illustration ,a ,played-out ,policy ,,to ,,the ,,editor ,,of ,,the ,,pall ,,mall ,,gazette3 ,sidenote3 ,pall ,mall ,gazette1 ,dec4 #i1 #ahhf4 ,sir--,in your courageous crusade against the ,demon ,dulness and his preposterous surroundings1 ,i think it well that there should be delivered into your hands certain documents for immediate publication1 that your readers may be roused quickly1 and hear again how well fenced in are the foolish in strong places--and how greatly to be desired is their exposure1 discomfiture1 and death--that ,truth may prevail4 ,it happened in this way4 ,the criticism in the ,times called for instant expostulation1 and my answer was consequently sent in to the ,editor1 who forthwith returned it1 regretting that its tone prevented its appearance in the paper4 444 ,i thereupon withdrew to write the following note to the ,editor in person3-- ,dear ,sir--,permit me to call your courteous attention to the fact that the enclosed letter to the ,editor of the ,times is in reply to an article that appeared in your paper--and that1 as ,i sign my name in full1 ,i alone am responsible for its tone or form2 indeed1 that such is its tone and form1 is because it is my letter4 ,in common fairness the answer to1 or comment upon1 any statements made in your paper should be published in your paper1 as proper etiquette prevents its insertion in any other journal4 ,also1 you surely would not propose to dictate certain forms or styles in which alone the columns of the ,times are to be approached--as who should say all other savour of sacrilege6--or acquiescence alone would do1 and you would have to write all your letters yourselves4 ,my letter concerns the effect produced by criticism of a commonplace and inferior kind1 wholly unworthy the first paper in ,england--and ,i am startled to learn1 and still unwilling to believe1 that the ,times would shun all ventilation and refuse to publish any letter as its sole means of screening its staff or protecting its writers4 ,i submit that the tone of my letter sins against no laws that are accepted in antagonism--that it offends in no way the etiquette of attack known to gentlemen4 ,i beg1 therefore1 again1 that if there be still time for its insertion1 you will have it printed in your issue of to-morrow1 or will say that it shall appear in the ,times of ,thursday morning4 ,i am1 dear ,sir1 ,very faithfully1 ,j4 ,,mcneill ,,whistler4 ,i was now told1 with the ,editor's compliments1 that my letter should be considered4 ,taking this in complete good faith1 ,i left the office1 to discover the next day in print a remnant of the letter in question2 that1 by itself1 entirely did away with sufficient reason for its being there at all4 ,the two ensuing notes explain themselves3 ,to ,j4 ,,mcn4 ,,whistler1 ,esq43 ,the ,editor of the ,times has inserted in to-day's paper the only portion of ,mr4 ,whistler's letter of ,november #cj which appears to have any claim to publication4 ,,printing ,,house ,,square1 ,dec4 #a1 #ahhf4 ,to the ,editor of the ,times3 ,dear ,sir--,i beg to acknowledge the consummate sense of opportunity displayed by the ,editor of the ,times1 in his cunning production of a part of my letter4 ,amazing6 ,mes compliments6 ,illustration ,without further comment ,i hand you a copy of the rejected letter4 ,to the ,editor of the ,times4--,sir--,in his article upon the ,society of ,british ,artists1 your ,art gentleman ventures the opinion of the 'plain man4' ,that such opinion is out of place and stultifying in a question of ,art never occurs to him1 and it is therefore frankly cited as1 in a way1 conclusive4 ,the naf train of thought that justified the importance attached to this poor 'plain' opinion at all would seem to be the same that pervades the writing throughout2 until it becomes difficult to discover where the easy effrontery and self-sufficiency of the 'plain one1' nothing doubting1 cease1 and the wit and wisdom of the experienced expert begin--so that one unconsciously confounds the incautious critic with the plausible plain person1 who finally becomes the same authority4 ,blind plainness certainly is the characteristic of the solemn censure upon the fine work of ,mr4 ,stott1 of ,oldham--plain blindness the omission of all mention of ,mr4 ,ludovici's dainty dancing-girl4 ,bewilderment among paintings is naturally the fate of the 'plain man1' but1 when put forth in the ,times1 his utterances1 however empty1 acquire a semblance of sense2 so that while he gravely descants with bald assurance upon the engineering of the light in the galleries1 and the decoration of the walls1 the reader stands a chance of being misled1 and may not discover at once that the 'plain' writer is qualified by ignorance alone to continue4 ,permit me1 therefore1 to rectify inconsequent impressions1 and tell your readers that there is nothing 'tentative' in the 'arrangement' of colour1 walls1 or drapery--that the battens should not 'be removed'--that they are meant to remain1 not only for their use1 but as bringing parallel lines into play that subdivide charmingly the lower portion of the walls and add to their light appearance--that the whole 'combination' is complete--and that the 'plain man' is1 as usual1 'out of it4'--,i am1 ,sir1 etc41 ,j4 ,,mcneill ,,whistler4 ,the question of fair dealing and good manners in this matter ,i could not leave in better hands than your own1 and ,i will only add that hitherto ,i have always met with the utmost readiness on the part of the press to receive into their columns any reply1 however opposed to assertions of their own4 ,surely it is but poor policy this peremptory attempt to maintain in authority the weak and blundering one1 that he may destroy himself and bring sorrow upon his people4 ,rather let him be thrust from his post1 that he may be brayed in a mortar among wheat with a pestle--that the ,just be assuaged and foolishness depart from among us4 ,illustration ,an ,interview with an ex-,president ,sidenote3 ,pall ,mall ,gazette1 ,june #aa1 #ahhh4 ,the adverse vote by which the ,royal ,society of ,british ,artists transferred its oath of allegiance from ,mr4 ,whistler is for the time the chief topic of conversation in artistic circles4444 ,we instructed our representative to visit ,mr4 ,whistler to obtain his explanation of the affair4 ,the state of affairs8 said ,mr4 ,whistler1 in his light and airy way1 raising his eyebrows and twinkling his eyes1 as if it were all the best possible fun in the world2 why1 my dear sir1 there's positively no state of affairs at all4 ,contrary to public declaration1 there's actually nothing chaotic in the whole business2 on the contrary1 everything is in order1 and just as it should be4 ,the survival of the fittest as regards the presidency1 don't you see1 and1 well--,suffolk ,street is itself again6 ,a new government has come in1 and1 as ,i told the members the other night1 ,i congratulate the ,society on the result of their vote1 for no longer can it be said that the right man is in the wrong place4 ,no doubt their pristine sense of undisturbed somnolence will again settle upon them after the exasperated mental condition arising from the unnatural strain recently put upon the old ship4 ,eh8 what8 ,ha6 ha6 ,you do not then consider the ,society as out of date8 ,you do not think1 as is sometimes said1 that the establishment of the ,grosvenor took away the raison d'tre and original intention of the ,society--that of being a foil to the ,royal ,academy8 ,i can hardly say what was originally intended1 but ,i do know that it was originally full of hope1 and even determination2 shown in a manner by their getting a ,royal ,charter--the only art society in ,london1 ,i believe1 that has one4 ,but by degrees it lapsed into a condition of incapacity--a sort of secondary state1--do you see1 till it acknowledged itself a species of crche for the ,royal ,academy4 ,certain it is that when ,i came into it the prevalent feeling among all the men was that their best work should go to 'another place4' ,i felt that this sense of inferiority was fatal to the well-being of the place4 ,for that reason ,i attempted to bring about a sense of esprit de corps and ambition1 which culminated in what might be called 'my first offence'--by my proposition that members belonging to other societies should hold no official position in ours4 ,i wanted to make it an art centre1 continued ,mr4 ,whistler1 with a sudden vigour and an earnestness for which the public would hardly give credit to this ,master of ,badinage and ,apostle of ,persiflage2 they wanted it to remain a shop1 although ,i said to them1 ',gentlemen1 don't you perceive that as shopmen you have already failed1 don't you see1 eh8' ,but they were under the impression that the sales decreased under my methods and my rgime1 and ignored the fact that sales had declined all over the country from all sorts of causes1 commercial1 and so on4 ,their only chance lay in the art tone of the place1 for the old-fashioned pictures had ceased to become saleable wares--buyers simply wouldn't buy them4 ,but members' work ,i couldn't1 by the rules1 eliminate--only the bad outsiders were choked off4 ,then how do you explain the bitterness of all the opposition8 ,a question of 'pull devil1 pull baker1' and the devil has gone and the bakers remain in ,suffolk ,street6 ,ha6 ha6 ,here is a list of the fiendish party who protested against the thrusting forth of their president in such an unceremonious way3-- ,alfred ,stevens1 ,theodore ,roussel1 ,nelson ,maclean1 ,macnab1 ,waldo ,story1 ,a4 ,ludovici1 jun41 ,sidney ,starr1 ,francis ,james1 ,w4 ,a4 ,rixon1 ,aubrey ,hunt1 ,moffatt ,p4 ,lindner1 ,e4 ,g4 ,girardot1 ,ludby1 ,arthur ,hill1 ,llewellyn1 ,w4 ,christian ,symons1 ,c4 ,wyllie1 ,a4 ,f4 ,grace1 ,j4 ,e4 ,grace1 ,j4 ,d4 ,watson1 ,jacomb ,hood1 ,thornley1 ,j4 ,j4 ,shannon1 and ,charles ,keen4 ,why1 the very flower of the ,society6 and whom have they left--bon ,dieu6 whom have they left8 ,it was a hard fight then8 ,my dear sir1 they brought up the maimed1 the halt1 the lame1 and the blind--literally--like in ,hogarth's ',election2' they brought up everything but corpses1 don't you know6--very well6 ,but all this hardly explains the bitterness of the feud and personal enmity to you4 ,what8 ,don't you see8 ,my presidential career had in a manner been a busy one4 ,when ,i took charge of the ship ,i found her more or less water-logged4 ,well1 ,i put the men to the pumps1 and thoroughly shook up the old vessel2 had her re-rigged re-cleaned1 and painted--and finally ,i was graciously permitted to run up the ,royal ,standard to the masthead1 and brought her fully to the fore1 ready for action--as became a ,royal flagship6 ,and as a natural result mutiny at once set in6 ,don't you see1 he continued1 with one of his strident laughs1 what might be considered1 by the thoughtless1 as benefits1 were resented1 by the older and wiser of the crew1 as innovations and intrusions of an impertinent and offensive nature4 ,but the immediate result was that interest in the ,society was undeniably developed1 not only at home1 but certainly abroad4 ,notably in ,paris all the art circle was keenly alive to what was taking place in ,suffolk ,street2 and1 although their interest in other institutions in this country had previously flagged1 there was the strong willingness to take part in its exhibitions4 ,for example1 there was ,alfred ,stevens1 who showed his own sympathy with the progressive efforts by becoming a member4 ,and look at the throngs of people that crowded our private views--eh8 ha6 ha6 what6 ,but what will you6--the question is1 after all1 purely a parochial one--and here ,i would stop to wonder1 if ,i do not seem pathetic and out of character1 why the ,artist is naturally an object of vituperation to the ,vestryman8--,why am ,i--who1 of course1 as you know1 am charming--why am ,i the pariah of my parish8 ,why should these people do other than delight in me8--,why should they perish rather than forgive the one who had thrust upon them honour and success8 ,and the moral of it all8 ,mr4 ,whistler became impressive--almost imposing--as he stroked his moustache1 and tried to hide a smile behind his hand4 ,the organisation of this ',royal ,society of ,british ,artists' as shown by its very name1 tended perforce to this final convulsion1 resulting in the separation of the elements of which it was composed4 ,they could not remain together1 and so you see the ',artists' have come out1 and the ',british' remain--and peace and sweet obscurity are restored to ,suffolk ,street6--,eh8 ,what8 ,ha6 ha6 ,illustration ,statistics ,sidenote3 ,pall ,mall ,gazette1 ,july #f1 #ahhh4 ,since our interview with ,mr4 ,whistler curious statements have been set afloat concerning the question of finance 444 giving circumstantial evidence of the disaster brought upon the ,society by the enforcement of the ,whistlerian policy3-- ,this evidence1 which is very interesting1 is as follows3--,the sales of the ,society during the year #ahha were under #ejjj2 #ahhb1 under #fjjj2 #ahhc1 under #gjjj2 #ahhd1 under #hjjj2 #ahhe 7the first year of ,mr4 ,whistler's rule71 they fell to under #djjj2 #ahhf1 under #cjjj2 #ahhg1 under #bjjj2 and the present year1 under #ajjj4 ,on the other hand1 the fact of the ,society having made itself responsible to ,mr4 ,whistler for a loan raised by him to meet a sudden expenditure for repairs1 is also true2 but the unwisdom of the president and members of any society having money transactions between them need hardly be commented upon here4444 ,mr4 ,wyke ,bayliss1 the new president1 strikes one as being a strong man--shrewd1 logical1 and self-restrained4 ,the author of several books and pamphlets on the more imaginative realm of art1 he is1 one would say1 as much permeated by religion as he is by art2 to both of these qualities1 curiously enough1 his canvases1 which usually deal with cathedral interiors of cheery hue1 bear witness4 ,the hero of three ,bond ,street one-man exhibitions1 a ,board-school chairman1 a lecturer1 champion chess-player of ,surrey1 a member of the ,rochester ,diocesan ,council1 a ,shaksperian student1 a ,fellow of the ,society of ,cyclists1 a ,fellow of the ,society of ,antiquarians1 and public orator of ,noviomagus 444 he is surely one of the most versatile men who ever occupied a presidential chair4444 ,a ,retrospect ,,to ,,the ,,editor ,,of ,,the ,,pall ,,mall ,,gazette3 ,sir1--,the ,royal ,society of ,british ,artists is1 perhaps1 by this time again unknown to your agitated readers--but ,i would recall a brilliant number of the ,pall ,mall ,gazette 7,july #ahhh71 in which mischievous amusement was sought1 with statistics from a newly elected ,president--,mr4 ,bayliss 7,wyke74 ,believing it to be1 in an official and dull way1 more becoming that the appointed ,council of this same ,society should deal with the resulting chaos1 ,i have1 until now1 waited for a slight washing of hands1 as who should say1 on their part as representing the gentle deprecation of1 ,i assure you1 the respectable body in ,suffolk ,street4 ,well1 no6--,it was doubtless adjudged wiser1 or milder1 to live it down1 and now it1 ,i really believe1 behoves me1 in a weary way1 to remind you of the document in question1 and1 for the sake of commonplace1 uninteresting1 and foolish fact1 to lift up my parable and declare fallacious that which was supposed to be true1 and generally to bore myself1 and perhaps even you1 the all-patient one1 with what1 ,i fear1 we others care but little for--parish matters4 ,in the article1 then1 entitled ,the ,royal ,society of ,british ,artists and its ,future--,an ,interview with the ,new ,president--a most appalling volley of figures was fired off at brle-pour-point distance4 ,under this deafening detonation ,i1 having no habit1 sat for days incapable--dreaming vaguely that when a ,president should see fit to wash his people's linen in the open1 there must be indeed crime at least on the part of the offender at whose instigation such official sacrifice of dignity could come about4 ,i was the offender1 and for a while ,i sincerely believed that disaster had been brought upon this ,royal ,society by my own casual self4 ,but behold1 upon closer inspection1 these threatening figures are meretricious and misleading1 as was the building account of the early ,philanthropist who1 in the days of ,st4 ,paul1 meant well1 and was abruptly discouraged by that clear-headed apostle4 ,mr4 ,bayliss tells us that3 ,the sales of the ,society during the year #ahha were under1 whatever that may mean1 #ejjj2 #ahhb1 under #fjjj2 #ahhc1 under #gjjj2 #ahhd1 under #hjjj2 in #ahhe 7'the first year of ,mr4 ,whistler's rule'7 they fell to under #djjj2 #ahhf1 under #cjjj2 #ahhg1 under #bjjj2 and the present year1 under #ajjj4 ,but also ,mr4 ,bayliss takes this rare occasion of attention1 to assert his various qualifications for his post as head of painters in the street of ,suffolk1 and so we learn that he is3-- ,chairman of the ,board-school in his own district1 ,champion chess-player of ,surrey1 ,a member of the ,diocesan ,council of ,rochester1 ,fellow of the ,society of ,cyclists1 and ,public ,orator of ,noviomagus4 ,as chess-player he may have intuitively bethought himself of a move--possibly the happy one1--who knows8--which in the provinces obtained him a cup2 as ,diocesan ,councilman he may have supposed ,rochester indifferent to the means used for an end2 but as ,public ,cyclist of the ,royal ,society of ,noviomagus his experience must be opposed to any such bluff as going his entire pile on a left bower only6 ,when ,i recovered my courage--what did ,i find8--first my unimpaired intelligence1 and then my memory4 ,now1 to my intelligence1 it becomes patent that the chairman of a ,clapham ,school-board1 proposes by his figures to prove1 that the income of the sacrificed ,society had of late years steadily increased3--,in #ahha1 under #ejjj2 #ahhb1 under #fjjj2 #ahhc1 under #gjjj2 #ahhd1 under #hjjj1 until1 under the baneful reign of terror and ,whistler in #ahhe--the first year of the sacrilegious era--the receipts fell to #djjj--;and have continued to decrease until1 in this present year1 they fall to the miserable sum of under a thousand pounds--a revelation6 discreet1 statesmanlike1 and worthy the orator at his best6 ,unfortunately for the triumph of such audacious demonstration1 my revived memory points out that ,mr4 ,whistler was only elected ,president in ,june #ahhf1 and1 in conformity with the ancient rules and amusing customs of the venerable body1 only came into office six months afterwards--that is1 practically1 in ,january #ahhg4 ,again1 with this last exhibition1 he1 as everybody knows1 had nothing whatever to do4 ,immediately1 therefore1 the conclusion is quite other than that put forth by the ,cyclist of his suburb1 and we arrive at the1 for once1 not unamusing fact that the disastrous and simple ,painter ,whistler only took in hand the reins of government at least a year after the former driver had been pitched from his box1 and half the money-bags had been already lost6--from #hjjj to #djjj at one fatal swoop6 and the beginning of the end had set in6 ,indeed1 this may have been one of the strong reasons for his own election by an overwhelming minority of hysterical and panic-stricken passengers4 ,now1 though he did his best1 and cried aloud that the coach was safe1 and called it ,royal1 and proposed to carry the mail1 confidence1 difficult to restore1 waited for proof1 and although fresh paint was spread upon the panels1 and the ,president coachman wore his hat with knowing air1 on one side and handled the ribbons lightly1 and dandled the drag1 inviting jauntily the passer-by1 the public recognized the ramshackle old conveyance1 and scoffingly refused to trust themselves in the hearse4 ,four thousand pounds6 down it went--#cjjj--bjjj--the figures are ,wyke's--and this season1 the ignominious #ajjj or under1 is none of my booking6 and when last ,i saw the mad machine it was still cycling down the hill4 ,illustration ,the ,new ,dynasty ,sidenote3 ,the ,morning ,post4 ,sir--,pray accept my compliments1 and be good enough to inform me at once by whose authority1 and upon what pretence1 the painting1 designed and executed by myself1 upon the panel at the entrance of the galleries of ,suffolk ,street1 has been defaced4 ,tampering with the work of an artist1 however obscure1 is held to be1 in what might be called the international laws of the whole ,art world1 so villainous an offence1 that ,i must at present decline to entertain the responsibility of the very distinguished and ,royal ,society of ,british ,artists1 for what must be due to the rash1 and ill-considered1 zeal of some enthusiastic and untutored underling4 ,awaiting your reply1 ,i have the honour to be1 ,sir1 your obedient1 humble servant1 ,illustration ,sidenote3 ,telegram to ,council of ,royal ,society of ,british ,artists3 ,congratulations upon dignity maintained as ,artists left in charge of a brother ,artist's work1 and upon graceful bearing as officers toward their late ,president4--,,whistler4 ,,to ,,the ,,hon4 ,,secretary ,,of ,,the ,,royal ,,society ,,of ,,british ,,artists4 ,march #cj1 #ahhi4 ,an ,embroidered ,interview ,sidenote3 ,pall ,mall ,gazette1 ,april #c1 #ahhi4 ,well1 ,mr4 ,whistler1 they say they only painted out your butterfly from the signboard1 and changed the date4 ,what do you say8 ,what do ,i say8 ,that they have been guilty of an act of villainous ,vandalism4 ,will you tell me the history of the ,board8 ,when ,i was elected to the presidency of the ,society ,i offered to paint a signboard which should proclaim to the passer-by the name and nature of the ,society4 ,my offer was accepted1 and the ,board was sent down to my studio1 where ,i treated it as ,i should a most distinguished sitter--as a picture or an etching--throwing my artistic soul into the ,board1 which gradually became a ,board no longer1 as it grew into a picture4 ,you say they say it was only a butterfly4 ,mendacity could go no further4 ,i painted a lion and a butterfly4 ,the lion lay with the butterfly--a harmony in gold and red1 with which ,i had taken as much trouble as ,i did with the best picture ,i ever painted4 ,and now they have clothed my golden lion clumsily1 awkwardly1 and timorously with a dirty coat of black4 ,my butterfly has gone1 the checks and lines1 which ,i had treated decoratively1 have disappeared4 ,am ,i not justified in calling it a piece of gross ,vandalism8 ,what course would you have recommended8 ,you had gone2 the ,board remained3 perhaps it was weather-beaten--what could they do8 ,they should have taken the ,board down1 sir1 taken the ,board down1 not dared to destroy my work--taken the ,board down1 returned it to me1 and got another ,board of their own to practise on4 ,good heavens6 ,you say to my face it was only a ,board4 ,you say they only painted out my butterfly4 ,it is as if you were condoling with a man who had been robbed and stripped1 and said to him1 ',never mind4 ,it is well it is no worse4 ,you have escaped easily4 ,why1 you might have had your throat cut4' ,and ,mr4 ,whistler's ,mephistophelian form disappeared into the black of the night4 ,the ,pall ,mall ,puzzled ,sidenote3 ,pall ,mall ,gazette1 ,april #d1 #ahhi4 ,mr4 ,whistler begs me to insert the following note exactly as it stands4 ,i haven't the slightest idea what it means1 but here it is with mes compliments3-- ,,to ,,the ,,interviewer ,,of ,,the ,pall ,mall ,gazette3 ,good6 very good6 ,prettily put1 as becomes the ,pall ,mall1 and yet you cannot be reproached with being 'too fine for your audience6' ,i wish ,i could say these things as you do for me1 even at the risk of1 at last1 being understood4 ,mes ,compliments6 ,illustration ,official ,bumbledom ,sidenote3 ,to the ,editor of ,the ,morning ,post ,sir--,as you have considered ,mr4 ,whistler's letter worthy of publication1 ,i ask you to complete the publication by inserting this simple statement of the facts as they occurred4 ,the notice board of the ,royal ,society of ,british ,artists bears on a red ground1 in letters of gold1 the title of the ,society4 ,to this ,mr4 ,whistler1 during his presidency1 added with his own hand a decorative device of a lion and a butterfly4 ,on the eve of our private view it was found that1 while the title of the ,society1 being in pure gold1 remained untarnished1 ,mr4 ,whistler's designs1 being executed in spurious metals1 had nearly disappeared1 and what little remained of them was of a dirty brown4 ,the board could not be put up in that state4 ,the lion1 however1 was not so badly drawn as to make it necessary to do anything more than restore it in permanent colour1 and that has accordingly been done4 ,but as the notice board was no longer the actual work of ,mr4 ,whistler1 it would manifestly have been improper to have left the butterfly 7his well-known signature7 attached to it1 even if it had not appeared in so crushed a state4 ,the soiled butterfly was therefore effaced4 ,yours1 c41 ,,wyke ,,bayliss1 ,,clapham4 ,april #a1 #ahhi4 ,aussi que diable allait-il faire dans cette galre8 ,sidenote3 ,the ,morning ,post4 ,sir--,i have read ,mr4 ,bayliss's letter1 and am disarmed4 ,i feel the folly of kicking against the parish pricks4 ,these things are right in ,clapham1 by the common4 ,v'l ce que c'est1 c'est bien fait-- ,fallait pas qu'il y aille6 fallait pas qu'il y aille6 ,and when1 one of these days1 all traces of history shall1 by dint of much turpentine1 and more ,bayliss1 have been effaced from the board that belongs to us1 ,i shall be justified1 and it will be boldly denied by some dainty student that the delicate butterfly was ever soiled in ,suffolk ,street4 ,yours1 c41 ,illustration ,the ,royal ,society of ,british ,artists and their ,signboard ,sidenote3 ,the ,athenum1 ,april #bg1 #ahhi4 ,sir--,the moment has now arrived when1 it seems to me proper that1 in your journal1 one of the recognized ,art organs of the country1 should be recorded the details of an incident in which the element of grave offence is1 not unnaturally1 quite missed by the people in their indignation at the insignificance of the object to which public attention has so unwarrantably been drawn--a notice board6--the common sign of commerce6 ,now1 however slight might be the value of the work in question destroyed1 it is surely of startling interest to know that work may be destroyed1 or worse still1 defaced and tampered with1 at the present moment in full ,london1 with the joyous approval of the major part of the popular press4 ,i leave to your comment the fact that in this instance the act is committed with the tacit consent of a body of gentlemen officially styled artists1 at the instigation of their president1 as he unblushingly acknowledges1 and will here distinctly state that the notice board of the ,royal ,society of ,british ,artists did not bear on a red ground1 in letters of gold1 the title of the ,society1 and that to this ,mr4 ,whistler1 during his presidency1 did not add with his own hand a decorative device of a lion and a butterfly4 ,this damning evidence1 though in principle irrelevant--for what becomes of the soul of a ,diocesan member of the ,council of ,clapham is1 artistically1 a matter of small moment--,i nevertheless bring forward as the only one that will at present be at all considered or even understood4 ,the notice board was of the familiar blue enamel1 well known in metropolitan use1 with white lettering1 announcing that the exhibition of the ,incorporated ,society of ,british ,artists was held above1 and that for the sum of one shilling the public might enter4 ,i myself mixed the red ground1 and myself placed1 in letters of gold1 the new title upon it--in proper relation to the decorative scheme of the whole design1 of which it formed naturally an all-important feature4 ,the date was that of the ,society's ,royal grant1 and in commemoration of its new birth4 ,with the offending ,butterfly1 it has now been effaced in one clean sweep of independence1 while the lion1 not so badly drawn1 was differently dealt with--it was found not necessary to do anything more than restore it in permanent colour1 and that1 with a bottle of ,brunswick black1 has accordingly been done2 and1 as ,mr4 ,bayliss adds1 with unpremeditated truth1 in the thoughtless pride of achievement1 the notice board was no longer the actual work of ,mr4 ,whistler6 ,this exposure of ,mr4 ,bayliss's direct method ,i have wickedly withheld1 in order that the ,philistine impulse of the country should declare itself in all its freshness of execration before it could be checked by awkward discovery of mere mendacity1 and a timid sense of danger1 called justice4 ,everything has taken place as ,i pleasantly foresaw1 and there is by this time1 with the silent exception of one or two cautious dailies1 scarcely a lay paper in the land that has been able to refrain from joining in the hearty yell of delight at the rare chance of coarsely1 publicly1 and safely insulting an artist6 ,in this eagerness to affront the man they have irretrievably and ridiculously committed themselves to open sympathy with the destruction of his work4 ,i wish coldly to chronicle this fact in the archives of the ,athenum for the future consideration of the cultured ,new ,zealander4 ,illustration ,an ,official ,letter ,sir1--,i beg to acknowledge the receipt of your letter1 officially informing me that the ,committee award me a second-class gold medal4 ,pray convey my sentiments of tempered and respectable joy to the gentlemen of the ,committee1 and my complete appreciation of the second-hand compliment paid me4 ,and ,i have1 ,sir1 ,the honour to be ,your most humble1 obedient servant1 ,j4 ,,mcneill ,,whistler4 ,illustration ,,to ,,the #a,,st ,,secretary1 ,,central ,,committee1 ,,international ,,art ,,exhibition1 ,,munich4 ,the ,home of ,taste ,the ,ideas of ,mr4 ,blankety ,blank on ,house ,decoration ,sidenote3 ,pall ,mall ,gazette1 ,dec4 #a1 #ahhh4 ,the other day ,i happened to call on ,mr4 ,blank1--,japanese ,blank1 you know1 whose house is in far ,fulham4 ,the garden door flew open at my summons1 and my eye was at once confronted with a house1 the hue of whose face reminded me of a ,venetian palazzo1 for it was of a subdued pink4444 ,if the exterior was ,venetian1 however1 the interior was a compound of ,blank and ,japan4 ,attracted by the curiously pretty hall1 ,i begged the artist to explain this--the newest style of house decoration4 ,i need not say that ,blank1 being a man of an original turn of mind1 with the decorative bump strongly developed1 holds what are at present peculiar views upon wall papers1 room tones1 and so on4 ,the day is dark and gloomy1 yet once within the halls of ,blank there is sweetness and light4 ,you must look through the open door into a luminous little chamber covered with a soft wash of lemon yellow4 ,from the antechamber we passed through the open door into a large drawing-room1 of the same soft lemon-yellow hue4 ,the blinds were down1 the fog reigned without1 and yet you would have thought that the sun was in the room4 ,here let me pause in my description1 and put on record the gist of our conversation concerning the ,home of ,taste4 ,now1 ,mr4 ,blank1 would you tell me how you came to prefer tones to papers8 ,here the walls used to be covered with a paper of a sombre green1 which oppressed me and made me sad1 said ,blank4 ',why cannot ,i bring the sun into the house1' ,i said to myself1 'even in this land of fog and clouds8' ,then ,i thought of my experiment and invoked the aid of the ,british house-painter4 ,he brought his colours and his buckets1 and ,i stood over him as he mixed his washes4 ,one night1 when the work was nearing completion1 one of them caught sight of himself in the mirror1 and remarked with astonishment upon the loveliness of his own features4 ,it was the lemon-yellow beautifying the ,british workman's flesh tones4 ,i assure you the effect of a room full of people in evening dress seen against the yellow ground is extraordinary1 and1 added ,blank1 perhaps flattering4 ,then do ,i understand that you would remove all wall papers8 ,a good ground for distemper1 chuckled ,mr4 ,blank4 ,but you propose to inaugurate a revolution4 ,i don't go so far as that1 but ,i am glad to be able to introduce my ideas of house furnishing and house decoration to the public1 said ,blank1 and ,i may tell you that when ,i go to ,america with my ,paris pictures1 ,i shall try and decorate a house according to my own ideas1 and ask the ,americans to think about the matter4 ,another ,poacher in the ,chelsea ,preserves ,sidenote3 ,the ,world1 ,dec4 #bf1 #ahhh4 ,atlas--,nothing matters but the unimportant2 so1 at the risk of advertising an ,australian immigrant of ,fulham--who1 like the ,kangaroo of his country1 is born with a pocket and puts everything into it--and1 in spite of much wise advice1 we ought not to resist the joy of noticing how readily a hurried contemporary has fallen a prey to its superficial knowledge of its various departments1 and1 culminating in a ,special ,edition last week to embody a lengthy interview headed ,the ,home of ,taste1 has discovered again the nest of the mare that was foaled years ago6 ,how1 by the way1 so smart a paper should have printed its naf emotions of ecstasy before the false colours which the ,kangaroo has hoisted over his bush1 defies all usual explanation1 but clearly the jaunty reporter whose impudent familiarity1 on a former memorable occasion1 achieved my wondering admiration1 must have been1 in stress of business1 replaced by a novice who had never breakfasted with you and me1 ,atlas1 and the rest of the world1 in the lemon-yellow1 of whose beautiful tone he now1 for the first time1 is so completely convinced4 ,the hue on the face of the ,fulham ,palazzo he moreover calls ,venetian1 and is pleased with it--and so was ,i1 ,atlas--for ,i mixed it myself6 ,and yet1 ,o ,atlas1 they say that ,i cannot keep a friend--my dear1 ,i cannot afford it--and you only keep for me their scalps6 ,many1 when a thing was lent them1 reckoned it to be found1 and put them to trouble that helped them4 ,illustration ,a ,suggestion ,sidenote3 ,truth1 ,march #bh1 #ahhi4 ,a certain painter has given himself away to an ,american journalist1 unless that gentleman has romanced1 in the ,philadelphia ,daily ,news4 ,according to him this person explained how he managed the press1 and how he claimed to be the inventor of the system associated with the name of ,mr4 ,whistler4 ,the ,art clubs and the studios have been flooded with the ,philadelphia ,daily ,news4 ,mr4 ,whistler sent on his own copy to the pretender1 with the following note3-- ,you will blow your brains out1 of course4 ,pigott has shown you what to do under the circumstances1 and you know your way to ,spain4 ,good-bye6 ,illustration ,the ,habit of ,second ,natures ,sidenote3 ,truth1 ,jan4 #b1 #ahij4 ,most ,valiant ,truth--,among your ruthless exposures of the shams of to-day1 nothing1 ,i confess1 have ,i enjoyed with keener relish than your late tilt at that arch-impostor and pest of the period--the all-pervading plagiarist6 ,i learn1 by the way1 that in ,america he may1 under the ,law of '#hd1 as it is called1 be criminally prosecuted1 incarcerated1 and made to pick oakum1 as he has hitherto picked brains--and pockets6 ,how was it that1 in your list of culprits1 you omitted that fattest of offenders--our own ,oscar8 ,his methods are brought again freshly to my mind1 by the indefatigable and tardy ,romeike1 who sends me newspaper cuttings of ,mr4 ,herbert ,vivian's ,reminiscences1 in which1 among other entertaining anecdotes1 is told at length1 the story of ,oscar simulating the becoming pride of author1 upon a certain evening1 in the club of the ,academy students1 and arrogating to himself the responsibility of the lecture1 with which1 at his earnest prayer1 ,i had1 in good fellowship1 crammed him1 that he might not add deplorable failure to foolish appearance1 in his anomalous position1 as art expounder1 before his clear-headed audience4 ,he went forth1 on that occasion1 as my ,st4 ,john--but1 forgetting that humility should be his chief characteristic1 and unable to withstand the unaccustomed respect with which his utterances were received1 he not only trifled with my shoe1 but bolted with the latchet6 ,mr4 ,vivian1 in his book1 tells us1 further on1 that lately1 in an article in the ,nineteenth ,century on the ,decay of ,lying1 ,mr4 ,wilde has deliberately and incautiously incorporated1 without a word of comment1 a portion of the well-remembered letter in which1 after admitting his rare appreciation and amazing memory1 ,i acknowledge that ,oscar has the courage of the opinions 444 of others6 ,my recognition of this1 his latest proof of open admiration1 ,i send him in the following little note1 which ,i fancy you may think propos to publish1 as an example to your readers1 in similar circumstances1 of noble generosity in sweet reproof1 tempered1 as it should be1 to the lamb in his condition3-- ,oscar1 you have been down the area again1 ,i see6 ,i had forgotten you1 and so allowed your hair to grow over the sore place4 ,and now1 while ,i looked the other way1 you have stolen your own scalp6 and potted it in more of your pudding4 ,labby has pointed out that1 for the detected plagiarist1 there is still one way to self-respect 7besides hanging himself1 of course71 and that is for him boldly to declare1 ',je prends mon bien l o je le trouve4' ,you1 ,oscar1 can go further1 and with fresh effrontery1 that will bring you the envy of all criminal confrres1 unblushingly boast1 ',moi1 je prends son bien l o je le trouve6' ,chelsea4 ,illustration ,in the ,market ,place ,sidenote3 ,truth1 ,jan4 #i1 #ahij4 ,sir--,i can hardly imagine that the public are in the very smallest degree interested in the shrill shrieks of ,plagiarism that proceed from time to time out of the lips of silly vanity or incompetent mediocrity4 ,however1 as ,mr4 ,james ,whistler has had the impertinence to attack me with both venom and vulgarity in your columns1 ,i hope you will allow me to state that the assertions contained in his letters are as deliberately untrue as they are deliberately offensive4 ,the definition of a disciple as one who has the courage of the opinions of his master is really too old even for ,mr4 ,whistler to be allowed to claim it1 and as for borrowing ,mr4 ,whistler's ideas about art1 the only thoroughly original ideas ,i have ever heard him express have had reference to his own superiority as a painter over painters greater than himself4 ,it is a trouble for any gentleman to have to notice the lucubrations of so ill-bred and ignorant a person as ,mr4 ,whistler1 but your publication of his insolent letter left me no option in the matter4--,i remain1 ,sir1 faithfully yours1 ,,oscar ,,wilde4 ,panic ,sidenote3 ,truth1 ,jan4 #af1 #ahij4 ,o truth6--,cowed and humiliated1 ,i acknowledge that our ,oscar is at last original4 ,at bay1 and sublime in his agony1 he certainly has1 for once1 borrowed from no living author1 and comes out in his own true colours--as his own gentleman4 ,how shall ,i stand against his just anger1 and his damning allegations6 for it must be clear to your readers1 that1 beside his clean polish1 as prettily set forth in his epistle1 ,i1 alas6 am but the ill-bred and ignorant person1 whose lucubrations it is a trouble for him to notice4 ,still will ,i1 desperate as is my condition1 point out that though impertinent1 venomous1 and vulgar1 he claims me as his master--and1 in the dock1 bases his innocence upon such relation between us4 ,in all humility1 therefore1 ,i admit that the outcome of my silly vanity and incompetent mediocrity1 must be the incarnation3 ,oscar ,wilde4 ,mea culpa6 the ,gods may perhaps forgive and forget4 ,to you1 ,truth--champion of the truth--,i leave the brave task of proclaiming again that the story of the lecture to the students of the ,royal ,academy was1 as ,i told it to you1 no fiction4 ,in the presence of ,mr4 ,waldo ,story did ,oscar make his prayer for preparation2 and at his table was he entrusted with the materials for his crime4 ,you also shall again unearth1 in the ,nineteenth ,century ,review of ,jan4 #ahhi1 page #cg1 the other appropriated property1 slily stowed away1 in an article on ,the ,decay of ,lying--though why ,decay6 ,to shirk this matter thus is craven1 doubtless2 but ,i am awe-stricken and tremble1 for truly1 the rage of the sheep is terrible6 ,illustration ,just ,indignation ,oscar--,how dare you6 ,what means this disguise8 ,sidenote3 ,upon perceiving the ,poet1 in ,polish cap and green overcoat1 befrogged1 and wonderfully befurred4 ,restore those things to ,nathan's1 and never again let me find you masquerading the streets of my ,chelsea in the combined costumes of ,kossuth and ,mr4 ,mantalini6 ,illustration ,an ,advanced ,critic ,,to ,,the ,,editor3 ,sidenote3 ,pall ,mall ,gazette1 ,march #bh1 #ahhh4 ,sir--,i find myself obliged to notice the critical review of the ,ten o',clock1 that appeared in your paper 7,march #f74 ,in the interest of my publishers1 ,i beg to state formally that the work has not as yet been issued at all--and ,i would point out that what is still in the hands of the printer1 cannot possibly have fallen into the fingers of your incautious contributor6 ,the early telegram is doubtless the ambition of this smart1 though premature and restless one--but he is wanting in habit1 and unhappy in his haste6--,what will you8 ,the ,pall ,mall and the people have been imposed upon4 ,be good enough1 ,sir1 to insert this note1 lest the public suppose1 upon your authority1 that the ,ten o',clock1 as yet unseen in the window of ,piccadilly1 has1 in consequence of this sudden summing up1 been hurriedly withdrawn from circulation4--,i am1 ,sir1 ,illustration ,the ,advantage of ,explanation ,,to ,,the ,,editor3 ,sidenote3 ,pall ,mall ,gazette1 ,march #ca1 #ahhh4 ,sir--,just three weeks after publication ,mr4 ,whistler finds himself obliged to notice the critical review of the ',ten o',clock' that appeared in your paper4 ,he points out that what is still in the hands of the printer cannot possibly have fallen into the fingers of your incautious contributor4 ,i do not pretend to be acquainted with the multitudinous matters that may be in the hands of his publishers' printers4 ,but ,i can declare--and you1 ,sir1 will corroborate me--that a printed copy of ,mr4 ,whistler's smart but misleading lecture was placed in my hands for review1 and1 moreover1 that the notice did not appear until the pamphlet was duly advertised by ,messrs4 ,chatto and ,windus as ready4 ,it is1 of course1 a matter of regret to me if1 as ,mr4 ,whistler suggests1 his publishers' interests are likely to suffer from the review2 but if an author's work1 in the reviewer's opinion1 be full of rash statement and mischievous doctrine1 the publishers must submit to the risk of frank criticism4 ,but it will be observed that ,mr4 ,whistler is merely seeking to create an impression that your ,reviewer never saw the work he criticized1 which is surely not a creditable position to take up1 even by a sensitive man writhing under adverse criticism4--,i am1 ,sir1 most obediently1 ,,your ,,reviewer4 ,testimony ,,to ,,the ,,editor3 ,sidenote3 ,pall ,mall ,gazette1 ,april #g1 #ahhh4 ,sir--,my apologies1 ,i pray you1 to the much disturbed gentleman1 ,your ,reviewer1 who complains that ,i have allowed just three weeks to go by without noticing his writing4 ,let me hasten1 lest he be further offended1 to acknowledge his answer1 in ,saturday's paper4 ,after much matter1 he comes unexpectedly upon a clear understanding of my letter--,it will be observed1 he says navely1 that ,mr4 ,whistler is merely seeking to create an impression that your ,reviewer never saw the work he criticized1--herein he is completely right1 this is absolutely the impression ,i did seek to create--which1 he continues1 is surely not a creditable position to take up--again ,i agree with him1 and admit the sad spectacle a ,reviewer presents in such position4 ,he further declares1 and calls upon you1 ,sir1 to corroborate him1 that a printed copy of ,mr4 ,whistler's misleading lecture was placed in my hands for review--and moreover1 that the notice did not appear until the pamphlet was duly advertised by ,messrs4 ,chatto and ,windus as ready4 ,pausing to note that if the lecture had not seemed misleading to him1 it would surely not have been worth uttering at all1 ,i come to the copy in question--this could only have been a printed proof1 quaintly acquired--as will be seen by the following letter from ,messrs4 ,chatto and ,windus1 which ,i must beg you ,sir1 to publish1 with this note--as it deals also with the remaining point1 the advertisement of the pamphlet1 ,and1 ,i am1 ,sir1 ,illustration ,the following is the letter from ,mr4 ,whistler's publishers3-- ,,dear ,,sir--,in reply to your question we have to say that we certainly have not sent out any copy of the ,ten o',clock to the press1 or to anybody else excepting yourself4 ,the work is still in the printers' hands1 and we have for a long time past been advertising it only as shortly to be published2 indeed1 only a few proofs have so far been taken from the type4 ,yours faithfully1 ,,chatto and ,,windus4 ,an ,apostasy ,sidenote3 ,mr4 ,whistler's ,lecture on ,art1 by ,algernon ,charles ,swinburne4 ,fortnightly ,review1 ,june #ahhh4 ,to speak the truth1 the whole truth1 and nothing but the truth may justly be required of the average witness2 it cannot be expected1 it should not be exacted1 of any critical writer or lecturer on any form of art4444 444 ,and it appears to one at least of those unfortunate outsiders for whose judgment or whose meddling ,mr4 ,whistler has so imperial and ,olympian a contempt4444 ,sidenote3 ,,reflection3 ,if indeed6 ,illustration ,sidenote3 ,,reflection3 ,cups and fans and screens1 and ,hamilton vases1 and figurines of ,tanagra1 and other waterflies4 ,illustration ,let us begin at the end1 as all reasonable people always do3 we shall find that ,mr4 ,whistler concedes to ,greek art a place beside ,japanese4 ,now this1 on his own showing1 will never do2 it crosses1 it contravenes1 it nullifies1 it pulverizes his theory or his principle of artistic limitation4 ,if ,japanese art is right in confining itself to what can be broidered upon the fan--and the gist of the whole argument is in favour of this assumption--then the sculpture which appeals1 indeed1 first of all to our perception of beauty1 to the delight of the eye1 to the wonder and the worship of the instinct or the sense1 but which in every possible instance appeals also to far other intuitions and far other sympathies than these1 is as absolutely wrong1 as demonstrably inferior1 as any picture or as any carving which may be so degenerate and so debased as to concern itself with a story or a subject4 ,assuredly ,phidias thought of other things than arrangements#cd in marble--as certainly as schylus thought of other things than arrangements in metre4 ,nor1 ,i am sorely afraid1 can the adored ,velasquez be promoted to a seat at the foot of ,fusi-yama4 ,japanese art is not merely the incomparable achievement of certain harmonies in colour2 it is the negation1 the immolation1 the annihilation of everything else4 ,by the code which accepts as the highest of models and of masterpieces the cups and fans and screens with which the poor world has been as grievously pestered of late years as ever it was in ,shakespeare's time with such waterflies--diminutives of nature--as excited the scorn of his moralizing cynic1 ,velasquez is as unquestionably condemned as is ,raphael or ,titian4 ,it is true that this miraculous power of hand 787#ce makes beautiful for us the deformity of dwarfs1 and dignifies the degradation of princes2 but that is not the question4 ,it is true1 again1 that ,mr4 ,whistler's own merest arrangements in colour are lovely and effective2#cf but his portraits1 to speak of these alone1 are liable to the damning and intolerable imputation of possessing not merely other qualities than these1 but qualities which actually appeal--,i blush to remember and ,i shudder to record it--which actually appeal to the intelligence#cg and the emotions1 to the mind and heart of the spectator4 ,it would be quite useless for ,mr4 ,whistler to protest--if haply he should be so disposed--that he never meant to put study of character and revelation of intellect into his portrait of ,mr4 ,carlyle1 or intense pathos of significance and tender depth of expression into the portrait of his own venerable mother4 ,the scandalous fact remains1 that he has done so2 and in so doing has explicitly violated and implicitly abjured the creed and the canons1 the counsels and the catechism of ,japan4444 ,note #cd3 ,,reflection3 ,because the ,bard is blind1 shall the ,painter cease to see8 ,illustration ,note #ce3 ,,reflection3 ,quite hopeless6 ,illustration ,note #cf3 ,,reflection3 ,whereby it would seem that1 for the ,bard1 the lovely is not necessarily effective4 ,illustration ,note #cg3 ,,reflection3 ,the lovely1 therefore1 confessedly does not appeal to the intelligence1 emotions1 mind1 and heart of the ,bard even when aided by the effective4 ,illustration ,sidenote3 ,,reflection3 ,of course ,i do mean this thing--though most imprudent was the saying of it6--for this ,art truth the ,poet resents with the people4--,june #ahhh4 ,illustration ,and when ,mr4 ,whistler informs us that there never was an artistic period1 we must reply that the statement1 so far as it is true1 is the flattest of all possible truisms2 for no mortal ever maintained that there ever was a period in which all men were either good artists or good judges of art4 ,but when we pass from the positive to the comparative degree of historic or retrospective criticism1 we must ask whether the lecturer means to say that there have not been times when the general standard of taste and judgment1 reason and perception1 was so much higher than at other times and such periods may justly and accurately be defined as artistic4 ,if he does mean to say this1 he is beyond answer and beneath confutation2 in other words1 he is where an artist of ,mr4 ,whistler's genius and a writer of ,mr4 ,whistler's talents can by no possibility find himself4 ,if he does not mean to say this1 what he means to say is exactly as well worth saying1 as valuable and as important a piece of information1 as the news that ,queen ,anne is no more1 or that two and two are not generally supposed to make five4 ,sidenote3 ,,reflection3 ,je reviens donc de ,pontoise6 ,illustration ,but if the light and glittering bark of this brilliant amateur in the art of letters is not invariably steered with equal dexterity of hand between the ,scylla and ,charybdis of paradox and platitude1 it is impossible that in its course it should not once and again touch upon some point worth notice1 if not exploration4 ,even that miserable animal the unattached writer may gratefully and respectfully recognize his accurate apprehension and his felicitous application of well-nigh the most hackneyed verse in all the range of ,shakespeare's--which yet is almost invariably misconstrued and misapplied--,one touch of nature makes the whole world kin2 and this1 as the poet goes on to explain1 is that all1 with one consent1 prefer worthless but showy novelties to precious but familiar possessions4 ,this one chord that vibrates with all1 says ,mr4 ,whistler1 who proceeds to cite artistic examples of the lamentable fact1 this one unspoken sympathy that pervades humanity1 is--,vulgarity4 ,but the consequence which he proceeds to indicate and to deplore is calculated to strike his readers with a sense of mild if hilarious astonishment4 ,it is that men of sound judgment and pure taste1 quick feelings and clear perceptions1 most unfortunately and most inexplicably begin to make their voices heard in the land4 ,porson1 as all the world knows1 observed of the ,germans of his day that in ,greek they were sadly to seek4 ,it is no discredit to ,mr4 ,whistler if this is his case also2 but then he would do well to eschew the use of a ,greek term lying so far out of the common way as the word sthete4 ,not merely the only accurate meaning1 but the only possible meaning1 of that word is nothing more1 but nothing less1 than this--an intelligent1 appreciative1 quick-witted person2 in a word1 as the lexicon has it1 one who perceives4 ,the man who is no sthete stands confessed1 by the logic of language and the necessity of the case1 as a thick-witted1 tasteless1 senseless1 and impenetrable blockhead4 ,i do not wish to insult ,mr4 ,whistler1 but ,i feel bound to avow my impression that there is no man now living who less deserves the honour of enrolment in such ranks as these--of a seat in the synagogue of the ansthetic4444 444 ,such abuse of language is possible only to the drivelling desperation of venomous or fangless duncery3 it is in higher and graver matters1 of wider bearing and of deeper import1 that we find it necessary to dispute the apparently serious propositions or assertions of ,mr4 ,whistler4 ,how far the witty tongue may be thrust into the smiling cheek when the lecturer pauses to take breath between these remarkably brief paragraphs it would be certainly indecorous and possibly superfluous to inquire4 ,but his theorem is unquestionably calculated to provoke the loudest and the heartiest mirth that ever acclaimed the advent of ,momus or ,erycina4 ,for it is this--that #ch;,art and ,joy go together1 and that#ci tragic art is not art at all4444 ,note #ch3 ,,reflection3 ,is not1 then1 the funeral hymn a gladness to the singer1 if the verse be beautiful8 ,certainly the funeral monument1 to be worthy the ,nation's sorrow buried beneath it1 must first be a joy to the sculptor who designed it4 ,the ,bard's reasoning is of the ,people4 ,his ,tragedy is theirs4 ,as one of them1 the man may weep--yet will the artist rejoice--for to him is not ,a thing of beauty a joy for ever8 ,illustration ,note #ci3 ,at what point of my ,o'clock does ,mr4 ,swinburne find this last--his own inconsequence8 ,illustration ,sidenote3 ,,reflection3 ,before the marvels of centuries1 silence1 the only tribute of the outsider1 is by him refused--and the dignity of ignorance lost in speech4 ,illustration 444 ,the laughing ,muse of the lecturer1 quam ,jocus circumvolat1 must have glanced round in expectation of the general appeal1 ,after that let us take breath4 ,and having done so1 they must have remembered that they were not in a serious world2 that they were in the fairyland of fans1 in the paradise of pipkins1 in the limbo of blue china1 screens1 pots1 plates1 jars1 joss-houses1 and all the fortuitous frippery of ,fusi-yama4 ,sidenote3 ,,reflection3 ,if an sthete1 the ,bard is no collector6 ,illustration ,it is a cruel but an inevitable ,nemesis which reduces even a man of real genius1 keen-witted and sharp-sighted1 to the level of the critic ,jobson1 to the level of the dotard and the dunce1 when paradox is discoloured by personality and merriment is distorted by malevolence4767 ,no man who really knows the qualities of ,mr4 ,whistler's best work will imagine that he really believes the highest expression of his art to be realized in reproduction of the grin and glare1 the smirk and leer1 of ,japanese womanhood as represented in its professional types of beauty2 but to all appearance he would fain persuade us that he does4 ,in the latter of the two portraits to which ,i have already referred there is an expression of living character4444 ,this1 however1 is an exception to the general rule of ,mr4 ,whistler's way of work3 an exception1 it may be alleged1 which proves the rule4 ,a single infraction of the moral code1 a single breach of artistic law1 suffices to vitiate the position of the preacher4 ,and this is no slight escapade1 or casual aberration2 it is a full and frank defiance1 a deliberate and elaborate denial1 hurled right in the face of ,japanese jocosity1 flung straight in the teeth of the theory which condemns high art1 under penalty of being considered intelligent1 to remain eternally on the grin4 ,sidenote3 ,,reflection3 ,a keen commercial summing up--excused by the ,great ,emperor6 ,illustration ,if it be objected that to treat this theorem gravely is to consider too curiously the tropes and the phrases of a jester of genius1 ,i have only to answer that it very probably may be so1 but that the excuse for such error must be sought in the existence of the genius4 ,a man of genius is scarcely at liberty to choose whether he shall or shall not be considered as a serious figure--one to be acknowledged and respected as an equal or a superior1 not applauded and dismissed as a tumbler or a clown4 ,and if the better part of ,mr4 ,whistler's work as an artist is to be accepted as the work of a serious and intelligent creature1 it would seem incongruous and preposterous to dismiss the more characteristic points of his theory as a lecturer with the chuckle or the shrug of mere amusement or amazement4 ,moreover1 if considered as a joke1 a mere joke1 and nothing but a joke1 this gospel of the grin has hardly matter or meaning enough in it to support so elaborate a structure of paradoxical rhetoric4 ,it must be taken1 therefore1 as something serious in the main2 and if so taken1 and read by the light reflected from ,mr4 ,whistler's more characteristically brilliant canvases1 it may not improbably recall a certain phrase of ,molire's which at once passed into a proverb--,vous tes orfvre1 ,m4 ,josse4 ,that worthy tradesman1 it will be remembered1 was of opinion that nothing could be so well calculated to restore a drooping young lady to mental and physical health as the present of a handsome set of jewels4 ,mr4 ,whistler's opinion that there is nothing like leather--of a jovial and ,japanese design--savours somewhat of the ,oriental cordwainer4 ,et tu1 ,brute6 ,why1 ,o brother6 did you not consult with me before printing1 in the face of a ribald world1 that you also misunderstand1 and are capable of saying so1 with vehemence and repetition4 ,have ,i then left no man on his legs8--and have ,i shot down the singer in the far off1 when ,i thought him safe at my side8 ,cannot the man who wrote ,atalanta--and the ,ballads beautiful1--can he not be content to spend his life with his work1 which should be his love1--and has for him no misleading doubt and darkness--that he should so stray about blindly in his brother's flowerbeds and bruise himself6 ,is life then so long with him1 and his art so short1 that he shall dawdle by the way and wander from his path1 reducing his giant intellect--garrulous upon matters to him unknown1 that the scoffer may rejoice and the ,philistine be appeased while he takes up the parable of the mob and proclaims himself their spokesman and fellow-sufferer8 ,o ,brother6 where is thy sting6 ,o ,poet6 where is thy victory6 ,how have ,i offended6 and how shall you in the midst of your poisoned page hurl with impunity the boomerang rebuke8 ,paradox is discoloured by personality1 and merriment is distorted by malevolence4 ,who are you1 deserting your ,muse1 that you should insult my ,goddess with familiarity1 and the manners of approach common to the reasoners in the marketplace4 ,hearken to me1 you cry1 and ,i will point out how this man1 who has passed his life in her worship1 is a tumbler and a clown of the booths--how he who has produced that which ,i fain must acknowledge--is a jester in the ring6 ,do we not speak the same language8 ,are we strangers1 then1 or1 in our ,father's house are there so many mansions that you lose your way1 my brother1 and cannot recognize your kin8 ,shall ,i be brought to the bar by my own blood1 and be borne false witness against before the plebeian people8 ,shall ,i be made to stultify myself by what ,i never said--and shall the strength of your testimony turn upon me8 ,if--,if ,japanese ,art is right in confining itself to what can be broidered upon the fan 444 and again 444 that he really believes the highest expression of his art to be realized in reproduction of the grin and glare1 the smirk and leer 444 and further 444 the theory which condemns high art1 under the penalty of being considered intelligent1 to remain eternally on the grin 444 and much more6 ,amateur writer6 ,well should ,i deserve the reproach1 had ,i ventured ever beyond the precincts of my own science--and fatal would have been the exposure1 as you1 with heedless boldness1 have unwittingly proven4 ,art tainted with philanthropy--that better ,art result6--,poet and ,peabody6 ,you have been misled--you have mistaken the pale demeanour and joined hands for an outward and visible sign of an inward and spiritual earnestness4 ,for you1 these are the serious ones1 and1 for them1 you others are the serious matter4 ,their joke is their work4 ,for me--why should ,i refuse myself the grim joy of this grotesque tragedy--and1 with them now1 you all are my joke6 ,illustration ,freeing a ,last ,friend ,bravo6 ,bard6 and exquisitely written1 ,i suppose1 as becomes your state4 ,sidenote3 ,the ,world1 ,june #c1 #ahhh4 ,letter to ,mr4 ,swinburne4 ,the scientific irrelevancies and solemn popularities1 less elaborately embodied1 ,i seem to have met with before--in papers signed by more than one serious and unqualified sage1 whose mind also was not narrowed by knowledge4 ,i have been personal1 you say2 and1 faith6 you prove it6 ,thank you1 my dear6 ,i have lost a confrre2 but1 then1 ,i have gained an acquaintance--one ,algernon ,swinburne--outsider--,putney4 ,illustration ,an ,editor's ,anxiety ,sidenote3 ,pall ,mall ,gazette1 ,april #bf1 #ahhi4 ,it is reported that ,mr4 ,whistler1 having received word that a drawing of his had been rejected by the ,committee of the ,universal ,exhibition1 arrived yesterday in ,paris and withdrew all his remaining works1 including an oil painting and six drawings4 ,the ,french consider that he has been guilty of a breach of good manners4 ,the ,paris1 for instance1 points out that1 after sending his works to the jury1 he should have accepted their judgment1 and appealed to the public by other methods4 ,rassurez vous6 ,,to ,,the ,,editor3 ,sidenote3 ,pall ,mall ,gazette1 ,april #bg1 #ahhi4 ,sir--,you are badly informed--a risk you constantly run in your haste for pleasing news4 ,i have not withdrawn my works from the forthcoming ,paris ,exhibition4 ,i transported my pictures from the ,american department to the ,british section of the ,exposition ,internationale1 where ,i prefer to be represented4 ,the ,french have nothing1 so far1 to do with ,english or ,american exhibits4 ,a little paragraph is a dangerous thing4 ,and ,i am1 ,sir1 ,chelsea4 ,illustration ,whistler's ,grievance ,,an ,,entrapped ,,interview4 ,sidenote3 ,new ,york ,herald1 ,paris ,edition1 ,oct4 #c1 #ahhi4 ,the ,herald correspondent saw ,mr4 ,whistler at the ,htel ,suisse1 and asked the artist about his affairs with the ,american ,art ,jury of the ,exhibition4 ,i believe the ,herald made the statement1 said ,mr4 ,whistler1 that ,i had withdrawn all my etchings and a full-length portrait from the ,american section4 ,it all came about in this way3 ,in the first place1 before the pictures were sent in1 ,i received a note from the ,american ,art ,department asking me to contribute some of my work4 ,it was at that time difficult for me to collect many of my works2 but ,i borrowed what ,i could from different people1 and sent in twenty-seven etchings and the portrait4 ,you can imagine that a few etchings do not have any effect at all2 so ,i sent what ,i could get together4 ,shortly afterwards ,i received a note saying3 ',sir--,ten of your exhibits have not received the approval of the jury4 ,will you kindly remove them8' ,at the bottom of this note was the name ',hawkins'--,general ,hawkins1 ,i believe--a cavalry officer1 who had charge of the ,american ,art ,department of the ,exhibition4 ,well6 the next day ,i went to ,paris and called at the ,american headquarters of the ,exhibition4 ,i was ushered into the presence of this gentleman1 ,hawkins1 to whom ,i said3--',i am ,mr4 ,whistler1 and ,i believe this note is from you4 ,i have come to remove my etchings'2 but ,i did not mention that my work was to be transferred to the ,english ,art ,section4 ',ah6' said the gentleman--the officer--'we were very sorry not to have had space enough for all your etchings1 but we are glad to have seventeen and the portrait4 ',you are too kind' ,i said1 'but really ,i will not trouble you4' ,mr4 ,hawkins was quite embarrassed1 and urged me to reconsider my determination1 but ,i withdrew every one of the etchings1 and they are now well hung in the ,english ,department4 ,i did not mind the fact that my works were criticized1 but it was the discourteous manner in which it was done4 ,if the request to me had been made in proper language1 and they had simply said3--',mr4 ,whistler1 we have not space enough for twenty-seven etchings4 ,will you kindly select those which you prefer1 and we shall be glad to have them1' ,i would have given them the privilege of placing them in the ,american ,section4444 ,whacking ,whistler ,sidenote3 ,new ,york ,herald1 ,paris ,edition1 ,oct4 #d4 #ahhi4 ,in an interview in yesterday's ,herald the eccentric artist1 ,mr4 ,j4 ,mc,neill ,whistler1 jumped in a most emphatic manner upon ,general ,hawkins1 ,commissioner of the ,american ,art ,department at the ,exhibition4 ,he objects to the ,general for being a cavalry officer2 refers to him sarcastically as ,hawkins1 and declares him ignorant of the most elementary principles alike of art and politeness--all this because he1 ,whistler1 was requested by the ,commissioner to remove from the ,exhibition premises some ten of his rejected etchings4 ,in a spirit of fair play a correspondent called upon ,general ,hawkins1 giving him an opportunity1 if he felt so disposed1 of jumping1 in his turn1 on his excitable opponent4 ,the ,general did feel so disposed1 and proceeded1 in popular parlance1 to see ,mr4 ,j4 ,mc,neill ,whistler and go him one better4 ,in this species of linguistic gymnastics1 by the way1 the military ,commissioner asks no odds of any one4 ,he began by gently remarking that ,mr4 ,whistler1 in his published remarks1 had soared far out of the domain of strict veracity4 ,this was not bad for a starter1 and was ably supported by the following detailed statement3-- ,mr4 ,whistler says he received a note from me4 ,that is a mistake4 ,i have never in my life written a line to ,mr4 ,whistler4#dj ,what he did receive was a circular with my name printed at the bottom4 ,these circulars were sent to all the artists who had pictures refused by the jury1 and contained a simple request that such pictures be removed4 ,note #dj3 ,the official memory3 ,,dear ,,sir--,i wish by return mail you would send description for oils2 and if you desire to have titles to etchings printed1 you will have to furnish the necessary material for copy4--,yours faithfully1 ,,rush ,c4 ,,hawkins1 ,commissariat ,general1 ,paris1 ,march #bi1 #ahhi4 7,autograph47 ,to ,mr4 ,whistler4 ,our way of doing business was not1 it seems1 up to ,mr4 ,whistler's standard of politeness1 so he got angry and took away1 not only the ten rejected etchings1 but seventeen others which had been accepted4 ,it is a little singular that among about one hundred and fifty artists who received this circular1 ,mr4 ,whistler should have been the only one to discover its latent discourtesy4 ,how great must be ,mr4 ,whistler's capacity for detecting a snub where none exists6 ,in any case1 there is not the slightest reason for ,mr4 ,whistler's venting his ire upon me4 ,i had no more to do with either accepting or rejecting his pictures than ,i had with painting them4 ,what he sent us was judged on its merits by a competent and impartial jury of his peers4 ,if there were ten etchings rejected it only shows that there were ten etchings not worthy of acceptance4 ,a few days after the affair a trio of journalists--not all men either--came to me1 demanding that ,i reverse this 'iniquitous decision1' as they styled it4 ,i told these three prying scribblers in a polite way that if they would kindly attend to their own affairs ,i would try to attend to mine4 ,in this connection1 ,i may remark that there are in ,paris a number of correspondents who ought not to be allowed within gun-shot of a newspaper office4 ,the next mis-statement in ,mr4 ,whistler's interview is in regard to the ultimate disposal of his important etchings4 ,his words are3--',mr4 ,hawkins was quite embarrassed1 and urged me to reconsider my determination1 but ,i withdrew every one of the etchings1 and they are now well hung in the ,english department4' ,now1 ,i leave it to any fair-minded person if the plain inference from this statement is not that the whole twenty-seven etchings were accepted by the ,english department4 ,if not1 what in heaven's name is he crowing about8 ,but the truth is that while we rejected only ten of his etchings1 the ,english department rejected eighteen of them1 and of the nine accepted only hung two on the line4 ,had ,mr4 ,whistler been the possessor of a more even temper and a little more common sense1 he would have had five or six of his works on the line in the ,american department1 and nearly twice as many on exhibition than is actually the case4 ,really1 ,i fail to see what he gained by the exchange1 unless it was a valuable experience4 ,he says ,i was embarrassed when ,i saw him2 ,i fancy he will be embarrassed when he sees these facts in 'cold type4' ,whistler's ,grievance ,,to ,,the ,,editor3 ,sidenote3 ,new ,york ,herald4 ,sir--,i beg that you will kindly print immediately these1 my regrets1 that ,general ,rush ,hawkins should have been spurred into unwonted and unbecoming expression by what ,i myself read with considerable bewilderment in the ,new ,york ,herald1 ,october #c1 under the head of ,whistler's ,grievance4 ,i can assure the gallant soldier that ,i have no grievance4 ,had ,i known that1 when--over what takes the place of wine and walnuts in ,holland--,i remembered lightly the military methods of the jury1 ,i was being interviewed1 ,i should have adopted as serious a tone as the original farce would admit of2 or ,i might have even refused to be a party at all to the infliction upon your readers of so old and threadbare a story as that of the raid upon the works of art in the ,american section of the ,universal ,exhibition4 ,your correspondent1 ,i fancy1 felt much more warmly1 than did ,i1 wrongs that--who knows8--are doubtless rights in the army2 and my sympathies1 ,i confess1 are completely with the ,general1 who did only1 as he complains1 his duty in that state of life in which it had pleased ,god1 and the ,war ,department1 to call him1 when1 according to order1 he signed that navely authoritative note1 circular1 warrant1 or what not--for he did irretrievably fasten his name to it1 whether with pen or print1 thereby hopelessly making the letter his own4 ,thus have we responsibility1 like greatness1 sometimes thrust upon us4 ,on receipt of the document ,i came--,i saw the commanding officer1 who1 until now1 ,i fondly trusted1 would ever remember me as pleasantly as ,i do himself--and1 knowing despatch in all military matters to be of great importance1 ,i then and there relieved him of the troublesome etchings1 and carried off the painting4 ,it is a sad shock to me to find that the good ,general speaks of me without affection1 and that he evinces even joy when he says with a view to my entire discomfiture3--,while we rejected only ten of his etchings1 the ,english department rejected eighteen of them1 and of the nine accepted1 only hung two on the line4 ,now1 he is wrong6--the ,general is wrong4 ,the etchings now hanging in the ,english section--and perfect is their hanging1 notwithstanding ,general ,hawkins's flattering anxiety--are the only ones ,i sent there4 ,in the haste and enthusiasm of your interviewer1 ,i have1 on this point1 been misunderstood4 ,there was moreover here no question of submitting them to a competent and impartial jury of his peers--one of whom1 by the way1 ,i am informed upon undoubted authority1 had never before come upon an etching in his hitherto happy and unchequered ,western career4 ,we all knew that the space allotted to the ,english department was exceedingly limited1 and each one refrained from abusing it4 ,here ,i would point out again1 hoping this time to be clearly understood1 that1 had the methods employed in the ,american camp been more civil1 if less military1 all further difficulties might have been avoided4 ,had ,i been properly advised that the room was less than the demand for place1 ,i would1 of course1 have instantly begged the gentlemen of the jury to choose1 from among the number1 what etchings they pleased4 ,so the matter would have ended1 and you1 ,sir1 would have been without this charming communication6 ,the pretty embarrassment of ,general ,hawkins on the occasion of my visit1 ,i myself liked1 thinking it seemly1 and part of the good form of a ,west ,point man1 who is taught that a drum-head court martial--and what else in the experience of this finished officer should so fit him for sitting in judgment upon pictures8--should be presided at with grave and softened demeanour4 ,if ,i mistook the ,general's manner1 it is another illusion the less4 ,and ,i have1 ,sir1 the honour to be1 ,your obedient servant1 ,illustration ,amsterdam1 ,oct4 #f4 ,the ,art-,critic's ,friend ,sidenote3 ,the ,scots ,observer1 ,april #e1 #ahij4 ,mr4 ,whistler has many things to answer for1 and not the least of them is the education of the ,british ,art-,critic4 ,that1 at any rate1 is the impression left by a little book made up--apparently against the writer's will--of certain of the master's letters and mots4444 ,it is useful and pleasant reading2 for not only does it prove the painter to have a certain literary talent--of aptness1 unexpectedness1 above all impertinence--but also it proves him never to have feared the face of art-critical man4444 ,to him the art-critic is nothing if not a person to be educated1 with or against the grain2 and when he encounters him in the ways of error1 he leaps upon him joyously1 scalps him in print before the eyes of men1 kicks him gaily back into the paths of truth and soberness1 and resumes his avocation with that peculiar zest an act of virtue does undoubtedly impart4 ,indeed1 ,mr4 ,whistler1 so far from being the critic's enemy1 is on the contrary the best friend that tradesman has ever had4 ,for his function is to make him ridiculous4444 444 ,yes1 ,mr4 ,whistler is often rowdy and unpleasant2 in his last combat with ,mr4 ,oscar ,wilde--7,oscar1 you have been down the area again7--he comes off a palpable second2 his treatment of ',arry dead and neglected by the parish goes far to prove that his sense of smell is not so delicate nor so perfectly trained as his sense of sight4444 ,a ,question ,,to ,,the ,,editor3 ,sidenote3 ,the ,scots ,observer1 ,april #ai1 #ahij4 ,sir--,it is1 ,i suppose1 to your pleasant satisfaction in ,the ,critic's ,friend that ,i owe the early copy of the ,scots ,observer1 pointed with proud mark1 in the blue pencil of office1 whereby the impatient author hastened to indicate the pithy personal paragraphs1 that no time should be wasted upon other matter with which the periodical is ballasted4 ,exhilarated by the belief that ,i had been remembered--for vanity's sake let me fancy that you have bestowed upon me your own thought and hand--,i plunged forthwith into the underlined article1 and read with much amusement your excellent appreciation4 ,having forgotten none of your professional manner as art arbiter1 may ,i say that ,i can picture to myself easily the sad earnestness with which you now point the thick thumb of your editorial refinement in deprecation of my choicer rowdyism8 ,and knowing your analytical conscientiousness1 ,i can even understand the humble comfort you take in ,oscar's meek superiority2 but1 for the life of me1 ,i cannot follow your literary intention when you say that my care of '',arry1' dead and neglected by the parish1 goes far to prove that my sense of smell is not so delicate nor so perfectly trained as my sense of sight4 ,do you mean that my discovery of the body is the result of a cold in the head8 and that1 with a finer scent1 ,i should have missed it altogether8 or were you only unconsciously remembering and dreamily dipping your pen into the ink of my former description of ',arry's chronic catarrh8 ,in any case1 ,i am charmed with what ,i have just read1 and only regret that the ridiculous ,romeike has not hitherto sent me your agreeable literature4--,also ,i am1 dear ,sir1 your obedient servant1 ,illustration ,the ,end of the ,piece ,sir--,i beg to draw your attention to the contents of your letter to the ,scots ,observer1 dated ,april #abth1 in which you state that you regret the ridiculous ,romeike has not hitherto sent me your agreeable literature4 ,this statement1 had it been true1 was spiteful and injurious1 but being untrue 7entirely7 it becomes malicious1 and ,i must ask you at once to apologise4 ,and at the same time to draw your attention to the fact that we have supplied you with #hjg cuttings4 ,we have written to the ,scots ,observer for an ample apology1 or the matter will be placed in our solicitor's hands1 and we demand the same of you4 ,yours obediently1 ,,romeike ,,curtice4 ,j4 ,,mcn4 ,,whistler1 ,esq4 ,april #be1 #ahij4 ,exit the ,prompter ,sir--,if it be not actionable1 permit me to say that you really are delightful66 ,navet1 like yours1 ,i have never met--even in my long experience with all those1 some of whose agreeable literature may be1 ,i suppose1 in the #hjg cuttings you charge me for4 ,who1 in ,heaven's name1 ever dreamed of you as an actual person8--or one whom one would mean to insult8 ,my good ,sir1 no such intention--believe me--did ,i1 in my wildest of moments1 ever entertain4 ,your scalp--if you have such a thing--is safe enough6--and ,i even think--however great my willingness to assist you--could not possibly appear in the forthcoming ,edition4 ,to ,mr4 ,,romeike1 ,april #be4 ,illustration ,l',envoi ,when the ,chairman1 in a singularly brilliant and felicitous speech led up to the toast of the evening1 ,mr4 ,whistler rose to his feet4 ,sidenote3 ,sunday ,times1 ,may #e1 #ahhi4 ,sidenote3 ,report of a reply to the toast of the evening at the complimentary dinner given to ,mr4 ,whistler1 ,london1 ,may #a1 #ahhi4 ,you must feel that1 for me1 said ,mr4 ,whistler1 it is no easy task to reply under conditions of which ,i have so little habit4 ,we are all even too conscious that mine has hitherto1 ,i fear1 been the gentle answer that sometimes turneth not away wrath4 ,gentlemen1 said he1 this is an age of rapid results1 when remedies insist upon their diseases1 that science shall triumph and no time be lost2 and so have we also rewards that bring with them their own virtue4 ,it would ill become me to question my fitness for the position it has pleased this distinguished company to thrust upon me4 ,it has before now been borne in upon me1 that in surroundings of antagonism1 ,i may have wrapped myself1 for protection1 in a species of misunderstanding--as that other traveller drew closer about him the folds of his cloak the more bitterly the winds and the storm assailed him on his way4 ,but1 as with him1 when the sun shone upon him in his path1 his cloak fell from his shoulders1 so ,i1 in the warm glow of your friendship1 throw from me all former disguise1 and1 making no further attempt to hide my true feeling1 disclose to you my deep emotion at such unwonted testimony of affection and faith4 ,auto-,biographical ,,to ,,the ,,editor3 ,sidenote3 ,pall ,mall ,gazette1 ,july #bh1 #ahia4 ,sir1--,may ,i request that you allow me to make known1 through your influential paper1 the fact that the canvas1 now shown as a completed work of mine1 at ,messrs4 ,dowdeswell's1 representing three draped figures in a conservatory1 is a painting long ago barely begun1 and thrown aside for destruction8 ,also ,i am in no way responsible for the taste of the frame with its astonishments of plush6 and varied gildings4 ,i think it not only just to myself to make this statement1 but right that the public should be warned against the possible purchase of a picture in no way representative1 and1 in its actual condition1 absolutely worthless4--,i am1 ,sir1 your obedient servant1 ,chelsea1 ,july #bg1 #ahia4 ,illustration ,mr4 ,whistler had on his own ,toast ,,to ,,the ,,editor3 ,sidenote3 ,pall ,mall ,gazette1 ,aug4 #a1 #ahia4 ,sir1--,i have read with interest ,mr4 ,whistler's letter in your issue of ,july #bh4 ,i happened to be at ,messrs4 ,dowdeswell's galleries the other day and saw the picture he refers to4 ,it was not on public exhibition1 but was in one of their private rooms1 and was brought out for my inspection propos of a conversation we were having4 ,now1 so far from ,messrs4 ,dowdeswell showing it as a completed work1 they distinctly spoke of it as unfinished2 nor can ,i imagine any one acquainted with ,mr4 ,whistler's works speaking of any of them as completed6 ,in ,l',envoi of the catalogue of his exhibition held at ,messrs4 ,dowdeswell's a short time ago ,i find the following paragraph from his pen3--,the work of the master reeks not of the sweat of the brow--suggests no effort--and is finished from its beginning4 ,the only inference possible is either that ,mr4 ,whistler is not a master1 or that the work is finished6 ,he has1 however1 spent what time he could spare from his literary labours in endeavouring to induce the world to believe that the slightest scratch from his pen is worthy to rank with ,las ,lanzas1 and ,i am therefore surprised to learn that he has altered his opinion4 ,still1 ,i quite agree with him when he tells us that some of his work is absolutely worthless6--,i am1 sir1 more in sorrow than in anger1 your obedient servant1 ,w4 ,c4 ,july #ca1 #ahia4 ,what ,mr4 ,whistler had on his own ,toast ,,to ,,the ,,editor3 ,sidenote3 ,pall ,mall ,gazette1 ,aug4 #d1 #ahia4 ,sir1--,my letter should have met with no reply at all4 ,it was a statement--authoritative and unanswerable1 if there ever were one4 ,because of the attention drawn to it1 in the press1 ,i felt called upon to advise the ,public that one of my own works is condemned by myself4 ,final this1 one would fancy6 ,that the accidental owners of the ,gallery should introduce themselves to the situation1 is of a most marked irrelevancy4 ,they come in comme un cheveu sur la soupe1 to be removed at once4 ,the dealer's business is to buy and sell4 ,in the course of such traffic1 these same busy picture bodies1 without consulting me1 put upon the market a painting that ,i1 the author1 intended to efface--and1 thanks to your courtesy1 ,i have been enabled to say so effectually in your journal4 ,all along have ,i carefully destroyed plates1 torn up proofs1 and burned canvases1 that the truth of the quoted word shall prevail1 and that the future collector shall be spared the mortification of cataloguing his pet mistakes4 ,to destroy1 is to remain4 ,what is commercial irritation beside a clean canvas8 ,what is a gentlemanly firm in ,bond ,street beside ,eternity8--,i am1 sir1 your obedient servant1 ,chelsea1 ,august #a1 #ahia4 ,illustration ,,nocturnes1 ,,marines1 ,,and ,,chevalet ,,pieces ,a ,,catalogue ,illustration ,,small ,,collection ,,kindly ,,lent ,,their ,,owners ,,the ,,voice ,,of ,a ,,people ,i do not know when so much amusement has been afforded to the ,british public as by ,mr4 ,whistler's pictures4 ,speech of the ,attorney-,general of ,england4 ,westminster1 ,nov4 #af1 #ahgh4 #a4--,,nocturne4 ,,grey ,,and ,,silver--,,chelsea ,,embankment--,,winter4 ,lent by ,f4 ,g4 ,orchar1 ,esq4 ,with the exception1 perhaps1 of one of ,mr4 ,whistler's meaningless canvases1 there is nothing that is actually provocative of undue mirth or ridicule4 ,city ,press4 ,in some of the ,nocturnes the absence1 not only of definition1 but of gradation1 would point to the conclusion that they are but engaging sketches4 ,in them we look in vain for all the delicate differences of light and hue which the scenes depicted present4 ,f4 ,wedmore1 ,four ,masters of ,etching4 #b4--,,symphony ,,in ,,white1 ,no4 ,,iii4 ,lent by ,louis ,huth1 ,esq4 ,it is not precisely a symphony in white--one lady has a yellowish dress and brown hair and a bit of blue ribbon1 the other has a red fan1 and there are flowers and green leaves4 ,there is a girl in white on a white sofa1 but even this girl has reddish hair2 and of course there is the flesh colour of the complexions4 ,p4 ,g4 ,hamerton1 ,saturday ,review4 ,mr4 ,whistler appears as eccentrically as ever4444 ,art is not served by freaks of resentment4444 ,we hold him deeply to blame that these figures are badly drawn4 444 ',taste1' which is mind working in ,art1 would1 even if it could at all conceive them1 utterly reject the vulgarities of ,mr4 ,whistler with regard to form1 and never be content with what suffices him in composition4--,athenum4 ,painting1 or art generally1 as such1 with all its technicalities1 difficulties1 and particular ends1 is nothing but a noble and expressive language1 invaluable as the vehicle of thought1 but by itself nothing4 ,john ,ruskin1 ,esq41 ,art ,professor1 ,modern ,painters4 #c4--;,,chelsea ,,in ,,ice4 ,lent by ,madame ,venturi4 ,we are not sure but that it would be something like insult to our readers to say more about these 'things4' ,they must surely be meant in jest2 but whether the public have chiefly to thank ,mr4 ,whistler or the ,managers of the ,grosvenor ,gallery for playing off on them this sorry joke we do not know1 nor greatly care4 ,meliora canamus6--,knowledge4 #d4--,,nocturne4 ,,blue ,,and ,,gold--,,old ,,battersea ,,bridge4 ,lent by ,robert ,h4 ,c4 ,harrison1 ,esq4 ,his ,nocturne in ,blue and ,gold1 ,no4 #c1 might have been called1 with a similar confusion of terms3 ,a ,farce in ,moonshine1 with half-a-dozen dots4--,life4 ,the picture representing a night scene on ,battersea ,bridge has no composition and detail4 ,a day1 or a day and a half1 seems a reasonable time within which to paint it4 ,it shows no finish--it is simply a sketch4 ,mr4 ,jones1 ,r4,a4--,evidence in ,court1 ,nov4 #af1 #ahgh4 #e4--,,the ,,lange ,,leizen--,,of ,,the ,,six ,,marks4 ,,purple ,,and ,,rose4 ,lent by ,j4 ,leathart4 ,mr4 ,whistler paints subjects sadly below the merit of his pencil4--,london ,review4 ,a worse specimen of humanity than could be found on the oldest piece of china in existence4 ,reader4 ,the hideous forms we find in his ,chinese vase painteress 444 an ostentatious slovenliness of execution 444 objects as much out of perspective as the great blue vase in the foreground1 c4 444 c4444 ,it is ,mr4 ,whistler's way to choose people and things for painting which other painters would turn from1 and to combine these oddly chosen materials as no other painter would choose to combine them4 ,he should learn that eccentricity is not originality1 but the caricature of it4--,times4 #f4--,,nocturne4 ,,trafalgar ,,square--,,snow4 ,lent by ,albert ,moore1 ,esq4 ,the word 'impressionist' has come to have a bad meaning in art4 ,visions of ,whistler come before you when you hear it4 ,such visions are not of the best possible augury1 for who loves a nightmare8 ,oracle4 ,like the landscape art of ,japan1 they are harmonious decorations1 and a dozen or so of such engaging sketches placed in the upper panels of a lofty apartment would afford a justifiable and welcome alternative even to noble tapestries or ,morris wallpapers4--,f4 ,wedmore1 ,four ,masters of ,etching4 #g4--,,nocturne--,,black ,,and ,,gold4 ,,the ,,fire ,,wheel4 ,mr4 ,whistler has 'a sweet little isle of his own' in the shape of an ample allowance of wall space all to himself for the display of his six most noticeable works3 ',nocturnes' in black and gold1 in blue and silver1 ',arrangements' in black and brown1 and ',harmonies' in amber and black4 ,these weird productions--enigmas sometimes so occult that ,o,edipus might be puzzled to solve them--need much subtle explanation4--,daily ,telegraph4 #h4--;,,arrangement ,,in ,,black ,,and ,,brown4 ,,the ,,fur ,,jacket4 ,mr4 ,whistler has whole-length portraits1 or rather the shadows of people1 shapes suggestive of good examples of portraiture when completed4 ,they are exhibited to illustrate a theory peculiar to the artist4 ,one is entitled ,an ,arrangement in ',black and ,brown4'--,daily ,telegraph4 ,mr4 ,whistler is anything but a robust and balanced genius4--,times4 ,whistler1 with three portraits which he is pleased to call ',arrangements1' and which look like ghosts4 ,truth4 ,some figure pieces1 which this artist exhibits as 'harmonies' in this1 that1 or the other1 being1 as they are1 mere rubs-in of colour1 have no claim to be regarded as pictures4--,scotsman4 ,we are threatened with a ,whistler exhibition4 ,the periodical inflictions with which this gentleman tries the patience of a long-suffering public generally take some fantastic form to attract attention4 ,it is an evidence of the painter's worldly acuteness that this should be so1 for public attention may be drawn by such outbursts of eccentricity to such work as would never impress sensible people on its bare merit4--,oracle4 #i4--,,nocturne4 ,,blue ,,and ,,silver4 ,lent by ,mrs4 ,leyland4 ,it seems to us a pity that an artist of ,mr4 ,whistler's known ability should exhibit such an extraordinary collection of pictile nightmares4--,society4 ,,mr4 ,,bowen3 ',do you consider detail and composition essential to a work of art8' ,,mr4 ,,jones3 ',most certainly ,i do4' ,,mr4 ,,bowen3 ',then what detail and composition do you find in this ,nocturne8' ,,mr4 ,,jones3 ',absolutely none4' ,,mr4 ,,bowen3 ',do you think two hundred guineas a large price for that picture8' ,,mr4 ,,jones3 ',yes1 when you think of the amount of earnest work done for a smaller sum4' ,evidence of ,mr4 ,jones1 ,r4,a41 ,westminster1 ,nov4 #af1 #ahgh4 #aj4--,,nocturne4 ,,in ,,black ,,and ,,gold--,,the ,,falling ,,rocket4 ,a dark bluish surface1 with dots on it1 and the faintest adumbrations of shape under the darkness1 is gravely called a ,nocturne in ,black and ,gold4 ,knowledge4 ,his ,nocturne1 black and gold1 ',the ,falling ,rocket1' shows such wilful and headlong perversity that one is almost disposed to despair of an artist who1 in a sane moment sic1 could send such a daub to any exhibition4--,telegraph4 ,for ,mr4 ,whistler's own sake1 no less than for the protection of the purchaser1 ,sir ,coutts ,lindsay ought not to have admitted works into the gallery in which the ill-educated conceit of the artist so nearly approached the aspect of wilful imposture4 ,i have seen1 and heard1 much of cockney impudence before now1 but never expected to hear a coxcomb ask two hundred guineas for flinging a pot of paint in the public's face4 ,professor ,john ,ruskin1 ,july #b1 #ahgg4 ,the ',nocturne in black and gold' is not a serious work to me4 ,mr4 ,firth1 ,r4,a4--,evidence at ,westminster1 ,nov4 #af1 #ahgh4 ,the ',nocturne in black and gold1' ,i do not think a serious work of art4 ,the ,art ,critic of the ,times4 ,evidence at ,westminster1 ,nov4 #af1 #ahgh4 ,the ,nocturne in black and gold has not the merit of the other two pictures1 and it would be impossible to call it a serious work of art4 ,mr4 ,whistler's picture is only one of the thousand failures to paint night4 ,the picture is not worth two hundred guineas4 ,evidence of ,mr4 ,jones1 ,r4,a4 ,westminster1 ,nov4 #af1 #ahgh4 #aa4--,,nocturne--,,opal ,,and ,,silver4 ,lent by ,h4 ,theobald1 ,esq4 ,with what feelings must we regard the mad new style1 the ,nocturnes in ',blue and ,silver1' the ,harmonies in ,flesh-colour and ,pink1 the ,notes in ,blue and ,opal4--,knowledge4 ,the blue and black smudges which purport to depict the ',thames at ,night4'--,life4 #ab4--;,,harmony ,,in ,,green ,,and ,,rose4 ,,the ,,music ,,room4 ,lent by ,madame ,reveillon4 ,he paints in soot-colours and mud-colours1 but1 far from enjoying primary hues1 has little or no perception of the loveliness of secondary or tertiary colour4--,merrie ,england4 #ac4--;,,crepuscule ,,in ,,flesh ,,colour ,,and ,,green4 ,,valparaiso4 ,lent by ,graham ,robertson1 ,esq4 ,now1 the best achievement of ,the ,impressionist ,school1 to which ,mr4 ,whistler belongs sic1 is the rendering of air--not air made palpable and comparatively easy to paint1 by fog--but atmosphere which is the medium of light4--,merrie ,england4 #ad4--;,,caprice ,,in ,,purple ,,and ,,gold4 ,,the ,,gold ,,screen4 ,lent by ,cyril ,flower1 ,esq41 ,m4,p4 ,i take it to be admitted by those who do not conclude that art is necessarily great which has the misfortune to be unacceptable1 that it is not by his paintings so much as by his etchings that ,mr4 ,whistler's name may aspire to live4--,f4 ,wedmore4 #ae4--,,symphony ,,in ,,grey ,,and ,,green4 ,,the ,,ocean4 ,lent by ,mrs4 ,peter ,taylor4 ,in ,mr4 ,whistler's picture1 ',symphony in ,grey and ,green3 ,the ,ocean1' the composition is ugly1 the sky opaque1 the suggestion of sea leaden and without light or motion4--,times4 ,mr4 ,whistler continues these experiments in colour which are now known as ',symphonies4' ,it may be questioned whether these performances are to be highly valued1 except as feats accomplished under needless and self-imposed restrictions--much as writing achieved by the feet of a penman who has not been deprived of the use of his hands4--,graphic4 ,we can paint a cat or a fiddle1 so that they look as if we could take them up2 but we cannot imitate the ,ocean or the ,alps4 ,we can imitate fruit1 but not a tree2 flowers1 but not a pasture2 cut-glass1 but not the rainbow4--,john ,ruskin1 ,esq41 ,teacher of ,art4 ,sidenote3 ,illustration #af4--,,nocturne4 ,,grey ,,and ,,gold--,,chelsea ,,snow4 ,lent by ,alfred ,chapman1 ,esq4 ,mr4 ,whistler sends two of his studies of moonlight1 in which form is eschewed for harmonies of ',grey and ,gold' and ',blue and ,silver2' and which1 for the crowd of exhibition visitors1 resolve themselves into riddles or mystifications4444 ,in a word1 painting to ,mr4 ,whistler is the exact correlative of music1 as vague1 as purely emotional1 as released from all functions of representation4 ,he is really building up art out of his own imperfections sic6 instead of setting himself to supply them4--,times4 #ag4--,,nocturne4 ,,blue ,,and ,,silver--,,battersea ,,reach4 ,lent by ,w4 ,g4 ,rawlinson1 ,esq4 ,j4 ,m4 ,whistler is here again with his nocturnes4 ,scotsman4 #ah4--,,nocturne4 ,,blue ,,and ,,silver--,,chelsea4 ,lent by ,w4 ,c4 ,alexander1 ,esq4 ,mr4 ,whistler confines himself to two small canvases of the nocturne kind4 ,one is covered with smudgy blue and the other with dirty black4 ,saturday ,review4 ,a reputation1 for a time1 imperilled by original absurdity--,f4 ,wedmore1 ,academy4 ,i think ,mr4 ,wedmore takes the ,nocturnes and ,arrangements too seriously4 ,they are merely first beginnings of pictures1 differing from ordinary first beginnings in having no composition4 ,the great originality was in venturing to exhibit them4 ,p4 ,g4 ,hamerton1 ,academy4 #ai4--,,nocturne4 ,,grey ,,and ,,gold--,,westminster ,,bridge4 ,lent by the ,hon4 ,mrs4 ,percy ,wyndham4 ,two of ,mr4 ,whistler's 'colour symphonies'--a ',nocturne in ,blue and ,gold' and a ',nocturne in ,black and ,gold4' ,if he did not exhibit these as pictures under peculiar and1 what seems to most people1 pretentious titles1 they would be entitled to their due meed of admiration sic64 ,but they only come one step nearer pictures than delicately graduated tints on a wall-paper do4 ,he must not attempt1 with that happy1 half-humorous audacity which all his dealings with his own works suggests1 to palm off his deficiencies upon us as manifestations of power4--,daily ,telegraph4 #bj4--,,nocturne4 ,,blue ,,and ,,gold--,,southampton ,,water4 ,lent by ,alfred ,chapman1 ,esq4 ,there is always danger that efforts of this class may degenerate into the merely tricky and meretricious2 and already a suspicion arises that the artist's eccentricity is somewhat too premeditated and self-conscious4--,graphic4 #ba4--;,,blue ,,and ,,silver4 ,,blue ,,wave--,,biarritz4 ,lent by ,gerald ,potter1 ,esq4 ,mr4 ,whistler is possessed of much audacity and eccentricity1 and these are useful qualities in an artist who desires to be talked about4 ,when he comes out into the open1 and deals with daylight1 we find these studies to be only the first washes of pictures4 ,he leaves off where other artists begin4 ,he shirks all the difficulties ahead1 and asks the spectator to complete the picture himself4--,daily ,telegraph4 ,the absence1 seemingly1 of any power1 such as the great marine painters had1 of drawing forms of water1 whether in a broad and wind-swept tidal river or on the high seas4444 ,f4 ,wedmore1 ,nineteenth ,century4 #bb4--;,,arrangement ,,in ,,black ,,and ,,brown4 ,,miss ,,rosa ,,corder4 ,lent by ,graham ,robertson1 ,esq4 ,it is bad enough1 in all conscience1 to be caricatured by the gifted pencil and brushes of the admirable ,whistler2 and it is surely adding insult to injury to describe the victims and sufferers as ',arrangements4' ,with regard to ,mr4 ,whistler's ,symphonies1 ,harmonies1 and so on1 we will relate a parable4 ,here it is3--,a lively young donkey sang a sweet love song to the dawn1 and so disturbed all the neighbourhood1 that the neighbours went to the donkey and begged him to desist4 ,he continued his braying for some time1 and then ended with what appeared1 to his own ears1 a flourish of surpassing brilliancy4 ,will you be good enough to give over that hideous noise8 said the neighbours4 ',good ,olympus6' said the donkey1 'did you say hideous noise8 ,why1 that is a ,symphony1 which means a concord of sweet sounds1 as you may see by referring to any dictionary4' ',but1' said the neighbours1 'we do not think that ,symphony is the word to describe your performance4 ,cacophony would be more correct1 and that means a bad set of sounds4' ',how absurdly you talk6' said the donkey4 ',i will refer it to my fellow-asses1 and let them decide4' ,the donkeys decided that the young donkey's song was a most symphonious and harmonious1 sweet song2 so he continues to bray as melodiously as ever4 ,there is1 we believe1 a moral to this parable1 if we only knew what it was4 ,perhaps the piercing eye of the ',nocturnal ,whistler' may find it out4--,echo4 ,miss ,rosa ,corder1 and ,mr4 ,h4 ,irving as ,philip1 are two large blotches of dark canvas4 ,when ,i have time ,i am going again to find out which is ,rose and which is ,irving4 ,the rest of the collection is marred by the impatience which has prevented his achieving any finished work of ,art4--,weekly ,press4 #bc4--;,,harmony ,,in ,,grey ,,and ,,green4 ,,portrait ,,of ,,miss ,,alexander4 ,lent by ,w4 ,alexander1 ,esq4 ,a sketch of ,miss ,alexander1 in which much must be imagined4--,standard4 ,there is character in it1 but it is unpleasant character4 ,of anything like real flesh tones the painting is quite innocent4--,builder4 ,but what can we say of ,mr4 ,whistler8 ,his portrait of ,miss ,alexander is certainly one of the strangest and most eccentric specimens of ,portraiture we ever saw4 ,if we were unacquainted with his singular theories of ,art1 we should imagine he had merely made a sketch and left it1 before the colours were dry1 in a room where chimney-sweeps were at work4444 ,nobody who sets any value upon the roses and lilies that adorn the cheeks of our blooming girls can accept such murky tints as these as representative of a young ,english lady--,era4 ,it is simply a disagreeable presentment of a disagreeable young lady4--,liverpool ,weekly ,mercury4 ,mr4 ,whistler again appears on the walls with a characteristic full-length life-size portrait of a girl1 ,miss ,alexander4 ,this work is devoid of colour1 being arranged in ,black and ,white and intermediate tones of grey4 ,the general effect is dismal in the extreme1 and one cannot but wonder how an artist of undoubted talent should wilfully persist in such perversities of judgment4--,western ,daily ,mercury4 ,miss ,alexander1 almost in ,black and ,white1 and about the most unattractive piece of work in the ,galleries4--,edinburgh ,daily ,review4 ,a 'gruesomeness in ,grey4' ,well1 bless thee1 ,j4 ,whistler6 ,we do not hanker after your brush system4 ,farewell6--,punch4 ',,an ,,arrangement ,,in ,,silver ,,and ,,bile4' ,the artist has represented this bilious young lady as looking haughty in a dirty white dress1 a grey polonaise1 bound by a grey green sash1 a grey hat1 with the most unhealthy green feather2 furthermore1 she wears black shoes with green bows1 and stands defiantly on a grey floor cloth1 opposite a grey wall with a black dado4 ,two dyspeptic butterflies hover wearily above her head in search of a bit of colour 444 evidently losing heart at the grey expanse around4444 ,a picture should charm1 not depress1 it should tend to elevate our thoughts6--,society4 ,this picture represents a child of ten1 and is called a harmony in grey and green1 but the prevailing tone is a rather unpleasant yellow1 and the complexion of the face is wholly unchildlike4--,echo4 ,a large etching in oil1 a ',rhapsody in ,raw ,child and ,cobwebs1' by ,mr4 ,whistler4--,artist4 ,mr4 ,whistler is as spectral as ever in an unattractive portrait of an awkward little girl1 happily not rendered additionally ridiculous by a musical title4 ,bedford ,observer4 ,flattery is objectionable in art as elsewhere1 but some portrait painters seem to find it impossible to tell the truth without being rude4--,academy4 ,mr4 ,whistler has a portrait of a young lady that excites absolute astonishment4 ,what charm can there be in such colours as these8 ,what effect do they produce which would not have been better by warmer and less repulsive tints8 ,leeds ,mercury4 ,mr4 ,whistler's single contribution is a child's portrait1 posed and painted in a rather distant1 if obsequious1 imitation of the manner of ,velasquez1 the great difference being that whereas the ,spaniard's work is most remarkable for supreme distinction1 the present portrait is uncompromisingly vulgar4 ,magazine of ,art4 #bd4--,,nocturne4 ,,blue ,,and ,,silver--,,bognor4 ,lent by ,alfred ,chapman1 ,esq4 ,we protest against those foppish airs and affectations by which ,mr4 ,whistler impresses on us his contempt of public opinion4 ,in landscape he contributes what he persists in calling a ,nocturne in ',blue and ,silver1' and a ,nocturne in ',black and ,gold' which is a mere insult to the intelligence of his admirers4 ,it is very difficult to believe that ,mr4 ,whistler is not openly laughing at us4--,pall ,mall ,gazette4 #be4--,,nocturne4 ,,battersea ,,reach4 ,lent by ,alfred ,chapman1 ,esq4 ,under the same roof with ,mr4 ,whistler's strange productions is the collection of animal paintings done by various artists for the proprietors of the ,graphic1 and very refreshing it is to turn into this agreeably lighted room and rest on comfortable settees whilst looking at ',mother ,hubbard's ,dog1' or the sweet little pussy cats in the ',happy ,family4' ,liverpool ,courier4 ,a few smears of colour1 such as a painter might make in cleaning his paint brushes1 and which1 neither near at hand nor far off1 neither from one side nor from the other1 nor from in front1 do more than vaguely suggest a shore and bay1 was described as a ,note in ,blue and ,brown4444 ,one who found these pictures other than insults to his artistic sense could never be reached by reasoning4--,knowledge4 #bf4--;,,green ,,and ,,grey4 ,,channel4 ,lent by ,alfred ,chapman1 ,esq4 #bg4--,,pink ,,and ,,grey4 ,,chelsea4 ,lent by ,cyril ,flower1 ,esq41 ,m4,p4 444 of the insolent madness of that school of which ,mr4 ,whistler is the most peccant--we wish we could say the only--representative4--,knowledge4 #bh4--,,nocturne4 ,,blue ,,and ,,gold--,,valparaiso4 ,lent by ,alexander ,ionides1 ,esq4 ',a ,nocturne' or two by ,mr4 ,whistler--and here we have it in the usual style--a daub of blue and a spot or two of yellow to illustrate ships at sea on a dark night1 and a splash and splutter of brightness on a black ground to depict a display of fireworks4 ,norwich ,argus4 #bi4--;,,green ,,and ,,grey4 ,,the ,,oyster ,,smacks--,,evening4 ,lent by ,alexander ,ionides1 ,esq4 ,other people paint localities2 ,mr4 ,whistler makes artistic experiments4--,academy4 #cj4--;,,grey ,,and ,,black4 ,,sketch4 ,lent by ,alexander ,ionides1 ,esq4 #ca4--;,,brown ,,and ,,silver4 ,,old ,,battersea ,,bridge4 ,lent by ,alexander ,ionides1 ,esq4 ,nor can ,i imagine any one acquainted with ,mr4 ,whistler's works speaking of any of them as 'completed4'--,letter to ,pall ,mall4 #cb4--,,nocturne4 ,,black ,,and ,,gold4 #cc4--,,symphony ,,in ,,white1 ,no4 #aa4 ,,the ,,little ,,white ,,girl4 ,lent by ,gerald ,potter1 ,esq4 ,another picture1 ',the ,little ,white ,girl' was exhibited about the same time1 containing the germ of that paradoxical ,whistlerian humour lately so fully exemplified in various places about ,london4 ,it was called ',a ,little ,white ,girl' in the catalogue1 and yet its colour generally was grimy grey4--,london4 ,the white girl was standing at the side of a mirror where the laws of incidence and refraction would unfortunately not permit her to see her own beauty4 ,merrie ,england4 #cd4--,,nocturne4 ,,blue ,,and ,,silver--,,cremorne ,,lights4 ,lent by ,gerald ,potter1 ,esq4 ,i have expressed1 and still adhere to the opinion1 that these pictures only come one step nearer than a delicately tinted wall paper4 ,the ,art ,critic of the ,times ,evidence at ,westminster1 ,nov4 #af1 #ahgh4 ,paintings1 like some of the ',nocturnes' and some of the ',arrangements1' are defended only by a generous self-deception1 when it is urged for them that they will be famous to-morrow because they are not famous to-day4 ,mr4 ,wedmore1 ,nineteenth ,century4 #ce4--;,,grey ,,and ,,silver4 ,,chelsea ,,wharf4 ,lent by ,gerald ,potter1 ,esq4 #cf4--;,,grey ,,and ,,silver4 ,,old ,,battersea ,,reach4 ,lent by ,madame ,coronio4 #cg4--;,,blue ,,and ,,silver4 ,he has no atmosphere and no light4 ,instead of air he studies various kinds of fog--and his 'values' are the relative powers of darkness1 not of light4 ,he never paints a sky4--,merrie ,england4 #ch4--,,nocturne4 ,,blue ,,and ,,gold--,,st4 ,,mark',s1 ,,venice4 ,lent by ,monsieur ,gallimard4 ,the mannerism of ,canaletto is the most degraded that ,i know in the whole range of art4444 444 ,it gives no one single architectural ornament1 however near--so much form as might enable us even to guess at its actual one2 and this ,i say not rashly1 for ,i shall prove it by placing portions of detail accurately copied from ,canaletto side by side with engravings from the daguerreotype4 444 ,there is no stone drawing1 no vitality of architecture like ,prout's4--,prof4 ,ruskin1 ,art ,teacher4 ,sidenote3 ,illustration ,in ,mr4 ,whistler's productions one might safely say that there is no culture4--,athenum4 ,imagine a man of genius following in the wake of ,whistler6--,oracle4 ,the measure of originality has at times been overrated through the innocent error of the budding amateur1 who in the earlier stage of his enlightenment confuses the beginning with the end1 accepts the intention for the adequate fulfilment1 and exalts an adroit sketch into the rank of a permanent picture4 ,f4 ,wedmore1 ,four ,masters of ,etching4 #ci4--;,,crepuscule ,,in ,,opal4 ,lent by ,fred4 ,jameson1 ,esq4 ,mr4 ,whistler is eminently an ',impressionist4' ,the final business of art is not with 'impressions4' ,we want not 'impressionists' but 'expressionists1' men who can say what they mean because they know what they have heard4 ,sic6 ,we want not always the blotches and misty suggestions of the impressionist1 c4--,artist4 #dj4--;,,harmony ,,in ,,flesh ,,colour ,,and ,,green4 ,,the ,,balcony4 ,lent by ,john ,cavafy1 ,esq41 ,m4,d4 ,it is perhaps a little difficult for any critic to be quite absolutely just to ,mr4 ,whistler at present1 on account of his eccentricities and his apparent determination to make us forget the qualities of the artist in our amusement at the freaks and fancies of the man4--,p4 ,g4 ,hamerton1 in the ,academy4 ,a ,variation in ,flesh ,colour and ,green4 ,the damsels--they were not altogether meritorious4 ,the draughtsmanship displayed in them was anything but 'searching4'--,f4 ,wedmore4 ,at about the same time the artist exhibited other sketches 7we ask indulgence for the word7 of a like character1 notes of impressions of white dresses1 furniture1 balconies1 and incidental faces and figures4 ,merrie ,england4 ,the 'evolution principle' has been visibly in operation for a dozen years or so in the successive ,whistlers put before the public during that time4 ,first of all we remember pictures of ladies pale and attenuate poring with tender interest over vermilion scarfs4 ,the taint of realism was on them1 but even in them were hints of the pensive humour that was to fetch mankind in the well-known 'arrangements' at a later time4 ,a good deal was left to the spectator's imagination even in them4--,london4 ,we note his predilections for dinginess and dirt4 ,weekly ,press4 #da4--;,,arrangement ,,in ,,black4 ,,la ,,dame ,,au ,,brodequin ,,jaune4 ,all these pictures strike us alike4 ,they seem like half-materialised ghosts at a spiritualistic sance4 ,i cannot help wondering when they will gain substance and appear more clearly out of their environing fog1 or when they will melt altogether from my attentive gaze4--,echo4 ,he has placed one of his portraits on an asphalte floor and against a coal-black background1 the whole apparently representing a dressy woman in an inferno of the worldly4--,merrie ,england4 ,mr4 ,whistler has a capricious rendering of a lady dressed in black1 in a black recess1 on a dark green floor4 ,she is turning affectedly half-round towards the spectator as she buttons the gant de sude upon her left hand1 c4 c4 ,its obvious affectations render the work displeasing4--,morning ,advertiser4 #db4--;,,arrangement ,,in ,,grey ,,and ,,black4 ,,thomas ,,carlyle4 ,lent by the ,corporation of ,glasgow4 ,the purpose of this picture is a form of hero-worship which would certainly not have received the approbation of ,carlyle4 444 ,this very doubtful masterpiece--unhappy ratepayers of ,glasgow4--,dundee ,advertiser4 444 and to have recorded on a doleful canvas the head and figure of ,carlyle4444--,f4 ,wedmore4 444 ,the rugged simplicity of ,mr4 ,carlyle 444 to have painted these things alone--however strange their mannerism or incomplete their technique4 ,nineteenth ,century4 ,the portentous purchase by the civic authorities of ,mr4 ,whistler's senile ,carlyle renders it necessary for that section of the community who are not enamoured of ,impressionism to watch with some vigilance the next steps taken by that body towards the formation of the permanent collection4 ,a portrait which omits entirely to bring out the individuality of the sitter1 stands but little chance of recognition even from immediate posterity4 ,letter to ,glasgow ,herald1 ,march #d1 #ahib4 ,we cannot forget his encounter some years ago with ,mr4 ,ruskin1 nor the contemptuous terms in which that foremost of art critics denounced his work4 ,it has been left to ,glasgow to rectify ,mr4 ,ruskin's blunder in this matter1 and it vindicates the merits of the ,american artist over whose artistic vagaries--his nocturnes and harmonies in blue and gold--the whole press of ,britain made merry4 ,dundee ,advertiser4 ,there is1 among portraits of great writers1 ,mr4 ,whistler's portrait of ,carlyle4 ,it is a picture whose story is complete1 whose honours have been gathered abroad--in ,paris1 in ,brussels1 in ,munich4 ,its destiny has been accomplished2 it belongs to the ,city of ,glasgow1 and from the corporation of that city was borrowed for the ,victorian ,exhibition4 ,the corporation lent it in good faith2 the borrowers have treated it with all the indignity it is in their power to bestow on it4 ,could there be a better epitome of the recent history of art in ,england8 ,one work of ,mr4 ,whistler's is received with high honour in the ,luxembourg on its way to the ,louvre2 and at that very moment another work of his1 worthy to rank with the first1 is hoist with equally high disrespect to the ceiling of a gallery in ,london4--,n4 ,y4 ,tribune1 ,jan4 #ag1 #ahib4 #dc4--;,,harmony ,,in ,,pink ,,and ,,grey4 ,,portrait ,,of ,,lady ,,meux4 ,lent by ,sir ,henry ,meux4 ,portrait of ,mrs4 ,meux1 in which it was not so much the face as the figure and the movement that came to be deftly suggested1 if hardly elaborately expressed4--,f4 ,wedmore4 ,all ,mr4 ,whistler's work is unfinished4 ,it is sketchy4 ,he no doubt possesses artistic qualities1 and he has got appreciation of qualities of tone2 but he is not complete1 and all his works are in the nature of sketching4 ,the ,art ,critic of the ,times1 ,evidence at ,westminster1 ,nov4 #af1 #ahgh4 #dd4--;,,arrangement ,,in ,,grey ,,and ,,black4 ,,portrait ,,of ,,the ,,painter',s ,,mother4 ,photograph of ,picture4 ,this canvas is large and much of it vacant4 ,a dim1 cold light fills the room1 where the flat1 grey wall is only broken by a solitary picture in black and white2 a piece of foldless1 creaseless1 ,oriental flowered crape hangs from the cornice4 ,and here1 in this solemn chamber1 sits the lady in mournful garb4 ,the picture has found few admirers among the thousands who seek to while away the hours at ,burlington ,house1 and for this result the painter has only to thank himself4--,times4 ',arrangement in ,grey and ,black3 ,portrait of the ,painter's ,mother1' is another of ,mr4 ,whistler's experiments4 ,it is not a picture1 and we fail to discover any object that the artist can have in view in restricting himself almost entirely to black and grey4--,examiner4 ,the 'arrangement' is stiff and ugly enough to repel many4--,hour4 ,before such pictures as the full-length portraits by ,mr4 ,whistler1 critic and spectator are alike puzzled4 ,criticism and admiration seem alike impossible1 and the mind vacillates between a feeling that the artist is playing a practical joke upon the spectator1 or that the painter is suffering from some peculiar optical delusion4 ,after all1 there are certain accepted canons about what constitutes good drawing1 good colour1 and good painting1 and when an artist deliberately sets himself to ignore or violate all of these1 it is desirable that his work should not be classed with that of ordinary artists4--,times4 ,he that telleth a tale to 444 ,carlyle's majority speaketh to one in a slumber3 when he hath told his tale he will say1 ,what is the matter8 ,illustration ,r,,sum4 ,it is impossible to take ,mr4 ,whistler seriously4 ,advertiser4 ,a combination of circumstances has1 within the last year or two1 brought the name and work of ,mr4 ,whistler into special publicity4444 ,at the ,grosvenor ,gallery the less desirable of his designs aroused the inconsiderate ire of a man of genius and splendid authority4 ,if it be ,mr4 ,whistler's theory that that which all the world of greatest artists 787 has mistaken for mere means has been in very seriousness the end1 then the aim of ,art is immeasurably lowered6444 ,if there be anything to the point1 it is to implore us to take a stone for bread1 and the grammar of a language in place of its literature4 ,mr4 ,whistler has assumed that it is only the painter who is occupied with art4444 ,unless he is a very exceptional man4444 ,if he is not of the school of ,fulham1 he is of the school of ,holland ,park1 or of the ,grove ,end ,road4 ,has he1 like ,mr4 ,ruskin1 devoted thirty years of a poet's life to the ,galleries of ,europe8 ,has he1 like ,diderot1 inquired curiously into the meaning and message of this thing and that8 ,and appreciating ,greuze1 been able to appreciate ,chardin87667 ,mr4 ,wedmore1 ,nineteenth ,century4 ,mr4 ,ruskin's whole body of doctrine1 from the very young days1 in which he took the duty of teacher1 on to his old age1 was contradicted by ,mr4 ,whistler's pictures4--,merrie ,england4 ,in painting1 his success is infrequent1 and it is limited4 ,in painting1 ,mr4 ,whistler is an impressionist4 ,his best painting betrays something of that almost modern sensitiveness to pleasurable juxtapositions of delicate colour which we admire in ,orchardson1 in ,linton 7sic671 and in ,albert ,moore2 it betrays1 sometimes1 as in a portrait of ,miss ,alexander1 a deftness of brushwork in the wave of a feather1 in the curve of a hat 444 and of high art qualities it betrays not much besides4 ,it is true that the originality of his painted work is somewhat apt to be dependent on the innocent error that confuses the beginning with the end1 accepts the intention for the execution1 and exalts an adroit sketch into the rank of a permanent picture4 ,f4 ,wedmore1 ,four ,masters of ,etching4 ,i think ,mr4 ,whistler had great powers at first1 which he has not since justified4 ,mr4 ,jones1 ,r4,a4 ,evidence in ,court1 ,nov4 #af1 #ahgh4 ,the right time and the right place for the conspicuousness of an ,impressionist were undoubtedly ,england1 and the moment when ,mr4 ,whistler rose up and astonished her4 ,in ,paris he was one of many1 though he would be at peace in ,france1 that peace would not be unattended with a certain comparative obscurity4 ,inconspicuous solitude would not have had the same charms for him4--,merrie ,england4 ,au muse du ,luxembourg1 vient d'tre plac1 de ,m4 ,,whistler1 le splendide ,portrait de ,mme ,whistler mre1 une oeuvre destine l'ternit des admirations1 une oeuvre sur laquelle la conscration des sicles semble avoir mis la patine d'un ,rembrandt1 d'un ,titien ou d'un ,velasquez4--,chronique des ,beaux-,arts4 ,,moral4 ,modern ,british 767 art will now be represented in the ,national ,gallery of the ,luxembourg by one of the finest paintings due to the brush of an ,english 767 artist1 namely1 ,mr4 ,whistler's portrait of his mother4--,illustrated ,london ,news4 ,illustration ,a ,zealous ,inquirer ,a brown-paper covered catalogue 444 compiled by ,mr4 ,whistler4444 ,sidenote3 ,the ,world1 ,mar4 #bc1 #ahib4 ,several opinions 7and his 'evidence at ,westminster'7 are quoted of ',mr ,jones1 ,r4,a41' in the year #ahgh4 ,who is ,mr4 ,jones1 ,r4,a48 ,mr4 ,jones1 ,r4,a4 7of whom the ,duke of ,wellington--but no matter44471 died in #ahfi4 ,mr ,burne-,jones was not elected an ,a4,r4,a4 until #ahhe4 ,i am afraid ,i expose myself1 but ,i still venture to ask1 who is ',mr ,jones1 ,r4,a4'8 ,final ,acknowledgments ,sidenote3 ,the ,world1 ,mar4 #cj1 #ahib4 ,atlas1--,your correspondent proposes that ,mr4 ,jones1 ,r4,a4 is not ,r4,a4--but ,a4,r4,a4 ,you know these things1 ,atlas--perhaps he is right1 and curiously microscopic--for surely here we have a difference without a distinction6 ,however1 ,r4,a4 or ,a4,r4,a41 and1 in my opinion he deserves to be both1 ,i personally owe ,mr4 ,jones a friendly gratitude which ,i am pleased to acknowledge2 for rare indeed is the courage with which1 on the first public occasion1 he sacrificed himself1 in the face of all-astounded etiquette1 and future possible ridicule1 in order to help write the history of another4 ,these things we like to remember1 ,atlas1 you and ,i--the bright things1 the droll things1 the charming things of this pleasant life--and here1 too1 in this lovely land they are understood--and keenly appreciated4 ,as to those others--alas6 ,i am afraid we have done with them4 ,it was our amusement to convict--they thought we cared to convince6 ,allons6 ,they have served our wicked purpose--,atlas1 we collect no more4 ,autres gens1 autres moeurs4 ,,paris1 ,march #bf1 #ahib4 ,illustration ,,finis ,,index ,action1 ,the1 #b4 ,admission1 ,an1 #ga4 ,advanced ,critic1 ,an1 #bdd4 ,advantage of ,explanation1 ,the1 #bde4 ,another ,poacher in the ,chelsea ,preserves1 #bcc4 ,apology1 ,an1 #ajg4 ,apostasy1 ,an1 #bej4 ',arry in the ,grosvenor1 #gb4 ,art ,critic of the ,times1 ,the1 #ce4 ,art ,critic's ,friend1 ,the1 #bgg4 ,aussi que diable allait-il faire dans cette galre81 #bbe4 ,auto-biographical1 #bhh4 ,autre ,temps autre ,moeurs1 #ahi4 ,balaam's ,ass1 #da4 ,committee of the ,national ,art ,exhibition1 ,to the1 #afd4 ,complacent ,one1 ,the1 #aif4 ,confidences with an ,editor1 #dg4 ,conviction1 #hh4 ,correction1 ,a1 #ff4 ,critic ,catching on1 ,the1 #aid4 ,critic's ,analysis1 #dd4 ,critic's ,copy1 #ej4 ,critic's ,mind ,considered1 ,the1 #de4 ,critic-flneur1 ,the1 #aig4 ,distinction1 ,a1 #aai4 ,document1 ,a1 #aba4 ,eager ,authority1 ,an1 #gj4 ,early ,laurels1 #agf4 ,easy ,expert1 ,the1 #aac4 ,editor's ,anxiety1 ,an1 #bfd4 ,embroidered ,interview1 ,an1 #bai4 ,encouragement1 #gd4 ,end of the ,piece1 ,the1 #bhb4 ,etchings and ,dry-points1 #ic4 ,et tu1 ,brute61 #bei4 ,exit the ,prompter1 #bhc4 ,exploded ,plot1 ,the1 vii4 ,extraordinary ,piratical ,plot1 ,an1 v4 ,fate of an ,anecdote1 ,the1 #ha4 ,final1 #ci4 ,final ,acknowledgments1 #ccc4 ,freeing a ,last ,friend1 #bfb4 ,full ,absolution1 #df4 ,further ,proposition1 ,a1 #agg4 ,great ,literary ,curiosity1 ,a1 ix4 ,habit of ,second ,natures1 ,the1 #bcf4 ,hint1 ,a1 #aah4 ,home of ,taste1 ,the1 #bcj4 ,imputation1 ,an1 #ahh4 ,inconsequences1 #gi4 ,inevitable1 ,the1 #agc4 ,in ,excelsis1 #hf4 ,ingratitude1 #aie4 ,insinuation1 ,an1 #ahg4 ,interview with an ,ex-,president1 ,an1 #bje4 ,jeux ,innocents in ,tite ,street1 #aaj4 ,just ,indignation1 #bdc4 ,last ,effort1 ,a1 x4 ,la ,suite1 #fa4 ,later1 #ed4 ,l',envoi1 #bhe4 ,les points sur les i1 #acj4 ,line from the ,land's ,end1 ,a1 #aaa4 ,market ,place1 ,in the1 #bci4 ,mr4 ,whistler and his ,critics1 #ia4 ,mr4 ,whistler had on his own ,toast1 #bhi4 ,mr4 ,whistler's ,paper ,hunt1 viii4 ,mr4 ,whistler's ,ten o',clock1 #aca4 ,naf ,enfant1 #fh4 ,new ,dynasty1 ,the1 #bah4 ,noblesse oblige1 #agd4 ,nocturnes1 ,marines1 and ,chevalet ,pieces1 #bic4 ,nostalgia1 #ahd4 ,nous avons chang tout cela61 #afi4 ,official ,bumbledom1 #bbc4 ,official ,letter1 ,an1 #bbi4 ,opportunity1 ,an1 #aha4 ,opportunity ,neglected1 ,the1 #ahc4 ,painter-,etcher ,papers1 ,the1 #eb4 ,pall ,mall ,puzzled1 ,the1 #bba4 ,panic1 #bda4 ,philanthropy and ,art1 #aff4 ,played-out ,policy1 ,a1 #aii4 ,point ,acknowledged1 ,the1 #dc4 ,position1 ,the1 #cg4 ,professor ,ruskin's ,group1 #bj4 ,prologue1 #a4 ,proposal1 ,a1 #ea4 ,propositions1 #gf4 ,propositions--,no4 #b1 #aae4 ,publisher's ,note1 iii4 ,quand mme61 #afe4 ,question1 ,a1 #bgi4 ,rassurez vous61 #bfe4 ,rebuke1 ,a1 #abi4 ,red ,rag1 ,the1 #abf4 ,remonstrance1 ,a1 #ge4 ,rengaines61 #afa4 ,retrospect1 ,a1 #bac4 ,royal ,society of ,british ,artists and their ,signboard1 #bbf4 ,sacrilege1 #abd4 ,seizure of ,mr4 ,whistler's ,pirated ,writings1 vi4 ,serious ,sarcasm1 #ch4 ,statistics1 #baa4 ,straight ,tip1 ,a1 #fi4 ,suggestion1 ,a1 #bce4 ,suspicion1 ,a1 #hg4 ,taking the ,bait1 #ajf4 ,talent in a ,napkin1 #aic4 ,tenderness in ,tite ,street1 #afb4 ,testimony1 #bdg4 ,troubled ,one1 ,a1 #df4 ,unanswered ,letter1 ,an1 #gh4 ,uncovered ,opinions1 #hj4 ,warning1 ,a1 #fg4 ,whacking ,whistler1 #bfi4 ,what ,mr4 ,whistler had on his own ,toast1 #bia4 ,whistler v4 ,ruskin3 ,art and ,art ,critics1 #ba4 ,whistler's ,grievance1 #bff1 #bgc4 ,zealous ,inquirer1 ,a1 #ccb4