,,where ,,art ,,begins ,crown #hvo4 cloth extra1 #bs4 #f;d4 ,,lessons ,,in ,,art4 ,by ,,hume ,,nisbet4 ,with #bb ,illustrations by the ,author4 ',a book which merits prompt and hearty recognition4444 ,mr4 ,nisbet is himself an accomplished artist1 and the book is the outcome of long years spent in the attempt to teach others the principles and laws of painting and drawing4444 ,mr4 ,nisbet possesses such an enviable faculty of clear and attractive exposition that this little book is sure to make its own welcome4'--,,leeds ,,mercury4 ',a readable little volume4444 ,the author has endeavoured to write out some of the strictly necessary rules and laws of drawing and painting for the use of students1 so that they may be able to work at home1 and spare their masters a number of questions if they are at art schools4 ,the book deals with drawing and painting in water and oil colour1 and concludes with ,hints on ,general ,art4444 ,art students will1 no doubt1 find the little work helpful1 and the general reader may dip into it with pleasure4'--,,pall ,,mall ,,gazette4 ',a very useful book for young students4444 ,mr4 ,nisbet has a knack of explanation so clear and pointed that few can fail to understand the many practical hints with which the little book abounds4444 ,the book may be cordially commended4'--,,scotsman4 ',a most entertaining as well as instructive book1 that will commend itself to young and old alike4 ,to the author's experience as an art teacher is doubtless due the lucid manner in which he writes4 ,the completeness and range of the lessons are remarkable4'--,,manchester ,,examiner4 ',the advice given will certainly succeed in its aim of enabling art students to work at home and spare their masters a number of questions4 ,equally helpful will be the examples of drawing and painting with which the letterpress is relieved1 and which is invariably of a high order of merit4'--,,scottish ,,leader4 ',quite one of the best books of the kind which we have recently encountered is ,mr4 ,nisbet's ,lessons in ,art2 a little volume filled with sound and practical advice1 and charmingly illustrated4444 ,this little book possesses distinct merit1 and that of a kind which is never too common in popular manuals4'--,,speaker4 ',with this book at hand no one need be at a loss1 and may1 by attending to the valuable instructions given1 become not only proficient1 but attain to a meritorious position as an artist4'--,,stirling ,,journal4 ',the first part of the book treats of drawing1 and is in the main practical in aim and useful as guidance4'--,,saturday ,,review4 ',a very useful handbook for beginners4'--,,graphic4 ',a book written by a teacher who is an artist1 and who fortunately remembers that he has been a student1 and doubtless this is why the sympathies of his readers are promptly enlisted4'--,,daily ,,chronicle4 ',lessons in ,art should prove of use to both pupils and teachers4'--,,morning ,,post4 ',as a teacher in the old ,school of ,arts1 ,edinburgh1 ,mr4 ,nisbet may be credited with knowing the kind of questions which students are likely to ask1 and he has here answered them in theoretical and practical detail4'--,,glasgow ,,herald4 ,london3 ,,chatto ,,windus1 #bad ,piccadilly1 ,w4 ,illustration3 ,a ,,new ,,zealand ,,fern-,,tree ,,gully p4 #abi ,,where ,,art ,,begins ,,by ,,hume ,,nisbet ,,author ,,of ',,lessons ,,in ,,art'1 ',,life ,,and ,,nature ,,studies' ,,etc4 ,illustration ,,with #bg ,,illustrations ,,london ,,chatto ,,windus1 ,,piccadilly #ahib ,,dedicated ,,with ,,affectionate ,,regards ,,to ,,my ,,dear ,,friend ,,and ,,well-,,wisher ,,edmund ,j4 ,,baillie1 ,f4,l4,s4 ,,of ,,chester ,illustration ,,introduction ,when a few really congenial spirits meet together1 it is astonishing how quickly the subject which perhaps one of the party starts will grow1 and how many branches it will shoot out before its vitality can be considered exhausted4 ,my present subject has grown up in a very congenial atmosphere4 ,a number of sympathetic students1 who learnt to appreciate my practical work1 continued to draw from me some ideas partly practical1 partly theoretical1 on the subject which has always been a part religion with me1 whether in my working or my dreaming moments--,art and its all-permeating influence over humanity in the social and spiritual conditions4 ,i take it that ,art permeates the entire body of humanity1 from the flesh-devouring savage to the asphodel-adoring sthetic1 in a greater or lesser degree1 according to the sanitary conditions of their lives2 and as it permeates1 so it brings us closer to what we regard as human perfection4 ,in this spirit ,i have written out the following reflections1 blending the practical with the theoretical and personal1 as a pendant to my ',lessons in ,art' and ',life and ,nature ,studies4' ,in the first book ,i have attempted to give the ,alpha of ,art2 in the second ,i have given the ,omega1 as far as ,i myself know about ,art2 and in the present ,i have sought to give something of what lies between4 ,whether ,i have been lucid enough to enable the reader to follow me1 or sympathetic enough to interest him in my subject1 ,i must leave to his own judgment4 ,i can only say that my views are the reflections of one item appealing to other items in the big sum of humanity1 written out honestly as the outcome of his own personal experience of the subject which interests him most deeply1 and with the hope that he may find some readers who have had similar thoughts upon ,art and ,mankind1 although they may not have been tempted to write them down4 ,with this hope ,i leave my book to the consideration and judgment of each reader4 ,,hume ,,nisbet4 ,,hogarth ,,club3 ,june #ahib4 ,illustration ,,contents ,,chapter ,,page ,,introduction ix ,a ,,word ,,before #a ,i4 ,,where ,,art ,,begins #e ,,ii4 ,a ,,study ,,in ,,light ,,and ,,shadow #bf ,,iii4 ,,the ,,primaries3 ,,yellow1 ,,red1 ,,and ,,blue #ef ,,iv4 ,,art ,,in ,,its ,,relationship ,,to ,,everyday ,,life #ig ,v4 ,,on ,,picture ,,lighting #aai ,,vi4 ,,ships3 ,,ancient ,,and ,,modern #acb ,,vii4 ,,illustrative ,,art3 ,,past ,,and ,,present #aej ,,viii4 ,,art ,,in ,,minor ,,directions #agf ,,ix4 ,,dress ,,and ,,decoration #aif ,x4 ,,some ,,of ,,the ,,old ,,masters #bbi ,,xi4 ,,the ,,sacred ,,and ,,the ,,comic ,,sides ,,of ,,art #bej ,,xii4 ,,on ,,various ,,subjects ,,connected ,,with ,,art #bgb ,,xiii4 ,,nature ,,worship #big ,,index #cag ,illustration ,,illustrations ,,page ,a ,,new ,,zealand ,,fern-,,tree ,,gully4 ,frontispiece ,,repose4 ,vignette for title-page ,,group ,,of ,,fisher-,,folk4 ,from a photograph by ,john ,foster of ,coldstream #e ,a ,,group ,,of ,,working ,,horses4 ,from a photograph by ,john ,foster of ,coldstream #bf ,,ancient ,,assyrian ,,hall3 ,,the ,,feast ,,of ,,sardanapalus4 ,from a sepia sketch by the ,author #ef ,,an ,,ancient ,,egyptian ,,corridor4 ,from a sepia sketch by the ,author #fa ,,on ,,the ,,esk ,,river1 ,,tasmania4 ,from a photograph by ,major ,aikenhead1 ,launceston #ig ,a ,,new ,,guinea ,,village4 ,a study of lighting from behind #abe ,,noah',s ,,ark4 ,a process paper drawing #acb ,,ship-,,of-,,the-,,line1 #ahae4 ,pen and ink #acd ,a ,,viking ,,boat4 ,process paper #ach ,,fishing ,,boats4 ,pen and ink #adb ,,homeward ,,bound4 ,process paper #adc ,,the ,,storm4 ,pen and ink #adg ,,at ,,rest4 ,pen and ink #adh ,,from ,,breydenbach',s ,,travels #aej ,,st4 ,,christopher4 ,from ',a ,treatise on ,wood-,engraving1' page #df #aec ,,history ,,of ,,the ,,virgin ,,mary4 ,from ',a ,treatise on ,wood-,engraving1' page #gb #aed ,,albert ,d,,rer',s ,,apocalypse #aef ,,by ,,christopher ,,jegher1 ,,after ,,rubens #aeh ,a ,,panel ,,of ,,black ,,and ,,gold #agf ,,initial ,,letter ,o1 ,,and ,,moonlight #aif ,,the ,,avenue--,,hobbema #bbi ,,harmony4 ,a night effect #bej ,,art ,,subjects #bgb ,a ,,garden ,,scene #big ,,the ,,ancient ,,nile #cjj ,note ,a4--,john ,foster1 of ,coldstream1 is one of the most accomplished of photographic artists1 who has made a specialty of cattle groups1 and whose studies are nearly always perfect in their grouping and effect4 ,note ,b4--,major ,w4 ,aikenhead1 of the ,launceston ,rifle ,regiment1 ,tasmania1 favoured me with some of his finest specimens1 with permission to reproduce them4 ,his aerial effects are wonderful and delicate1 too tender in most instances for reproduction by process3 therefore ,i have been compelled to give one of his most positive pictures as a specimen of his art and the beauties of the country in which he works4 ,illustration ,,where ,,art ,,begins ,a ,,word ,,before ,illustration3 ,i,n the first flush of youth our imaginative faculties are very active4 ,in childhood we rove through ,fairyland and play with the little elves2 in youth the tiny elves have grown up to be nymphs of our own size and age1 and from the summer moonlight we step into the rosy dawn1 all fragrant and lightsome1 with a glamour over everything which is delicious to our senses4 ,by-and-by1 as youth falls from us1 we step out from the glades and meadows into the dry and dusty highway of life1 our bags upon our backs and our rakes in our hands1 with a long stretch of uninteresting country before us and a shadeless sky above us2 we go out to gather specimens and dissect everything which we cannot understand4 ,then comes the twilight1 when we sit down to rest upon the cliffs at the end of the road1 with a limitless ocean in front of us1 and what we have left behind4 ,in childhood1 youth1 and manhood we are for ever looking forward2 in age we are apt to look behind4 ,in childhood1 youth1 and manhood we have very little room in our hearts for pity or charity1 but when we sit down calmly to rest and look back1 if the angels of divine pity and universal charity are not near to us to counsel and condone1 our case is hopeless in the extreme4 ,the world has lost its childhood1 and so there are no longer fairies in it2 it is quickly losing its youth1 and ,love does not now flutter through the sky1 a living cherub1 but lies on the ground motionless1 denuded of its wings1 waiting shiveringly for the sharp knife of the vivisector4 ,everything sacred or emotional is put to the test of reason1 and we are growing so hard and matter-of-fact1 that what might have made us weep before only affords matter for discussion now4 ,yet misery and poverty and suffering are with us still1 as they were always2 perhaps more so now1 when the few are becoming richer and the many poorer and less able to fight4 ,still1 one softening relic of the past remains to us1 although it is taking on the garments of the age--,art1 which1 however much it may strive to imitate the emotionless present1 no more can exist without emotion than could the rainbow without colour4 ,true art is like what religion ought to be--all-sufficing and all-embracing4 ,within its magic circle live the virtues and the vices1 so that when the student approaches he may take his choice with which to walk through life4 ,if he takes the virtues as his guides1 he paints and understands only beauty1 and thus raises himself and his audience towards faith1 love1 and charity4 ,if he takes the vices1 he becomes brutishly realistic and degraded1 inspiring his audience with unbelief1 passion1 and hopeless selfishness4 ,and therefore1 as charity is the greatest of all the virtues1 ,i take my art as the direct inspiration towards charity2 feeling that if this angel follows me along the dry highway1 and shelters me with her spreading wings1 when ,i come to the cliffs and sit down to rest ,i may look behind and see the sins ,i have left covered with white flowers and that limitless ocean bathed in the golden glory of the setting day--a day not all mis-spent or profitless4 ,how to do the best for art1 since art can do so much for us1 is the intention ,i have had in the writing of these chapters4 ,how to live so that we may be in the best condition to fulfil our obligations without losing a moment of the time at our disposal1 this is the motive of these self-reflections4 ,looking round upon nature1 ,i find that the animals nearest perfection are graminivorous--that is1 nearest to that state of peace and purity which we believe ,heaven to be--whilst the carnivora represent the vices of unrest1 passion1 cruelty1 and ambition4 ,reasoning out this observation further1 ,i think that if man could live naturally1 without excitement and haste or the voracious desire for place and fortune1 he would become more poetic1 more art-loving1 and charitable2 therefore1 nearer to a state of perfection by imitating the graminivora than he will by following the habits of the carnivora4 ,still1 ,i must admit that before this can be accomplished society must be altogether changed4 ,from experience as a vegetarian and a non-vegetarian1 ,i have come to the conclusion that unless man can afford to step aside from the rushing stream of competition1 and the thousand excitements which hurry us along in a mad race with every nerve on the strain1 he cannot possibly be a vegetarian1 or1 in its highest sense1 a true artist4 ,i think that climate has nothing whatever to do with this question1 but that the false conditions of life have everything to do with it4 ,the most ,god-like man is the one who can abnegate without feeling the sacrifice4 ,this is the ideal man1 and he will be a vegetarian4 ,but he who is forced into the arena of life by circumstances1 and who is compelled to fight1 must live as the fighting animals live1 and be carnivorous4 ,this is the choice in life which some of us have before us at the start1 and to those who can choose ,i mainly address these chapters4 ,for the rest1 who1 like myself1 must run at breakneck pace until we fall down and die1 ,i can only pray for indulgence from the angels of pity and charity4 ,illustration ,illustration3 ,,group ,,of ,,fisher-,,folk 7,from a photograph by ,john ,foster of ,coldstream7 ,,chapter ,i ,,where ,,art ,,begins ,illustration3 ,s,,tanding1 as ,i do at present1 in front of the partly opened gateway to that land of wonders--photographic discovery--,i should like to begin my remarks1 before looking through the narrow aperture1 with a glance backwards1 say twenty years1 to what the science and art were then1 and what they have since become1 before we surmise what it--photography--may be twenty years hereafter4 ,i mean to take up photography only where it joins hands with my own work--painting--in the broad sense of the word1 which1 ,i may safely assert1 is taking it nearly all round4 ,when ,i look back twenty years to the time at which ,i first began to mix with the professors of the sun-craft--',brothers of the ,light1' to use an occult term--and compare the work of those days with the results of this day1 and think upon all it may yet be1 it is with a feeling of profound astonishment1 not unmixed with admiring envy1 that ,i regard the young scientist beginning a career so filled with possibilities and future discoveries4 ,it seems as if ,i1 the painter1 walked upon a highway tramped down by countless travellers1 leading to an end definite and unavoidable1 while he has before him only a little distance marked out1 with a vast country to explore1 as his mind and genius may best determine4 ,many years ago my father took it into his head to begin a photographic business4 ,he did not know much about it himself1 although he had a good knowledge of chemistry2 but he was an enthusiast in experiments and a credulous believer in the honesty of mankind4 ,therefore1 through the advice of a friend1 he built a glass-house1 bought some cameras and chemicals 7it was in the wet-plate days71 laid in a stock of handsomely-designed mounts1 c41 and advertised for an operator4 ,i dare say a great number of photographers have gone through a similar experience1 thinking1 as he did1 that this was about the whole which was required to start a future flourishing business1 and that the operator1 like the cameras1 would be equally easy to procure1 provided the money was there to pay for them4 ,he bought cameras and hired operators4 ,i think he got through about a dozen of the one1 and about half a hundred of the other1 before he woke up to the knowledge that something else was required before the business could be built up on a firm basis or the public satisfied with the efforts made to please them4 ,in those days backgrounds and accessories were not greatly considered as the means towards an artistic end4 ,one plain background and one a little complicated were all that the operator considered needful1 with a carved chair or fluted pilaster2 and thus the multitude were turned out with a set1 fixed stare1 full front1 bolt upright4 ,if male1 a lenient photographer might permit one leg to cross the other by way of ease4 ,the female portion generally sat with hands meekly crossed over the lap and a curtain falling gracefully on one side1 like the heroic portraits of the times of ,sir ,benjamin ,west4 ,when ,i had painted the fancy background--a room with a bay-window partly open1 revealing an ,italian lake with a 'palace lifting to eternal summer' its 7half concealed7 'marble walls'--and got a house painter to do the plain subject1 we were ready to begin work1 and to turn out your ,dick and ,harry by the rose-tinted dozen1 all as visitors to that wire-work painted ,italian lake4 ,i had not then learned the value of suggestive mystery1 nor did ,i do justice to the imagination of our public4 ,i considered then that a fact could not be too plainly told--a mistake often committed by ardent youth4 ,we changed our operators rapidly4 ,some had been old positive men1 who had no sympathy with the negative system1 therefore1 out of principle1 spoilt all the negatives they took2 some had a weakness for ardent spirits and strong tobacco while at work1 and1 in consequence1 made mistakes with their solutions2 others1 again1 developed such an extraordinary appetite for gold and silver1 that the most profitable business in the world could never have supplied the baths they required to go on with4 ,we tried a number of wandering workers1 who1 having pawned their own stock-in-trade1 came with arms out at elbow1 and stayed with us just long enough to do away with most of our stock as well as with the feebly growing trade2 yet my father held out1 tried another and another1 and sunk a lot of money in that glass-house1 before he eventually came to the conclusion that it would be much more satisfactory and less expensive to devote it entirely to plants and the growing of grape-vines4 ,while those experiments were going on1 ,i was picking up some stray crumbs of knowledge4 ,my artistic instincts and a fair education made me revolt against that instrument of torture1 the head-rest1 and ,i tried to pose the sitters a little more naturally than by the rigid regimental rule4 ,of course1 the time required for the sitter to remain steady in those wet-plate days necessitated a rest of some sort1 so1 considering all things1 ,i suppose they took portraits then passably well2 one point to be specially regarded with regret being1 that the young photographer had more chance of learning the details of his trade thoroughly than he has now1 with all the facilities for ease and comfort in the prepared dry-plate processes1 for ,i contend that in all trades and professions a man to be thorough ought to learn the way to prepare his materials from the very foundation1 as well as to be able to work with them after they are ready for his hand1 as the old ,masters did with their canvases and colours1 and the old positive men with their collodion and other chemicals4 ,we must look back with the same admiration on these men fighting so manfully with difficulties1 now all smoothed away by our instantaneous plate manufacturers1 as a modern tourist crossing the ,atlantic 7saloon fashion7 may recall the same passage made by ,christopher ,columbus in his fishing-boat of a ,spanish galley4 ,of the many experimentalists migrating through that glass-house during their earthly pilgrimages and its photographic existence1 ,i can recall two who stand out most prominently2 one an ,italian pantomimist and ,jack-of-all-trades1 who did the most damage in the shortest space of time1 and the other a ,german atheistic disciple of ,voltaire1 scouter of ,providence and blind believer in chance1 who stayed the longest1 and taught me1 as the serpent of old did ,mother ,eve1 the greatest amount of good and evil4 ,the pantomimist brought with him a wife and a large family1 squatted upon the premises en masse1 and cleared it out as completely as a cloud of locusts are said to demolish the track of country they settle upon2 he was an ingratiating man1 who could do almost anything from pitch-and-toss down to swallowing a camera1 stand and all2 and his fascinating family were equally handy in the art of stowing away4 ,if the grocer's and butcher's bills had not1 after their hasty departure1 come in to be settled by my father1 ,i should have been convinced that they devoured nitrate of silver for their dinner1 aiding the digestion by a dessert of chloride of gold1 so much of those two articles was consumed during that brief visit to the paternal roof of these interesting and noble refugees4 ,the little ,german could work1 but objected strongly to my introducing any novelties in the way of pose or accessories4 ,he had been brought up to regard a fluted pilaster as a necessity of life1 likewise a cushioned1 carved easy chair with the marble palace1 whether the sitter was a clerk or a clodhopper2 there they stood1 full front1 fixed at attention1 with an excruciating and ghastly grin distorting each face1 flooded with light2 the pilaster on the right1 easy chair on the left1 and the smiling lake with its startling detail all in the foreground1 and brought out regardless of consistency or sentiment4 ,i used to argue the point1 and strive to surround a sitter with the accessories to which his daily occupations entitled him1 but without avail2 the operator would turn me off with a piece of ,voltairean philosophy1 or1 what was harder to endure1 a smack on the ear1 the artist and the photographer standing then as distinctly apart as now they are so closely united4 ,but1 with all his faults1 he was a good chemist and a reader of books2 had he been less of an investigator he might have been more of an artist1 but so long as he could overcome the chemical changes in his baths and emulsions1 conquer fogs and frillings1 and produce a clear1 undeniable likeness1 he rested on his laurels1 saved his money1 and blasphemed creation4 ,twice a year he took a week's leave of absence1 during which time ,i posed sitters to my entire satisfaction1 and ruined plates innumerable4 ,these holidays he invariably devoted to the racecourse2 ridiculing a ,god1 he worshipped ,dame ,fortune2 put his entire half-year's savings1 without fail1 on the wrong horse1 got kicked about by the welshers1 and returned to his duty ornamented with a pair of blackened eyes and bruised frontispiece1 a sadder but never a wiser man2 his faith in his particular crotchets being as pathetic and unbounded as was his utter disbelief in a future state4 ,in those early days photographers did not trouble themselves much about light and shadow--i4e4 the subtleties and refinements of light and shadow4 ,to me1 an artist1 the sight of a good daguerreotype1 with its silver lustre1 soft light1 and indefinite masses of shadow1 is infinitely superior to the crude attempts at carte-printing in its early stages2 the finest studio work of to-day harks back to those chance effects of imperfect knowledge1 or time-workings1 as the great painter strives to cultivate the freshness of early attempts1 or the mellowing upon the canvases of the old painters4 ,i have seen effects hit by chance from young pupils1 who regarded them as failures through want of experience1 which ,i would give a great deal to have been able to imitate2 and so1 the longer a man lives1 thinks1 and works1 the more eagerly he watches immature attempts1 and the more he can learn from seeming failures2 for when a man is struggling with all his might to get at an object1 he is wrestling with an angel1 as ,jacob did1 and though he may be lamed1 as ,jacob was lamed1 yet the failure is so illuminated with a divine light that success may be read between the lines4 ,he thinks he has failed1 and that the ground is strewn only with the shattered pieces of his frail armour1 whereas it is covered with the jewels which he has torn from his mighty antagonist2 as he lies back panting and oblivious from exhaustion1 he can see nothing of all this1 but to the onlooker it seems a triumph1 to the after-gleaners it means success4 ,you all know from experience how photography has grown1 what giant strides it has made year after year1 and how it is marching on4 ,first a shadow on a metal plate2 an impression upon glass1 when all that art attempted was a little coloured powder to give it a life-like look2 a staring print upon paper1 where art sometimes stepped in and painted over4 ,then the modelling upon the negative1 where art must reign supreme1 where anatomy must be studied and mind dominate1 and which1 as far as ,i can see1 has no ending in the way of possibilities4 ,there is no need for a man to use paints and canvases to write artist1 in the fullest sense of the term1 after his name1 if he is master of the art of manipulating a negative2 here art begins1 after the posing1 and has a delicate and very great mission to fulfil4 ,when ,i think upon the vastness of this field where an artist may wander at will1 and how little really has yet been done in comparison to what may be done1 ,i could almost wish that this had been my lot in life rather than what it is4 ,ambition6 why1 a man may have the desires of a ,napoleon1 and yet find relief for them all in the great art of remodelling3 but of that anon4 ,,posing ,it is a very difficult matter to take a point in the career of a photograph--from the moment the sitter enters the studio until the carte is packed up--where art does not occupy the principal share4 ,to begin when the sitter enters1 and the artist looks upon him or her1 as the case may be1 as a subject upon which to expend all his skill1 imagination1 and brain force--in somewhat the same sense as a subject painter regards his model1 so the photographic artist ought to regard his sitter2 yet in somewhat of a reverse sense also2 for whereas the painter suits his model to his subject1 and therefore has the easier task1 that of working out a preconceived idea1 the photographic artist must be an impromptu man--he must improvise his subject to suit his sitter4 ,to a true artist the strain upon the reflective and imaginative faculties must be tremendous1 for he needs to vary and strike subjects for every sitter who enters2 and yet this is his imperative duty if he is an enthusiast in his art1 which all great photographers must be4 ,it has amused me often to hear painters attempt to sneer at the photographer who called himself an artist3 painters who are content with one or two subject ideas for twelve months1 resting with an air of infinite superiority upon this painfully conceived and1 in many cases1 rather stale idea1 and gazing down from the stucco pedestal of their own arrogance upon the photographic artist with his ten and often twenty ideas per day6 ,of course ,i understand that they1 the single-idea men1 do this through ignorance and want of due reflection1 and that the more barren they are themselves1 the more they are likely to sneer at the fertility of others2 this ,i take to be one of the natural laws of nature4 ,a sitter enters--a lady1 young1 good-looking1 and handsomely dressed1 to meet another young1 good-looking lady just going out4 ,fashion rules both fair subjects much in the same way as regards costume2 a change of colour perhaps1 but cut in much the same tyrannical style4 ,the colour may make a slight difference in the two photographs1 yet not sufficient to redeem the artist1 who has only light and shadow to work with1 if he cannot strike out something in the posing and accessories to individualise the different subjects or sitters4 ,but the photographic artist1 perhaps1 has had six or seven young ladies1 similarly dressed1 one after another1 during that forenoon1 each sitter with her own ideas how she ought to be taken--ideas gleaned from someone else's pose1 or something she has seen in a shop window or an album--ideas which the original instincts of the artist rebel against4 ,the same may be said of the portrait painter1 only that he has days1 sometimes weeks1 to study his subject1 whereas the photographer is only allowed moments to collect his well-nigh scattered faculties4 ,again1 the painter has variety of colour with which to cover over a repetition of design2 but with black and white1 a repetition will be at once discovered4 ,this ,i mention as one only of many difficulties besetting the studio of a photographic artist from the moment the sitter enters1 which renders his task all the more harassing1 and which cannot trouble the layer-on of colours4 ,a true photographer seems to me to rank with1 and resemble1 the troubadours of the middle ages1 poets who poured out their impromptu verses to the call of the audience4 ,he ought to be a reader of faces--a close scrutiniser of the inner workings of the subject before him2 catch with an eagle glance the peculiarities of gait1 the tricks of motion2 and be gifted with the rare discrimination which can separate the natural habits from the society affectations4 ,i think a photographer ought never to be in the studio when the sitter first enters4 ,he or she ought to be left a little time alone1 or rather1 a special chamber ought to be set apart where the sitter may enter1 with artistic objects to attract the attention placed about the room1 while the artist1 for a few moments1 from an unseen point1 may watch and study his subjects when they think themselves unobserved2 afterwards let an employ enter and address the sitter while the photographer still watches from his point of observation1 by which means he may judge and learn what is the difference between the sitter when alone and when in society4 ,and so he may wait1 after the instantaneous plate is in the camera1 for the moment when the sitter unconsciously looks natural1 to flash the light upon her or him2 indeed1 ,i have thought if the studios could be so constructed that the operator need never enter the room at all1 but have the camera so adjusted from an outside room that the sitters might not know the moment they were taken1 it would be best--for1 to me1 naturalism is always before even a first-class sighted likeness4 ,however1 if the photographer knows the peculiarities of his sitter1 and these be comely peculiarities1 he will pose so as to bring them sufficiently out for his purpose4 ,there are many rules laid down by ,rubens1 ,titian1 ,reynolds1 and other masters for the composition and arrangement of pictures2 but of all the stiff1 conventional laws laid down1 ,i incline to the jerky1 spirited1 and contradictory sentences of the ,american painter1 ,william ,hunt1 in his ',talks about ,art1' for ,i never yet knew a law in art which ought not to be ruled by circumstances and the good taste of the artist4 ,the moment a man allows a law to govern him1 independent of the great law of reason1 he becomes a feeble imitator1 and no longer dares launch out into the unknown regions of originality4 ,of course1 it is strictly necessary to learn all about rules before we dare infringe upon them1 for our own convenience and the good of our object1 the first and great consideration of the artist1 whether of the brush or of the lens4 ,we must learn the laws of lines and directions--we must know exactly how far we dare intrude the angles or blend the orders without being accused of barbarism2 yet1 to me1 there is nothing so delightful as to fling a defiance in the face of time-worn laws1 if my art knowledge and common sense acquits me of sin in the matter of taste--i4e4 my own ideal of what taste ought to be1 not ,michael ,angelo's1 or ,titian's1 or ,reynolds'4 ,knowing their habits by heart1 ,i would not hesitate to turn my back upon them if they did not lie in the lines of my own observations of the multitudinous and ever-crossing laws of nature4 ,still1 ,i would have the artist learn all those laws4 ,as the doctor studies botany1 so would ,i have the photographer learn thoroughly the laws of chemistry1 physiognomy1 and face anatomy1 which alone can make him master of his great profession2 for no man can defy a law who only knows the half of its capabilities and powers4 ,the object in art justifies the means always2 but we must not use illegitimate if legitimate means will answer the same end4 ,in arranging a sitter or model1 both painters and photographers are apt to do just a little too much--adjusting this fold and planting that accessory so as to get them within the form they have determined4 ,i like purity of style as well as anyone1 yet it is very disgusting to hear all the twaddle talked about fine lines of direction1 ellipses1 pyramids1 and serpentine lines4 ,the painter or photographer who cannot thank ,god for a lucky chance or an accidental fold is at the best only a smart mechanic1 and no artist4 ,my advice in posing would be3--,try to arrange as little as possible4 ,leave well as much alone as you can1 for1 depend upon it1 all your adjusting will never better what chance and nature have arranged between them for your use1 but will only tire out the subject and render the picture artificial4 ,if not according to your preconceived ideas1 accept the change as something better1 and work your best upon it as a servant who has got a new task set by a great and unquestionable mistress4 ,,lighting ,after posing comes the lighting up of your picture4 ,this portion of the art of photography has become so very far advanced1 and there are still so many difficulties in the way of perfect control1 that ,i feel a little timid about suggesting any improvement1 lest ,i should be met by the scientific reply that the thing is not possible2 and yet ,i have such faith in the future of photography that ,i do not consider anything impossible to the operator who flings his whole soul into the discovery of nature's secrets4 ,light to be manipulated at will1 lenses to grasp objects in and out of the present focus with equal intensity and proportion3 as a painter places objects upon his canvas at what distance and under what shadow he pleases1 so ,i think the photographer will yet do1 and that before long1 as he will1 ,i am sure1 yet be able to reproduce by the camera and his chemicals all the colours in the object set up before him1 as he sees it reflected upon his ground-glass focussing plate4 ,in painting1 for instance1 the great duty of the worker is to have one pure light as small as possible as a focussing point for the eye to go out to first1 with a point of darkness to balance that light1 as the light is more striking than the dark4 ,a very small spot of white will serve as a balance to a larger proportion of black1 so the wise painter is very chary of his pure white4 ,in landscape this rule is exactly the same1 grey predominating in its various degrees over all4 ,of course ,i am aware that in landscape photography we have as yet no means of controlling the lens1 that objects must just be reproduced as they stand1 and that the utmost the artist can do is to choose a good stand-point with a favourable light1 and make the best of it4 ,yet ,i foresee the time when the operator shall have instruments so constructed that he will be able to leave out what is objectionable by means of shades and blinds for the plate1 so that he may do as the painter does--alter and transfer his foreground as he pleases4 ,inside1 the operator has the light more at his control1 with his shutters1 blinds1 tissue-paper fans1 and other contrivances to throw the shadow over what portion of the picture he wishes2 and yet1 with all the softening of harsh lines and gentle mergings of shadows1 he has not nearly reached the inner circle of light and shade yet4 ,there are lenses still to be manufactured which will penetrate to a deeper shadow than he has yet attained1 deep although he may have gone in that direction2 lenses which will wait and not over expose the highest lights until the deepest depth has been gained4 ,with remodelling1 it is now easy to make light2 and what the photographer ought to aim at are the greys1 or half-tones1 and the blacks1 leaving all dead lights and subtle gradations towards light for the remodeller4 ,grey is a very precious as well as a plentiful quality in nature2 beyond the point where light streams from1 we seldom1 in fact never1 see white1 and even the point of light is blended with gradations of prismatic flashes4 ,there are also throughout nature great spaces2 in spite of the multiplicity of detail1 to me nature seems to delight in isolation4 ,take what you please1 as an example1--a street scene crowded with people1--what is it to the looker out of a window8 ,simply dark masses 7black always predominates in an ,english crowd71 with here and there intersections of space2 if you look for it1 you will find detail enough1 but you must look for it4 ,the general appearances are simple masses of shadow under you1 drifting out to the grey1 with gradations of grey isolation all round4 ,take landscape1 the ocean in turmoil--grey stretches1 gradating from deeper to lighter tones4 ,a mountain and lake scene3 the sea-gull coming inland from the stormy ,north ,sea is the only speck of white we trace throughout it1 with the vulture or crow looking jet-black as it intercepts the mellow light4 ,space and half-tones seem to me the two great qualities to be sought after by the artist2 in focussing1 avoid sharp or high lights1 but seek to pierce and collect as large and full masses of shadow as your tricks and appliances can give you4 ,a clear and sunless day outside for landscape work1 that sort of lustre which drifts soft shadows under trees1 and causes the distance to float away indefinitely1 where detail is brought out by under-tones1 and high lights are left to the remodeller4 ,so with figures2 as the subject sits or stands1 pour all your light upon the obstruction1 so as to give depth in the shadow1 blend in accessories with the figure and background with reflected lights1 just enough to redeem blackness1 then soften over the high lights1 so that in the negative there is not a single white1 all grey1 even to the cambric handkerchief carelessly left out of the pocket--although ,i trust no operator of to-day ever will permit his subject to exhibit such a speck of vulgarity4 ,i would have all such objects as white flowers1 lace1 or handkerchief changed1 or a dye kept on the premises to stain them brown before the negative was taken1 so that nothing could be lighter than the hands or face1 unless1 like ,rubens' work1 the subject was to be seen dark against white1 in which case the white ought to surround the object1 never to cut it in two4 ,in portraits1 as yet1 the art of beauty seems to be the ruling idea of the operator2 court favourites such as those of ,sir ,thomas ,lawrence and ,sir ,joshua ,reynolds are the examples set before the photographer4 ,to flatter the subject is what both subject and worker seem to strive after2 when they look to ,rembrandt it is for a shadow picture1 which1 by the way1 is no more ,rembrandtesque than it is ,rubenesque4 ,rembrandt did not make shadows like the shadow portraits1 so called2 look at his etchings and works and you will see what ,i mean4 ,rembrandt's lights were not shiny whites1 but tender tones1 as his shadows were not blots of dark1 but gradations of depth4 ,there is a portrait of ,thomas ,carlyle by ,james ,mc,neill ,whistler1 where the old sage is sitting against a grey background with a perfect simplicity of space1 which is nearer to the work of ,rembrandt than anything ,i have seen since that grand old ,dutchman passed to glory4 ,,retouching ,before concluding my remarks on the negative1 ,i feel the necessity of devoting a few moments to the great art of retouching--the portion of photography at present too much entrusted to the charge of young ladies2 but1 if the photographer in any department of the science deserves the name of artist1 it is here1 when with his pencil he begins to create4 ,i thought when ,i began to write that ,i had little to say on photography1 but now that ,i have got into the spirit of the subject1 the possibilities1 utilities1 and various uses of photography start out before me from the chaos of unthought creation1 all importuning me to take them up1 one after the other1 like a legion of undressed skeletons3 photography as connected with etching1 wood-engraving1 lithography1 zincography1 typography1 and a dozen other uses where photography is not only united in marriage to art1 but must be regarded as the husband--i4e4 the leading spirit1 rather than the wife1 in the indissoluble bond2 but these for the present ,i must push back into their vague home1 until ,i can at a future time take them up by themselves1 which ,i trust to do1 as they are far too important to tack on as a fag end to this chapter2 yet before ,i close ,i must speak of the negative after it has been developed4 ,it is the misfortune of all large and prosperous businesses that1 as in the making of a pin1 the establishment has to be divided into departments--the poser1 not the operator--and so the plate has to go through different hands4 ,it is a pity1 but ,i see no way to avoid the evil1 except in special cases1 where the artist can afford time to follow up his work personally from the first to the last stage4 ,were time and money no object1 ,i would have each man or woman assistant in the photographic studio qualified to pose1 focus1 develop1 retouch1 print1 and mount1 with a complete knowledge of all the branches1 and a thorough artistic knowledge besides4 ,i would also have them all consider nothing too trivial for their talents in the progress of the photograph1 but each to take alternately their turn at the different departments with their own plates2 without this ,i cannot see how the art enthusiasm1 which a really good photograph requires1 can be kindled and kept up4 ,i think modest photographers in country places1 loving their profession1 and not troubled with too many commissions1 have a better chance1 if possessed of equal talents1 of reaching perfection than their bustled and prosperous town brethren2 in the same sense that ,i consider the painter1 who has genius1 to paint better pictures when he is selling for twenty pounds than when he is hunted after and getting two thousand pounds--but this is a matter of opinion4 ,i know also that it was long considered by some professional men to be false art to touch a plate after developing1 as it is sometimes still regarded as wrong for an artist to use the compasses or straight-edge to save time with a drawing1 but ,i consider these as silly prejudices1 to laugh at4 ,personally1 ,i would not hesitate for a moment to use either a pair of compasses1 a straight-edge1 or a photograph1 if the so doing served me better than my eye1 or my sketch1 in the making of my picture2 neither would ,i hesitate to call the man a fool who objected to me doing so on the ground that it was not legitimate art4 ,retouching is exactly the same work on the negative as if the artist sat down before any other material4 ,upon it1 if he has the genius1 he can do almost anything1 so that he has shadow enough as a basis4 ,here he becomes1 as ,i have said1 the creator1 and of all the different operations of a negative1 this is the portion where the artist stands out most prominently and proves what stuff he or she is made of4 ,there is no end to the variety of work they may introduce as they work on--grains to look like engravings1 hatchings1 stippling1 brush work4 ,it is not enough to be able to remove spots and blemishes1 or soften off harsh contrasts2 girls mostly get up to this mark of excellence1 and produce those smooth1 meaningless1 pleasant portraits of everyday life4 ,the retoucher must learn to keep an expression of the negative1 or make one if not there1 and this is the lofty calling of a true retoucher4 ,he must put a soul into his model1 else he cannot call himself an artist any more than the painter can claim the title who only daubs potboilers4 ,but if the retoucher can do this1 and has art enough in himself to prefer soul to beauty or beautifying1 then he has as much claim to call himself a painter or an artist 7if he prefers that title7 as any ,r4,a4 in the clique divine4 ,expression1 or soul1 is what photographers are as yet deficient in1 and that is the province of the retoucher4 ,i want to see a photographer rise above the prejudice of the flattery-loving public1 and lead them by intensity3 give to the public faces ugly as ,rembrandt's portraits1 yet pregnant with character4 ,i want to see seams1 and wrinkles1 and warts1 as the ,great ,creator left them--indexes to the wearer's character--and not doll faces1 which simper and mean nothing4 ,i want noses in all their varieties1 with their own individuality intensified2 cheek-bones standing out as they may be in the originals4 ,i want men and women sent down to posterity as they are and not as they would like to be2 for ,i never yet saw a face in its natural state that ,i could call ugly1 although ,i have seen faces made hideous by rouge1 and cosmetics1 and false eyebrows1 and also by the retouching which they were themselves so delighted about4 ,vice and crime darken the souls which sit behind the eyes--make chins hard1 and lips thin or coarse--destroy curves which are upon all lips when innocent2 yet1 to me1 the most demoniac face that ever peered out upon a haunting world is better in its sombre gloom than that same face smoothed by a bad or mechanical retoucher4 ,beauty is expression1 not chiselled features4 ,a baby is not beautiful until it can notice its mother2 then the meaningless bit of flesh is lighted up with a ray from heaven4 ,that ,god-beam the photographer must catch2 yet it is not a smooth surface1 but a light breaking through torn-up cloud mists4 ,the other day ,i saw the photograph of a child1 supposed to be a city waif4 ,she was bare-footed and bare-armed1 with a rent in her pinafore--a city waif with a pinafore6 ,the photographer had studied his lines1 and posed his model according to the rules he had learnt2 everything was in its right place about that picture1 but1 like the mountains about ,borrowdale1 just a little too exactly as they ought to be4 ,he had taken the trouble of dirtying the hands and face and legs1 but ,i saw at a glance that1 although it was all right according to art1 it was not all right according to nature4 ,she was not a real city waif1 and to me1 who had seen the real article1 very far from it4 ,in ,edinburgh1 one winter morning1 ,i saw a picture that needed no adjusting1 only the camera1 to render it immortal--a man out of work1 saying good-bye to his wife and child before he went on the tramp4 ,where the ,old ,cross of ,edinburgh used to stand 7before the new malformation was put up71 at its base in the ,high ,street they stood--that group of two1 with the speck of humanity in her arms2 the man1 in shirt sleeves1 leaning against the railings1 snow-laden1 with his shoeless feet blue-black against the mud-coloured snow on the pavement4 ,in his left hand he held a very small bundle1 roughly bound in a red spotted rag of a handkerchief1 while with the tattered sleeves of his dirty shirt he was attempting to wipe the eyes of the child1 that poor little pinched and smeared-faced baby1 who was crying with hunger and cold4 ,the mother who held it in her thin arms had turned her face from her husband to where ,i could see it as ,i passed by4 ,she was oblivious to spectators in the silent abandonment of her own woe4 ,a wisp of fair hair fell down from the old bashed hat upon her head1 and hung against her clay-coloured cheek4 ,two tears1 half congealed1 lay just above the quivering lips4 ,but there were no words of parting passing between those two4 ,in ,london one night1 in the ,east-end1 about the month of ,may1 ,i saw another picture4 ,it was down by the side of a hoarding covered over with gay-coloured placards1 and over which a lamp shone4 ,a man1 a woman1 and a little girl all huddled in a confused mass together4 ,i could not see the faces1 for they were hidden on their breasts1 but ,i saw limp hands lying on the pavement1 and the light night wind fluttered shreds of rags about4 ,presently ,i beheld amongst the passers a woman stop to look at them--one of those outcasts1 all the more pathetic for the furs and silks that enveloped her4 ,she stooped down to put a sixpence into the crouching figure's open hand1 and for a moment bistre rags and cardinal silk flounce fluttered together2 then she passed on to her sin1 leaving them in their misery4 ,the hand closed on the coin instinctively1 but the brain was too apathetic to take in the significance of the gift all at once4 ,a moment or two passed as ,i watched1 then ,i saw the hand slowly lifted and the head listlessly raised2 there was a dazed look into the palm1 then a start into life1 and1 woman-like1 a clutch at the arm of her husband4 ,then both heads were lifted to the light1 and ,i caught an expression of wolfish joy on the faces1 which ,i thought must have condoned for a deal of vice on the part of that unreclaimed ,magdalen1 as the pair staggered to their feet and dragged off the little one to where they could buy sixpence-worth of oblivion4 ,these were two pictures which required no arranging of lines or alteration of lighting up1 although faulty according to art1 perhaps4 ,the humanity about them redeemed them2 and it is pictures like these1 to be found every hour1 which the artist--be he painter or photographer--only requires to go out and secure1 to make art immortal4 ,illustration3 ,a ,,group ,,of ,,working ,,horses 7,from a photograph by ,john ,foster of ,coldstream7 ,,chapter ,,ii ,a ,,study ,,in ,,light ,,and ,,shadow ,illustration3 ,m,y subject--the ,union of ,painting and ,photography--is not so short as you or ,i might wish it to be1 yet ,i have tried to make it as terse as a subject so crammed with incident1 and so exhaustless in matter1 could be made4 ,if you will try to endure it to the end1 ,i trust you may not be disappointed4 ,photographers1 as far as ,i have seen them1 are a jealous-minded race4 ,they don't think enough of their art1 or of themselves4 ,they are too apt to think that painters despise them1 while in reality the painters of to-day hang on to them as a drunken husband is apt to hang on to his good-templar wife during the festive ,new ,year season1 or1 to be more poetic in simile1 as a half-drowned sailor will clutch on1 teeth and nails1 to the hard rock1 which may have broken up his rotten old boat1 but now keeps him alive in the midst of the surf4 ,the painters of to-day have become realists1 and photography is realism1 or nothing4 ,a photographer1 to be able to produce a good picture1 must be a true painter in the highest sense of the word2 therefore1 a painter ought to know the right qualities about a good photograph1 whether he knows the mixing of the chemicals1 or length of exposure1 or process of focussing1 c41 or not2 although1 to be able to compete1 the tricks of the trade have to be learned4 ,witness ,sarony1 ,mora1 and such men1 with their fancy dodges and splendid effects1 and ,seavey with his unapproachable backgrounds4 ,thus my title is almost superfluous1 for painting and photography1 requiring the same direction of talent1 are already united2 only it may be of a little service to hear a painter publicly avow the marriage which is so constantly being consummated on the quiet4 ,it is in your work1 as in ours1 the doom to be often annoyed with talented triflers who dip a finger into all the sciences1 and are for ever ready to dispute the point with the originators--buyers of brains1 who imagine that their cash gives them full liberty to find all sorts of faults1 or suggest improvements upon the worker's designs2 who will not buy unless their idiotic improvements are executed to the last letter1 and who afterwards lay the whole blame of the spoiling of the pie upon the baker1 when the guests condemn4 ,having a direct object in view1 ,i need not trouble you about chemicals or lenses1 aurora lights1 or secrets that you all now know much better than ,i could for years unborn1 but come direct to what is of vital interest to us both in our wedded state-viz4 the seeking how we may put as much as possible of the soul of nature1 with her innate force of feeling and motion1 into our pictures2 the men1 modern and ancient1 who may best aid us by the examples and teachings they have left as a legacy to us2 a quiet consideration of what they really have done for us2 a right straight look at the men themselves1 unbiassed by veneration or prejudice1 with a consideration as to how much we have taken advantage of the legacies left to us4 ,the first aim of our investigation is therefore ,the ,exact ,imitation of ,nature--i4e4 the outward form and appearances of nature1 the body1 in fact1 of that mystic ,deity whom all men worship1 no matter what is their dogma1 whether they have a creed or whether they be creedless4 ,secondly1 ,the ,feeling1 ,sentiment1 or ,sensations of ,nature--how her appearance touches us1 as we look upon her in the wealth and loveliness of her colouring2 also how we may keep that sentiment alive in our light and shade4 ,here the painter1 with his colours1 gets a better hand and a long start ahead of the photographer1 engraver1 and etcher2 and it is here that1 if those workers in light and shade can keep the sentiment as well as the painter in colours1 they gain a double and richer triumph--the triumph of a racer who has been heavily and unfairly handicapped at the beginning of the race4 ,thirdly1 ,the ,motions1 ,actions1 ,passages1 ,expressions1 and ,impressions of ,nature4 ,there both in photographer and painter the man himself is brought out1 whether he is a trained mechanic or a born genius4 ,lastly1 ,the ,perfect ,image1 the whole innate force1 which is the spirit and soul of that matchless creation toward which we must all constantly turn 7as the sun-flower turns or the daisy opens to the glance of day7 for the life and light of our artistic beings4 ,let us drop the weak word artist out of our consideration altogether4 ,personally ,i abhor it1 as denoting nigger minstrel1 sword-swallower1 or that undefinable member of society who plays with foils and sable hairs inside a studio enriched with ,turkey ruggery1 old armour1 and marble busts4 ,let us1 who are workers1 be plain painters and photographers1 never heeding the comforts of our surroundings1 having only to do with objects as accessories to our work1 thinking only upon the utility of every nick-nack we may have1 aiming only at the result without considering the trouble or the inconvenience to the animal who is bringing it all about2 every conception or experiment being an undiscovered country which we mean to find out and make our own--,stanleys or ,thompsons with our ,africas2 ,pizzaros conquering and annexing our ,mexicos2 plain1 hardworking1 earnest painters and photographers2 brothers in one grand service--,art4 ,i think1 at the present day1 painters recognise this fraternal stand even more than photographers give them credit for doing2 they know how much they are indebted to the camera for making matters lucid which were before obscure4 ,witness the galloping horses done by instantaneous process1 the shape of waves in full action1 the rushing of waterfalls1 and the contortions of muscles in moments of great excitement4 ,how many of the old masters knew what a horse at full speed was like6 and what eye-openers to battle painters those photographs have been6 ,none of the sea painters were able to draw a wave in all its subtleties and froth accessories as painters nowadays may do if they study the imprint of a flying second2 we may also have clouds in their strata1 as they actually are1 with shadows perfect1 in those artistic studies which1 like the institution of ,christmas cards1 are coming more and more into vogue every year that we live4 ,and painters do use them constantly1 whether they admit the fact or1 induced by a false pride1 pretend that they do not4 ,i see in every exhibition glaring evidences of hay carts and field horses1 yachts and ships of all degrees1 blankly copied1 with hardly any disguise1 from the photographic studies suspended in the shop windows3 clear photographic studies1 faithfully drawn out1 and in the painting knocked about a little1 sometimes not so true as the original to nature1 blurred and mystified into that obscurity which does for feeling with the crowd2 the most original bit of painting being the man's signature who sells it1 that being strictly his own1 and not the copyright of either the photographer or the horse4 ,and why not8 ,clouds will not wait on our pencils and palettes being set2 horses will not stand until we draw out a faithful enough study of their forms1 nor ships pause until we get in all the rigging4 ,the winds are against it1 and the waves4 ,the hours flying along and tearing down the sun-shadows before we have fixed one line of them on our paper or canvas join in the protest1 jeering at our deliberation1 and mocking us as slow-coaches1 in these steam-engine days1 for trying to crawl on at six miles an hour1 and dreaming that we can enter into competition with the mile-a-minute express4 ,the pride which keeps the artist silent1 or makes him deny the charge of photo-borrowing1 is an utterly false pride1 and the sooner it is knocked out of sight the better for all parties4 ,why should we not correct our sketches--done for the sake of the colour and feeling1 and not for the form--from faithful photographs8 ,it does not hinder us from being original in the after-treatment1 although it may save us much time in the elaboration of sketch-details4 ,why not save our precious time for something so much more worthy of it--the picture8#a ,hitherto ,i have wanted so much to be original that1 from conscientious scruples1 ,i would not use the photographic studies which some of my friends had sent me4 ,i looked upon them longingly1 and put them out of sight reluctantly1 and so went down to sea-boards and meadows1 catching rheumatics and toothache1 and wasting hours upon hours1 and many valuable sheets of ,whatman's hand-made paper1 trying to draw out all the riggings of ships1 and the shapes of cows1 losing the effect often in my endeavours to get the manipulation1 and in reality not getting a hundredth part of what ,i might have got with half-an-hour's rapid dashing on of colour effects and a moment's focussing4 ,at present ,i know just a little about the art of photography1 but ,i intend to make it my duty to learn a great deal more--enough to be able to sight a picture correctly2 take and develop a dry plate1 and afterwards fix a print2 for ,i can perceive plainly that ,time is coming on with rapid strides to the point when1 along with his present utensils of colour-boxes and sketching block1 the painter will require to carry his camera and stand1 box of dry plates1 and head covering4 ,and how proper it is that it should be so1 a little experience will prove to every one4 ,an old castle or abbey1 or the view of a town1 or even the markings upon the trees1 would take us days to outline--the buildings of the town1 the fret-work about the abbey and castle1 or the knots and gnarling of the woodland--and even then they would be incomplete4 ,to illustrate my meaning1 look at even the most careful outline pencil drawings of ,turner1 one of the most delicate of outline draughtsmen when he liked1 or the scrupulous and untiring delicacy of his admirer1 ,professor ,john ,ruskin1 with his pencil1 and compare those efforts with the lines about even the most commonplace photograph of a building or tree-trunk1 and ,i need say no more on that point4 ,the painter has lost the half1 and distorted the rest2 and although the drawing may appear more attractive at first sight1 the photograph will be the better1 for it embodies the first grand principle of a painter's training--faithful imitation of the object which he desires to represent4 ,photographers are apt to labour under the mistaken notion that we do not recognise this plain fact of artistic necessity2 but we do1 and if we have not the manliness to own it1 that is our cowardice and not our blindness4 ,be content1 therefore1 when you go into exhibitions and see the misty result of your photographic studies in the realism of to-day hanging all round1 that this is recognition enough of the obligations ,palette owes to ,camera4 ,to consider the first of our united art aims--viz41 ',the ,exact ,imitation of ,nature1' as she appears to us and as she appears to others4 ,the eye is the organ to which we all appeal1 and ,i do not know a more fickle umpire--except perhaps the ear4 ,many people are colour-blind1 yet not entirely so1 and more is the pity1 but just on one point1 like the sun-stroke of ,sir ,roger ,tichborne2 and the worst is1 they are not aware of the particular point1 and feel quite put out if it is explained to them4 ,they will think the man a fool who tries to prove them wrong1 for if they are strong upon any point1 it is upon that particular point4 ,i have proved it dozens of times in cases of partial sun-stroke and colour-blindness4 ,i mean1 just a slight wipe-out of the mental slate1 a blurring1 or1 as it were1 a ,dutch effect1 in the case of sun-stroke2 or a delicacy of perception a-wanting in the colour-blindness1 a gauze veil dropped over1 not nearly so apparent as the blue glasses1 or the lack of distinction between red and green1 for ,daltonism like this ought to be palpable both to the sufferer and his suffering friends4 ,there is also a distortion of vision apart from nearness or longness of sight1 which is a very troublesome agent to fight against for the producer of pictures3 a little nerve gone aglee1 through partial paralysis or an accident before birth1 and everything is different to him from what it is to anyone else2 or it may be that it is spasmodic and occasional in its effects1 and then woe to the picture that comes under his lash 7if a critic7 at the moment when the twisted fit is on him4 ,ten artists sit down to one landscape and make ten different pictures1 and the camera drops in and makes the eleventh1 like none of the ten1 but wonderfully like the original1 as those ten different pairs of eyes must testify1 in spite of their varied distortions4 ,ten different critics look at a picture and find out different faults1 each praising as virtues the faults of the nine others4 ,ten women will look upon one man1 and ten chances to one they will all find different uglinesses about him1 with the exception of the tenth1 whom he may have chosen1 and yet they will all unite in agreeing that she wasn't worthy of him2 which clearly proves1 ,i think1 that this form-distortion of vision is only partial4 ,realism is the passion of the day1 both in writers and painters2 and this passion photography is only too well qualified to gratify4 ,to note down a scene1 or describe an emotion1 by the aid of its most minute outer symbolism1 as faithfully and as free from complexity as possible1 seems to be the greatest virtue and highest aim of the modern school4 ,the names which ,i would select as samples of this style of work will be those names which1 by engravings and etchings1 are best known to us1 and so likely to be of most use in our search after excellent examples4 ,amongst the old masters ,i would quote ,albert ,drer1 for stern realism1 combining a symbolism and spirituality so refined that it is no wonder his qualities have been so long unseen by critics such as ,pilkington1 who says of him1 ',he was a man of extreme ingenuity1 without being a genius--in composition copious without taste2 anxiously precise in parts1 but unmindful of the whole1 he has rather shown us what to avoid than what to follow4' ,rembrandt ,i would take next1 as we all know about him and his powers1 also because he seems to be the model chosen1 but in few cases followed out correctly1 by photographers who desire to produce striking effects4 ,david ,teniers ,i would point out next1 as a type of naturalism without much straining after force or effect1 no elevating force or symbolic influence4 ,i take these three great names as samples1 because their manners are distinctly separate1 because their systems and tricks for reaching effect are easily penetrated1 and because1 while ,i am describing characteristic works by them1 and explaining as well as ,i can how they may be followed out with original force by photographers1 you will be able1 ,i dare say1 to recall some specimens of their brush-work1 and so follow me more easily4 ,all good original work is got from copying and following those who have gone before4 ,i could quote scores of painters since the days of ,drer1 ,rembrandt1 and ,teniers1 down to the present hour1 who gain fame only through being ,drerites1 ,rembrandtists1 or ,tenierians1 with a little of their own personalities thrown in1 to make them masters4 ,drer flung in and mixed up a part of himself 7which he could not keep out7 along with the training of ,michael ,wohlgemuth4 ,rembrandt hashed up ,zwanenburg1 ,lastman1 ,pinas1 with a host of others1 along with the son of his own mother1 to produce the mightiest giant of the art race1 whom we all try to copy whenever we want to feel free from the feeding-bottle4 ,it is the fate of all great men to copy4 ,blake says1 ',the difference between a bad artist and a good is that the bad artist seems to copy a great deal1 and the good one does copy a great deal4' ,spending lots of time drawing after the antique and winning gold medals and certificates2 fiddling over false niceties2 trying to finish1 when there is no such thing as finish in creation1 far less in art2 being so careful that they lose all freedom of action1 freedom of thought1 and produce nothing2--that is the rubbish they are turning out of the ,government schools nowadays2 students who labour five years at freehand outline1 ten years at antique casts1 and niggle the rest of their useful years amongst nude models in life schools1 while the real active copyists are vaulting over their silly heads1 and digging out niches to enshrine themselves in1 down ,time4 ,william ,hunt1 the ,yankee1 in his ',talks about ,art1' tells us about ,drer and copying in his own terse way thus3 ',albert ,drer1 with an outline1 knew how to make an outline look like a firm1 full figure4 ,he began with firmness1 and finished with delicacy4444 ,but he didn't get it in a day4 ,hercules may have strangled a serpent when he was a baby1 but there was a time when he couldn't4 ,drer worked in his own way6 ,no6 nor did anybody else at first4 ,they all worked in the manner of someone else1 in the way they were shown3 ,raphael after ,perugino1 ,vandyke after ,rubens4 ,if ,albert ,drer had lived in ,venice he would have been a ,venetian painter4 ,as it was1 he worked as the old ,german artists had worked4' ',the ,lord and his ,lady1' ',melancholy1' and ',the ,virgin and ,child' are the engravings by ,albert ,drer which represent his clear1 concise style as well as any others of his works for our present purpose4 ,in the first picture1 ',the ,lord and his ,lady1' we have a simple arrangement of straight perpendicular lines--the lady seen profile1 with sloping unbroken lines of drapery2 the lord almost full-face1 looking upon her1 a straight sword hung in front and slanting in unison with the folds of the lady's drapery2 a plant at right side with split top1 growing straight so far1 yet inclining towards the direction of dress1 sword1 and figures2 a tree-trunk at left wing with gnarling1 repeating the folds of dress1 with the figure of ,death behind the tree holding up his hour-glass3--they are passing from ,death's corner1 yet by the hour-glass he knows that1 as the shadows travel round1 so surely will they both return4 ,the light and shade are simple as the arrangement1 directly falling from above and to the left2 the light divides the direct half of tree1 dress1 clock1 and flower1 and the other half is in broad shadow1 a light foreground and light distance and a clear sky2 all the shade relief rests about the central objects of interest4 ,as a sample of unaffected masterly ease of management and restraint ,i do not know its equal2 nor have ,i yet seen a photograph treated 7although it might easily be so7 in the same possessed way1 except perhaps the first efforts of the amateur before he had learned how to manage his lighting up4 ,if experienced men would only learn to come back to the effects of their days of ignorance1 bringing their gained knowledge to rectify the defects outside the accidental effects2 if old painters would only take lessons from the natural attempts of their little sons and daughters--how great we might all become1 and how original6 ',melancholy4' ,this is a more complex composition1 an arrangement of crowded shadow1 worth studying for the effect of dying light1 trailing from the folds of a woman's skirt4 ,it is too much filled with symbolic objects to describe just now1 and the great point of interest is the glitter upon the folds1 the broken lines which make up these folds1 and the universal gloom over the rest4 ,it is not like the obscurity of ,rembrandt1 for every object is distinctly manipulated1 yet from it ,rembrandt may have got the first idea for the development of his style4 ',the ,virgin and the ,child' ,i like for its extreme delicacy and lightness1 and also for the power of reflections which it contains4 ,the old house on the other side of the river is a useless disturbance1 and mainly useful in its historical architectural evidence1 and also to prove that even the most astute self-critic may make mistakes and just work too much4 ,how suggestive is that monkey at her side1 chained prisoner like the struggling dove in the grasp of the mischievous ,baby ,christ--the dove1 symbol of captured truth1 and the infant with his humanity only as yet made manifest6 ,i wish we could have a photograph with this subtlety of realism1 this absence of shadow1 this clear depth of transparency4 ,it seems to me as if photographers could do it if they liked1 and were not afraid of the public4 ,that pale white subtlety1 stealing gently upon us1 not much to look upon at first sight1 almost a blank1 yet growing gaze by gaze1 until we cannot let it out of our thoughts1 like a white rose against a whitewashed wall1 with the green leaves and the crimson stalk bleached vert-grey with the midday sun-blaze1 and the shadow under it of the softest of purple greys4 ,i would like to linger over ,albert ,drer and his influence1 not only on art as regards painting1 but on art as regards literature3 ,goethe working up his ,faust2 tales of medival chivalry2 of demons and spirits1 solemn1 truth-loving souls beset by false decoys2 knights sore tempted and yielding just for a moment1 to fill out long years of repentance2 honour ever rising up and choking love2 love shadowed over by despair2 death ever present and ever sweet as the surcease from labour and years4 ,but it would tire you1 for we have it going on still1 only much of the honour is forgotten and the tenderness of the love is brutalised2 but we have the work1 and the want1 and the woe unutterable1 with us ever1 and for ever1 and we who can will rush from it as the steam-engine rushes on iron lines1 drowning the sounds of the wailing behind us in our own loud puffing1 hiding the sight of the weeping behind us in the dense smoke of our own importance4 ,i turn from ,drer to ,rembrandt1 as from a nature refined and gentle to a nature rugged and strong1 as from a woman to a man1 whose firm hand ,i like to grasp even better than the tender clasp of the other4 ,rembrandt1 the master of painting--even more than ,rubens--of etching and photography1 who when better understood will benefit us all more than any one of the others1 with one exception1 which ,i shall name presently4 ',the ,painter's ,mother1' a head with white cap1 ruffle1 and black dress1 one of many which either he or his disciples painted often1 strongly marked1 a study in the modelling of wrinkles and reflections4 ',interior1 with ,woman plucking a ,fowl4' ,the figure sits fronting us with face down-turned1 a black cap casting deep shadows over the whole features1 with the exception of a half-light playing upon the under-side of the cheek1 and portion of the back of the neck seen from the white ruffled collar1 open at the neck4 ,satin-textured body1 with dull red sleeves1 and amber lining on the upturned skirt2 this is very dark green or black4 ,she holds the fowl with one hand1 plucking with the other1 while between her feet rests the basket to catch the feathers4 ,at the left corner lies a bunch of carrots1 breaking up the copper ,dutch pan behind2 farther back is a basket supporting a board with flat fish upon it4 ,still deeper in shadow is a large boiler with earthenware jars and a chain hanging over2 behind those again1 a very dark background4 ,there is not much in this subject--a fowl half plucked and a harsh-featured woman plucking2 the most commonplace incident1 without moral1 except the moral that life is very uncertain and mortality sure--in a hen-coop particularly4 ,without any pathos1 save the pathetic tracing of those hard scorings of care on that matron's face2 not much to make sentiment out of in an ordinary hand2 what we may see any hour if we live where such acts are continued from day to day4 ,yet in the hands which have made it what it is1 what may we1 the lookers-on1 not make out of it8 ,the secret of ,rembrandt lies here exposed1 if we can only read him aright4 ,it is not the mass of shadow and isolated light which stamp the power and individuality of the man4 ,these are only his tricks of trade1 repeated when he saw how well they took with the public4 ,it is the vigour and command of this master which strike us as we probe the breadth and extreme simplicity of his accessories4 ,he is content with a bunch of carrots when they serve his purpose4 ,the gigantic copper stew-pan would have been enough if he could have hidden a part of the exact circle2 but he wanted the woman to stand out alone2 the other objects were put in to support a blankness1 as a little by-play1 an incident by the way3 the working woman is the aim of his setting up that large canvas4 ,he got it all in an afternoon1 the time she was plucking the fowl--that is1 the master touches2 the rest might be done by anyone4 ,to imitate ,rembrandt properly1 get hold of the first ,east-end basket-woman that you chance to meet--a herring or orange vendor will do2 take her as she sits1 without arranging a single fold1 adding to or removing one iota about her2 take her in the street or in the close1 or as she squats down inside the half-darkened doorway of her own little shop4 ,she can neither have too little nor too much about her if she struck you distinctly while you passed as being picturesque4 ,never mind the lighting1 and don't think to be original2 as she stands1 or sits1 or squats1 she is the woman for your camera2 out with it1 and secure her before she can wink or know what you are up to1 and you have caught the whole secret of ,rembrandt's power and realistic talent4 ,in hatching and touching your plate1 which to me seems to represent the second working1 think upon all the dodges of the etchers1 ,haydon1 ,hamerton1 ,herkomer1 ,whistler1 c4 ,if you have a chemical to eat down certain parts of it broadly1 leaving the prominent parts 7be sparing of prominent parts7 standing out dense1 do not niggle with your pencil-point over-much1 except it is to blur out an accessory which may be too distinct4 ,i do not know much about printing photographs1 yet ,i am inclined to think that it is here where the genius of the photographer may be brought out4 ,if ,i were a photographer ,i'd never for a second leave a plate while it was printing4 ,i'd try all sorts of dodges upon the sun with pieces of paper having little eccentric holes torn out where ,i wanted an artificial shadow to fall across my plate1 by exposing the print altogether at times1 so as to mellow any extreme lights1 painting touches of white on it to bar out the sun altogether where ,i wanted a mysterious gleam1 whether it was on my picture or not1 and never rest until ,i had made it my own4 ,i may be wrong1 of course1 in all this2 but it is the idea which now strikes me2 or all this may have been done already1 or considered infra dig4 or illegitimate2 yet here1 ,i think1 as in the treating of a painted picture1 the photographer can liberate himself entirely from the trammels of custom1 and never be at a loss for fresh tracks4 ,in landscape photography ,i constantly observe good pictures rendered imperfect through the fatal power of the camera1 which must print every object before it1 and yet in the printing even more than in the sorting of the plate ,i think much1 if not all1 of this might be obviated by a careful study and following up of the tricks of ,rembrandt2 if it is the foreground which is too plainly marked1 why not take another foreground plate1 and1 clearing off all not required1 place it over the other plate1 and so let the sun strike through both and blurr that corner8#b or make a dark shower cloud as in the engraving ',the ,three ,trees1' by covering boldly portions of the plate with paper and allow the rest to print darker2 or by adroit covering and exposing1 simplify the whole arrangement and create divisions where you want them2 a ray of light1 or a part blackened1 or any device that occurs to you1 which is what we call inspiration8 ,the magic of ,rembrandt rests in this--that he seldom creates1 but he takes advantage of circumstances and local incidents to intensify the story he is telling you4 ,to illustrate my meaning by three short quotations from celebrated authors1 whose tragedies are intensified and minutely expressed by the working up of the commonest accessories1 as we see in every tragedy of daily life--a clock striking at the tensioned second2 or a mouse peering out of its hole2 or the crack of a distant whip2 the rumbling of a cart2 a laugh or a careless oath heard outside2 something unimportant seen or heard that fixes it all into its compact run or place2 the sledge bells of ,mathias in the ,polish ,jew2 or the ragged stick of ,eugne ,aram4 ,my intention in giving these quotations is to prove to you how writers know the value of common objects1 and how few of them are wanted for the purpose1 so that in choosing our accessories we may so choose that the link is carried on1 yet nothing uselessly put in to distract the attention2 the object being to draw the eyes and thoughts1 for a moment1 from the main act1 so that we may return again better prepared for the tragedy4 ,zola1 that ,rembrandt of modern ,french literature1 in one of his novels1 ',la ,belle ,lisa1' describes the return to ,paris of an escaped political martyr called ,florent4 ,florent1 having passed through fearful sufferings1 is picked up exhausted by one of the ,paris market women and taken to ,paris in her cart4 ,he is in a starving condition1 but1 being proud1 will not tell the woman about his wants1 and1 leaving her1 gets into company with a hard-up artist called ,claude1 who1 although also hungry and sou-less1 yet is carried away by the artistic glow of light and shade and wealth of colour about a coffee and soup stall which they pause to admire4 ',i tell you1' says ,claude1 'a man should paint what he sees1 and as he sees it4 ,now1 look there4 ,is this not a better picture than their--consumptive saints8' ',women were selling coffee and soup4 ,a small crowd of customers had gathered round a large kettle of cabbage soup which smoked on a tiny brazier4 ,the woman1 armed with a long ladle1 first put into a yellow bowl thin slices of bread1 which she took from a basket covered with a napkin1 and then filled up the bowl with soup4 ,there were clean market-gardeners in blouses2 dirty porters with their shoulders soiled by the burdens they had carried2 poor devils in rags--in short1 all sorts of people--eating their breakfast1 and scalding themselves with the hot soup4 ,the painter was delighted1 and half shut his eyes to compose his picture4 ,but the smell of the cabbage soup was terribly strong4 ,florent turned away his head--the sight made him dizzy4' ,here we have a ,rembrandtesque study of hunger and endurance1 with all the accessories put into quiet order4 ,the second sketch which ,i take is from an essay by ,walt ,whitman on the death of ,president ,lincoln4 ,we all know how he 7,abraham ,lincoln7 was shot in the theatre1 and in those few jerky commonplace sentences ,walt ,whitman1 the ,american ,michael ,angelo of words1 presents to us as grim and gruesome a picture as ,i know anywhere4 ,it has more of the loose but massive work of our ,english realist1 ,millais1 about it than the compacter work of ,rembrandt4 ,it has a day-light or surrounding gas-light effect about it also1 and little shadow or mystery1 but it is to me blood-curdling in its startling distinctness4#c ,you have here a scene as filled out with detail in the light as ,albert ,drer's ',melancholy' in the shadow4 ,walt ,whitman has not omitted a single object which impressed him at the time--in fact1 he tells us the whole dire tragedy by the aid of animate or inanimate objects not at all connected1 except by association1 with the murder2 and this ,i wish you to remember strictly--how1 by the placing and building up of objects1 chairs1 tables1 flags1 as here1 all leading out from the centre of sight1 which is the tale1 you may suggest a deed without showing the main actors of it at all4 ,witness here that the principal figure1 ,abraham ,lincoln1 is never seen4 ,the third illustration which ,i take is from that well-known poem by ,bell on ,mary ,queen of ,scots4 ,i choose the closing act1 her execution1 as it embraces within the lines leading up to the climax the incidents of the verses going before1 and because it is here that you see distinctly surrounding the principal character 7our unfortunate ,queen7 trivial and more important items1 all leading up to the loneliness of the victim and the fickleness of fortune4 ,in the centre of the hall is placed the block and the masked headsman1 axe in hand4 ,the scene is decidedly ,rembrandtesque in its light and shade2 to be treated as ,rembrandt has treated his ',descent from the ,cross4' ,a strong light falls upon block1 axe1 and headsman2 the rest is in shadow1 the carved woodwork and tapestry hangings of the hall fading off towards the distant door2 as the royal victim and her dog near1 she comes from the shadow which covers her attendants and other witnesses into the full glare which falls upon that empty foreground2 and1 as it streams over her pale face and grey hair and becomes muffled in the thick folds of her velvet dress1 the picture is complete4#d ,the third picture of ,rembrandt's is of little use to us1 so it is needless going into detail with it4 ,it has been misnamed ',a ,jewish ,bride1' as1 from the general outline of the figure1 loosely holding a bunch of flowers in the left hand and the symbolic vine-twisted staff in the right1 we must conclude that the honeymoon has been for a considerable time passed1 and that another joy awaits the expectant husband4 ,it is a portrait of the painter's second wife1 and a very lovely second wife she must have been1 with her soft fair tresses1 rich dark eyes1 creamy complexion1 and seductive chin--a much nicer ,dutch frau than a ,jewish bride4 ,but before leaving this master ,i would like to call your attention particularly to1 and ask you to remember1 ',an ,old ,woman4' ,this is more in the distinct manner of ,rembrandt than his ',jewish ,bride1' who might have any other name attached to it as well as that of ,van ,ryn4 ,here the old tanned face is seen in profile2 the square-cut nose and harsh mouth1 subdued by toil1 sullenised by hardship1 with early hours when the frost-breath hardened that parchment skin3 a pitiful face1 without one ennobling trace upon it4 ,just such an air of patient suffering as we have seen of a winter morning on the stooping1 shawl-bound head of the aged hag raking amongst the cinders and offal of the street4 ,it is thankless toil which does this sort of painting and carving--a spring-time of labour and lust1 a summer-time of labour and curses1 an autumn-time of labour and treachery1 and a winter-time of labour1 starvation1 and neglect4 ,is it not all equally pitiful in its progression as we watch the stages8 ,the girl with her load making merchandise of her love2 the woman with her load toiling on for the thankless male2 the mother with her load selfishly laying as much of it as she can upon the delicate shoulders of her young offspring2 and that toothless old hag stooping down amongst the shadows1 square1 gaunt1 hopeless1 resting from her load alone in her tenth hour1 crouching amidst the shadows with the ashes of her wasted past crowning that hoary1 honourless1 neglected age4 ,this is passing realism and getting into the sublime1 and this is what the gross1 coarse1 miserly old master has done1 with his innate force and living soul1 while his strong1 bold brush1 with its low1 sad tones1 has painted an obscure interior and an old woman sitting brooding in the cold and dark1 clad in a dirty white-grey cloak1 with a dirty grey skirt faded to grim black-grey with newer black1 patched sleeves1 a few jars on a darkened shelf overhead1 all dark and hopeless except where the one ray starts out that gaunt profile and what is seen of the shrivelled neck4 ,,teniers4--,i take ,david ,teniers after ,rembrandt as an instance and example of successful and easy grouping2 ,i take him as the type of a school embracing a long list of painters ancient and modern--,wilkie1 ,faed1 ,orchardson1 ,cameron1 ,pettie1 c4 c42 and why ,i prefer him to our own ,sir ,david ,wilkie is not so much that ,teniers was before ,wilkie1 because ,teniers was by no means the first in that line of business4 ,if you can recall the delicate and silvery half-tones and open composition of ',la ,tourneuse1' and compare this with the hot colouring1 slushy handling1 and forced composition of ',the ,penny ,wedding' and ',blind ,man's ,buff1' we must agree that here ,teniers has the best of it4 ,yet ,i would by no means decry ,sir ,david ,wilkie1 except where comparison is forced1 as in this case2 for ,i consider ,sir ,david ,wilkie1 ,tom ,faed1 and ,orchardson to be the very best models a painter or a photographer can have for the composition of groups4 ,i am not at all prejudiced in favour of old masters or of old things1 or big names1 or advertised brains or dry bones2 rather the reverse4 ,i like young flesh and fresh blood1 quick-beating pulses1 and impetuous motions4 ,i would rather have a living mistake than a dead perfection any day2 yet1 when ,i see the old ones far ahead of the young ones1 it is both a duty and a joy to bend the knee and adore the vanished past4 ,orchardson and ,hugh ,cameron have come up the truest to the silver and opals of ,teniers1 and for chaste deliberation and simplicity ,i can commend no one before ,orchardson3 he always stops painting just at the point where people should stop eating and drinking--the point this side of repletion4 ,study his best-known examples--,christopher ,sly1 from ',taming of the ,shrew1' some articles of clothing and a pair of shoes in the left-hand corner1 to continue the slanting line of feet of the servants waiting on ,christopher2 a walking-stick lying in the same line as the feet of the negro1 and people behind the screen2 a sheet of paper on the floor farther in takes exactly the same line of direction1 and the eye is no more troubled with details2 we can all laugh without let4 ,in the ',queen of ,swords1' a more crowded composition1 the ground lines are the same1 with the queen forming the point of the angle and a clear foreground1 with the exception of a fan that carries on the same lines4 ,in that scene from ',henry ,,iv41' ,part ,i41 ,prince ,henry1 ,poins1 and ,falstaff1 we have one of the simplest1 openest1 and most refined specimens of humorous composition on record4 ,a straight1 horizontal line of tapestry1 broken up at the exact limit by the burly hind-part view of ,sir ,john1 the buffoonery expressed in that capacious broad waist-belt1 and the rounded folds of the doublet below it1 is worthy of the mighty creator of that inflated sponge1 ,falstaff4 ,a table and chair behind it keep the horizontal line1 while relieving the emptiness of the floor between ,falstaff and his companions4 ,the wall starts out towards us at an angle1 while1 along with a chair1 the ,prince and ,poins keep within the vanishing lines from the point of sight1 which is exactly in the centre of the back view of ,falstaff's waist1 so that we must look 7whether we like or not7 first and last at him1 even although1 with ,orchardson's usual love of refinement1 he is modestly cast into half-shadow4 ,they say ,thackeray could draw a gentleman and ,dickens could not4 ,i deny this sweeping assertion in the existence of ,mr4 ,chester of ',barnaby ,rudge'2 but one thing ,i do think1 which is1 that ,orchardson is the painter who gives us the nearest approach to the easy insolence and bonhomie of a well-bred man of the world4 ,to return to ,teniers 7for a moment in passing71 ,i cannot bring to mind one of his pictures which ,i have seen that could in any way be improved in the composition1 added to1 or taken from2 every accessory tells its own portion of the general story1 and this ,i would once more point out to the composer of a picture1 along with a few simple laws which occur to me as ,i write4 ,the principal object is the first object which rises up before the mind's eye1 and fixes the composition when the story is heard or read1 therefore the main object to be considered and first set up or drawn in--as the figure of the queen in ,orchardson's ',queen of ,swords'2 the philosopher nearest us in ',bacchanalian ,philosophers1' by ,teniers2 the two front figures in ,rembrandt's ',night ,watch1' one dark1 one light1 the dark one put in by ,rembrandt first2 and the child with its cart even before the lighted-up woman and child who come before ',the ,blind ,fiddler1' by ,wilkie4 ,there is too much in this composition1 particularly that group of foreground objects1 which bear such evident traces of having been so carefully selected and placed in such a variety of artificial carelessness--watering-pan1 cabbage1 box and utensils1 basin1 stool1 with little bat1 and knife1 placed so exactly as they ought to be1 like the hills of ,borrowdale--all being1 after consideration1 painty improvements1 never dropped upon accidentally and not at all required4 ,you will find nothing of this sort in ,rembrandt's pictures1 or in ,rubens' 7lavish though he is71 or in ,teniers'1 and seldom in ,pettie's or ,orchardson's4 ,in ,vandyke's you may1 or in ,wilkie's1 because both ,vandyke and ,wilkie1 being ,court favourites1 permitted their own individuality and good taste to be oftener biassed by the buzzing of the gartered insects about them2 yielding to make this or that improvement to suit a foolish patron1 until their own gifts became obscured1 and their taste perverted to the level of a pair of ,court breeches4 ,rembrandt and ,rubens were strong enough men always to lead the fashion1 and too strong ever to be led4 ,but the times are changed with us now1 so that ,i do not think there is any danger of ,orchardson getting spoilt by good fortune2 he is not in any way hurt by it yet1 at all events4 ,after we get the first object set up1 the others all fall into place to suit that central or main object1 and this rule holds with the arranging of light and shadow1 as well as form--one minute centre of light round which the half-lights range1 and the deepest shadow where you can best afford it4 ,the central form1 the central light1 is of paramount importance--all the rest are matters of convenience1 chance1 and discretion4 ,think less about what you may put in to help your picture than upon what you may keep out1 to give it importance and repose4 ,every sitter has a fine point about him1 or her3 find it out--the best side of the face1 a nice arm1 or good hand2 they will reveal it to you unconsciously before you have sighted them--and make that your first object1 and all the rest subordinate and to help that out4 ,don't seize two points in one model2 decide which is the most useful1 and take that2 without regret1 discarding all the others4 ,it may be that the only good bit is a hat1 or a feather1 or a pair of gloves1 or a brooch4 ,the point that first attracts your eye pleasantly is the point upon which to make your centre of vision1 and around which you will arrange the rest4 ,if it is an article of dress1 of jewellery1 then bring the light to bear upon it1 and make all the rest in half-shades4 ,study nature for ever1 if you would have any photographs you take different from the last photograph4 ,never take a sitter at once2 leave them alone to knock about your studio while you pretend to be sorting something else1 but watch them unawares3 you will see a natural touch before long1 a peculiar habit which they are not aware of1 but by which many of their friends know them4 ,fix on that as your character keynote1 and work up features1 position1 and accessories1 so as not to lose sight of this peculiarity2 and with this borne always in mind and a good knowledge of face and neck anatomy1 without which ,i cannot see how anyone can touch up a negative properly1 ,i know of no reason wherefore a photographer should not give us as complete a character study as any painter1 ancient or modern1 from ,millais back to ,albert ,drer4 ,yet before that state of perfection can be acquired1 permit me1 as one of the public and also as a frequent sufferer1 to enter my protest against head-rests and long-sighting1 to those who still practise these abominations4 ,no natural expression or easy posture can ever be gained until instantaneous plates are used for everyone4 ,before they can well settle in their self-chosen places and posture1 have them down and risk it--the chance of a spoilt picture is better than a conventional position4 ,also this debasing system of smoothing away wrinkles1 and blotches1 and character traces4 ,i never can see a real harsh1 wrinkled face nowadays1 except in some of the tintypes4 ,of course ,i know the cry is raised that the public will have those wax productions2 but as one of the public ,i have not yet had my own likeness taken quite right4 ,for instance1 in repose1 ,i hang my head on one side1 and ,i have always been made to hold it straight up1 like a soldier at 'attention4' ,again1 my nose is neither of a ,greek nor ,roman caste1 and yet ,i never do get that nose put in as ,i see it in a mirror1 or as its humpy shadow is cast upon the wall2 or1 as a gentleman once closed up a wordy1 if not very convincing number of reasons against my having the qualities to make a poet1 painter1 or passable labourer1 by exclaiming1 ',why1 just look at your nose2 did you ever know a clever man with a nose like that8' ,this photographed nose of mine has afforded me and others some amusement2 sometimes it has been so refined that ,i fell to reviling nature for being so far inferior to the artist who finished it off so well4 ,once it came home a splendid ,roman1 with the light upon it so intensified by pencil-work that it stood out in bold enough relief to have won a ,waterloo1 if big noses could have done that4 ,i have one portrait1 which ,i am keeping to leave to posterity3 it is so ,byronic and spiritual that future young ladies will no longer wonder why my wife married me4 ,this refined likeness and my love-songs together ought to do the trick4 ,yet ,i have some photographs very near perfection3 one representing my two little daughters1 done by ,tunny4 ,professor ,john ,ruskin writes3 ',the face of the child on the spectator's right hand is the loveliest in expression ,i ever saw in a photograph4' ,also some by my friend ,mr4 ,john ,foster#e of ,coldstream cattle-pieces1 and landscapes breathing of balmy atmospheric effect4 ,he gets up to work outside at three o'clock on summer mornings1 the hour when nature is like a blushing virgin1 all dewy loveliness and purity4 ,in ,france and ,england there is a school rising1 who with the brush are trying to compete with the camera--the ,impressionists1 who1 along with the camera1 are yet fated to produce a great revolution in art4 ,they aim at giving the impression1 effect1 or sensation of an instantaneous action or emotion or phase2 not the phase exactly1 but the swift impression which it leaves upon the mind of the spectator1 with form1 as it were--that is1 with paints and brushes striving to embody the soul of nature1 and when the two are joined the result will be perfection4 ,to finish by bringing up the name which ,i have hitherto kept back1 the exception1 about which some time ago ,i promised to tell you3 the sweetest1 tenderest1 mightiest art soul that ever was chained inside a mortal body1 and prompted the fingers to move as it wanted2 the purest1 saddest mind that ever writhed neglected and found its reward so late1 the soul now free and stirring up a crowd with its pathetic activity1 to be like it pure and true--,i mean ,jean-,francois ,millet1 the ,french peasant painter4 ,mr4 ,hunt says of him1 ',for years ,millet painted beautiful things1 and nobody looked at them4 ,they fascinated me1 and ,i would go to ,barbizon and spend all the money ,i could get in buying his pictures4 ,i brought them to ,boston4 ,what is that horrid thing8 ,oh1 its a sketch by a friend of mine6 ,now he is the greatest painter in ,europe4' ,that is a painter's verdict about a painter4 ,one of his pictures is vivid in my mind just now4 ,there is a print of it in that wonderful illustrated magazine1 ',scribner's ,monthly1' where engravings look like paintings or idealised photographs4 ,it is called ',the ,sower1' the dim figure of a labourer scattering seed over a ploughed field with one hand1 and holding his apron filled with embryo life in the other4 ,in the distance1 and lighted up by the sun1 a team of bullocks are dragging the plough1 and a flight of birds over beyond the seed4 ,that is the whole composition put into bald words4 ,but as it has been rendered by this painter1 it is an embodiment of all which ,i have tried to explain1 the spirit and body of living1 working1 suffering nature4 ,what would ,i not give 7if ,i had it7 to see a photograph done like that6 and it can be done if you labour enough1 know enough1 and feel enough4 ',the ,sower6' ,as ,i look upon it ,i am drawn into it1 mesmerised and rendered clairvoyant4 ,i am en rapport with the freed spirit which has left along with the delicate aroma of its departing wings a portion of its own personality1 its own immortality--vague and tender--greater than ,raphael1 or ,rembrandt1 or ,albert ,drer1 for it has taken the deepest root within humanity4 ,tenderly ,i look upon it1 not too boldly1 for it seems vibrating with a sensuous existence2 it clutches at my heart--sinews as it reveals the parables of ,christ1 accompanied by sobbing notes of melancholy spirit-music2 the far-off strikings of angel harp-strings1 indefinite but ravishing4 ,and the painter's body1 that ,st4 ,john face1 with its misty development of hair1 lies under the earth4 ,a maddened stag was driven by the hunters and the hounds over the garden fence into the snow-covered garden on that ,january morning of #ahgef1 past the dying man's window1 and ruthlessly slaughtered under the eyes of the dying man--yielding up its noble life for a bit of sport2 the hot-red blood sinking through the cold1 white snow1 and soaking into the covered hearts of the green plants beneath4 ,one up-turned glance of the glazing eyes met the down-turned glance of the glazing eyes1 and so1 filled with despair and pity1 two souls--the soul of a stag and the soul of a painter--drifted out into the morning light4 ,illustration3 ,,ancient ,,assyrian ,,hall3 ,,the ,,feast ,,of ,,sardanapalus 7,from a sepia sketch by the ,author7 ,,chapter ,,iii ,,the ,,primaries3 ,,yellow1 ,,red1 ,,and ,,blue ,i4 ,,an ,,apology ,,to ,,the ,,author ,,of ',,modern ,,painters1' ,,etc4 ,illustration3 ,w,e may love a man for himself1 and admire his gifts1 and yet differ altogether from his beliefs4 ,we may go fifteen miles out of twenty with a guide1 and turn off our own way the remaining five4 ,surely it cannot be called inconsistency to go the fifteen miles and break off at the five2 to revere the genius of ,john ,ruskin and love his character1 and yet take a stand against him when he directs painting6 to coincide with his abstract theories of art1 and oppose his practical hints6 to praise him in the preface and blame him in the pamphlet6 ,this is a paradox which the student of man may easily comprehend4 ,the exhibition of vanity1 or meanness1 or pettiness which last year may have filled me with just indignation or contempt1 this year may be met in my mind with over-balancing excuses and reasons4 ,i was close upon it when it loomed up1 and it looked a mountain1 hiding with its black shadow all the rest2 but my distance of to-day has reduced it to its correct size1 a dirty mud-heap at the foot of the mountain of nobility1--or the wisdom of the ages has added another year to my growing mind4 ,yet ,i do not regret what ,i have said1 for if we cannot pick the beam from our own eyes1 is it not something that we are able to point out the mote in the eye of our brother8 ,it is a compliment which we expect him to return by helping us to clear the more ponderous encumbrances from our sense of vision4 ,john ,ruskin ,i regard as a master at whose feet no man1 however strong1 need be ashamed to sit3 one as nearly the ideal man as we may expect frail humanity to be--self-sacrificing1 devoted1 single in the pursuit of his object2 microscopic in his vision 7herein lies his fault as a general teacher--he cannot stand far enough back from his picture71 seeking to the core before he will be satisfied1 becoming the disciple of the man he would criticise1 never trusting to a casual glance of the subject he would describe1 going patiently all round it1 getting into it if he can4 ,a word to trust as you might the ,spirit of ,truth--as far as he can see it4 ,he is a bigot1 being in deep earnest1 as all reformers must be1 having only one right road which they are treading1 but 7,i put my finger on the weak spot7 he has disciples who are too completely satisfied with him1 who1 having fallen in love1 have become blind1 and he has the weakness to be satisfied with their satisfaction4 ,the gold is pure which he has refined1 the armour is bright which ,faith has clasped upon him--but there is a red rust that will get upon the brightest armour if the damp breath of adulation be allowed to rest upon its surface1 the arrogant vanity which eats into the soul4 ,as a philanthropist and moral leader1 as a poet and beautiful example1 set up ,john ,ruskin4 ,if the world could follow it1 the shepherds more than the sheep1 then would it be nearer the standard set up by the ,founder of ,christianity1 further from forms1 falsehoods1 luxuries4 ,but the world has its own standards of morality1 as he fixes his about art2 only1 ,john ,ruskin is sincere3 but1 alas for the others6 ,he is wrong from my point of sight as regards painting1 therefore ,i say so2 he is not all gold1 but so great is my love of the gold that it forces me to hate in proportion the clay2 but would that ,i could walk in his footsteps for all the rest6 ,,ii4 ,,the ,,primaries3 ,,yellow1 ,,red1 ,,and ,,blue ,i dare say you have all stood at times to look at a street showman throwing up three balls in the air1 and spinning them about from one hand to the other4 ,i wish that ,i could demonstrate this feat1 but unfortunately ,i am not clever enough1 neither have ,i been able to find any friend who could do it1 else it would have been a great pleasure to me1 and ,i doubt not also to you1 if ,i could have aided my symbol by introducing to you at this point the model of some long-haired gentleman1 with his symmetrical person glittering with spangles and bright textures1 who1 tossing up the yellow1 red1 and blue balls1 would thus have added amusement to instruction4 ,however1 since ,i have not this artifice to help me1 ,i must trust to your memories of such a sight as ,i go on4 ,yellow1 red1 and blue3 these are the three colours that ,i wish to begin the game1 and with which you are likely also to end it4 ,the showman pitches up the coloured balls1 and as they slowly cross one another we can trace their course and local tints perfectly1 even while we are soothed with the harmony they produce all together4 ,red passes yellow1 and an image of orange flashes in front of us1 even while we see both red and yellow quite distinctly apart2 red passes blue1 and purple at once dashes between the blue and the red2 yellow passes blue1 and green is the result4 ,yellow1 red1 and blue are the primary colours2 orange1 purple1 and green are the direct mixtures of the primary colours1 or secondary tints4 ,the showman gets animated1 and the three balls are sent spinning rapidly from hand to hand3 they seem all to be in the air at once1 blending and dashing about each other until there is no red1 or yellow1 or blue1 no distinct orange1 purple1 or green1 but a thousand indefinite shafts and ripples of colour4 ,is it red1 blue1 green1 orange1 purple1 yellow1 or gems and sparkles of fire8 ,they are only three1 three that are a host1 three that have become brown1 grey1 black1 all sorts of browns1 every description of that subtle and endless grey4 ,can the painter do any better than imitate the street showman with the three colours8 ,start fair1 mix slowly and decidedly1 get animated1 and dash along1 with his entire heart in his work1 some thought in his head1 and his eye steadfastly fixed on nature1 and nature only1 while his fingers run over the keyboard to the music she sets before him4 ,he will not require to trouble himself about much else1 for it will all come out of the mist in very good time1 when he has learned the trick of keeping the three in unity and motion4 ,the child1 when he gets a paint-box1 as a rule1 begins quite right1 although he does it unconsciously4 ,he will paint his picture-book with a red face1 yellow coat1 and blue decorations4 ,most likely you will find him disdain all mixtures1 except perhaps green1 which impresses him as nice--no doubt from its association with the fields1 where he likes to run about and play4 ,the savage1 with his tattooing and war-paints1 does the same exactly1 with the superior significance of his symbols3 every twist of the ornament meaning a grade or a power1 every streak a motive or a threat4 ,his gods are reverenced only as the mementoes or symbols of the unseen or divine1 not because they are stones or sticks1 as we so often misunderstand heathenism4 ,old ,egypt stands to-day1 mighty monument of the grandeur of simplicity3 with its solid works that defy time1 its glaring colours that defy criticism4 ,assyria comes after1 with her purples1 her gold1 and her greater refinements4 ',white1 green1 and blue hangings1 fastened with cords of fine linen and purple to silver rings and pillars of marble3 the beds were of gold and silver1 upon a pavement of red1 and blue1 and white1 and black marble4'#g ,illustration3 ,,an ,,ancient ,,egyptian ,,corridor 7,from a sepia sketch by the ,author7 ,these are ladybird wings that send us fluttering back nearly three thousand years1 to the hanging gardens by the ,tigris1 the broad walls and the open streets where the war-chariots jostled and the broad moon hung like a golden lamp between heaven and earth1 and mingled her silver shafts with the ruddy sparkles of the perfumed torches1 as they shivered and vanished into the darkness of the shadows of the painted boats1 down by the porphyry steps that led from the old palace of the king4 ,is it the sound of the instruments we are listening to8 the voices of the singers8 the tinkle of the silver ornaments round the ankles of the dancers8 the laughter of the drinking guests of ,ahasuerus8--or the snapping and snarling of the jackals over the few spare bones that the last caravan for ,baghdad has left on that earth-mound by the river at ,mosul8 ,egypt stands the queen1 with her ageless pyramids and her sphinxes1 because ,egypt came up first with her first principles in art and science1 to which1 as we gain knowledge and confidence in ourselves1 we must return4 ,the youth grows out of his pinafores and his first paint-boxes1 he gains a partial knowledge of art1 and like us all when only half educated on our subject1 grows arrogant and developes into a very fierce critic4 ,he also becomes a fine customer to the art-colour merchants1 fills his boxes and palette with every conceivable colour that is made1 particularly the more expensive sort2 cadmiums and rose madders are his delight2 he wallows in paint4 ,he has become so very knowing that where poetry may have been able to fire his fancy before1 only paint can now content him4 ,if pre-,raphaelism is the fashion1 he will lay in a set of sables and pick away at little threads like a weaver until he is half blind2 if it is the low-toned school he affects1 then daylight becomes obnoxious1 sunlight abhorrent to him2 he riots in ,november fogs and dismal rainy weather1 grovels in shapeless symphonies1 and the dingy harmonies of the ,dutch4 ,i have tried to like the pre-,raphaelite school1 because the man whose word is considered law beyond dispute has said it is the right thing in true art4 ,i have seen ,holman ,hunt's great picture1 the ',shadow of the ,cross1' and could see in it nothing but hard lines and forced symbols as hard as the lines4 ,in ,millais' picture of ',effie ,deans' ,i saw a fair young girl with a world of hopeless woe in her face that brought tears to my eyes4 ,in ,hunt's ',boy ,christ' ,i saw nothing but china-blue eyes and hard little touches1 hair like bits of wire1 and all devotion worked out of it by the multitude of its pitiful details3 ,i saw time and drawing and infinite work on it1 but nothing else4 ,i never saw the original of the ',light of the ,world1' but ,i have seen engravings from it1 and although five hundred greater men than ,john ,ruskin were to write that it is 'the most perfect instance of expressional purpose with technical power which the world has yet produced1' ,i would hold to my own idea--that1 if it is painted as the ',shadow of the ,cross' is painted1 it is no more than a man dressed in ,eastern costume standing at a door with a lamp in his hand1 a few creepers beside him1 and all worked to death with hard little lines1 without anything exalted about it or wonderful in its composition4#h ,there is a world of false humility and gross want of self--assertion in this weakness of bending down to the opinions of acknowledged authorities or time-honoured superstitions1 particularly in matters to be seen1 as pictures or statuary4 ,the old masters are regarded as infallible1 yet in the exhibition of autotypes from the ,queen's drawings from old masters1 at one time exhibited at the ,museum of ,science and ,art1 ,edinburgh1 ,i saw many samples of bad drawing1 weak handling1 timidity1 slow-dragging invention--all that marked the draughtsmen as faulty mortals in spite of their great names1 and nothing in the whole collection to prove them any greater1 but rather less1 than our modern men1 even although it does approach blasphemy to say this4 ,speaking of low tones1 ,i must confess to a fondness for this fascinating affectation4 ,jozef ,israels is more than nice1 although ,i require the mist which gets into my eyes when ,i try on a pair of spectacles before ,i can see outlines so soft and hazy1 and colours so undecided and sombre1 as his are4 ,corot ,i cannot see to be the prince of landscape painters1 although the critics did call him so1 if the pictures which they were then lauding to the skies are samples of his princely style1 for ,i could see nothing more in them than a lot of dirty scrubbing about with his hog hair--and not too much paint wasted either4 ,to a certain extent this low-toned school seems to have reason on its side1 for when we compare our scale of colours with the scale of nature1 we find how limited we are1 how boundless she is4 ,white is our only semblance to light1 and what a leaden symbol it is when we regard the brightness of our example6 ,black is our deepest dark1 and how shallow it is when we try to look into the depth of the shadows about us6 ,and so it seems but right that1 being so utterly unable to reach the heights or the depths of what we wish to depict1 we ought to send back and keep down every step or key of our board in the same proportion as our lights and our darks are--make our picture1 in fact1 not so much the imitation as the dim reflection that we see in a window sometimes when there is a dark cloth hung behind it1 or in the camera obscura4 ,were ,i comparing styles1 ,i would say that ,turner struck a high note in his scale1 and rippling up lost himself in white4 ,rembrandt struck a low key1 and went out of sight in his blacks4 ,the low-toned school strike a faint half-note1 and playing falsetto1 lose themselves in dingy obscurity at both ends1 never venturing very high or very low4 ,all are right from their own standpoint1 but the ,turner and the ,rembrandt schools are nearest truth1 because they look straight at nature and not on her reflections2 and because1 as our whites are already so far below nature's light1 the sooner we strike our nearest approach1 the sooner we shall arrive at our imitation1 and vice vers4 ,to return1 though1 to our paint3 ,i would fain ask you to regard all beauty as so much mixed colour1 something in the same way that the youthful anatomist sees only a lovely dissection in the arm or face that may be sending some other sentimental youth into poetic fits4 ,i here quote a little from ,john ,ruskin--a man noble and self-sacrificing1 whom ,i can admire1 not blindly1 like a reasonless lover1 but with the qualified reverence of a sensible helpmate4 ,i like to fall in with the fashion when ,i can4 ,in writing on colour as the test of a painter he says3 ',if he can colour1 he is a painter1 though he can do nothing else4444 ,the man who can see all the greys1 and reds1 and purples in a peach will paint the peach rightly round1 and rightly altogether2 but the man who has only studied its roundness may not see its purples and greys1 and if he does not1 will never get it to look like a peach2 so that great power over colour is always a sign of large art intellect3 every other gift may be erroneously cultivated1 but this will guide to all healthy1 natural1 and forcible truth4 ,the student may be led into folly by philosophers' 7the worthy ,professor here holds up unconsciously the red light against his own dangers71 'and into falsehoods by purists1 but he is always safe when he holds the hand of a colourist4' 7',modern ,painters1' vol4 iv4 part v4 chap4 iii47 ,the young man is perfectly right to revel in his many colours as long as he can1 to dabble about with them to his heart's content1 send his shafts of madder and cobalt1 terre verte and siennas1 and all that he can range out in battle-order1 across his canvas4 ,time mellows painters as it does paint1 and where the colour offended them in their lavish youth1 in their riper manhood they see1 beyond this1 many qualities which they never thought of looking for before4 ,i think a painter is about the very worst critic we can set before a picture2 perhaps this may serve as some sort of excuse for the faults of ,ruskin4 ,he will be able to dissect the picture1 tell you how this part has been worked1 and with what1 but he can hardly stand on impartial ground1 the only position for a judge or critic4 ,if his forte is colour1 he must stop dead at this1 and because his sensitive and cultivated taste is offended by some flaw in his particular hobby and firmly fixed habits1 he will get no further1 and see nothing else2 just as a sensitive ear will be offended by a jar in the playing1 and lose in the irritation the whole of the composition and thought4 ,you say1 ,but a picture ought to be perfect4 ,true2 so ought the man who has painted it1 and perhaps would have been had ,eve not eaten the apple4 ,i never saw a perfect action in my life1 far less a perfect picture4 ,and so also with the pre-,raphaelite2 he condemns the bold and broad style1 and the rugged painter sees only paltry crotchet work in the pre-,raphaelite4 ,they are all right1 and so of course it stands to reason that they must be all wrong to each other4#i ,however1 to return to our picture on hand4 ,we have gone over it with our chalk1 charcoal1 or pencil1 and in doing so we must try to be very particular in drawing it thoroughly4 ,first1 we will block in our subject roughly and slightly1 as a sculptor would begin to hack out his stone or shape his clay4 ,it does not make any difference whether it is a landscape or a figure we are aiming at2 we must begin it first with a few marks of distance1 put it into squares1 divide it with straight lines1 measure it with our eye in its broadest sense1 box it up1 and put rigidly from us all temptations at this stage to enter into details4 ,leave all the fine curves until we are sure that we have room for them with our square lines2 a rough touch for a nose1 a mouth1 a branch1 or a house1 it is all the same1 and all that we require for the present2 more will only distract our attention from the duty before us1 which is the exact proportions of the masses1 and the position they hold towards each other4 ,second stage--go over it carefully bit by bit1 use our mental point1 measure it all again with our eye1 compare very minutely this part with some other part1 the breadth of this window or nose with their length1 and the breadth and length of something else2 look at the relative position of two parts1 the angles of imaginary lines that you mentally pass between them1 and so on1 and so on2 in fact1 be our own harshest critics1 and leave not the smallest space unmeasured or unthought of1 previous to our filling it in4 ,next we go into details1 and by degrees walk carefully over our clumsy outsides1 cutting gradually in farther and farther1 until we have lost the square angles without losing the firmness which they have given to us1 and with perfect assurance and ease dash in our beautiful quivers and curves1 not with the harsh1 hard1 clear lines of a copy-book1 but with the soft1 broad1 breathing lines of nervous talent4 ,we are now ready for paint1 so we will begin to set our palette4 ,we start with white1 and put it nearest to the thumb-hole1 as it is what we shall use most2 next we take the yellows1 being nearest the light in colour--the brightest first1 our lemons and chromes1 ,naples yellows1 ochres1 cadmiums1 and raw siennas4 ,you will not need the half of these unless you like4 ,next follow the reds--vermilion1 crimsons1 roses1 light and ,indian reds1 or whatever else you please1 in decreasing scale of brightness to our browns1 and our blues1 cobalts1 ultramarine or permanent1 ,prussian1 indigo1 c41 and so wind up with the darks and blacks4 ,you can paint a picture with three colours1 and you can use all that are in the colour list2 only have a method and reason for everything you do1 and if a good reason1 it will be the proper thing to do4 ,we set our palette thus1 because our tints are thus in harmonious gradations from us2 and also1 if by mistake our brush comes into contact with two colours at once1 it will not do so much damage as it otherwise would if such colours as yellow and blue were placed side by side2 both in such a case would be dirtied past any further service4 ,in setting your palette1 you may use your own discretion1 as ,i have said1 and cram it with all the high-sounding1 high-priced range to be found in the many-leaved colour list-books1 but one thing time and experience alone can teach you--that the greater your art knowledge1 the more limited will be your range of colours and implements4 ,you may begin with the rainbow1 but you will return eventually to your earths2 for what ,i hold to be the great secret in painting1 poetry1 and literature is--simplicity4 ,fine words1 dear colours1 only mystify the student and prove the weakness of the worker4 ,for brushes1 in oils try to acquire the use of hog-hair brushes if you would make effective and vigorous work2 sables and soft brushes are sure to tempt you1 being so much pleasanter to a beginner4 ,but if it is not miniature1 pre-,raphaelite1 or tea-tray painting which you aspire to1 keep from them as long as you can4 ,do not use softeners either1 but rather place your colours firmly1 and separately1 and purely1 so as to produce the effect you desire by knowledge and skill1 and not by trickery4 ,make your lines rather suggestively than literally1 and the larger your brushes the finer your work will be2 for if we look at nature we cannot find lines1 or if there seem lines they are formed by many cross-divisions so minute and filled with gradations that the finest sable-hair is like rope-work beside them4 ,we cannot copy the delicacy of nature1 for we cannot trace it1 therefore we must content ourselves with attempting to give a little of the effect and feeling that we from our distance can trace4 ,this is why1 from my point of view1 pre-,raphaelitism is a clumsy1 abortive imitation of the upper surface1 and not so true a translation of the whole as the painting of the broad and suggestive worker4 ,in water-colour we require to use sables for our washes--that is1 if it is water-colour and not opaque painting we are attempting4 ,now for the subject4 ,there are two ways of approaching it3 one with fear and trembling1 thinking of all the poetry that is in it1 or rather the sham sentiment that we fancy is in ourselves1 and would fain make other people believe to be our own outpourings1 while in reality it is the effect left on our dazzled mind after reading the matchless cloud-and-water poetry to be found in the pages of ',modern ,painters' and other works by the same author4 ,how fondly we are apt to imagine1 as we quote1 that we have seen countless miles of transparent cloud beyond cloud1 vistas opening up as we gaze1 and think so it ought to be painted1 as if mortal hand or manufactured paint could do it1 while all the time we are only miserable waiters serving up in a flashy way the utterly impossible dishes ,ruskin has so finely spiced in his own private kitchen6 ,do you think that ,turner painted half the beauties ,ruskin sees in his pictures1 thought out half the mountains of thought his admirer makes him think1 had a quarter of the intentions the ,professor fathers him with8 ,no6 ,turner was a poet1 and painted1 as ,shakespeare wrote1 on the spur of the moment1 with the same glorious knack of being able to leave alone 'happy flukes'1 which chance and accident gave them1 and this knack1 if not the spirit of genius1 is a very good substitute for it4 ,i do not mean to say that ,turner painted from impulse only4 ,i have not the slightest doubt that he had intentions1 and most carefully planned out all his conceptions1 as ,shakespeare planned out the fabric1 or bones1 of his plays2 but the great bits of detail1 the compact word1 the chance touch1 the sparkle of wit1 the sweep of the hog-hair that made the veins upon the little shell by the sea-shore1 the twist of the palette knife that broke the colours into prismatic ripples on the rounded wave--all that his admirer writes as forethought ,i do not believe4 ,he must have thought on the clouds and waves and sands which he so often watched1 the varying shapes and tints they took1 the mixture of all he had seen sweeping into shore1 and thinking of all this while his deft hand laboured hard to produce the semblance1 so it took shape and grew into being2 or else he worked away and tried other methods and experiments until the results came1 and more wondrous results do come thus by chance than the forced and mechanical labour of mere industry4 ,we spoil a good deal of good work through overwork4 ,if we could but let well alone we should not suffer the bitter reflections and heartburn of a remembered chance cast away4 ,we go on polishing and working1 rounding off this energetic sentence1 touching over that harsh brush-mark1 until we have refined all spirit out of our work1 and finish it off with a smooth surface and nothing else4 ,to quote once more from ,ruskin when he is for a moment sensible2 he speaks of the value of finish in the ',stones of ,venice' thus3 ',never demand an exact finish when it does not lead to a noble end4 ,if you have the thought of a rough or untaught man1 you must have it in a rough and untaught way2 but from an educated man1 who can without effort express his thoughts in an educated way1 take the graceful expression and be thankful1 only get the thought and do not silence the peasant because he cannot speak good grammar1 or until you have taught him his grammar4 ,grammar and refinement are good things both1 only be sure of the better things first4444 ,always look for invention first1 and after that for such execution as will help the invention and as the inventor is capable of1 without painful effort1 and no more2 above all1 demand no refinement of execution where there is no thought1 for that is slaves' work unredeemed4 ,rather choose rough work than smooth work1 so that the practical purpose is answered1 and never imagine there is reason to be proud of anything that may be accomplished by patience and sand-paper6' ,we can desire to read nothing broader or finer than this from any man1 for the man must write or paint roughly who cannot do better through his want of education2 but if the thoughts are there1 it must be well4 ,the man also must write and paint roughly1 no matter what his education has been1 when his thoughts are quicker and fuller than his power of execution1 and it is better to have the rough work and the full thought than the finished work and something lost4 ,but1 no matter whether it be science or art that the man is treating1 ,i would reverse the advice ,ruskin gives in his introduction to ',proserpina1' and tell the man to write it in the language that he and his neighbours are most familiar with1 and not waste his time locking it up in a dead language that only a few can understand4 ,as to taking a month to each page1 if heaven has gifted him with ideas1 he will find this as impossible to do as it will be for the man or woman who have the spirit of men or women1 and not the essence of fools and apes1 to cut the acquaintance who may be in reduced circumstances1 or engaged in honest1 therefore holy1 labour4 ,the other way of coming before nature is the tersely realistic1 that regards the changing glories of the sunset or moonrise with a callous1 critical1 investigating glance1 indulging in no idle visions or fancy images1 but dividing the glories into degrees of colour and gradation4 ,the school of ,shelley sings-- ,when sunset may breathe ,from the lit sea beneath ,its ardours of rest and of love4 ,this cool hand cuts down all the ardours1 and dots them lemon1 orange1 chrome1 rose madder1 vermilion1 raw umber1 and cobalt4 ,and yet we must approach nature with a certain amount of awe and veneration1 if we would be painters and not painting-machines4 ,if we have any sentiment in our composition at all1 we can no more gaze upon the beautiful or grand without a responsive something being stirred within us than we can hope to eat pork chops the last thing at night and escape the nightmare4 ,the dash of the waterfall must produce in us more than the dry estimate of its sparkling colours1 or we are not far removed from the fern that draggles by its edge4 ,a lovely face or graceful form must teach us more than carnation and ochre1 or we deserve to be the hero of ,campbell's melancholy poem ',the ,last ,man4' ,if we do not feel the spirit of the whole while we watch the form1 the colour1 and lights and shades1 we are worse off than the shadowless man1 for we have pawned our souls without redeeming that faithful follower4 ,it may be the spirit and beauty of peachy golden youth1 or the spirit and beauty of gnarled silver age1 that we are watching4 ,we see the lights and the shadows playing about1 the greens1 the purples1 the browns1 the reds1 the yellows1 the whites1 but we feel that there is more than this4 ,we dissect hair1 we see in the dark the rich brown madder shadows with the purple half-lights and blue gleams1 and we know this makes the raven's plume from the right standpoint2 or the golden tress1 with its mixtures of ochre1 green1 and red1 and we thrill at the dusky loveliness that is crouching in the silky masses1 or the angel glory that is hovering round the fair1 and so we drink in all the poetry that we must have to refine and gild our realistic common sense before we can appreciate it enough to paint it4 ,once with a friend ,i watched a glorious sunset1 and as ,i stood setting my two palettes--one1 imagery1 where ,i was spreading out all my mental stock of jewels1 pearls1 and opals for the greys1 rubies1 and cairngorms1 and a great many other precious stones from my castle in ,spain2 with the other palette seeking to snatch from the weak little tubes that intense dun and purple rolling about through the thunder-drift1--seeking to bring down the waves of variation1 the orange and the gold and the green and burning flames subdivided ten thousandfold1 to my rule of three1 seeking to draw down heaven and shut it inside my paint-box1--,i was somewhat amused by hearing my colour-blind friend murmur pensively1 ',red-lead and lamp-black4' ,that settled the whole conundrum1 and ,i passed on4 ,how to paint a picture1 that is the question4 ,although imagination ought to be brought with us when we come to nature1 it should be as our own bicycle under us1 and not like our neighbour's bicycle1 riding over us4 ,we must give the spirit of what we see1 and no more2 for we shall commit a hundred errors if we vainly attempt to give the spirit of the oak while we are painting its bark4 ,of course we know what the oak has done1 we recall all that we have read of ,nelson1 ,collingwood1 and other hearts of oak who have spilt good blood to prove that ',britons never shall be slaves'2 and although1 perhaps1 it ought to give an oak-tree an air of all this as it stands before us1 yet there it stands before us1 full of knots and wrinkles1 with its gnarled limbs flung about it1 and its green moss1 silver lichen1 and amber and purple darting between2 and ,i take it1 this is what our painter has to get into his head and imitate4 ,we cannot see past its bark unless it is torn open1 and then we may not see the bark1 and we must never think of painting what we cannot see4 ,if1 by the help of our poetic taste1 we can convey to the spectator the sentiment we do see about it1 of a hardy1 sturdy1 rugged sentinel that has done duty there before our grandfathers were born1 which goes on in the same impassive way while we lie dead in sleep1 and may go on ever the same when perhaps we make up part of the earth and fungus about its roots1 unless ,god's swift telegram1 the mighty lightning-flash1 or man's paltry axe1 gives it its furlough1--if we can do this1 as well as give an image of the reality1 we have done all we can do--made a noble work and created a poem4 ,never mind what anyone else sees in the subject1 stick resolutely to what your own eyes tell you1 and you must be right4 ,say someone tells you there is a man coming along the road2 you think it does look like a man1 but you only see a splash of mixed colours with a certain sweep about it2 put that in1 and someone else looking at your picture will say1 ',you have made a man4' ,this is the grand trick of landscape figure painting1 for if anyone can see a single line of detail about your figure more than the tree1 or stone1 or hedge beside him1 your figure is a failure and should come out1 for it is spoiling the unity of your picture4 ,so with clouds1 water1 mountains1 trees1 everything created above us1 beneath us1 about us4 ,my harp has only three strings1 and were ,i to finger it for a thousand hours1 to a thousand different tunes1 it would be with the same variations4 ,what paints sunset1 paints sunrise1 midday1 moonlight2 the same colours that sparkle in the bright patch sparkle in the deep shadow1 and the variations of yellow1 red1 and blue are as pronounced and apart in each blade of grass as they are in the white clouds rolling above it1 and as distinct in the dazzling snowdrift as in the burning sunset skies1--there is not an inch without its variety1 but only a variety of three4 ,return as soon as you can to the child with his first paint-box1 the savage in his woods1 grand old ,egypt that must stand for ever2 but bring back all your knowledge1 so that you may know why you painted as you did when you began4 ,thus will you learn humility1 which is only taught by true and great wisdom1 and the charity that has a hundred eyes4 ,we should begin our subject as we first see it4 ,as we enter a room1 the first thing that strikes us is the great masses of light and shadows before us2 objects are all divided thus1 and so we should paint our first stage or working4 ,this is the effect we are securing4 ,afterwards objects proclaim themselves3 they start out of the masses--chairs1 tables1 pictures1 people4 ,that is our second stage or working--the broadest fact of the individuals4 ,thirdly1 we see the details1 ornaments1 patterns1 textures4 ,lastly1 as we get to look more closely1 we see in each shadow a world of colour1 all the sparkles and gems1 and the same in every light4 ,this is our finishing stage1 and may be prolonged as far as we like and can go4 ,with landscape also it is the same4 ,we would paint a tree3 the first thing that strikes us is its general shape--first working4 ,next its great divisions of light and shadow1 when some masses come out and other masses go back1 also a general idea of its prevailing tone4 ,second working--,then1 as we work and watch1 come indications of branches1 the large limbs first1 then the less1 and so on1 until we lose the lines of the smallest branches and can only guess where they have gone to4 ,there are also suggestions of leaves which we know are leaves1 although1 as they lie about in all directions1 they get mixed up into all sorts of shapes1 and come gradually upon us3 and this is the third stage of working4 ,if we paint in the leaves as we know they are shaped1 we must get a stiff and unnatural picture1 because we are not painting what we see1 but what we think should be there2 and if we paint each individual leaf as we would copy one set before us1 or as we see them in ,christmas cards1 we must paint in an abortive1 unnatural1 and exaggerated manner1 because1 as our tree is so greatly smaller than the tree before us1 if each leaf was also in proportion less we could not make them out with the naked eye4 ,how1 then1 ought we to do it8 ,not like a pre-,raphaelite or teatray painter1 but as we see it--broadly and in masses1 doing what we can with our own clumsy fingers and clumsier tools2 and since we cannot get all the details of nature1 best leave them alone with true humility as beyond us1 and do what we can1 and as nearly in proportion as we can4 ,to do this use hog-hair brushes1 stand well back from your picture1 and try to keep the spectator back also4 ,tell him1 like ,salvator ,rosa1 that the smell of paint is not good for him1 or say he will never be able to see the landscape if he pushes himself so amongst the branches and leaves of the tree1 or that it is rude to get so close to a lady's face--anything1 only keep him back the proper distance4 ,if shortsighted1 let him be content with the description of other people about it1 and deplore his own misfortune1 for a picture that is painted to be looked at two inches from the eyes can never be a 'thing of joy4' ,when before nature1 it is strictly proper to adhere as closely to facts as we can1 put into our sketch everything that we can see before us1 and even at our closest following up we shall not get in a hundredth part4 ,true1 the student is none the worse for a little fancy to help him out of the road with any very ungainly object in front of him1 but ,i doubt if he will find a much better substitute than the objection he wishes away4 ,the telegraph-post does its part in the composition of the picture as conscientiously as the lovely silver birch1 and at a place where the birch would be too much4 ,we are searching after the picturesque1 and stop1 caught by something that is fine1 and yet when we dissect it we may find it full of the objections and faults which we have been taught to reverence4 ,shall we alter what nature has done so well1 introduce our poor little rules1 and tailorise the picture until it stands reproachless8 ,rules6 nothing seems to me so forced1 so curbing as this word4 ,we ought not to draw this as it is1 because some of the lines are running counter to what they ought to be4 ,it is a sin against precedent if we put that wall or fence as it at present stands4 ,good taste and the example of the old masters forbid us to put on this colour1 to do that4 ,at every turn we are met by a ticket marked ',trespassers will be prosecuted to the utmost rigour of the law4' ,keep on the beaten track1 or else you must expect to suffer the consequences4 ,i hate all precedents and rules in art1 and my advice would be1 ',put in all that looks well in nature1 and it will be your own bad work if it does not look well in your picture4' ,as to this veneration for the old masters1 were they infallible1 were they more gifted than we are1 had they more advantages for learning art than we have8 ,yes1 one great advantage over us--they had no old masters to annoy them1 only the spirit that ,god gave them to struggle on with1 as we should also have did the world not bid us bow down and worship these time-stained old idols4 ,they were great1 and so may we become when we are dust and ashes1 and time has deified us and stained our pictures to the golden duskiness that is fashionable1 and tradition has distorted our sayings and exalted our prolonged labours into sudden flashes of genius4 ,it is very good practice to copy some pictures when there is something in them that we wish to learn1 yet cannot see how to do from nature4 ,for instance1 you may learn how to glaze and scumble better from a picture than from nature1 because the glazings and scumblings of nature are too subtle for us to follow always so directly4 ,you will also learn how painters of repute managed a certain phase or effect of colour1 subject1 or composition4 ,rubens will liberate you from many a stiffness1 and give you in his own buoyant style the liberty and joyful colouring you may be deficient in4 ,vandyke will teach you refinement and dignity2 ,tintoretto1 richness2 ,michael ,angelo1 the boldness and firmness of handling and drawing1 the severity and squareness needful for majestic grandeur4 ,amongst our own men1 ,i quote ,john ,pettie for a strength and richness that have never been surpassed1 bring what master of long-ago you like to the competition2 ,orchardson for pure and delicate texture2 ,sir ,frederick ,leighton for finish2 ,millais for realism in its best sense2 ,alma-,tadema for imitation and learning2 and a host of other men1 both good and true1 who must improve the mind1 the eye1 and the hand4 ,millais has said that an artist ought to begin as he did1 pre-,raphaelite1 if only to learn the quality of ,job4 ,nature eventually must make him1 as she has made that great realistic master1 broad and strong1 if it is to be1 though a whole world of critics were to chorus against it4 ,speaking of critics1 ,i think we may divide them into two classes--the psychological and the destroying1 or vermin1 species4 ,the first class look at a painting or a book as we ought to look at everything--with the bee spirit1 to suck out all the honey there is in it4 ,they are of equal use to the public and to the worker2 for1 leaving one to see the errors that all man's work has1 they lay the good before the other1 benefiting equally themselves in the instruction they have gained4 ,as for the other class1 do they help the work done1 or that has to be done8 do they add to the pleasure of the spectator1 or instruct the worker by their pertness or sneers8 ,do moths add to the value of clothes8 does mildew improve walls8 does rust assist the brightness of polished steel8 or do white ants strengthen the rafters they bed in8 ,true1 these are all works of nature and creatures of ,god4 ,the decay must be as useful as the life1 or it would not be4 ,but what made critics of this class8 ,from what8 ,for what8 ,discreet copying1 as ,i have said1 is very good2 but there is only one other practice as pernicious as indiscriminate and constant copying1 and that ,i will speak of presently4 ,what is glazing and scumbling8 ,scumbling is going over distance with white or grey1 rubbing it hard and dry1 so as to obscure the parts that stand too prominently out2 it softens harshnesses1 sends back portions1 and does its part in aiding the general harmony of the distance and middle distance4 ,glazing is the use of transparent colours with some sort of medium1 such as madders1 siennas1 browns1 to give richness to the depths1 lower the tone in places needful1 as foregrounds and such like1 that come direct with all their local hues about them2 it brings things forward1 as scumbling sends objects back4 ,tone is the cast of your scale of colour1 the setting of your key1 the tuning of the pitchfork1 to be determined on before you begin your picture1 and remembered all through it2 and it is the forgetting of this at times which stamps the amateur4 ,style4--,of course everyone has his own taste to consult in this1 and what you admire you will1 consciously or not1 imitate1 until nature rectifies it and gives you a style of your own4 ,the artist must fluctuate among several styles1 always following and trying to understand nature1 even while he admires other painters1 until at last the scales fall from his eyes1 and he relies only on the powers given him when he least expected it4 ,a spark of what is to be will show out here and there until the to be has come4 ,that is1 unless when1 in their frantic efforts to be original1 painters hunt heaven and earth for the most startling effect1 subject1 or treatment2 then they become like ,french cooks--continually stirring their minds for new mixtures to catch and astonish the public taste1 spending all their foolish energies in the spicing of old stale thoughts4 ,it may be we admire ,sam ,bough1 with his versatile fancy and vigorous touch2 or ,lockhart1 ,macdonald1 ,fildes1 c41 with their strong1 healthy 'go'2 or ,herdman1 ,faed1 c41 with their sweet touch and poetic minds2 or ,sir ,noel ,paton1 with his exquisite drawing1 radiant colouring1 and originality of conception2 or ,waller ,paton1 with his purple and gold2 or the late lamented ,paul ,chalmers1 who flung everything into the scale against colour and made it weigh them down2 or ,harvey1 who chose the moral thought2 or ,gustave ,dor1 who revels in the image4 ,i could go on naming hosts who have styles distinct by power or affectation1 for it is in the style that we show our affectation1 as we do it in our walking and our talking2 but ,i would only say that if you wish to be natural and great1 think very little upon the style you would take1 and more upon the thought you wish to express2 be earnest in your work1 and by earnestness you will forget your delivery1 and so be both natural and original4 ,and1 after all1 what does it matter whether people say we are like ,so-and-so or not1 if we are doing our very best8 ,we must find the true peace with honour1 and the repose that ever follows honest1 earnest exertions4 ,it is also good practice to draw with the point1 pencil1 or pen as rapidly as possible all that partakes of motion--ships sailing1 engines puffing out the volumes of steam and smoke1 clouds1 water1 waving trees1 and reeds4 ,fill up your books and scraps of paper with all sorts of shorthand notes2 very likely you will not be able to decipher the wild scratchings again1 but they have done their duty while you were scribbling them in by fixing something in your mind4 ,watch closely as you sketch1 and after you get home think it all out and write down as nearly as possible all about it--the colours you think should be used for it1 the shape of it1 the comparative size1 and also1 if you can1 the poetry and emotions it awoke in you4 ,books on painting1 as a rule1 are only confusing to the mind of the novice--filled with words difficult to comprehend1 and of very little use when the conundrum is solved4 ,like recipe and cookery books1 they serve1 after you know your subject without them1 to warn you against what they advise1 also to advertise the many colours you are to flounder amongst for a season4 ,but nature is the best recipe-book3 her problems are as easy to unravel1 and when read1 serve your lifetime4 ,sir ,joshua ,reynolds is very good and sensible on painting1 although ,i cannot answer for his remarks on pictures4 ,john ,ruskin's books are entertaining1 splendidly and carefully prepared inside and outside1 even to the colour of the morocco and calf-skin2 the language as select and carefully weighed as the shade of the edges1 and the title as maturely considered as the material on which it has to be printed4 ,it is a great pleasure to handle one of his books1 or even to see one of the backs on our shelves2 they are like greyhounds amongst rough tykes2 in fact1 ,i have often felt sorry to open them1 the bindings are such masterpieces of thought4 ,when opened the pleasure is not diminished1 although mystification may set in at times4 ,we sail smoothly over page after page1 soothed with the harmony1 exalted with the poetry1 thralled with the exquisite grace1 diction1 and finish2 we can hardly think of stopping to inquire what it is all about1 it is all so delightful1 so ethereal--the work of a great master of the pen4 ,read and moralise1 if you will1 upon such beautiful touches as this3 ',morning breaks as ,i write along those ,coniston ,fells1 and the level mists1 motionless and grey beneath the rose of the moorlands1 veil the lower woods1 and the sleeping village1 and the long lawns by the lake--shore4' ,this passage is only one of many that remind me of splinters from the big diamond that was supposed in olden times to flash out of the head of the toad4 ,copy it if you can with your brush1 for it is very perfect in its word-painting1 and true to mornings ,i have seen in ,cumberland4 ,but when he tells you how to paint1 beware6 for here he is a perfect will-o'-the-wisp1 sparkling out with his lovely lights1 and luring you on1 now over dry land1 now over marsh2 giving at times good advice1 following it up by bad2 telling you practical truths or ethical fallacies4 ,if he was a consistent wrecker1 we should get to know his fires and steer clear of them in time2 if he was all theory1 we should enjoy him as we do other poets2 but he is like a man who has built a fine house with chaste design and perfect decoration3 it looks all that one can desire1 and has only one fault1 but that is a grave one--the rafters and supports are rotten4 ,he may be justly praising the old muddy ,venetian glass1 with its ever-varied though clumsily-finished designs1 as compared with the sameness of our superior quality and finish2 and putting absurdly silly questions into the mouth of his supposed audience1 as if a scavenger who does his work honestly and comports himself uprightly could not be as good a gentleman as the aristocrat who paces by him2 and making out what is done for economy1 and justly so1 to be the result of a false shame1 forgetting the parable of the talents1 or the utility of working the one as well as the five4 ,he may speak of the sanctity of colour1 and go on abusing the coarseness of ,rubens1 or the sensuality of ,titian and ,correggio1 to be perhaps followed up by the information that ,titian and ,tintoretto1 when they looked at a human being1 saw the whole of its nature inside and out1 and painted it so4 ,he may abuse low tones1 and tell us that all which is vile1 and deadly1 and evil is sombre in colour1 although in the same breath he will admit that the tiger-skin is rather pretty1 and that some bright flowers and berries are poisonous1 and also that there have been lovely women not quite all honey1 past and present4 ,he is abusing ,salvator ,rosa1 although comparing him with painters of his time--,i don't know why2 or in his own graceful way changing his tune1 and telling us that all good colour is pensive1 and that it is blasphemy to be gay4 ,he may abuse the past painters of storms and gloom1 to turn with gloating rapture to the tempests and gloom of ,turner4 ,he may remorselessly plunge ,teniers into the bottomless abyss for his degrading subjects1 yet praise ,turner for his wallowing and grovelling amongst the litter of ,covent ,garden2 advocating his slanting steeples as if that were the proper way for steeples to stand1 or reviling some one else for the same thing4 ,how he raves throughout his books on the great man6 and how the great man1 like old ,samuel ,johnson with his ,boswell1 must have laughed1 when not too much mystified or aggravated1 at the high-flown discoveries of his ardent admirer6 ,he may tell us that the chief power of ,rembrandt was his character drawing1 and that he knew nothing of light and shade2 or indulge in such weak and heartless exhibitions of the fop wit as when he replies to ,constable's remark about chiaroscuro3 ',the sacrifice was accepted by the ,fates1 but the prayer denied4 ,his pictures had nothing else1 but they had not chiaroscuro4' ,i think ,i see this great critic leaning back after polishing off this pert1 unfeeling1 and untrue bit of little smartness1 with all the complacence of having written a clever thing2 it is on a par with his dress-coat retort to the ,blackwood critic of ,october1 #ahdc1 about the silver spoon and the orange2 on a par with his intolerable remarks on the pictures of ,whistler--who1 however1 did not improve matters by his pamphlet4 ,he may write about the utter meanness and humiliation of the imitators of woods and marbles1 as if a bit of wood or marble was not of as much importance to the art student and as much a part of nature's graining as the bark outside1 or the blade of grass that engrossed his microscopic eye so completely that he could not see the majesty of the ,alps above him4 ,i can grain a little1 and ,i feel as proud of this accomplishment as ,i do when ,i paint a tree or a mountain something like1 and never felt degradation either in one or the other4 ,he may assume the lofty1 and retire to his immaculate shell when asked his advice on art1 disdaining to give an opinion to a people who dare to tolerate ,frith's ',derby ,day1' and live there with his saints and kings1 or come forth with mighty condescension and tell the nations to hurry up and avail themselves of his priceless services while yet there is time4 ,i admit all his greatness with true humility1 yet ,i think we must allow that before he was born good works were done in art1 and even after the lustre of his presence is withdrawn from amongst us ,i do not despair4 ,i know it is the fashion to quote ,ruskin and ,carlyle4 ,i like them both--,carlyle1 because he is cut out of bigger stuff1 and1 like all colossal work1 rougher in his finish2 but it is jarring to hear at every turn in life1 'as ,ruskin says1' 'as ,carlyle remarks1' when ,solomon has said it all before1 and perhaps many wise sages before him4 ,god has given minds to us as well as to ,carlyle or ,ruskin1 and surely it is better to say in our own way the old truths than recite from books that other people can read as well as ourselves1 if they like1 merely to show how clever1 how ethical1 or how well read we are4 ,read as much as you can1 but think out truths for yourselves4 ,modesty sometimes compels us to state our authority when we dread to be called the author of something not our own2 also there may be times when1 like the use of a foreign word1 it is inevitable--but the less the better1 both for our own selves and our listeners4 ,it is good at times to do a little wholesome penance1 compare our work with that of others1 to try1 for instance1 how our picture looks in comparison with some other picture of the same or a similar subject4 ,modesty will perhaps point out many faults and shortcomings that we could not find out in any other way2 but the most vicious habit in young painters is the perpetual running about each other's studios4 ,to quote the words of ,solomon with a slight alteration1 ,i would say1 ',put not your feet too often into your neighbour's studio1 lest individuality be left outside4' ,we see the effects of this practice in many of the pictures around us every day3 all good work in themselves1 but with so little difference of style that the only surprise is1 the one name is not at the corner of the lot4 ,it is good to exchange ideas at times1 but only at times4 ,on the whole1 ,i am of opinion that originality and individuality are more precious than good workmanship1 but both are best4 ,it is good to be able to copy a tree1 or a stone1 or a wall faithfully and well1 bring out all its variations and time-scars with fidelity2 but it is better to paint a moral and a thought1 even although it is only half expressed1 for the spectators may fill out of their own mines of thought all that you have left unsaid1 although it is best to be able to express it to the last letter4 ,all have different minds1 as they have different tastes and habits4 ,some are literal1 and content with the fairness of the earth2 they are poets and painters of the real4 ,wordsworth is a realistic poet1 ,millais a realistic painter2 others are purely imaginative1 and paint and write about visions and the unseen1 steadfast and serene dreamers of the ideal4 ,shelley and ,coleridge are imaginative poets1 ,william ,blake and ,david ,scott imaginative painters4 ,fancy sways others1 and flings them about1 half on earth1 half in air2 excitement like that of the footlights or champagne others1 such as ,byron and ,gustave ,dor4 ,all are to be admired1 and are admired1 and it becomes a question impossible to answer1 which have the five talents and which have the three4 ,imagination seems to me a very sublime quality1 without much joy or mirth in its composition2 it does not require images to suggest creation--'out of nothing it creates'2 yet ,i dare not say that it is a quality more to be desired than the merry fancy that builds its domes and castles out of the clouds1 or from the rocks and surroundings draws images of other creations2 neither would ,i say that there was less of power or poetry in the mind that keeps strictly to reality and renders the spirit and the being of all about them4 ,they are all great gifts1 to be honoured one as much as another1 but none partaking in that fantastic unfinish and impotency called ,mystery4 ,goethe writes3-- ,pure intellect and earnest thought ,express themselves with little art4 ,and ,i think him right1 for1 though mystery may be in vogue and considered fine1 ,i hold to my theory of ,egypt1 the child1 and simplicity in all things4 ,it is good at times to yield to the inner promptings1 and attempt to illustrate our thoughts1 imaginings1 dreams1 and embody the images raised in our minds when we read a story or listen to a description4 ,the scene rises before us quite distinctly1 vague but vivid in its colouring4 ,we try to seize something special1 and the whole vanishes2 that is our first experience1 but by practice and perseverance you will find the characters come to be less shy1 and at last range themselves to method1 and stay while you are drawing their arms and legs with exemplary patience4 ,it is good to be orthodox when we can in all that we do1 to follow out as far as is consistent with our own sense of manliness the fashions of the day2 but it is not good to enslave ourselves either for fashion1 popularity1 or money4 ,if we cannot do our work consistently1 let us do what we can4 ,if a certain mode of painting is termed proper and 'good colour1' or an affectation of uncertainty or mystery that may look like unfinish1 but in reality requires more work than the apparent finish1 and we desire to please the artists and picture-dealers1 and live as it were for the hour1 we may acquire this affectation1 if it does not cost too much thought2 that must ever rank above all technicality4 ,but it is a matter of choice which ought to be studied most--ourselves1 the public1 or the professors4 ,when a line can be drawn without offence to either1 it is policy to draw it4 ,public opinion is fashion1 and not much to be depended upon4 ,what is abused to-day may be lauded another day4 ,it may be led by one man who constitutes himself the leader1 and he will be followed if enduring enough to place himself in the front1 and brave enough not to be crushed by the sneering and the growling that must assail him for a time4 ,titian's flesh tints were called chalky by the critics of his day4 ,david ,cox could not please anyone1 not even the children2 his pictures got turned out or skied in exhibitions1 he was glad to sell a sketch for a tube of paint2 and we have seen what ,david ,cox's little water-colour daubs sell at now4 ,as with painting1 so with poetry4 ,did ,milton look the poet to ,cromwell that he is to us8 ,the relations of ,robert ,burns thought the kindest action towards him would be to burn his ungodly rubbish4 ,is ,whistler wrong in his mode of expressing himself8 is the natural question that comes up here4 ,i do not know1 although ,i have seen much of his work2 but it seemed to me all right1 only ,ruskin says it is wrong1 and ,i do know that ,ruskin is not always right4 ,but1 whether right or wrong--and he will be both1 as we all are to our different critics with their different tastes--the opinion of one man1 or of ten thousand men1 can neither make him wrong nor right4 ,no man ought to buy a name and grumble afterwards if the picture becomes of less value4 ,even such names as ,raphael ought to weigh as nothing when before their pictures4 ,if the thing is bad in ,raphael1 it is bad in ,whistler2 if it is good in ,raphael1 it could not be bad if it was ,whistler4 ,if a picture is worth #bjjl4 to the man who paid that sum for it1 it can never be worth a farthing less to him afterwards4 ,if a man buy a coat1 a house1 a horse1 or a picture1 he ought to know why he is buying it2 and if it is value in his eyes1 it cannot1 or ought not to1 be made valueless by all the newspapers or critics in the world4 ,and if he has no knowledge on the matter1 no likings1 no opinions1 he ought to depend on some one whom he can trust who has knowledge1 and never alter afterwards2 or he ought to spend his money only on what he has fixed ideas about1 or give it away in the cause of charity1 about which we all1 as human beings1 even the weakest1 have surely some sentiment clinging about us as a forecast of heaven4 ,if he spends his money only for fashion's sake1 he deserves not only to lose it1 but to lose also the respect of every man of sense and purpose1 for he is a fool incurable4 ,we cannot all be educated on every subject1 but we can all tell what pleases us1 and it is our duty to manhood to say so1 and not take the opinion of others against our feelings4 ,for instance1 if we are eating something nice1 is it no longer nice if our neighbour says it is not8 or ought we weakly to take the fashionable dish that we abhor1 and pay ever so much more for it1 with our mouth watering after the cheap dish that we can understand and relish8 ,water-colour painting is the use of transparent colours with the ground or paper serving as our white4 ,the treatment may either be by wash or stippling and hatching4 ,stippling and hatching is the going over our work with dots or crossed lines4 ,like engraving1 its chief merit is the vast labour it costs1 if that is a merit2 yet at times it has to be done where washes fail to bring the effect4 ,opaque or body colour1 like fresco painting1 is the mixing of ,chinese or zinc white with the colours4 ,a little chemistry should be studied in this work1 as some of the other metals do not agree with zinc4 ,the farther we keep two systems apart1 the better and the purer both will be1 although the effect is the main object1 and all other considerations of less consequence4 ,the more we glaze in water-colour1 the more subtle will be our work2 the less we glaze in oil1 the more satisfactory and firmer will be the result4 ,yet1 obey no arbitrary laws2 do whatever brings the conclusion quickest1 and it must be legitimate4 ,if your knife does better than your brush1 use it2 if your fingers1 use them4 ,scratch1 scrape1 rub1 cut1 polish1 shave1 do whatever you think will succeed1 and if it does not1 try some other experiment until it does come up to your wishes4 ,if the colour you have put on is not the one you need1 put its complementary tint beside it and change its character1 or dash it over or about it4 ,have only your object firmly fixed in your mind1 and scruple at nothing in the way of experiment4 ,the more methods you employ1 the nearer you will be to the ever-changing method of nature4 ,i have not touched upon half my points1 and only touched those ,i have gone over4 ,i could go into details about the manner of mixing up the colours1 and how to treat some of the special effects of nature1 but that ,i have already done4#aj ,i am tempted to draw a sunset1 or a storm1 or a calm1 with all their different objects in the background1 middle distance1 and foreground1 dissect them into paint as ,i pass down1 tell you what is sitting in the flank of one cloud and the total change of shadow in the next1 also why it is so1 and must be so according to this rule of three4 ,i should like also to show you the same sportive three nestling in the sun-kissed breast of the same air-billow2 quivering in the blue-grey haze of the far distance2 floating on the glittering ocean1 or diving amongst the deep reflections of the lake2 peeping out of the froth and the heavy curl of the advancing wave2 dashed into pieces on the dulsy sands2 darting about the broad masses of the middle distance2 playing at hide-and-seek amongst the branches1 leaves1 and weeds and rocks of the foreground4 ,the three are everywhere1 and infinite in their sport--two ever subordinate and obedient1 advising1 enhancing1 leading2 one ever acting the monarch1 yet ever being dethroned and supplanted by one of the two counsellors1 to join the other in obedience and then conspiracy1 to leap up1 take the reins1 sink down vanquished1 and all this for ever and for ever4 ,and on ,perspective2 for although ,gainsborough has said that the painter's eye is the best guide1 we must have rules here1 if only that we may forget them discreetly4 ,we must draw our horizontal line1 and be guided by it2 also know where to fix and keep in mind our points of sight1 stand-point1 and dots of distance2 be able to place our vanishing lines1 know where they are going1 and why they are so going4 ,we must also know where to drift our shadows1 and when to trail them2 how long our reflections ought to be1 and why at one time we make them longer than the object1 and why at another time so much shorter4 ,this is all imperative to the art student1 although it may be overdone4 ,the rules are not so hard as some imagine1 and1 like painting1 are best demonstrated in nature4 ,sit down to draw part of a city with two or three streets slanting different directions1 pass lines about from your horizontal line1 until you fix on the right slope1 and you have gleaned all that there is to get practically out of ,perspective4 ,many a good picture is spoiled by the painter 'showing off' his knowledge in this line1 where a little deviation from the stiff law would have redeemed the whole2 just as many a clever speech is often spoiled by the speaker weighing it down with complex and ornate words4 ,and on ,anatomy2 for1 although the classic ,greeks are supposed to be all ignorant on this subject1 it is no excuse for our ignorance2 the science is now established1 and it is our duty to learn it if we would be perfect draughtsmen of the human body and its exertions4 ,gustave ,dor1 through his great knowledge of anatomy1 can take the liberties he does with his figures1 and yet be to a certain extent natural4 ,look at his thousands of figures1 with their countless twists and contortions1 if you desire to know the ease and power the study of anatomy gives to a man4 ,the ,greeks had perfect models4 ,their customs1 exercises1 abstinence and games gave them this advantage over us2 but times have changed3 our climate1 our costumes1 our habits are all against us1 and without the knowledge of bones and muscles we should never discern between the natural and the deformed1 and just picture ,venus rising from the salt foam with a corset-curbed waist or the traces of a badly-set joint6 ,and how should we know what ought to be1 and what ought not to be1 in our model1 if we are ignorant of his or her construction8 ,true1 the ,greek statues are there1 to copy and educate our eyes to the true and lovely2 but how are we to know whether the ,greek statues are perfect1 if we do not know why that lump starts out when the arm or leg is planted so8 ,the study of the ,greek statues is about as long as the study of anatomy1 and not so satisfactory1 but both are best4 ,and now one word on ,exhibitions and ,academies4 ,exhibitions4--,it is good for ourselves to get pictures hung in exhibitions1 independent of the good it does to our pockets1 that is1 when we can4 ,although ,i think the intelligent public do not pay so much heed as to whether your name is in the catalogue or not1 yet the great mass who get all their ideas from the morning news1 and read all the criticism as gospel1 lay a stress upon it4 ,but to see your picture alongside of many1 is to see many of your faults2 and yet only to a certain extent1 for the best pictures for rooms are not always the pictures that look best in exhibitions4 ,they may have qualities too original1 or striking1 or fine for the glare1 and the distance1 and the surroundings4 ,the qualities for exhibition purposes are soberness1 not too much individuality or variety1 qualities that dovetail their single part with other single-part pictures1 so as to make a pleasing harmony of the whole4 ,it is the student's own choice whether he will1 therefore1 sacrifice his idea for a place in the catalogue1 or run the chance of missing that and keeping his ideas4 ,of course when he is famous he may do as he likes1 and the world will say all is perfect that his hand touches4 ,academies must be good when they foster the art youth1 encourage originality1 train his eye and his hand1 and keep active his mind to the true principles of art and the animation of thought2 bad if1 while they train the hand1 they crush out spirit1 originality and thought4 ,illustration3 ,,on ,,the ,,esk ,,river1 ,,tasmania 7,from a photograph by ,major ,aikenhead1 ,launceston7 ,,chapter ,,iv ,,art ,,in ,,its ,,relationship ,,to ,,everyday ,,life ,illustration3 ,i ,,do not suppose many1 amongst even observant people 7unless they take the trouble to investigate the matter specially71 can realise what an important factor art has become to the most trivial object of everyday life1 or how impossible it is for us to do without its aid at every turn4 ,by art ,i mean the embellishment or beautifying of articles of utility or necessity1 and the imitation of nature as far as it is possible for us to copy or translate the beautiful and perfect so lavishly spread about us1 and bring it within the scope of our hourly necessities4 ,as an instinct1 this craving after the beautiful is developed very early in man and woman4 ,the first instinct of the child1 of course1 is for food1 but the second will be for ornament2 it cries for its mother's milk first1 and when satisfied with this craving1 next becomes attracted towards the fringes and buttons of its mother's dress1 or the pendant dangling from the end of its father's watch-chain4 ,to gratify this early taste1 the baby becomes possessor of a gum-stick2 but ,i very much doubt if the baby has yet been born who would be satisfied with a plain1 unadorned bit of stiff indiarubber1 if it can have its choice between this and the attractive carved coral1 with its ornaments of glittering bells4 ,amongst early nations--our own for instance1 which ,i put upon the same level as the aboriginals of ,australia or the natives of ,new ,guinea--we find the same instinct for art and observation of nature3 there is no nation so low or primitive that it does not indulge in ornament4 ,it is also a curious point in natives1 that1 the more primitive they are1 the more refined they are in their taste1 the nearer they are to nature and each other2 it is the half-civilised only who depart from the imitation of what they see about them1 and indulge in eccentricities and extravagances4 ,this directness and simplicity stamp each effort of the child and the savage when they attempt to express their ideas--ideas which are prompted by what they see2 and the same directness and simplicity are the sign-marks on all the most perfect work of the finished artist1 whether he is the designer of pictures1 churches1 pleasure-grounds1 or the costumier who strives to cover the defects of his wealthy patron4 ,talking about clothes and the near affinity between nature and art--even in this minor department ,i remember once the great ,parisian autocrat of costumes1 ,mr4 ,worth1 coming to ,melrose especially to study the ruins of that fine abbey to get ideas for future designs in ladies' dresses4 ,his system is to look at the woman who comes to him for advice in this all-important matter1 see how she walks backwards and forwards1 studying as she does so all her good points and defects2 then1 being a poet in his own line1 he imagines her as the ideal woman1 and1 without troubling himself about her own tastes or inclinations1 he creates a dress in shape and colour which will make her as nearly approaching to his ideal woman as she can be made4 ,this is his great secret and the cause of his success and popularity3 he always strives to work up to his ideal of beauty and the perfection of nature in the most direct and easiest way possible4 ,as proof of this1 a friend of mine once went to him to get a costume4 ,this lady could never get any dress to suit her2 something was for ever amiss with either the tone or shape4 ,nature had not been over kind to her either in form or colour1 and her dressmakers1 as she did herself1 always attired her according to the fashion of the hour1 which1 of course1 not being originated for her specially1 could not be expected to suit her4 ,worth was at last caught in a moment of leisure by this applicant1 who had lingered about the threshold of his palace of fashion for some weary weeks before she could gain her point4 ,the great man looked her over critically1 as one might examine a horse for sale at a fair2 then he made her walk before him twice1 and1 telling her 'that would do1' consigned her to an assistant1 who took her measurements1 her name and address1 and gave her a receipt for her fee of one hundred guineas4 ,a week or so passed1 and then the dreamt-about costume came to hand4 ,as the lady remarked1 ',it was the plainest and shabbiest-looking frock that ever ,i saw1 but when ,i tried it on ,i looked better than ever ,i had done in my life4' ,worth's idea suited this lady because it was fashioned only for her1 but ten chances to one it would not have suited anyone else4 ,why8--because there are no replicas in nature4 ,this is where a ruling fashion is so ridiculous2 it may answer the one who is important enough to bring it into vogue1 but it cannot possibly1 for the reason ,i have stated1 answer anyone else4 ,look along the street at the faces and figures which are constantly hurrying past1 each one different in nose1 eyes1 mouth1 expression1 and gait2 it is wonderful how it can be1 but so it is6 ,look at any park1 you cannot find two oak trees alike1 nor even two blades of grass4 ,it is this variety which makes the world so charming1 and the world's ,maker so worthy of our profoundest adoration2 it is all the perfection of art and limitless design1 before which we may abase ourselves with proud humility as being a portion of this great originality1 and try to imitate some of it with confidence3 for1 depend upon it1 this infinite variety does not stop with outside objects1 but is carried on within to our minds1 thoughts1 and observations4 ,as there are no two objects alike1 so no two onlookers can see the same object exactly in the same way1 or reflect exactly alike2 therefore we must stand apart from all others and be original1 whether we wish to be or not4 ,this is the consolation which ,i would give to young artists who may imagine1 because they are born in the nineteenth century1 that they are born a few centuries too late to make their mark in the world4 ,we are never too late for anything unless we make ourselves too late through sloth or timidity2 as long as we work with an intention we must always move on1 as we were intended to move on4 ,remember this when your hearts are inclined to grow weak1 and you fancy that you are going along too slowly4 ,king ,solomon thought that he knew everything and had been born too late when he wrote ',there is nothing new under the sun1' yet after ,solomon came many others who discovered fresh objects to admire--,shakespeare and ,milton1 and after them ,carlyle and ,ruskin2 and still the busy minds keep turning up fresh and new1 fitting exactly to the day which has been made for them4 ,in ,solomon's day the countless daisies opened their petals to greet the sunbeam and closed them again at nightfall1 each daisy different from all other daisies1 while the sparrows hopped about in all their subtle varieties1 as the daisies and sparrows have continued to come and go down the ages1 and as they must continue while this ever-renovating world lasts1 as fresh1 as perfect1 and as startlingly new as when man first opened his eyes and beheld that wonderful nature of which he was part and portion4 ,i hold that we have all original ideas1 as much as ,solomon or ,shakespeare had1 if we like to use our own minds and our own eyes as they did4 ,we have all our limit1 as they had theirs1 for ,solomon proved that he had reached his limit1 else he would never have written that sentence2 he had seen all that he could comprehend1 and so gave the rest up as vanity and vexation of spirit4 ,job saw more than ,solomon1 for sorrow had opened his eyes and expanded his senses1 drawing him into the heart of nature1 therefore he became a wiser and1 at the end1 a happier man1 dying while still a student of the wonders all around him2 and this is the religion which we must all seek to embrace if we would advance in wisdom4 ,we must begin1 continue1 and end as students1 with our comprehensions growing as we grow older1 never resting in our work or investigations1 ever trying to grasp the lessons set before us1 and to express as far as we are able what we have learnt4 ,these lessons in art are constantly about us in our everyday life4 ,we walk through the forest in summer time1 under the canopy of green arches1 with the upstanding boughs of trees spreading away until they become indistinct in the shadowy distance4 ,what does this suggest1 if not the grand cathedrals with their pillars and arched domes8 and this is what the early ,fathers saw and tried to reproduce in their churches and abbeys4 ,we look up and see the clouds floating above us1 sometimes with shapes like cherubs and angels1 at other times like demons and evil spirits3 so the old painters and poets watched1 and got their ideas of heaven and hell4 ,it is now more than twenty years since ,i first went amongst those people whom we call savages4 ,i mixed amongst the tribes of ,australia1 the ,south ,sea ,islanders1 and the ,maoris4 ,i had no better reason for going at first than a boy's wish to see the world1 when ,i began my wanderings1 but ,i was not long before ,i got a definite purpose1 which has moved me ever since4 ,i had taken lessons in drawing and painting before ,i left home1 otherwise ,i do not think my travels would have been of much service to me4 ,i also had a habit of not only sketching what struck me as peculiar or useful1 but of writing down carefully the descriptions of what ,i saw as ,i went along4 ,at first ,i wrote down the observations at random1 such as1 if ,i saw a sunset ,i would write something like this3 ',sun half only seen1 vermilion growing to glaze of lake1 lower half purple spreading out to dun1 upper space ochre to orange with lemon2 light edges of clouds near the sun1 and shadow sides of warm purple grey2 above1 green back space growing to pearly grey1 with rays shooting up cream-tinted1 and filmy feathery clouds creamy and flesh-coloured4' ,this for the colours2 then ,i would describe the shapes of the cloud-masses from their likeness to something else4 ,sometimes they would look like trees2 then ,i thought what kind of tree they resembled1 or it might be a flying figure1 with a distorted hunchback rushing after it4 ,as ,i followed these fancies it was wonderful what a tragic story that sunset sometimes told me before ,i was done with it4 ,once ,i was staying with a gentleman who added phrenology to his other accomplishments4 ,he asked me if ,i never tried to write poetry1 and ,i said1 ',i had not'2 to which he replied1 ',then try it1 for ,i think you have the gift4' ,i sat down that night and attempted to make rhyme1 but as ,i did not know much about the rules1 and had no subject1 ,i cudgelled my brains for words and rhymes without considering what was my theme1 and therefore ,i failed because ,i had nothing definite to write about4 ,as far as ,i can now remember1 ,i think that my first attempt was a love-poem2 but as ,i had never been in love1 and had no woman to stand before me as a model1 and no experience to serve me for the emotional part1 it was all vague1 and the result was exactly what might have been expected--meaningless words4 ,had ,i contented myself with writing about what ,i saw and knew1 ,i might have made something4 ,and this was what ,i learnt afterwards1 after many failures3 never to take up my brush or pen unless ,i had something definite to do--that is1 never to depend altogether upon inspirations2 have the object first vividly before me1 and then it is not difficult to describe it1 so long as one does not try to improve upon the model1 or go out of the way to write or paint too finely4 ,i discovered1 after a great many failures1 that nature cannot be improved upon1 or even approached very near1 and that the utmost my imagination could do was to put into recognisable1 if faulty1 shape whatever stood before my eyes1 or the feelings which ,i myself experienced--in fact1 ,i learnt that what we call imagination is not the gift of creating things out of chaos1 but rather the remembering of emotions and scenes and real personages1 and that the more vividly ,i could remember1 the better work ,i did4 ,then ,i knew that ,shakespeare's mighty genius lay in his vast powers of observation and in his direct simplicity of expression1 and that the great charm of his characters lay in their reality1 for they were people whom he had met and studied4 ,but ,i did not learn this all at once1 as ,i have said4 ,i had to go through the preliminary stages of vanity and vexation of spirit1 stages when ,i wallowed in paint and ink1 fancying myself heaven-inspired1 and beyond the necessity of using my eyes if ,i desired to do anything fine4 ,it was all very well for sketches to look somewhat like nature and to be particular with them1 but for finished work much more than this must be accomplished4 ,so ,i struggled on spoiling canvases and good paper1 before the age of common sense arrived1 and never valuing the best works of all1 which were my direct notes and sketches from nature4 ,it was the aboriginals of ,australia who put me first upon the right track2 a miserable1 low-caste race they appear to those who see them hanging about the white settlements1 clad in fantastic rags1 the cast-off garments of the white fellow1 and taking1 with the rags1 all the debasing vices of the conquerors1 but a very different race when in their native wilds1 with their mystic institutions and hereditary laws4 ,we are so apt to despise these black fellows1 and to classify them all as savages and benighted heathens1 particularly if we know nothing about them--as we did with the ,indians and ,peruvians1 ,chinese and ,japanese1 before our eyes became opened to their wonderful arts and ancient mysteries1 their sciences1 philosophies1 and spiritualisms4 ,nowadays1 like all people who take extreme views1 we are rushing into the opposite direction1 and adopting1 with blind credulity1 all which we formerly as blindly despised4 ,our markets are crowded with ,eastern and ,japanese wares2 our apartments are becoming ,oriental1 and crammed with those artistic realisations of nightmare monstrosities which the opium-smoking children of the sun delight in4 ,fortunately1 we can purchase specimens of these eccentric artists cheaply1 and1 for the money1 marvellously well done2 yet1 graceful or quaint as these designs may be1 to the art mind they are as dangerous as the opium habit from which they are generated4 ,they are all morbid outcomes of an unwholesome and unnatural taste1 suggestive only of that refinement which is blas of tenderness1 humanity1 or morality1 and which is nearly past all excitements except such as are monstrous and beastly1 the demoralising refinement of decay4 ,artistic8--yes2 we must grant to them the praise of artistic execution2 but this is the whole length which we can go in the matter of praise1 and this is not enough for art to be of real utility to daily life and its hourly obligations4 ,oriental art is pitiless and cruel as a reasonless monster in the lesson which it inculcates--cruel1 fatalistic1 and emotionless1 therefore to us ,westerns enervating and demoralising4 ,the real philosophers and humanitarians of the ,east are contemplators of nature direct1 and they only represent the objects of their veneration by obscure symbols1 never by blasphemous caricatures2 it is the unbelievers of the ,east and the demon-worshippers who give us these nightmare creations1 and who have gone beyond the dreams of ,paradise4 ,no flower-land opens up to them in their periods of opium-stupor2 it is a land of gloomy shadows and dank1 dead leaves1 through which crawl reptiles and noxious insects1 or ghouls loom up grotesque and horrible1 and these weird remembrances they embody in artistic shapes on bronzes1 rare lacquer-work and tapestry1 and send out broadcast to demoralise the world of modern culture4 ,and now let us consider the result of all this siren false art upon our daily lives4 ,insensibly the deadly poison is imbibed in small doses1 until the strength and clearness of daylight look garish to us1 the direct colouring of nature appears too raw1 and we can no longer inhale a full breath of life as it is given to us1 unfettered1 into our vitiated lungs4 ,the faith which was all-sufficient for our ancestors is discarded1 not for atheism1 but for a mysticism infinitely more childish and superstitious than the religion which we superciliously term superstitious4 ,witness such pitiful exhibitions as those impostors1 so-called ',aissouas1' who recently disgraced ,london with their disgusting and fraudulent tricks--such-like flimsy performances as we have been accustomed to see at penny shows at country fairs since our boyhood1 only in the case of these ,eastern shams not half so cleverly executed as the feats done by the ordinary country showman4 ,this is where art has such a resistless influence upon our daily lives1 and why we should be careful to discriminate between the true and the false4 ,false art will make us cruel and remorseless--that is1 the personating and choosing of monstrosities2 and the more artfully they are designed1 the more degraded and callous we must become1 and the more deeply we must sink in our moral perception of what is good and noble in humanity4 ,and while we sink step by step1 the more morbidly vivisecting must we become1 and as we have grown accustomed to the study and contemplation of distortion1 the more distorted will be our views of everyday life3 humanity will represent only a field for the investigation of developed or undeveloped vices and ignoble desires2 there can be no possible room for virtue or lofty aspirations in the life which we take up to vivisect2 in fact1 before we have got half-way through with our cold-blooded1 one-sided investigation1 it is no longer life which we are cutting about1 but a putrid corpse4 ,so much for those who are artistic or literary under these distorted circumstances4 ,the others1 who are not so gifted in intellectual qualities--but who have the same aspirations1 and develop in action as the others do in thought--become by unnatural progression such epicures in horrors as the ,white-chapel monster whom we have come to know as ',jack the ,ripper4' ,true or healthy art is content with the directness of the example which nature sets before it1 the result of which is faith in beauty1 faith in virtue1 and a hopeful toleration of vice4 ,vice to these students is no more the natural aspect of humanity than blight is the natural state of the leaves upon the trees or flowers2 it is a diseased state1 which must be endured1 but may be eradicated4 ,by constantly watching the healthy life they come to comprehend the causes for the unhealthy more quickly than do those who morbidly brood upon the blighted portions only--i4e4 their comprehensions become more vivid1 and their minds more robust1 for our health depends entirely upon the food we feed upon4 ,people may accustom themselves to feed upon poisons1 but if they do1 it is utterly impossible for them ever to live upon anything else or to be able to exist without their daily dose4 ,to come back to my own experience in my search after nature4 ,when mixing among the natives of ,australia ,i got the first revelation of what ,i ought to do4 ,i saw that they had many wise laws1 blending with much that was ugly1 gross1 and superstitious4 ,some of their rites appeared contemptible1 but even these rites perhaps appeared so owing to my own imperfect knowledge of their origin and the secretiveness of the natives themselves regarding them2 yet some of their laws were clear enough and good enough to be adopted by the most civilised races with advantage4 ,their marriage laws and stern strictness regarding consanguinity stand1 with singular force of natural wisdom1 out from a mass of apparently reasonless rites and mysteries4 ,in their wild state the ,australian tribes are a muscular and well-formed race1 considering the privations from want of food and water which they have to undergo at times4 ,this scarcity of food and long intervals between rains have forced them to become nomadic in their habits1 and account naturally for the want of homes or villages and the rudeness of their places of shelter4 ,where people are compelled to shift often1 they do not care to adorn their temporary homes--a few shards of gum-tree bark are good enough to keep the dew from them at nights1 and the sun-rays are never too strong for them during the day4 ,they are accustomed to take long marches and endure hunger and thirst on the way1 so that they have no place for weakly members4 ,if such are born1 they are promptly killed as soon as the fact is discovered4 ,if they become weakly afterwards1 then such are doomed to a life of celibacy1 so that the tribe may not deteriorate4 ,i noticed that their ideas never went beyond what they were accustomed to see constantly about them2 that the origin of their characteristic weapon1 the boomerang1 was the eucalyptus leaf1 that long leaf which turns its thin edge to the light1 and when it falls from the tree circles in its descent as do those formidable implements of defence2 that in their songs and dances they told a tale of nature as they saw it2 and then ,i began to understand that where their strength lay ,i might find mine also1 and so ,i became a realist1 and learnt never to begin a sentence or paint a sketch unless ,i had a definite object1 with its shape1 size1 colouring1 and character vividly before me4 ,then ,i advanced another step in this primitive school of nature4 ,i learnt that these people never wasted words when they wished to express themselves1 and so ,i began to see how much stronger brevity is than ornate and laboured phraseology1 and how much finer an ornament is when standing isolated and in no way disguised by superfluous flourishes2 and then ,i think my education was complete as far as the ,australian aboriginal could instruct me4 ,i very soon found plenty to do1 and never afterwards wanted a subject4 ,i studied the gum-tree1 with its perfect flower1 where the male and female are united from birth1 and those medicinal leaves which look so sparse1 but are so closely put together1 the density of which can only be seen when the hurricane blows them about until they are like our willow-trees at home4 ,i watched the sturdy1 twisted1 gleaming branches1 like great white snakes1 so different from any other branches of trees1 until ,i grew to love them4 7,i remember how an all-wise art editor once objected to one of my representations of a gum-tree because he said that the branches were so serpentine1 and therefore not like the trees which he had been accustomed to see4 ,i might have overlooked his ignorant remark1 but ,i found it difficult to forgive his sending my drawing to another artist1 who took the serpentine appearance out of the branches1 and so made them appear like the trees to which he had been accustomed1 before it was allowed to be seen in print1 and ,i have often wondered what the people accustomed to real gum-trees have said about this ,london-manufactured gum-tree47 ,those wonderful gum-trunks1 with the bark hanging in long strips from them like fluttering rags of brown sails6 ,mighty trees1 some of them rising four hundred feet into the blue-grey sky1 and large enough in girth to make good-sized houses1 yet appearing beside their giant brethren just like ordinary trees1 until we began to measure their circumference--size is so deceptive in this strange and vast sun-bathed land1 ,australia4 ,what a deal ,i have written already about this one tree of ,australia1 in all its many varieties1 and yet ,i feel so much more than ,i can ever express1 either with brush or pen2 it has grown so much a part of myself4 ,what poetry may yet be written over its glory1 as it has been felt and written about the grand old oak of ,england6 ,the gum-tree of ,australia1 with its twisted limbs and tough heart1 as broad-spreading as the glorified tree of the ,druids1 as mighty as the gigantic pine of ,california1 with a character all its own and stamping it alone as a king of trees2 an iron monarch against which the axes of the woodmen break their edges and turn aside2 a beneficent ruler1 for at its foot lie wells of water to quench the thirsty1 and in its leaves the most potent medicine to cure disease4#aa ,how ,i have studied it in the rosy dawn when the hidden sun changed the upper branches to vermilion1 and the crowds of paroquets and cockatoos which it had sheltered all night woke up at the welcome sight of day2 how ,i have watched it in the sun-glare1 with each outline sharply defined1 while the strong-beaked laughing jackass bent1 over a bare1 snowy limb1 and watched keenly amongst the underwood for its victim1 the venomous snake2 and ,i have been often startled by the bird's uncanny burst of mockery1 when1 after darting down and grabbing the snake1 it swiftly soared high in air1 and from a great height dropped the wriggling reptile3 it was then the bird1 misnamed a jackass1 laughed wildly as it watched the snake fall prone to earth and break its back4 ,i have seen it too in the afterglow1 when the gaunt limbs became salmon-tinted with a ghostly gleam over the forest1 where deep shadows were gathering fast2 and in the dazzling moonlight1 when they stood out like great pillars1 row upon row1 mile after mile1 as ,i rode along1 without seemingly a termination1 some with the leaves drooping in black masses1 while in other parts great tracts of country were covered with dead wood1 where the forest fires had passed and shrivelled up their lives1 or the squatter had destroyed them for the sake of his herds2 but dead or alive1 they stand year after year majestic and assertive of their rank as lords1 like solemn sentinels keeping guard over a silent land4 ,what ,i mastered in ,australia ,i carried with me to other lands1 trying to learn what the tattoo markings and tapu laws meant amongst the ,maoris of ,new ,zealand1 the punctilios and ceremonies of the ,south ,sea ,islanders1 and always getting my attention turned back to nature direct when ,i was inclined to wander from this purpose or grow at all self-sufficient or inclined to lean upon my own resources4 ,it was my failures which ever and again proved to me that ,i had no resources of my own to fall back upon1 and that ,i was only wasting my talents when ,i tried to take my eyes from the face of nature2 she had proved herself all-sufficient for every imagination which ,i could ever hope to conceive1 no matter how long ,i lived1 her school the best college1 and herself the only instructress which ,i needed at this advanced stage4 ,it is a glorious experience this spread-out nature college1 which ,i recommend to everyone desirous of being regarded as original2 an ever-varied series of lessons1 the chief charm of which is that each student can only take away a little to call his own1 leaving a full treasury for whoever cares to come after him4 ,copy great masters and read the best authorities2 you will see what they were able to take out of this treasury without diminishing its riches2 but do not borrow or try to wear their jewelry1 for on you they will be second-hand adornments2 besides1 to do so will be as foolish an act on your part as if you were to put on a suit of clothes made for and worn by someone else1 instead of taking the clothes which have been measured and made expressly for yourself4 ,of course you must learn to understand how to choose what is best suited for you1 and for this purpose you must go into strict training1 so as to learn the laws and rules which these masters all had to learn first1 and improve upon as they progressed through the preliminary stages towards that wider school in which no earthly master could guide them4 ,like ',johnny ,ducks' in my story of ',eight ,bells1' ,i left home pretty early to begin my wanderings1 but before ,i left home ,i had gone through a stiff training with different masters2 in fact1 ,i cannot remember the time when ,i began to study drawing and painting1 but it must have been long before ,i began the alphabet1 for ,i can recollect that event very clearly1 with a few of the ordinary incidents connected with it4 ,both my parents were artistic and lovers of literature and art4 ,the love for books had been in both families for generations1 as well as the taste for travelling2 many of my ancestors had been great travellers1 while not a few of them had paid the penalty of their lives for their curiosity to see the world4 ,my father painted mostly in oil-colours1 landscape and figure1 and he had gone through a very careful training under some of the best masters2 my mother painted in water-colours1 and her forte was flowers and fruit2 so that ,i had the benefit of watching them1 and getting trained almost insensibly to myself4 ,i painted my first landscape in oils when ,i was six years old1 a copy of a picture lent to me by my first outside master1 before he sent his own to the exhibition1 and which he allowed me to sell afterwards for two guineas--to me at the time a very large sum4 ,i can remember this picture most vividly1 for the reason that ,i had to do it twice over before my father was satisfied4 ,the first canvas was so badly done and enraged him so much that he broke it over my head as a warning to me to be more careful2 the second attempt must have been better1 for1 although he did not praise it 7he never praised anything ,i did71 yet he did not condemn it1 while one day1 as ,i was sitting under the table unseen1 he brought in a gentleman to look at it1 who said 'it was wonderful4' ,my next master was a ,german designer from ,munich1 who taught me ornamental drawing2 he would not let me touch my paint-box at all while he was present1 but kept me strictly for over three years to charcoal1 pencil1 and cartridge paper4 ,at first it was straight and curved lines only2 next ornaments and friezes in relief2 in my third year he allowed me to draw leaves and blades of grass from nature also in the wintry time the bare trees2 finally1 before he turned me off his hands he made me arrange flowers and shrubs into groups1 drawing them first exactly1 and next turning them into ornamental shapes and designs4 ,after him1 ,i passed through the hands of a portrait-painter1 drawing and shading with charcoal only from the life4 ,then ,i painted the same in monochrome in oils 7,i did not attempt water-colours1 except to do flowers in the wash style which my mother had painted for many years74 ,as a relaxation my father allowed me sometimes to paint pictures in oil from nature4 ,with some of my boy friends1 ,i went out on ,saturdays sketching4 ,we formed a club1 and saved up our pocket-money to reward the best painter1 the umpire being the landscape-painter who had all along been my friend and instructor in landscape-painting4 ,while thus trying to master in practice the ,a ,b ,c of art1 through the long winter nights1 after ,i had learnt my school lessons for next day1 my father made me read all sorts of books on the theory of art in its many branches4 ,he used to mark off portions which he wished to impress upon my memory and make me write them in my exercise-book4 ,in this way ,i copied off the greater part of ,m4 ,chevreul's ',harmony and ,contrast of ,colours1' a very long work indeed4 ,then came the rules of perspective and measurements1 also artistic anatomy4 ,i worked first from ,dr4 ,knox's book and that of ,leonardo da ,vinci4 ,ships had always a great fascination for me1 and ,i used to read and copy from all sorts of books on this subject1 principally shipbuilders' manuals and seamen's navigation guides4 ,my father1 besides his painting1 had also studied many other sciences--geology1 mathematics1 astronomy1 and botany4 ,i fancy his favourite pastime was botany4 ,he saved me twice from being poisoned1 through his knowledge of plants4 ,he used to tell me about the stars and their distances1 and how1 by the aid of mathematics1 he was able to measure space1 and from that ,i began to have1 what has been a passion with me ever since1 a desire to know all about the early nations and how they grew1 with their myths and religions4 ,so my daily life was impregnated with art and science--art chiefly1 into which all the others merge4 ,i may say that ,i was twelve years grinding at the preliminary portions of my art education4 ,it took me nearly eight years to write the twelve parts of my ',life and ,nature ,studies1' after ,i had gone over the world for the first time1 and in this book ,i have tried to write what ,i had learnt during my travels and before them--that is1 about twenty-six years of art study1 and ,i do not think that ,i can advise anyone to attempt to master the principles of art in a shorter space of time4 ,i would divide the time thus3 ,five years to hard outline drawing 7the younger the student begins1 the more facile his hand will grow71 five years to anatomy and the life1 and the rest of the time to the countless difficulties which he will constantly encounter1 and which will give so much pleasure in the conquering4 ,it must be admitted that1 at the first1 straight and curved lines are no more interesting to the art student than are the pot-hooks in the preliminary stages of calligraphy1 but they are both equally necessary for the making of a free and pure draughtsman and writer4 ,by-and-by1 when persevered with1 these lines become a positive pleasure to indulge in2 so much so1 that the veteran artist when he is idling an hour away1 if he has a piece of paper before him1 or with his walking cane1 will unconsciously revert to this early practice1 and draw flowing parallel lines upon the paper or on the sand4 ,what was once a severe task has thus become a relaxation4 ,i would not also insist upon only dry and hard grinding during these preliminary years 7some authorities do71 any more than ,i could expect a man wishing to exercise one muscle to leave all the rest of the body inactive4 ,i would rather advise students to exercise all their faculties as well--colours1 gradation1 outside sketching from nature1 copying in galleries and from the life2 only never let them forget that this is the one muscle which they must exercise regularly and without intermission1 for it is the all-important factor of their future lives4 ,everything helps art1 as art enters into everything3 music1 poetry1 science1 history1 romance2 in every walk of life which we may enter upon1 it must be ennobled by art1 while the draughtsman has a decided advantage over the man who cannot draw4 ,are you a gardener8 ,to be a master of the craft you must learn the laws of form1 colours1 arrangement1 and symmetry4 ,a tailor8 ,if you can draw well you will become a cutter-out4 ,in fact1 ,i do not know the profession or trade where it does not enter into and advantage the man who has it to command4 ,all this it does in its practical1 money-making1 worldly side1 which is to me the under-side of art2 for1 after all1 money-making1 although a very useful accomplishment as far as the world goes1 is not a very noble or high gift1 excepting for the power which it gives to the lucky possessor to do good to his less fortunate fellow-creatures4 ,where art comes in and fulfils its highest mission is the almost limitless range which it imparts to the votary of intellectual pleasure and ethic enjoyments4 ,we are all born with eyes and senses of taste1 smell1 and sight1 c41 it is true--that is1 all healthy beings are so blessed--but it is art which takes the grosser films from these senses and renders them acute1 so that each pleasure may be multiplied a thousandfold4 ,the ears can distinguish sounds as they are given to us4 ,art makes them appreciate music4 ,the eyes can see hills and valleys4 ,art makes them take exquisite pleasure in forms and colours1 a keener appreciation in all which comes within their range4 ,it is the education and refinement of all the five material senses4 ,but it also passes these outer gates1 and impregnates the soul until the imprisoned ,psyche can burst from her fetters and spread out her gossamer wings to the warmth and golden light of the ,love-world4 ,whoever is once really touched by the purifying kiss of art can no more go back to the fog-land of debased desires or commonplace than can the butterfly return to her caterpillar state of crawling4 ,he must soar over the heads of the grubs1 joyous and free1 basking all the days of his life in the sunlight of sensitive impressions4 ,pity claims him as her favourite child1 and ,charity1 the divine1 breathes upon him for ever with her fragrant1 life-giving breath4 ,illustration ,,chapter ,v ,,on ,,picture ,,lighting ,illustration3 ,e,,very art-worker1 whether his materials be palette and brushes or camera and dry-plates1 must feel the greatest interest in the subject with which we have now to deal4 ,lighting is the art of placing the sitter or choosing the landscape under the most favourable aspects for effect4 ,from this we are able to grasp the form in all its firmness1 and see the finest play of colour1 or1 if ignorant1 embody only a disjointed object1 apparently badly drawn because it is badly lighted1 with the finest passages of colour1 and all the poetry and pathos of our intentions lost through lack of a little consideration4 ,some painters1 in breaking from the ,academy rules1 show their independence and immature audacity by revealing to the public ugly slant-laws and unpoetic phases of realism2 but with those who discard knowledge for a purpose we have at present nothing to do1 our task being to speak about a few of the necessary lines of action1 and to prove their utility by the effects as seen in nature every day and in the works of those men who have left a halo round their names by their faithful adherence to the laws and truthful translations of the revelations of nature2 for the great men of the past and present are those who grew strong by looking on the face of this divine mother1 whilst the little men1 who are forgotten or may be passing into oblivion1 are those who were mighty in their own conceit1 who depended only on themselves1 and hearkened weakly to the chirruping of flatterers4 ,this point ,i wish to place before you rigidly1 the unflinching adherence to nature1 for it is a much wiser thing to risk forgetfulness by the faithful rendering of commonplace effects and forms than to lose yourselves altogether1 seeking after a beauty that is not of heaven or earth4 ,in the first case you may be passed over without comment1 yet you know that you have used the one talent bestowed upon you1 and if so1 you cannot die altogether unknown2 but in the other case you will only startle a crowd1 as the fiery meteor may startle1 to drop out of sight without a trace1 excepting1 it may be1 the trace of a stain4 ,in light and shade there are what we may term phenomenal laws1 as rigid in their demands as those rules which can be regulated by measurement and proportion1 and which the artist ought to observe as closely as he may do the more ordinary or everyday phases of lighting2 for example1 a fly darting suddenly from the deep shadow into the strong light will in the first startled glance assume the proportions of a crow4 ,in a picture of the ',tercentenary ,students' ,torchlight ,procession of ,edinburgh1 #ahhd1' ,i intentionally made the horses and portions of the crowd unduly large1 on the same principle as the exaggeration of the fly4 ,my reasons for doing so were just and strictly according to the reality of a momentary effect2 ,i state my reasons in order to show you that ,i was right in doing so1 and also because ,i dare say this may be one of the objections to my treatment of this particular subject4 ,i take up the position of a spectator whose pupils have been dilated by the semi-darkness1 and who1 with imagination active1 is suddenly startled by the flaring and irregular flashing of the waving torches2 shadows dart up to colossal proportions1 also prominent objects1 such as the mounted police1 and it is only by means of this distortion of size that ,i have been able to give motion to the crowd1 along with the weirdness of such an effect4 ,i would ask all who have seen a torchlight procession to recall the sensation1 as closely as they can1 when the first burst of torchlight came upon them1 for that is the moment ,i have attempted to fix upon my canvas2 and those who have not seen a large crowd under these conditions may imagine what it would be like by the aid of fire or torchlights which they have seen at other times4 ,i would ask you to exercise the faculties of memory or imagination while ,i give you a brief description of the emotions it roused in my mind as one of the many thousand spectators1 and the effect it had upon my seeing faculties1 which will enable you to comprehend my motives for working as ,i did1 preferring the strict reality of the instantaneous phase or impression to the actuality of the known form4 7,this ,i give you1 not as an apology or explanation for my picture1 but as the nearest illustration ,i can think about1 at present1 of one of the phenomenal laws of lighting47 ,we were standing upon a house roof1 looking over the city4 ,right and left lay ,princes ,street1 with the ,mound at our feet1 and ,scott's ,monument in the middle distance4 ,most of the time we were in darkness1 with the exception of one or two straggling candles at windows here and there1 at wide intervals4 ,a mellow glow at the south end of the ,north ,bridge1 a blue light behind the ,monument1 an occasional rocket fizzing from ,calton ,hill1 also faintly illumined with white and blue fire1 into the umber-tinted darkness of that starless1 cloud-bulging sky1 and the alternating glaring from ,hanover ,street of rose-coloured1 white1 and green lights1 which dyed the upturned faces of the crowd and the columns of the ,institution in a broad line with the scarlet or emerald colour of the fire then burning1 for a few pulsating moments of eye-nerve-straining4 ,then fell a deeper wave of darkness as the light passed from us1 rushing over the heaving masses below1 whence rose up that sympathetic thrilling sound which ever grips and holds the hearts of a crowd like one heart1 and over the houses1 with their lights dashed out for a moment by the passing away of that more intense light1 all preparing me for the fantastic sight we were awaiting4 ,then increased the murmuring louder in its hoarseness with the sound of many feet trampling1 and as we looked towards the ,north ,bridge1 where the lamp-lights showed faintly1 the yellow glare of the advancing torches gilded the sides of the opposite shops1 while the houses on this side became more jetty in their intervening blackness1 and in another moment they were blazing over the parapet of the bridge with a motion like the walking of a centipede of fire2 and so on1 with the slow appearance which distance always gives to all rapid motion1 the procession crossed the bridge1 hiding behind the shops and houses between the bridge and ,princes ,street1 reappearing again by the ,post ,office1 gliding along to ,calton ,hill2 then they paused for a moment1 turned round and came towards us1 foreshortened1 but growing vaster as they neared1 until1 with a sudden burst1 they were rolling along beneath us1 a heaving mass of upturned faces1 crimson-tinted1 with a river of yellow light rolling along the centre1 white flames with orange terminations and wreaths of blurring rose and purple smoke1 coats reversed1 shirt sleeves or bare arms waving about the torch-sticks1 smut-grimed faces1 more like sweeps than students1 with here and there a colossal blue-vestured guardian angel of order bestriding an exaggerated horse4 ,this is how it appeared to me and how ,i treated my picture--as ,i conceived it ought to be treated2 not as ,i knew the men and horses to be1 men and horses1 but like the perturbed legions of spectres they for the moment became3 ghosts of giants and dwarfs1 and other strange forms1 like those extinct monsters of the past1 all whirling madly past me1 a vision of passion and flame crossing a chaos of darkness2 an invasion of demons1 unreal1 yet fascinating--a nightmare of glittering phantasmagoria of light and shadow1 blending colour with intense blackness4 ,in this illustration ,i have given you the two most direct specimens of lighting a picture that ,i can think of2 in the one portion you have the light coming from behind and making the objects stand out dark1 as in sunrises1 sunsets1 moonlights1 or artificial lights behind figures2 in the other portion you have the light thrown into the picture1 as from the spectator1 or in open daylight1 sunshine1 or lamp-light effects1 when the light is in front1 and shadows fall behind or from the side4 ,i have divided both effects1 as equally as they can be divided1 into light and shadow1 the light occupying an equal space with the dark4 ,these are by no means the most satisfactory methods of dividing a picture1 as they are apt to be mannered and fixed2 what ,i would rather advise is1 to allow either shadow or light to predominate--shadow1 if force is required2 light1 if air and delicacy are the aims you wish to strive for4 ,yet1 as they contain within them the primal divisions of all lighting1 they are the most appropriate for my present purpose4 ,in both effects the treatment is extremely simple1 yet in the one1 when the light comes from behind1 simplicity and directness are the more strictly necessary2 indeed1 in painting a subject with the light from the back1 the energy of the painter should principally be directed to the gradation of the shadows from misty distance to direct foreground1 having as few lights as can be dispensed with for the sake of form4 ,in the other1 the time of day must be considered with the direction of the light1 so that it may pass directly and consistently throughout all parts of the picture4 99 99 99 99 99 ,illustration3 ,a ,,new ,,guinea ,,village 7,a study of lighting from behind7 ,there is one strict rule ,i would have you bear in mind when sketching outside2 remember that the whole of your picture only represents a second of time1 the flapping of a drop-shutter over an instantaneous plate4 ,it will never be like nature if the light upon one part falls half an hour before the light falls on another portion2 so in planning out the dispositions of your light you must do as the photographic camera does4 ,fix one second upon the plate of your memory all over the scene1 and try to work up to this second4 ,the mechanical worker1 who thinks he is a much more conscientious artist and lover of nature than the impressionist1 because he sits down with his palette and canvas to his easel before nature six or ten hours at a stretch1 is much more unfaithful1 even to the image he so patiently tries to copy1 than the impressionist1 who1 glancing rapidly and comprehensively round1 makes a few swift notes1 catches the spirit of the effect1 and depends upon his memory1 or a faithful photograph of his image1 for his detail afterwards4 ,we may blink at this as much as we choose1 yet pre-,raphaelitism must come to its proper place in good time1 and be shut in with the antique casts of the schoolroom1 with the young men and women student days1 shut in along with their cross-hatchings and point-stipplings1 to be laid carefully in their boxes along with their gold1 silver1 and bronze medals1 and other school prizes1 when they come out to face flesh and blood1 broad daylight1 and the world that will not wait upon the crochet-meshes of meaningless patience4 ,i would not have a painter work a single line without having a direct meaning for that line--not only a direct meaning1 but a very potent intention1 which cannot be laid aside without injuring all the other parts of the composition2 so in lighting1 ,i wish to impress upon all the necessity for the strictest economy in the placing of the lights and shadows2 too much protestation will ever weaken an assurance1 so also too many lights will destroy the effect of light4 ,the other day ,i passed along a road when the sun was shining1 a broad daylighty forenoon sun-effect1 and yet that stretch of road only received the full force of it on one portion2 silver-grey it spread from my feet into distance2 in mid-distance it took the gleam of quicksilver upon it1 growing blue-grey as it receded1 and fawn-coloured as it neared me1 darkening with the ruts and markings of the foreground--detail always produces darkness unless the light shines full and nearly upon it1 and then it will be full of acute shadow and strong light4 99 99 99 99 99 ,let us now divide our present subject1 as ,burnet has done1 into five parts--light1 half-light1 middle-tint1 half-dark1 and dark4 ,he tells us that1 ',when a picture is chiefly composed of light and half-light1 the dark will have more force and point1 but without the help of strong colour to give it solidity it will be apt to look feeble2 and when a picture is composed mainly of dark and half-dark1 the lights will be more brilliant1 but they will be apt to look spotty for want of half-light to spread and connect them1 and the piece be in danger of becoming black and heavy2 and when a picture is composed chiefly of middle-tint1 the dark and light portions have a more equal chance of coming into notice1 but the general effect is in danger of being common and insipid4 ',light and shade are capable of producing many results1 but the three principal are relief1 harmony1 and breadth4 ,by the first the artist is enabled to give his works the distinctness and solidity of nature1 the second is the result of a union and consent of one part with another1 and the third1 a general breadth1 is the necessary attendant on extent and magnitude4 ,a judicious management of these three properties is to be found in the best pictures of the ,italian1 ,venetian1 and ,flemish schools1 and ought to employ the most attentive examination of the student1 for by giving too much relief1 he will produce a dry1 hard effect2 by too much softness and blending of the parts1 woolliness and insipidity2 and in a desire to preserve a breadth of effect1 he may produce flatness4 ',relief is most necessary in large works1 as their being seen from a greater distance than easel pictures prevents them looking harsh or cutting1 and gives them that sharpness and clearness of effect so necessary to counteract heaviness4 ',not only the works of ,raphael and those of the ,italian school possess this quality1 but we find it in the greatest perfection in the pictures of ,paulo ,veronese and ,tintoretto2 and even the larger works of ,titian and ,correggio have a flatness and precision which we look for in vain in the succeeding school of ,caracci and their disciples1 ,guido excepted4 ',harmony1 or a union of the different parts of a composition1 depends upon the intermediate parts serving as a link or chain1 either by conveying a sensation of the same colours with those in immediate contact1 or by neutralising and breaking down the harsh asperities of the two extremes1 and thus producing a connection or agreement4 ,breadth of effect is only to be produced by a great extent of light or shade pervading the picture4 ,if an open daylight appearance is intended1 such as we see in ,cuyp1 c41 it will be best produced by leaving out part of the middle tint1 and allowing a greater spread of light and half-light2 this will also give the darks the relative force which they possess in nature4 ,if a breadth of shadow is required1 such as we find in ,rembrandt1 c41 the picture ought to be made up of middle tint and half-dark4 ,in the one treatment the dark ought to tell sharp and cutting1 which is the characteristic of sturdy daylight2 in the other1 the light ought to appear powerful and brilliant1 enveloped in masses of obscurity4'#ab ,burnet1 in his treatise1 gives also examples of light and shade taken from the different masters4 ,light coming from the centre in a bright spot or focus1 with darkness surrounding it1 as in some of the ,dutch pictures1 where the light comes through a window1 from a bright fire1 a lamp1 or a candle1 the effect will be a splash of white upon a ground of dark grey and black2 light coming from behind1 where the effect is open air with the ground light and the dark work starting out4 ,light falling diagonally1 almost equally divided1 the light portion with the dark4 ,light striking into the picture1 and falling upon the most prominent object1 if in a room1 the effect will be dark background2 if outside1 gloomy skies1 as in autumn1 winter1 or storm effects4 ,in landscape1 this effect is apt to produce solemnity1 weirdness1 or grandeur2 if in a room1 the sombre yet rich depth of ,rembrandt4#ac ,light falling perpendicularly and horizontally1 as in doorways and narrow passages1 where the light comes in with difficulty4 ,light striking across the picture horizontally1 as in sunrises1 when the ground is in shadow4 ,light striking sharply on one side1 as when a lantern picture is thrown obliquely against a wall1 making the nearest edge sharp against a deep dark1 and drifting into shadow by degrees1 thus founding the principles of light and shadow4 ,light-acute1 half-light1 middle-tint1 dark-acute1 half-dark1 and middle-tint4 ,burnet gives a great number of examples to prove the justice of his theory1 which to give here would only be a loss of time1 as they repeat those different orders of lighting1 yet ,i may with benefit quote the wise advice of ,rubens to his students1 where he says1 ',begin by painting in your shadows lightly1 taking care that no white is suffered to glide into them1 for it is the poison of a picture except in the lights2 if even your shadows are corrupted by the introduction of this baneful colour1 your tones will no longer be warm and transparent1 but heavy and leady4 ,it is not the same in the lights1 they may be loaded with colour as much as you think proper4' ,a sheet of white paper or a clean piece of primed canvas will give us a good idea of the value of shadow3 make a stain upon any portion of its surface1 say two shades deeper grey than the canvas1 and you have the effect of light and half-tint4 ,in open-air effects be sparing of your darks1 so that strength and force may be the consequence4 ,a sheet of grey tone paper is about the best medium to impress upon you the value of tone4 ,make a mark with white chalk and a few darks1 and the ground will give all the other qualifying powers needful2 the fewer markings you make the more strength you must get in your effect4 ,in planning your picture1 your first care1 after the form has been seen to1 is to ascertain where the lights are to come from1 and upon what they are likely to fall2 nature is our best guide in this1 yet nature must be followed with great caution1 owing1 as ,i have said before1 to the rapidity of her changes2 also the superiority of light over white1 and shadow under black2 we see1 for example1 degrees of light without shadow1 and degrees of shadow after the greatest depth of darkness has been attained1 and these we can no more follow than we can follow the separate blade-markings on a grass-field2 as in the one case so in the other1 we must suit ourselves to our limited means and simplify the whole matter1 gather our lights into a narrower and more concentrated focus1 and depend upon the half-tints and reflections for the greater part of our picture4 ,if we see a dozen ripples of light1 be content with the capture of one light1 and let the other eleven become half-lights or vanish altogether2 so shall we secure force4 ,devote our skill to those half-tones which in reality mean the labour1 pride1 and test of the painter1 even although it is the high lights and deep darks that finish the picture4 ,as ,i have said1 there are only about half a dozen ways of lighting up a picture--eight at the most--and all the pictures in the world1 when painted scientifically1 work upon those eight direct or combination arrangements1 as in composition the varieties turn upon two primary laws1 angular and circular arrangements1 and in colours upon three colours1 and it is in the strict observance of those scientific ground lines that the entire success of our design or picture depends2 but1 above all1 the whole secret of scientific and artistic success lies in the extreme singleness of our aim2 we must not confuse or combine two opposite laws in one composition1 or else the blending will end either in utter failure1 or in a doubtful success which will not be worth the trouble and labour expended4 ,illustration ,,chapter ,,vi ,,ships3 ,,ancient ,,and ,,modern ,illustration3 ,i,t may be that ,i am prejudiced by love in favour of the sea and the burden which it bears upon its bosom1 but to my mind1 man has only been able once to compete successfully with the designs of nature1 and that was in his ship-building4 ,when he completed those masterpieces which helped to make ,nelson and ,england famous1 he reached the apex of his attempts to rival nature--indeed1 artistically speaking1 he eclipsed nature's most picturesque effects when he put out such beautiful and perfect creations as those which sailed into ,trafalgar1 after which he proved his mortality by becoming commonplace2 while nature1 the calm and unimpassioned1 continued her work of beauty and devastation unconcerned1 permitting him to blot her plains with his mastless ironclad monstrosities1 until her hour of retaliation arrived4 ,look at his cities1 houses1 churches1 palaces1 and castles in their newness1 and you behold objects on the landscape without which it would be more complete2 nor until ,time has laid his artistic touch upon them--painting them over with delicious grey tones and rusty stains2 dismantling doorways and windows1 causing a rent here and a crumbling there1 like arabesque work of an old-world character2 putting the same vividly fantastic faces and figures upon the once smoothly masoned block that he cuts out on the cliff-face1 and so harmonising the uncouth evenness with the grandly mosaicked boulder2 festooning bare and gaunt spaces with wreaths of ivy1 clustering ferns1 and gnarled branches1 and generally qualifying the russet shades with fresh patches of moss or silver glistenings of lichens--do the crumbling castle and deserted cottage begin to take their places as items in the unity and harmony of general creation4 ,but the ships of ,nelson's and ,collingwood's period ,time cannot add to or improve2 their newness and freshness only help the perfection of their grace and loveliness2 from the moment they glided between the greased slips of the building-yard to the solemn hour when they settled down to their last repose1 they were objects of interest and beauty4 ,see them riding on the smooth waters and repeating themselves from the tapering top-masts with the fairy mesh-work of cordage1 like a forest of graceful trees in the winter-time1 to their massive hulls1 all gilt-work1 colour and ornament1 animate with latent strength and active grace2 see them parting the curling billows with the snow-white sails bellied out1 as they rush jocundly on their journey to triumph or to death1 looking like winged angels in the sun-filled air3 it was this appearance of life and joy which raised man at that period from the imitator to the original creator1 and so for the moment lifted him out of himself1 and beyond still nature2 there is nothing else resembling a full-rigged line-of-battle frigate on the surface of the earth4 ,illustration3 ,ship4of4the4line4#ahae4 ,see them sweeping into battle so stately and confident2 the sentiment of fear or indecision cannot find a lodgment on one of their orderly yards as they swing round so defiantly2 when they advance it is with calm pride in their conscious power1 when they retreat it appears only as if to test their speed against the sailing powers of their chasers2 in the hour of action how imposingly they gather up the clouds of white smoke1 like the goddess ,juno2 and when wounded1 how grandly they droop with their broken wings1 enduring the buffets of the tempest with majestic protest1 or settling down on the quicksand with the calmness of martyrs4 ,there is something mean-looking about even ,st4 ,paul's or ,westminster ,abbey if we compare them with the ,alps1 but the ship cannot look contemptible in any position when upon her own element1 the ocean4 ,the earliest vessel on record is the ,ark1 which was about eighty-eight feet less in length than our ',great ,eastern1' thirteen feet less in breadth of deck1 and about the same height from keel to deck4 ,history does not enlighten us as to its exact shape1 excepting that it had three decks1 and we are accustomed to depict it with sloping roof and mastless4 ,yet at the time it was built the inhabitants of the earth had advanced to a high state of civilisation and wicked inventions of violence and luxury1 so that we must suppose they went down to the sea and to war with each other in great ships for ,noah to have worked out this monster on scientific principles1 otherwise he could not have balanced it from theory only4 ,when it first began to float1 he would require a rudder in order to keep it clear of the promontories which were as yet uncovered2 therefore1 although it is not mentioned1 we naturally suppose that it was provided with steering gear4 ,that he built it on the edge of a gopher-wood forest is also a reasonable conjecture1 and on a flat1 because of the unnecessary labour which it would have entailed to drag so much wood up to a mountain-top2 therefore1 although the builder and owner had no definite destination1 he would require sails to carry him along past the obstructions1 otherwise his steering gear would have been practically useless1 and he would have been wrecked at the onset of his voyage4 ,taking all these matters into consideration1 ,i have come to the conclusion that the ancient ,ark was not the clumsy floating shed generally depicted1 but that it sailed away from the land of the wicked giants to its lonely destination1 ,mount ,ararat1 something after the fashion that ,i have pictured it1 leaving the highly ornamented but deckless galleys of the doomed races to fill up and scuttle4 ,like the building of the tower of ,babel1 that damp voyage must have had a demoralising effect upon ,noah and his sons1 because after landing we hear no more about ship-building until such times as the merchants of ,tyre and ,sidon began to navigate the world4 ,the ,egyptians had boats with masts and sails for river traffic1 as we sometimes see depicted on their monuments and carvings1 straight-built1 decked boats with slanting prows and sterns1 flat-bottomed1 and with square cabins raised up in the centre of the decks2 these were row-boats generally1 and used mostly to carry mummies and mourners to the city of the dead from the living quarters1 and for the transporting of cargo up the ,nile4 ,they had no war-vessels in ancient ,egypt1 yet some of their pleasure and state barges1 although exceedingly stiff and formal in outline1 were richly decorated and gaily bedizened1 as were also their solid square houses and walls4 ,cleopatra's barge was a blending of the ,greek galley and the orthodox ,nile boat4 ,indeed1 it is very difficult at the present time to realise the banks of the ,nile in the days of the ,pharaohs1 when on the one side of the river lay the palaces of the princes and nobility1 and on the other lay the city of the departed1 those vast buildings and high walls1 emblazoned with painted figures of heroic actions1 so that we may comprehend why the artists preferred flat surfaces to ornate walls2 the broad steps leading to the reedy and lily-lined waters1 and those gondola-like boats and gilded barges lying anchored beside every wharf1 with the dazzling sun laving over the flatness of the land1 and grateful shadows cast along every side street or covered mart4 ,egypt suited this style of architecture and that description of shipping exactly2 afterwards1 when the ,greeks came with their rounded hulls1 crowned prows1 and general lightness1 traders of silks and purple cloths1 the character of the country changed1 and incongruities occurred which required the hardy ,romans to correct4 ,when the ornate galleys of ,alexander covered ,father ,nile1 ,egypt lost her air of everlasting repose2 but when the shield-lined galleys of ,rome swept in1 all became right again--the rightness of the castle which has been dismantled2 the paint on the walls became dingy1 the slime encrusted the granite wharf-posts1 and ,egypt settled down to her mystical decline4 ,at the great battle of ,salamis1 men had learnt to build war-vessels of great utility4 ,the wily ,greeks knew the value of small compact ships with strong sharp prows and swift-sailing qualities1 because they had become a race of hardy pirates1 whereas the voluptuous ,persians1 studying pomp and show1 as did the ,spanish later on1 sent out an armada of mighty ships1 great floating castles1 which towered over the waves and were difficult to manage2 so the agile ,greeks darted in amongst the ponderous giants1 and cut them up as our own sea-hero ,drake did with the ,dons4 ,it must have been a fine sight from the hill-top where ,xerxes watched the defeat of his armada1 with the combat clear to the view and unobscured by smoke1 those mighty hulls lying helpless on the waves with their purple sails1 and the dauntless ,greeks rushing down upon them1 while the blood-red sun went down upon the hapless scene of destruction4 ,illustration3 ,a ,viking ,boat ,the ,romans took their cue from the ,greeks1 and built small ships1 vessels that walked the waters like centipedes2 an ugly but ominous sight they must have appeared in their snake-like approach upon the enemy1 dangerous in their steady utility when drawing over quiet waters1 but almost useless in a storm4 ,after this time ships returned greatly to their primitive condition1 and1 like the ,vikings1 sea-rovers went in for small craft1 deckless boats about the size of fishing craft1 with easily managed sails2 boats which could be worked quickly in rough or calm weather by a few men4 ,these were the ships which devastated ,europe and taught the shore-dwellers a lesson in naval warfare4 ,from the ,bayeux ,tapestry we are able to form a fair idea of the kind of craft which ,william of ,normandy used to invade ,england--small one-masted boats1 holding on an average a dozen men easily1 although1 ,i dare say1 on this occasion they would be crammed like herrings in a barrel4 ,an uncommonly uncomfortable voyage that must have been to the mail-clad warriors1 with their war-steeds to look after in those cramped quarters2 it must have made them doubly resolved to stay in ,england once they had reached it4 ,we see another example in ,froissart of vessels of the fourteenth century1 in which they had increased the size of the ships somewhat1 without altering their shape much1 but having three masts1 instead of one1 with single lateen sails on each4 ,the anchor as we use it now comes into prominence in these pictures2 but1 if the men are drawn in proportion to the size of the ships1 exercise was not one of the benefits of a sea-voyage in the fourteenth century1 and one is apt to sympathise with the ,crusaders on their journey to ,palestine4 ,to us1 who have gazed ruefully on the stormy waters of ,biscay ,bay1 even from the lofty deck of a ,p4 and ,o4 packet1 the experience has been a sad one2 but such a voyage must have been simply pandemonium to those brave knights of the ,cross in their cockle-shells1 trying to look dignified before their esquires1 with the weight of chain-armour added to sea-sickness1 and no space to turn about4 ,during the time of the ,lancasters and ,plantagenets times improved a little with seafarers4 ,we have the long awning-covered oar-galleys1 capable of seating fifty or eighty slaves below1 with accommodation for the passengers above2 also properly decked vessels1 with forecastles and stern cabins and deck houses2 and shrouds for the use of the seamen when raising or lowering sails4 ,they still used the single sails on the masts1 and required a number of sailors to work them properly2 here also we find the first appearance of tops where men could be placed for fighting purposes4 ,at this period the ship as a picturesque object was beginning to take shape1 but it was far from being a 'thing of beauty4' ,in the fifteenth century we come upon the ',henri ,grce ,dieu1' built for ,henry ,,vii41 which is the nearest approach to a ship as we understand it4 ,it is a four-master1 with bowsprit1 and three yards on each mast1 with main and fore tops1 and shrouds reaching up to the caps2 a vessel fairly bristling with guns1 and having seven decks to the cabin and eleven to the top deck of the forecastle4 ,at this time ,columbus had discovered the ,new ,world1 and men were paying attention to navigation as a science4 ,the next advance is the ',sovereign of the ,seas1' built in #afcg for ,charles ,i43 a three-master1 and very nearly perfect in the matter of symmetry4 ,between the building of the ',sovereign' and the ',grce ,dieu' ,england had made her first bold bid for the supremacy of the seas1 and distinguished herself as a great maritime nation by giving birth to such heroes as ,drake and ,frobisher2 after this she steadily advanced in her sea craft4 ,the ,armada was won by splendid sailors and very sorry ships1 as far as appearance went2 but after this date they improved until they reached perfection1 as we can see in such ships as the ',royal ,william1' #afgj1 on to the splendid wooden frigates and man-of-war ships carrying from seventy-four to one hundred and twenty guns1 such as the ',victory1' immortalised by the death of ,nelson4 ,those grand old days1 when the ship and the men she carried were one and indivisible1 are a dream of the past4 ,when we began to sheathe our ships with iron and reduce our masts and rigging until they became shapeless monsters1 the pride and security of the sailor vanished4 ,the ship is no longer a portion of himself1 it has become a dangerous machine1 and he is only a passenger on board4 ,in olden times1 when the ball tore up the ship's side1 the heart of the ,british seaman bled with her1 and while she waited like a wounded lioness on his aid1 and he rushed with his plugs and oakum to stop the rent or fix up the broken yard or mast1 they were as man and wife2 now1 like a treacherous monster1 the ship goes to the bottom when hit1 and destroys all on board4 ,illustration3 ,fishing ,boats4 ,there was give and take in the olden days1 like a bout at fists1 and ,englishmen appreciated the manly sport2 now it is treacherous massacre and destruction to friend and enemy alike4 ,the ironclad is as much the enemy of her inhabitants as she is of the rival against whom she wages war4 ,what pride could the true ,british tar take in that pitiful siege of ,alexandria1 when all he had to do was to batter down a defenceless city from a safe distance1 compared with the sailing into action at ,trafalgar1 where it was give and take8 ,while1 as for the next great naval engagement1 when ironclad faces ironclad1 what chance will they have for their lives8 ,one sure discharge from the latest invention1 and the doomed vessel will go to the bottom of the sea1 like shot-laden and sewn-up corpses of messmates already 'gone aloft4' ,it is cowardly murder1 not daring warfare1 that we have arrived at in this nineteenth century of science4 ,it was in the olden days of sailing vessels1 when the seaman controlled every portion and worked lovingly upon every object of his ship1 that the sympathetic affection for each plank grew upon him1 until it became dearer than a landsman's house to him--indeed1 it not infrequently usurped all other ties1 and became to him wife and relations as well as house4 ,as ,i come myself from a sailor breed1 ,i know the engrossment well1 and can understand the feelings of the captain who would rather sink with his beloved vessel than abandon her in the dark hour of danger4 ,illustration3 ,homeward ,bound ,but when ships became propelling machines1 they no longer belonged exclusively to the sailor3 he is only husband of the upper decks and now almost useless yards4 ,the engineer is really the master of the position1 while the sailor has become merely a scullery-maid4 ,the same may be said about iron ships4 ,what sailor of the grand old school can take a pride in cold iron or cast steel8 ,dibdin's songs are a dead letter here4 ,indeed1 ,i don't know any modern poet who could wake up enthusiasm over wrought or cast metal when it is used as a floating machine4 ',hearts of oak' we can all understand as ,englishmen1 for the oak is ours by birthright4 ,but who can grow affectionate over 'plates of iron'8 ,it is cold and deadly in its passive state1 and when damaged it is beyond repair2 it has to be taken back to the smelting factory4 ,therefore1 thinking upon this subject in an artistic sense1 and regarding the future of great guns1 torpedoes1 and metal plates from a humanitarian point of view1 while admitting that we have floating mantraps and murder machines nowadays1 ,i place the limit on ship-progress as objects of gallantry and perfection at the date when we introduced steam machinery into them4 ,they then sacrificed their poetic and artistic characteristics for commercial utility2 while1 as for their use as war-machines1 that is a doubtful point upon which they have yet to be tried4 ,one thing we do know1 however1 and that is--war no longer depends upon personal bravery2 it is entirely a question of scientific accuracy and mathematical knowledge4 ,as a painter1 ,i prefer to go back to the wooden walls of ,england for my inspirations2 to the engagements between the giants and the plucky pigmies in the glorious fight of #aehh1 when the pigmies1 like the ,greeks at ,salamis1 knocked the giants into cocked hats2 to the battles of the ,nile1 ,st4 ,vincent1 ,trafalgar1 where each man had to do his duty without the dread of being blown up to the sky by some underhand torpedoes1 or sent1 without a moment for prayers1 to the bottom of the sea by some superior and longer-ranged guns4 ,i like best to think upon the days when men got heated up by glory1 and fought hand-to-hand with their cutlasses and pikes1 swarming over the sides of the grappled enemy with true ,british shouts1 rather than to picture them standing in silent and grim order five or ten miles away from the enemy1 waiting upon their doom4 ,it does not seem sailor-like to see them watching like automata on the effect of each shot2 to my mind1 as an artist and a warm-blooded ,englishman1 it is too cold-blooded for ,jack ,tar4 ,we all know1 from the original or from reproductions1 ,turner's picture of the ,last ,voyage of the ',tmraire1' with its stately yet helpless dignity1 compared with the fussy impudence of the long-chimneyed little tug-steamer which is towing her to her last home2 the hoary veteran is doubly pathetic to me in view of all the improvements which have taken place in war-ships since that splendid sunset which the great painter thus depicted3 compare the ',tmraire1' symbol of its kind and age1 with1 say1 the ',royal ,sovereign' of #ahia4 ,the ',royal ,sovereign1' with her solid smooth sides and back-sloping bows denuded of bowsprit and jib1 with her stunted masts and mean-looking cordage1 is a poor thing by the side of a first-rate man-of-war of any date up to #ahee1 with its filmy intricacies of rope-work1 yards1 and uppers4 ,do the waves and the winds claim a unity with the ship now as they did then8 ,compare a fleet lying in the roads now with one a hundred years ago1 as depicted on some of the canvases of ,loutherbourg1 ,stanfield1 or ,turner1 for the best reply to my melancholy question4 ,even the ,bay of ,biscay has been shorn of its grandeur by the introduction of those great hulks1 which cut over its gigantic waves with hardly a shake4 ,twenty-five years ago ,i could appreciate its might from the deck of an ,aberdonian clipper2 last time ,i passed through it and saw its raging from the saloon deck of a ,p4 and ,o4 steam liner1 it would have looked ridiculous in its mimic wrath only for a passing glimpse ,i had of a little brig which it was playing high jinks with1 as it tossed it up and down like a toy boat on a cauldron of boiling water4 ,i am sorry that we have had1 so far1 the best of the ocean1 because we have lost a great pleasure when we go to sea--the thrilling excitement of being in a proper gale4 ,i find it very hard when ,i now go upon the ocean to recall the fury of the storms which ,i have been in during past years2--that time ,i rounded ,cape ,horn1 when the ice-charged waves appeared like mountains and valleys as we looked at them from the deck of our almost doomed vessel2 that time when we were driven from the shores of ,africa almost to within sight of ,america in one furious tempest2 when the tropical typhoon broke upon us1 and our three-master appeared like a dingey in the trough of those curded waves1 while the lightning blazed and the fire-balls dropped from heaven and went past our creaking sides like red-hot shot into the seething turmoil4 ,ah6 we cannot half appreciate the marvels and majesty of the ocean nowadays2 it has become a sycophant to us1 and only expends a little bombast for our benefit1 as a relaxation after those superb ocean dinners1 while we smoke our pipes or cigars on deck4 ,and yet not quite a passive slave is this mighty ocean to us modern epicures2 there still remain the ,goodwin ,sands1 the iron cliffs and the sunken rocks1 to prove that man1 in spite of his advancement in mechanics1 is not yet complete master of the situation4 ,illustration3 ,the ,storm ,biscay ,bay may look played out as it vainly tries to curl its yeasty fury over the comfortable decks of the two-wave-long liner1 which passes serenely over the crests with hardly a vibration more than the propellers give us2 but if the screw chances to snap1 as ,i have known it do in other waters1 then what is she8--a huge log battered to death by the savage fury she has so long defied4 ,sunken reefs start up at times when least expected1 and then1 with one rasp1 the ironclad hotel becomes a death-trap1 whereas a wooden ship might have floated4 ,as for those mysterious1 treasure-crammed sands1 the ,goodwins1 like the poor1 they are always with us1 and always ready to drown their victims4 ,every year they claim their due of sacrifice1 from the skittish smack to the ponderous ,east ,indiaman1 from the coast steamer to the heavy ironclad4 ,once the ship touches fairly with this siren1 there is no parting2 it is a gentle but tenacious embrace1 and then come the rending of hair and the throwing up of arms as the sins of our past rush back upon us and prepare us for the choking of the remorseless slime4 ,illustration3 ,at ,rest4 ,and those iron cliffs1 that1 in the honesty of their rugged rage1 break the masterpieces of man to fragments1 they are better than the treacherous sands1 for they do their work quickly1 and with the aid of the angry waves4 ,there she is1 the full-rigged piece of perfection1 driving gallantly to her doom1 with her curved bows1 glistening sides1 and ornamented stern1 and aloft the forest of light wood and lichen-like tracery of cordage1 her sails all furled1 like a beautiful woman who has gathered up her skirts and means recklessly to run on in spite of wind or weather2 so she rises over the crest of the shore-hurrying billow1 and looks her best in that last supreme second of time4 ,a lurid instant the lightning plays about her perfect symmetry as she steadfastly gathers herself for the plunge2 there is no fear or timidity about her as she rises for the last time1 only the defiance of desperation2 then the clash of doom comes1 and she has dissolved like a spirit in the midst of the dazzling white mist4 ,illustration3 ,,from ,,breydenbach',s ,,travels ,,chapter ,,vii ,,illustrative ,,art3 ,,past ,,and ,,present ,illustration3 ,i,t is not my purpose1 nor is it within my province as an artist and illustrator1 to give the history of illustrative art1 with its rise and development2 ,i leave that side of the subject to such masters as ,william ,andrew ,chatto1 ,austin ,dobson1 and ,david ,croal ,thomson1 with the other specialists who devote themselves to the historical as well as the critical qualities of artists1 past and present4 ,my present intention is to write as a workman about the work he is constantly engaged upon4 ,i wish to describe the qualities of the different illustrators as they have impressed and influenced my work1 trusting that in this ,i have a fair1 open1 and useful field before me4 ,i approach the subject with the greatest diffidence1 because1 when a man begins to analyse his own particular work1 he occupies the peculiar position of being his own critic1 and must either make a sacrifice of his feelings--i4e4 his vanity1 and natural desire to cover up his weaknesses and pose only on his few strong parts1--for1 of course1 every man who has had experience must know in his inmost consciousness his strength and failings 7although it may not always be advisable to reveal the knowledge even to himself1 far less to his critical friends71--or else be ruthless and strip himself bare for the benefit of those coming after him4 ,if ,i were only a critic1 ,i could enter the lists in a jocund spirit and tilt away right and left as critics mostly do1 satisfied that no one could pierce my armour and place me hors de combat2 but when a knight goes to the tournament with armour a little worse designed than many of the coats of mail he is facing1 or1 at least1 when he is aware of the sad fact1 he does not ride forth so joyfully4 ,nevertheless ,i shall endeavour1 as far as possible1 to lay aside my amour propre for the sake of my readers and give them the benefit of my experience1 even although ,i may be wounded badly while ,i am doing so4 ,i take a few of the illustrated books which lie handiest to me at this moment1 and make them the text for my remarks1 which1 as ,i have already said1 ,i intend to make strictly practical rather than historical2 therefore1 ,i shall only touch upon illustrative work in the more distant past in so far as it may apply to the canons which ,i have laid down for myself to follow1 and no further4 ,an illustrated book1 to be perfect1 ought to have nothing intrusive about it2 no single picture ought to assert itself unduly1 and so make the text with the other illustrations appear mean1 washy1 or weak4 ,if the keynote struck is to be rugged strength1 let there be no incongruity of super-refined and delicate lines2 let the text be bold and assertive enough to suit the quality of the illustrations from the title-page to the end1 so that the reader's eye may get accustomed at once to take a distant view of the whole1 and not have to push the book back from him to arm's length on the one page1 and bring it close to his eyes at the next4 ,books are like pictures1 or ought to be--either gallery works1 or produced for the cabinet2 either to be admired from the distance1 or else examined with a microscopic lens4 ,illustration3 ,,st4 ,,christopher ,a coarsely painted picture requires a strongly designed frame2 a book with coarse or strong effects in its illustrations also requires a strong text1 deep head-lines1 massive headings and title-page1 and ornate binding2 and to see the full beauty of this1 and how perfect is the harmony of the lettering and edge-lines1 ,i can only refer my readers to one of the earliest of wood engravings--the ',st4 ,christopher1' dated #adbc 7original in the possession of ,earl ,spencer74#ad ,this seems to me a very perfect specimen of what ought to be1 in quality and just balance4 ,the drawing is in outline1 massive and decided all through1 without a single unnecessary line2 the descriptive lettering is black-letter with broad band round it4 ,in its present position1 in the centre of the modern text1 it suggests two ideas--either that it is too coarse for its present surroundings1 or else that the text is too fine2 therefore1 to be seen to proper advantage it ought to be enclosed in a black-letter text4 ,contrast this as to general harmony with the two reduced copies of outline work on page #gb in the same work2 here the illustrations1 although bold in the original1 by reason of the reduction1 have been brought more into unity with the modern type4 ,you can see both pictures and text in the first glance without any extra effort1 whereas in the ',st4 ,christopher' page1 the picture intrudes itself1 and almost requires to be covered before the reader can enjoy or settle down to the text4 ,of course1 in a work of this kind1 where different specimens of engraving must be shown1 the authors have no choice in the matter1 and perfect unity cannot be studied4#ae ,illustration3 ,,history ,,of ,,the ,,virgin ,,mary ,looking over these old engravings1 one cannot help being struck1 not only with the boldness and decision of the technique1 but also with the consummate restraint and knowledge of effect displayed by the worker4 ,perhaps amongst our modern living men ,walter ,crane is the only artist who exhibits a similar courage and grasp of the essentials4 7,see his ',queen ,summer1' published by ,cassell ,co41 for some of the best and most characteristic work he has yet given to the public in book form47 ,the next stage in illustrative art which we have to mention is where cross-hatching has been introduced1 to give depth and richness to the shadows4 ,the earliest style of work shows only outlines1 which are in many cases to be preferred to more elaborate work1 particularly when inserted with the text2 after this1 shadows are suggested by single lines1 as in the specimens which ,i have quoted4 ,cross-hatching appears to have been used first in the year #adhf1 in a frontispiece to the ,latin edition of ',breydenbach's ,travels1' which was printed at ,mentz by ,erhard ,reuwich4 ,the name of the artist is not known--a sample of modesty characteristic of the early inventors2 for the work upon this plate is as beautiful and elaborate as it is unique at this early date4 ,with the introduction of cross-hatching1 used at first directly1 horizontally and perpendicularly1 we get the feeling of colour and tone in illustrative work which are its most pronounced features at the present day4 ,in this we have advanced1 and are still advancing1 day by day to a perfection of feebleness1 with lack of distinctive character and force4 ,in outline drawing we have not improved since the close of the fifteenth century--to wit1 the ,poliphili of #adii1 where the lines are perfectly modulated to suggest light edges and shadows4 ,illustration3 ,,albert ,d,,rer',s ,,apocalypse ,we next come to the beautiful work of ,albert ,drer1 where he uses the cross-hatching diagonally1 as it is executed at the present day1 with broken lines and dots1 where such were required4 ,in fact1 this rare artist seems to have had all the tricks of the trade at his command1 and to have paused at no device in order to gain his effect4 ,i shall not describe any of his work here1 as it is sufficiently well known1 with the influence it brought to bear upon illustrative art generally4 ,when taking up the practical side of an art1 it is only a waste of time to enumerate all the different workers who may have left their own particular1 if not always very prominent1 marks in the pages of its history4 ,i would rather call attention1 in the short space at my disposal1 to the men identified with the different great epochs1 such as the unknown outline workers1 the men who aimed at tone and colour1 dating distinctly from the time of ,albert ,drer2 the distinctive chiaro-oscuro workers1 amongst whom ,i would exemplify ,rembrandt2 the purely tone artists such as ,turner1 the grotesque in ,hogarth and ,cruikshank2 and next take our modern men who carry on the art at the present day1 and exemplify a few such prominent workers as ,small1 ,parsons1 ,barnard1 and ,abbey1 although the army of first-class illustrators is so large at the present day that it becomes a difficult and ungracious task for me to mention names at all4 ,the different stages of progression in illustrative art may be broadly defined after this fashion3 the time when artists drew directly on the wood with pencil or pen only1 and engravers followed their hard lines2 the date when bold effects with ,indian ink and ,chinese white were introduced1 and engravers were permitted to use their own lines1 and so became liberated from the trammels1 and could first lay claim to being original artists1 as well as the men who drew the designs which they cut2 the last and most satisfactory stage1 when photography stepped in and became the umpire between artist and engraver4 ,in the first stage the engraver was a mechanic pure and simple1 unless he drew his own design1 or could take the liberty of improving upon the artist's lines4 ,if1 however1 it was an experienced artist1 the engraver simply copied1 and did not trouble himself to think much1 so long as he got his lines out clean4 ,in the second stage1 when he had wash drawings on the block1 there was seldom any appeal from the artist2 he had1 it is true1 the option of lightening up his picture on the proof and saving his reputation somewhat by making a few bold and hard lights where his other effect had been lost2 but this was all that was left to him1 because his original drawing had been cut up4 ,illustration3 ,,by ,,christopher ,,jegher1 ,,after ,,rubens ,now the original drawing is seldom destroyed2 it stands to the bitter end1 and settles any disputes between engraver and artist1 because the engraver works only upon a photograph from the original sketch1 and has it all along beside him to work from as a copy as well as to confute him if he is a bungler1 which is a right and proper state of things2 for now the indifferent artist cannot flatter himself or steal the reputation of the skilful engraver1 and the unqualified engraver cannot lay his faults on the shoulders of the artist2 each tub must stand upon its own bottom4 ,after ,albert ,drer1 with his delicacy and finish1 as well as spirituality and suggestiveness1 we come to ,rembrandt as the most perfect master of chiaro-oscuro that the world has produced4 ,at the present day we cannot hope to surpass him2 we are satisfied if we approach somewhat near to his matchless gradations1 depth of shadow1 and lustre4 ,there was considerably over a century between these two influences2 but it was a progressive century1 as the numerous book-plates throughout ,europe can show4 ,the school of ,drer gave the illustrator the first real hint about colour2 ,rembrandt showed how much power may be had out of a flat surface4 ,from ,rembrandt to ,bewick the merits of the different book plates vary4 ,nature1 however1 did not occupy much room in their calculations4 ,bewick was1 perhaps1 our first great realist1 for all his studies were drawn uncompromisingly from the object itself4 ,before his advent the illustrators1 like the novelists1 were content to interest their audience2 but after ,bewick it was found necessary to study accuracy as well as sentiment and effect1 and this we continue and try to improve upon at the present day4 ,hogarth1 as an illustrator1 gave a turn to art which it had not before4 ,it is always a pleasant thought to me1 as a native of ,britain1 that1 while looking towards ,germany and ,holland for our early inspiration in illustrative art1 we must return to our own shores once again for its revival1 to ,hogarth1 ,bewick1 and ,turner1 with ,constable 7as a painter71 for the apostles of that realism1 suggestiveness1 and satire with which the other nations now strive to lead off4 ,as in literature1 so in art1 we were the original creators of those styles1 to acquire which our students now go to ,france and ,belgium4 ,shakespeare made ,goethe1 ,schiller1 ,hugo1 and ,zola4 ,constable and ,turner created the modern ,french school of ,impressionists2 ,bewick the realistic draughtsmen2 ,hogarth the satirists of the pencil4 ,we may be a heavy nation and apt to take a joke sadly1 yet we have had our humourists also who have been appreciated by other nations as well as by their own1 and perhaps a little more so4 ,amongst modern men--that is1 comparatively modern men--who have had a great influence in book pictures1 ,i would mention1 in landscape art1 ,turner as the first2 in caricature1 ,cruikshank2 and in general force of black and white1 ,dor4 ,these three1 ,i think1 ,i may safely place as having the greatest influence in their different walks4 ,turner ,i now quote as the most imitated painter and illustrator that ever lived1 which is about the surest test of his individuality that can be given4 ,individualism as well as mannerism1 alas6 for the main body of the imitators could pick up only the mannerisms1 without getting one touch of the genius which made him great--those bald sunlight effects which somehow remind us after a grotesque and wearisome fashion of the master whom they have vainly attempted to follow4 ,how often have we taken up a volume of steel engravings in the half light1 thinking that we had found a collection of ,turner's works1 until we brought them to the light and realised our mistake at one stunning instant6 ,the invention and poetry were totally lacking1 the effect dry and empty1 and the design meaningless4 ,ruskin is quite right to go into raptures over the great genius of ,turner1 and in this he shows his own perception of true poetic power1 inasmuch as he makes a mistake in overestimating ,creswick's black-and-white work2 but that he should close his eyes to the glaring faults of ,turner1 or rather1 that he should call these faults virtues1 is simply reducing the weight of his critical influence until it is not worth using4 ,if he will hold up for praise blemishes which even the most ignorant can see for themselves1 how is it possible for them to set him up for a guide in matters which lie beyond their knowledge8 ,the tree work in most of ,turner's illustrations and pictures is not drawn from nature1 and the trees have no natural characteristic about them--in fact1 they are monstrosities in the vegetable sense1 and no preacher in the world1 no matter how eloquently he may discourse1 would be able to convince a gardener that these are the correct sort of trees for these landscapes1 or that the pictures would not have been improved by properly-drawn trees in place of these unnatural monstrosities2 and1 like the realistic gardener1 ,i must also say that ,mr4 ,ruskin could never convince me that a single breath of the poetry would have been lost had ,turner drawn real instead of imaginary trees4 ,his ships are not the kind of craft which practical seamen would care to venture beyond the harbour-bar in1 if they even cared to risk their lives so far to sea1 although they may look very nice and picturesque to a landsman's eye4 ,stanfield was a much more correct painter of ships1 in spite of all that ,mr4 ,ruskin may have written to the contrary1 as any sailor could tell him2 and1 therefore1 ,i contend that the drawings and paintings of ,turner would not have lost any of their poetic charm even although he had tried a little more to please the sailors1 and given to them ships in which they might have been able to sail and fight4 ,at times1 also1 in spite of his exquisite drawing1 his architectural work is not beyond reproach1 and may be pecked at by a very immature and even budding professor of that exact science2 yet in this department his faults are trivial compared to his frailties in other departments4 ,the shapeless dolls which he introduced and so often crowded into his compositions 7with a few exceptions7 are simply atrocious1 and would not have been tolerated from an inferior artist4 ,in his illustrative work he is seen at his very worst in this respect2 witness most of the plates in ,moore's ',epicurean1' the ',rivers of ,france' series1 c4 ,but in his effects he stands unapproachable1--in his dreamy delicacy and subtlety1 his skies and water and aerial perspective1--in his suggestiveness1 multiplicity of detail and complete unity of the many parts in one harmonious whole3 the colour with which his black-and-whites are invested is so thorough that any artist can define each tint with which he would have coloured his black-and-whites1 or what he used in the sketches from which so many of his illustrations were made4 ,for these great qualities ,mr4 ,ruskin could not indeed praise him too extravagantly1 for these raised him leagues above any other landscapist1 before or after him1 and might well excuse any other faults in detail2 but for all that1 no critic has a right to extol in one artist what he would justly condemn in any other4 ,his direct influence on illustrative art made a distinct epoch in this branch4 ,artists no longer stuck to the hard-and-fast laws which had curtailed them before2 they became suggestive and poetic1 and no longer confined themselves to the stationary effects of mid-day1 when objects are seen photographically1 but gave their pictures the atmosphere which they so often lacked before4 ,turner is the father of the suggestive and impressionist schools1 and perhaps one of the ablest of his modern disciples is ,alfred ,parsons1 an artist who has had the genius to pick out the best of his master without taking any of his faults2 he has imbibed the poetry and discarded the extravagance1 and never in his most dreamy effect does he lose his grip of nature4 ,for the truth of my remarks ,i would ask you to study two illustrations which lie handy to me at this moment1 where the effects are somewhat similar3 the ',rouen' 7from the ,seine7 by ,j4 ,m4 ,w4 ,turner2 and ',still ,glides the ,stream and ,shall for ,ever ,glide' 7the ,river ,duddon71 by ,alfred ,parsons1 which was engraved in ,vol4 #ge of ',harper's ,magazine4' ,i would now select a few of the illustrations from the most modern of our artists and books to show how these lessons of ,turner have been utilised in the best sense at the present day1 along with that rigid adherence to nature which is one of the most prominent characteristics of the nineteenth century1 an exactitude for which we as artists are indebted to the revelations of photography perhaps more than to any advance in our own personal knowledge of nature1 for ,i dare say the artists of past times looked as lovingly and as keenly at nature as we do to-day1 only that they had no realistic camera to put them right in their impressions1 as we now have4 ,we know from the camera how a lightning-flash really looks1 what a horse is like when at full speed1 the different actions of a bird's wing when flying1 the true shape of each wave in a storm1 also the swing of drapery in a high wind1 and how men and women really appear when excited2 for before the days of instantaneous photography the painter was apt to be deceived1 and take as one several motions and effects4 ,when speaking of the direct influence of a great inventive genius like ,turner's or ,constable's1 ,i may point to works which do not bear the smallest resemblance to their style and mannerisms2 for instance1 ,i may point out a piece of work marked by all the characteristics of the modern ,flemish or ,french schools1 or ,i may point to the work of a figure-painter1 and quote him as a conscious or unconscious follower of ,turner or ,constable4 ,it is very likely that the artist has gone to ,france or ,holland for his own art finish2 nevertheless1 those schools which gave him his finish borrowed their own manipulative qualities from either or both these rival painters4 ,in the new illustrated edition of ',lorna ,doone'--that masterpiece of ,blackmore's--,i notice nine or ten ,devonshire landscapes which are more distinctly ,turneresque than many of the modern books exhibit4 ,they are drawn as a rule with fidelity to nature1 and engraved with sympathetic tenderness1 perhaps in some cases too tenderly and over-finished for the purpose and effect4 ,the most imitative and to me the least satisfactory effect is ',watchet on a ,regatta ,day'2 the best1 as far as sky-work is concerned1 is ',dunkerry ,beacon ,fire4' ,in this same volume ,w4 ,small exhibits his powers at their full strength in his colossal figures1 startling effects1 rich shadows1 and tender backgrounds2 the last picture of all simply swims in the colour and lustre of mid-day4 ,c4 ,w4 ,wyllie is another free and faithful worker who has had the best of ,turner and ,constable measured out to him in a ,french fashion1 as most of our modern ,english work is fashioned4 ,davidson ,knowles displays this also in his dreamy suggestive work2 ,william ,hatherell1 too2 with a host of others whom ,i cannot mention for want of space4 ,the modern tone or wash work1 as exhibited in the ',american ,magazine1' ',the ,century1' ',harper's1' ',scribner's1' and in ',the ,magazine of ,art1' shows the effect of ,turner more and more every day4 ,fortunately the hard and laborious reign of steel engraving is over2 as1 ,i think1 nothing can be more unsuitable to book illustrations than steel engraving1 and nothing more suitable than a first-class woodcut1 when carefully mounted and clearly printed4 ,the steel is always hard and metallic1 whereas the wood gives all the tone and colour of the drawing2 and now that we have the numerous process inventions to reproduce pen-and-ink drawings1 and so give all the characteristics of the artist1 it becomes only a waste of time and money to employ an engraver of any talent to produce any other kind of work except tone drawing2 and as for the indifferent workmanship which might have satisfied the public before the advent of such magazines and papers as ',the ,graphic1' ',black and ,white1' ',the ,english ,illustrated ,magazine1' ',the ,magazine of ,art1' with the ,american works already mentioned1 and others of the same class1 the less expensive process work1 such as ,i generally use in my own books1 is infinitely to be preferred4 ,in speaking of ,george ,cruikshank as an illustrator1 ,i do not refer to his qualities as a caricaturist1 as those are sufficiently well known from the numerous works he has left behind him1 and of which some of the finest specimens may be possessed for a few shillings by anyone so desirous1 in the re-issue of his ',comic ,almanack' published by ,chatto ,windus1 where in the two bulky volumes may be had this artist's best work during the best eighteen years of his art life4 ,it is his delicate outline and etching qualities that ,i would call attention to1 which have influenced the pen-and-ink workers of the present day4 ,most of his designs were done on copper1 but in a few cases he worked for the engravers1 and these do not show up so satisfactorily4 ,indeed1 although ,i believe it to be a law with ',punch's' proprietors to have all their pen-work engraved on wood1 and thus keep to the old traditions2 artistically speaking1 ,i think they are wrong1 and suffer accordingly1 now that zincography is able to give the artist's work line for line1 with less of his delicate work lost and none of his characteristics destroyed1 as must be the case in many instances1 even with the finest wood-engraver4 ,indeed1 ,i would rather have some of the best work as given sometimes in ',ally ,sloper's ,half ,holiday' and ',pick-me-up1' pure and simple as it is1 than ,i would have the wood-engraving imitations of pen-work in our national comic leader1 ',punch4' ',punch1' as a high-class paper1 appeals to a certain and select order of readers1 but in the sense that ,cruikshank was comic it is not at all funny4 ',ally ,sloper' is the only paper of the present day to whom the peculiar genius of the old caricaturists has descended2 his ,hogarthian satire and ,rabelaisian humour is1 in this much-illustrated weekly paper1 reproduced in modernised costume and surroundings4 ,parisian nattiness and smartness blend with the broad buffoonery with which ,cruikshank delighted his audience of the past generation4 ,we are not so simple in our tastes 7more is the pity72 therefore1 instead of the horseplay of the clown and harlequin1 we have ,tootsie ,sloper and her erratic but impecunious and disreputable parent1 with her own ,frivolity friends to disport themselves through the pages2 yet1 inasmuch as ',the ,comic ,almanack' faithfully held up1 in its own particularly good-natured way1 the weaknesses and follies of the day in which it was produced1 so does this happy-go-lucky paper exhibit the froth of ours4 ,ally ,sloper is a distinct creation1 as ,i may say also the ,elder ,mc,nab is2 and as the first hits off the shady cockney1 so1 as a ,scotchman1 ,i must own to the grotesque fidelity of the latter4 ,for the past twenty years ,i have watched the natural progress of the old humbug1 ,ally1 and at the present day can read about his ever-varied doings with undiminished pleasure4 ,to continue such a character without wearying old readers for twenty years is1 to me1 the surest test of his vitality4 ,like ,rembrandt1 ,cruikshank's correctness of drawing might be objected to1 yet1 like that other great master of the needle1 no one could surpass him in his knowledge of chiaro-oscuro and balancing of parts2 but it is in the subtlety of his lines1 and the expression which he was able to give with the least labour1 that he stands unapproachable4 ,at the present day those who admire the dexterity with which ,mr4 ,harry ,furniss can cram in multitudes of characters into his cartoons for ',punch1' may only look at one of the crowded scenes on a small scale1 such as ',lord ,mayor's ,day' in ,cruikshank's ',comic ,almanack1' to see where the inspiration comes from4 ,before the revolution which photography caused in illustrative art1 that wonderful native of ,strasburg1 ,gustave ,dor1 burst upon the art world like a flaming meteor1 and gave quite a turn to artists and engravers4 ,before his coming1 draughtsmen had worked on a white ground with a thin first wash1 afterwards hatching up the details with a four or six ,h pencil2 but ,dor1 in his frantic hurry to produce his exuberant fancies1 discarded all these slow methods1 and used a black ground with a few dashes of light and half-tone to express himself1 as in some of his ,inferno scenes1 or a thin wash of light grey and some lighter touches1 as in his ,paradise pictures4 ,for example1 ',the ,vision of ,death1' for flimsy yet immensely clever touches of half-light and high-light on a jet-black block3 here the figure of ,death with his scythe sits astride a reinless horse1 with figures of dragons1 angels1 and demons coming after him like vultures on the wing4 ,this is one of the most effortless yet best balanced pictures in his collection4 ,as ,dor worked1 ,i should say he produced this conception in about half an hour1 if not less4 ,the figures are rushing along pell-mell amongst dark rolling clouds1 and the artist has been in a similar hurry4 ,it is extravagant and theatrical1 as all his work was1 and sketchy in the extreme3 but it is about as good a sample as ,i can call attention to for this description of art4 ,dor's system was an extremely simple one1 and straightforward4 ,he fixed on a single light1 and set to gathering as much shadow about it as possible1--a broad light1 in which he placed as many of his characters as he could cram1--and then set to fill out the shadows with as much detail as he could cram into them2 for a sample of this1 see his ',the ,prince in the ,banqueting ,hall' 7,i quote from ,cassell's ,dor ,gallery71 ',the ,mouth of ,hell1' ',the ,gathering of the ,waters1' c4 c4 ,the composition is of the same nave character throughout most of his weird and fantastic conceptions4 ,the workmanship1 compared with the artistic work of to-day1 is atrociously coarse and unsatisfactory1 although it suited his original and fevered genius as no other style of work could have done4 ,he flung out his imaginings with a lavish hand1 after the manner in which ,rubens painted many of his pictures1 and he could not wait to finish off2 yet1 take him all in all1 he gave an impulse to book-plate work such as no other illustrator had given before him1 and made the workers coming after him more courageous and less afraid of their masses4 ,in his ,francesca groups1 however1 we have not this reproach to make against him1 and as for the drawing from which his masterpiece was painted1 or which was drawn from his picture1 we can only stand and admire4 ,this is a perfect poem1 and lifts his pencil from the ruck of his other wreckage as much as the few exquisite lines which relate that romantic episode rise out of the dreary monotony and catalogue of woes which the ,italian poet ,dante treats us to in his faulty ,inferno4 ,this ,dor ,gallery is not the book ,i would recommend a young artist to have beside him as a guide unless he has been cramping his hand and mind over such examples as ,bewick2 yet to anyone getting too finicky in his work a brief study of ,dor will do the same good that a short course of scene-painting will do the landscape-painter2 it will set him free1 and give him a little more 'go4' ,in such pictures as ',samson destroying the ,philistines' he will learn how to make a vast crowd on a small scale as well as1 if not better than1 from any other source4 ,dor worked always at a furious pace and without much meditation2 his memory was so retentive that he could reproduce1 or rather translate1 whatever he once looked upon4 ,i believe he took no notes or sketches1 but trusted to his wonderful memory entirely4 ,i have been told that he went through ,spain when preparing for his ',don ,quixote' at express speed2 that he painted his ',christian ,martyr' picture in six hours1 and did not retouch it4 ,salvator ,rosa did the same with his work1 painted a picture between daylight and dark1 and composed a poem when the lamps were lit4 ,dor could not paint directly from the model or from nature1 as all true artists ought to do1 or else force themselves to do4 ,a student of mine was once sketching outside when ,dor came upon him and asked to have a try at his sketch4 ,my pupil was working in oil at the time1 and1 in about five minutes after ,dor had taken the brushes in his hand1 he returned them 7with the oil and turpentine running down the handles1 and the canvas in a hopeless mess7 with an impatient groan4 ,when a boy ,i met him once in ,london and raised him to the seventh heaven of delight by my enthusiasm over his ',christ leaving the ,prtorium4' ,dor never ceased being a boy2 but he was a very extravagant youngster4 ,what an overpowering crowd of lions he gives us in his ',strange ,nations slain by the ,lions of ,samaria'6 ,there were enough in that circumscribed space to demolish an empire1 almost as many lions as the ',daily ,graphic' correspondent1 the daring ',randolph1' encountered during his late trip to ,africa3 ',the glade appeared to be alive with them4' ,dor drew directly on the wood1 as did all artists of his time1 and as ,i also did when ,i commenced illustrative work1 and by his example taught us brush-work instead of laborious pencil-work--i4e4 we painted our subject1 with perhaps the exception of a few finishing touches with a fine brush1 on to the block1 choosing a light or dark tone for the groundwork1 as the subject required2 and the less we did in the way of finish1 or rather pencil strokes1 the better the engraver liked our work and the better he worked himself4 ,it is eighteen years ago since ,i did my last drawing directly on the wood1 and ,i for one was not sorry when photography did this part of the work for me1 for after that ,i could work as ,i had been accustomed to do with my sketches1 on paper and cardboard4 ,to ,mr4 ,bolton is due the honour of being the inventor of printing by photography on to the wood1 and this invention of his gave the biggest push forward to book-work that it ever had4 ,formerly when an artist had to paint his subject on the block1 he was forced to hold his brush and not lay on too much colour1 or else the engraver could not cut through his crust of ,chinese white without danger of taking off large scales4 ,he had also to be careful not to wet the block too much1 as that would spoil it4 ,the block sucked in the moisture like blotting paper if he painted thinly2 so that this1 with a hundred other troubles1 curbed his dash very seriously4 ,now we can pile on the paint as much as ever we like to get up our effect1 and leave adroit brush marks all over our original4 ,the good engraver likes the bold dash and characteristic brush-work of the painter1 and ,i must say he imitates it with rare skill and sympathy4 ,the photographic print on his block reproduces all these eccentricities of the artist1 and gives the appearance of the lumpy lights without troubling the engraver to cut through any crust1 for the film on the block is infinitesimal in thickness4 ,he works away at that film without any unnecessary vexation1 with the double advantage of having the artist's sketch before him to study from as he goes along2 the result of all this being that the public have the opportunity of comparing the artist's original work with the engravings1 when they are shown in exhibitions2 and also the benefit of purchasing the original sketches for their smoking-rooms or libraries2 while the publisher or artist has the decided advantage of being able to get some more money for the designs1 instead of having them totally destroyed by the engraver's chisel--a boon all round which we owe to ,mr4 ,bolton and his timely invention4 ,i have often been asked how a book ought to be illustrated1 and ,i wish now to answer that question to the best of my artistic ability4 ,when a tradesman1 a plumber for instance1 is asked by a foolish proprietor how many pipes he ought to lay on to his new property1 it would not be unnatural if even the honestest of that mysterious craft were to reply1 ',as many as you can afford1 sir2 the more the better6' ,perhaps ,i ought to go on that safe rule also2 but as a foolish artist1 with a rigid sense of propriety1 ,i must sink my own interest and regard the book only as something outside myself4 ,my opinion is1 that if a book is to be illustrated with more than a frontispiece and vignette1 it ought to be illustrated thoroughly throughout4 ,it ought to be an dition de luxe1 or else a book with only a frontispiece and vignette4 ,i think that every book bound in cloth ought to have a frontispiece at least2 if possible1 also a vignette for the title-page4 ,when ,i publish a book ,i always try to persuade my publishers to go to this expense4 ,if it is a novel of a sensational or exciting nature it does not require any more4 ,the tasteful reader1 when he takes up a book1 likes to be introduced to it with a well-drawn1 finely-executed frontispiece2 he naturally looks at that first because it opens first to him4 ,he lingers for a space over that frontispiece1 and is either attracted or repelled by it4 ,if it is a bald1 commonplace group of figures1 without action or sentiment1 something that he is in the habit of seeing on every hand1 if he is artistic or romantic he will be indebted to that frontispiece2 for1 taking that as an index to the character of the work1 if he does not want commonplace1 he will lay it down respectfully and seek out some other amusement4 ,if the frontispiece has been drawn by a sympathetic artist1 the interest of the reader is touched straight off and he turns next to the title-page4 ,here he may find something to linger over1 a dreamy vignette la ,turner1 or an artistic commonplace which may suit his purpose4 ,i prefer1 as a book collector and a member of the ,ex-,libris ,society1 a vignette either quaint and unique1 or else one dreamy1 soft1 and suggestive1 something of the style of the best editions of ,sir ,walter ,scott1 or of the old world of art1 such as ,walter ,crane can give us1 or a delicious ,birket ,foster1 a ,turner1 or a ,bewick2 something which will tempt us1 providing the binding is good enough1 to paste our book-plate inside the cover and put it tenderly among the other kind friends of our solitude on our shelves1 after we have read it--something1 in fact1 which may tempt us to order from the publishers a special copy bound in morocco1 so that we may honour the artist who has delighted our eyes1 as ,esther did ,ahasuerus4 ,as a good man who has gained an audience by a favourable introduction ,i would leave the author to do the rest4 ,when once the reader has started on the story1 he 7the reader7 does not feel grateful for any distraction4 ,if the book is worth reading he wants to get right on with it without any interruption2 if1 however1 it fails to interest him1 he will lay it down after a few chapters and most likely send it on to some friend1 or lend it out1 or bestow it upon some charitable institution1 or sell it with other works of the same kind to a second-hand bookseller4 ,in a scientific work or a book treating on special subjects which strictly require illustrations1 so that the reader and author may be en rapport1 the illustrations may be few or many as the text requires4 ,this may be left to the author and the publisher entirely1 because the reader lays aside his artistic sense of unity for the sake of the information he requires4 ,a properly illustrated book should be illustrated on every page4 ,my ideal of such a book is to have to every chapter a head and tail piece1 with marginal designs1 running up and down wherever the text appears1 in pen-and-ink or etching1 for ,i hold that only outline drawing can harmonise with type as highly ornamental as possible4 ,no tone-drawing should ever be introduced where type appears2 but each chapter or poem ought to be separated by a full-page plate in tone1 wood-engraving if possible1 or the best process tone-work4 ,as much attention should be paid to the index and fly-leaves as to the other portions1 whilst the binding should be in perfect harmony4 ,so the dition de luxe will be looked at and admired with the respectful care shown to a lady at a ball1 while the book with frontispiece and vignette will be fondled over as affectionate husbands ought to fondle their well-dressed1 but not over-dressed1 wives4 ,illustration3 ,a ,,panel ,,of ,,black ,,and ,,gold ,,chapter ,,viii ,,art ,,in ,,minor ,,directions ,,the ,,art ,,of ,,graining ,illustration3 ,c,,harles ,,reade1 in one of his smart romances1 makes his ,bohemian hero learn the art of graining in an hour or two1 sufficiently well to be able to go about the country and make a good living by giving lessons to and painting show panels for the master painters4 ,this lively novelist1 with his customary happy ,hibernian manner of jumping at conclusions1 reveals his own ignorance of the subject he had taken up1 by giving the reader minute details as to the way his hero worked4 ,thus1 he landed at a country shop1 had a panel planed and prepared1 and grained it the same day1 getting his cash and the admiration of the country house-painter1 and striking another village or town the next day4 ,i do not know who gave ,charles ,reade this information1 but that it was the most wanton nonsense any apprentice in the trade might have proved to him in five minutes2 indeed1 if he had used his own eyes when the painters were working in any of his residences1 he must have seen that the feat was impossible1 even for the smartest hero of his collection4 ,ergo1 ,charles ,reade1 on this particular occasion1 sat down to write about a matter of which he knew nothing whatever1 however much he may have probed into other subjects4 ,let me explain how far he erred1 for the benefit of those outside the trade4 ,a panel1 which is intended to be a show panel1 or indeed1 any panel1 when it leaves the joiner's hands planed and dressed1 has to undergo the following preparation before it can be grained4 ,it first gets what is called the priming--i4e4 a thin coat of lead1 oil1 and turpentine with drier1 which will take1 in warm weather1 a full day and night before it is in a condition for the second stage4 ,in winter weather it may take two or more days4 ,if any knots are in the wood1 these have to be coated with a preparation called knotting before even this priming is put on1 which makes the delay longer4 ,when the first coat or priming is dry or hard enough to stand being sand-papered1 it is then made smooth by this process1 the holes are filled up with putty1 and the second coat1 a mixture of white lead tinted to the colour of the intended graining-ground1 and used a little thicker than the priming1 is laid on and allowed to dry thoroughly1 fifteen or twenty-four hours being the shortest space of time for this second stage before it is ready for the third4 ,again1 when hard enough it is sand-papered and reputtied1 and then it gets the third coat4 ,in cheap jobs this might be the graining-ground1 but in the case of a show panel1 a fourth coat would be required1 or perhaps a fifth1 before that panel would be ready for the grainer2 thus four to six or eight days would be the time wanted before that panel was ready to operate upon4 ,the panel being ready1 the grainer would commence with his imitation2 the first day he would grain1 if oak1 with oil graining2 if soft woods1 he would use distemper colour1 which would be thinly varnished over1 and so require at least another day to dry4 ,the next day would be devoted to over-graining with distemper and varnishing4 ,thus that panel would take the smartest workman from six to ten days from the hour it was planed until it was finished1 as any practical reader will bear me out in saying4 ,there is a legend related about one of ,murillo's pictures1 the ',virgin and ,child1' of the same description1 and with about as much probability4 ,it is related that once upon a time ,murillo had been well entertained by an abbot1 and in returning his thanks for the hospitality received1 he expressed his regret that he had no canvas with him1 otherwise he would have repaid the kindness with a picture4 ,the abbot at once presented the painter with his own table-napkin1 and told him to use that1 which ,murillo did1 producing in the same day a picture which for richness and effect he never himself surpassed4 ,i will not say that ,murillo did not use that napkin as a canvas3 ,i only assert positively that he never painted that picture upon it the same day1 for the simple reason that it would have to be primed1 either with distemper or oil1 and receive several coatings1 each coat requiring to dry1 be smoothed down1 and recoated before ever he started painting1 even if a stretcher was not made for it4 ,he may have painted the picture in one day after the napkin had been prepared1 but ,i venture to say1 without fear of contradiction from any practical artist-colourman1 that ,murillo was the guest of that hospitable abbot for several days after the napkin had been presented to him4 ,although that autocrat of art1 ,john ,ruskin1 has declared vehemently against the imitation of woods and marbles as an art1 yet as a protest against his hasty and unprofessional verdict1 and as one who has spent years in acquiring the art and teaching it afterwards to my house-painter students1 ,i now take up this subject as a very important one1 and will try1 as far as a practical teacher can put them upon paper1 to give a few of my own methods in this branch of art1 for the sake of those whom it may concern4 ,let me suppose that my readers are students and young house-painters or amateurs1 who have not had the opportunity of getting instruction in this highest branch of their trade4 ,i suppose1 however1 that they know enough of the preliminaries to be able to prime and prepare their panels1 and have made them all ready for the purpose of trying to grain upon them4 ,,the ,,art ,,of ,,oak ,,imitation--,,oak ,,graining ,we will take oak first1 as it is the most generally used in the business1 as well as one of the hardest to master1 although as an imitation it is more mechanical and less truly artistic than any of the other imitations4 ,the ground required for oak is buff colour1 either light or dark1 according as the age of the wood is intended to be represented4 ,to make this light tint1 a little yellow ochre1 with white lead1 drier1 oil1 and turpentine1 are all that are required2 while if it is very new wood1 the ground should be the colour of rich cream2 if old oak1 the ground colour can be darkened according to taste with ,roman ochre1 light red1 and burnt umber4 ,one precaution must be strictly observed if the grainer wishes to produce clean work1 and that is1 to be sure that his ground is perfectly firm and dry before he begins1 so that this ground is not likely to be torn or rubbed off with the combing or veining4 ,i like a ground to be dry but not too hard or oily1 as when dry1 but soft1 it will produce more feeling work1 particularly if the grainer is using the most useful of all his tools1 the thumb-nail4 ,a grainer's thumb1 like a miller's1 has a great deal to do with the making of sham oak2 therefore you may easily distinguish a professional oak-grainer by the length1 strength1 and tender care which he lavishes on his thumb-nail4 ,it ought for this purpose to be kept long1 and carefully rounded and smoothed4 ,the tools required for this work are a box of assorted combs1 two or three pieces of soft cork cut with notches1 plenty of soft cotton or linen rags1 and that properly trimmed thumb-nail4 ,he will also require for oak-over-graining the same brushes which he uses in the soft woods2 camel-hair softeners1 grainers and over-grainers1 with wipers-out and sash-tools1 c4 ,the next thing he will make up is his scumble4 ,this is composed of burnt umber1 yellow ochre1 drier1 boiled oil1 a little beat-up putty or whiting1 and a small quantity of water4 ,by mixing all this up together you produce something like a stained megilp1 and may thin it with oil and water as you go on4 ,a little of this goes a long way1 as it has to be spread over very sparingly and equally4 ,get a good specimen of real oak1 well coursed with champs or 'veins1' and set it up before you where the light will fall best upon it2 then1 after rubbing down your grounded panel with fine sandpaper1 and dusting it carefully1 you will put a little 'scumble' upon it with your sash-tool1 and spread that over equally and thinly with a larger brush until the panel is covered4 ,take your largest toothed comb1 and trail it steadily down the panel from top to bottom1 wiping the comb carefully after every passage4 ,it is better to trail the large comb in straight lines1 and afterwards use the smaller or finer toothed combs with a shake to produce wavy lines4 ,when you have passed the combs over the panel in this way1 first the coarse comb straight1 next the medium size with a wave1 and lastly1 in portions1 the finest size comb1 your panel is ready for the artistic portion of the work4 ,combing does not take long to learn if the worker is cleanly in his habits1 but to make a natural and pleasing variety in 'champing' or veining takes a great deal of practice2 indeed1 unless the worker has artistic gifts1 he will never be able to master this part of the work perfectly4 ,a young grainer ought to keep a sketch-book always in his pocket1 and wherever he sees a fine bit of work1 make a careful drawing with his pencil of it2 he will thus be able to get variety in the markings of his wood4 ,he ought also to practise constantly when he is at home on a panel with his thumb-nail at rat tails1 so as to get dexterity and grace1 because there is a vast amount of freehand drawing required in this portion of the work4 ,the first thing he has to study is the composition of that panel2 the large markings come first4 ,here he may linger tenderly for a time with his rag-covered nail wiping out square1 oblong1 and round patches1 and softening and half cleaning out parts with his narrowest and finest toothed comb1 also rag-covered4 ,at this portion of the work the true artist comes in with his manipulations1 like the manipulations of the etching printer with his ink on the plate2 and ,i am positive that if ,john ,ruskin had but tried to copy a piece of real oak with the same tenderness and patience with which he has so often copied old masters1 he would never have dared to decry the art of graining4 ,as in etching1 perfect cleanliness and an unlimited supply of white1 well-worn rags are indispensable to a grainer if he wishes to succeed in his art2 yet1 as the professional grainer is generally a dashing-looking fellow with artistically long and bushy tresses and ,vandyke beard and moustachios1 the maid-servant's heart generally succumbs to his charms before even he has unpacked his traps1 so that he is not at all likely to run short of clean rags during his campaign4 ,if any of my readers will take up and examine a piece of polished oak1 they will be surprised to see what a multitude of strange devices there are in it2 cabalistic signs and figures which are for ever varying as they shift about in the light2 strong markings in places1 with a crowd of slender flourishes trailing away from the bolder designs4 ,these slender flourishes are vulgarly termed 'rat-tails4' ,now1 to comb a panel properly requires some practice and taste1 but to be able to wipe out these rat-tails requires a great deal of practice and a greater degree of discretion1 so as neither to crowd the panel nor make it appear meagre2 the bolder figures with the softened parts require about as much real talent as is expended upon making an original sketch from nature1 and a great deal more than would be wanted over the copying of an old master4 ,the comber and rat-tail draughtsman might easily qualify himself to copy an old master1 but the adroit inventor of the bolder 'champs1' which occupy the centre of the panel1 is already qualified to produce a monochrome direct from nature2 if gifted with the colour-faculty1 and if his power of making these 'champs' prove that he has mastered form1 he might aspire to any height on the artistic ladder4 ,the panel being combed1 grained1 and cleaned1 is left to dry1 probably one or two days1 as the weather chances to be1 after which the grainer proceeds with the finishing off4 ,if he has been imitating a piece of real wood1 like the artist with his picture1 he will select one of the many changes which the different lights reveal to him on that bit of wood3 thus1 where the light strikes direct1 the figures will shine out whitely2 but out of the range of light they will appear dark4 ,the grainer who is an artist will take as his guide the light falling from the windows1 and where they touch directly upon the doors or dadoes or skirting-boards1 there he will place his highest lights1 leaving the darker portions to be put on during the second stage4 ,if it is a door he is graining1 he will put the 'champs' and rat-tails in the panels1 plain comb the upright 'styles' or sides1 and make knot-work on the cross-bars2 to make knots he uses his finger with a dab first1 then with his notched cork draws the outer waves which recede from the central knot1 finishing off with a few flourishes with his nail4 ,when this is done he will soften the whole effect by trailing his finest comb over the cork-work4 ,to do this with more artistic effect he will use a comb of which he has purposely broken the teeth at intervals4 ,every grainer breaks his own combs and cuts his own peculiar notches in his corks to suit his own fancy1 and1 like a good painter with his brushes1 he does not like any other worker to use them4 ,the over-graining may be finished in one working1 or if the job is an expensive one1 continued1 in a very subtle spirit1 over several workings4 ,for this he requires in water-colour ,vandyke brown1 raw and burnt siennas1 a little blue-black1 some stale beer1 a sponge1 a piece of chamois leather1 one over-grainer or more1 a couple of wipers1 sash-tool1 camel-hair softener1 and a few sable or camel-hair pencils or 'riggers4' ,the stale beer he uses as a medium to keep the door or panel from 'sissing1' or running off in globules--i4e4 to make the distemper colours lie flat and cover the oil paint below2 also to act as a fixative when the pigments dry4 ,before the grainer begins to work he soaks his chamois leather in the stale beer and washes his work carefully over2 this stops the 'sissing' tendency4 ,he next dips his sash-tool charged with beer into his water-colours4 ,vandyke brown will be the tint mostly used in oak1 although as he proceeds he may require in portions touches of raw or burnt sienna1 or where he wants to represent the effect of damp and green in the wood1 a little blue-black or even a touch of ,antwerp blue4 ,the over-grainer must be an artist1 or he had better shade his work plainly with ,vandyke brown1 and do as little over-graining as possible4 ,he will next with his sponge wipe out lights here and there1 and with his scumblers or over-grainers trail them over the underwork1 softening the harshnesses out discreetly with his softener4 ,with his wipers--i4e4 short stumpy flat brushes--he will take out straight horizontal lights here and there on the styles1 draw shadows together with his softener on the cross-bars1 and generally work or fake about so as to produce the effect of light and shadow4 ,when this is dry1 which will be in about half an hour1 the work is ready for the finishing stages1 the pencilling of shadow veins and 'champs1' and loose over-graining4 ,he uses his riggers or long-haired pencils with a free but careful hand1 still keeping in his mind how the lights from the windows are likely to strike upon his work4 ,after this is dry1 he takes his longest over-grainer1 and having charged it with a thin wash of colour1 he first draws a hair comb through it to separate the hairs1 and next passes this wash in tremulous lines over his work1 where required1 softening the lines adroitly with his softener as he goes along4 ,the work is now ready for the final stage of all1 the coat of varnish4 ,this is how a piece of imitation oak is wrought up by a skilful workman1 very similar to the way in which a drawing or a painting is produced4 ,if the workman is hurried1 through cheapness of price1 or ignorance1 the work may be like the abominations which so often greet us on common doors1 or those awful oleographs which decorate the walls of workmen's cottages2 but if well done the result is such that it must gratify the eye of any lover of nature1 because he can then look upon the very best sample1 or rather translation1 of the wood1 in the same sense that a fine picture is the translation of the finest and most select portions of nature4 ,my friend1 and in many points my revered master1 ,john ,ruskin1 writes about the degradation of work of this description4 ,i protest against this view as erroneous4 ,there can be no more degradation in imitating a brass kettle or a cut cabbage than there can be in imitating the ,alps or the ocean in its different phases1 if the imitation is a conscientious one2 and certainly1 if this is permitted on a canvas1 why should it be condemned on a door1 or a mantelpiece8 ,get the very best of the real article if it is possible1 of course1 in preference to the imitation2 but rather than get a faulty slab of marble or an uninteresting panel of wood1 try to rest content with the imitation and selection of the rarest and best4 ,i would personally much sooner live with sham virtue than open vice2 we may live on and glean happiness from the first1 but we can get nothing save disgust and misery from the last4 ,besides1 if truth and reality are to be the standards set up1 art must be abolished at one fell swoop1 for art is the embodiment of falsehood1 as falsehood is the imitation of truth4 ,the portrait is not the man or woman any more than that false oak panel is the wood it represents1 or the shilling any more than the symbol of the pleasure or comfort it stands for4 ,we are all dealing in shams and equivalents2 even the outside landscape which charms us so greatly is not reality--it is only a combination of light and optical illusion4 ,,the ,,imitation ,,of ,,soft ,,woods ,under this heading ,i take maple1 walnut1 mahogany1 satin-wood1 and all the other foreign and home woods which serve to decorate our houses and ornaments1 for the same materials and tools are required in them all4 ,,maple ,,wood ,the ground of this wood1 like light oak1 should be of a delicate cream tint4 ,i think the imitation of maplewood is one of the most delightful and artistic of all2 there is so much variety in it and so much play for the fancy2 it also liberates the hand of an artist as much as scene-painting4 ,some painters do this work with oil-colours and spoil the whole pleasure of the work4 ,i must insist that all soft woods ought to be worked in water-colour1 because oil cannot give the delicacy of the more transparent medium4 ,begin as ,i have already written about over-graining1 with the stale beer and chamois leather4 ,then dash in your ground1 composed of a thin mixture of ,vandyke brown and raw sienna4 ,you will have your colours placed in separate pots1 so as to dip your sash-tool into one or the other tint1 always using your stale beer as a medium4 ,pitch your sash-tool1 fully charged with moisture1 about your panel with free and reckless splashes1 twirling it about in parts1 until the whole effect appears like a thunderstorm in sepia4 ,then1 while it is still wet1 fold your hand in a loose way and knock the backs of the fingers slackly and flatly against the panel1 making long dabs all over it1 yet more leading to the centre towards which you have drawn your shadows with your sash-tool1 somewhat after the form of a tree with the branches spreading out4 ,soften these flat dabs1 and also the coarse work of the sash-tool1 lightly and delicately with your softener2 then take the tips of your four fingers and dab the 'eyes' about1 softening these off still more delicately with the 'badger' or softener4 ,after this is dry1 proceed to over-grain it as ,i have described in the oak1 only with your pencils accentuate some of the eyes where you think it is needful4 ,the styles and cross-styles you must do according to fancy1 wiping out parts1 trailing the over-grainer over other portions1 putting in an eye where wanted for variety1 or a knot1 yet taking great care not to crowd the work2 and always bear in mind that1 although knots may look attractive to you1 they are considered blemishes from a cabinet-maker's point of view4 ,when you have done as much as you can1 varnish4 ,,mahogany ,,and ,,walnut ,these two woods are manipulated in exactly the same way1 a groundwork dashed in with the sash-tool in the form of a tree1 and wiped out and over-grained4 ,mahogany is simpler in the over-graining and softer than walnut4 ,for mahogany you require burnt sienna and ,vandyke brown over a salmon-tinted ground2 for walnut1 ,vandyke brown alone1 over a yellow or buff ground4 ,in mahogany most of your work is done with the badger or camel-hair softener1 with just a little over-graining4 ,with walnut most of the work will be accomplished with the over-grainer and riggers or pencils1 after the groundwork is dry2 if portions are stippled with the badger in the first working it will be all the better4 ,to stipple is to hold the badger or sash-tool firmly sideways1 and strike smartly against the panel with it2 this gives the appearance of a great deal of minute work4 ,when over-graining1 study how the lines run in a real piece of walnut1 and try to imitate them closely with the knots4 ,satin-wood and most other woods are imitated in the same way1 with distemper colour and stale beer4 ,practice1 with perhaps a few practical lessons1 is all that is required1 provided the worker has adaptability1 to produce a good grainer4 ,,on ,,the ,,imitation ,,of ,,marbles--,,black ,,and ,,gold ,i take this marble first1 partly because it is my favourite marble1 and partly because it leads directly from the working in of soft woods1 as ,i like to see it done4 ,many painters lay in their ground with black in oil1 and when dry go over that again with yellow and white1 also in oil4 ,this is the way to do it cheaply and inartistically1 and1 therefore1 not the way that ,i would recommend as an artist4 ,my groundwork for this marble would be exactly the same as that used for oak--a rich cream colour4 ,over this ,i would splash and stipple about roughly in water1 or rather stale beer1 colour1 a changing coat of raw and burnt sienna1 with an adroit blending of ,vandyke brown2 in fact1 produce the wild thunderstorm effect in warm tones that ,i did on my maple panel in the first working4 ,then1 while the water-colour hurricane was drying1 ,i would get my hen's feathers and hog-haired softener in order1 with the fitches and colours required2 for the next stage1 as it is done in oil-colour1 a hog-hair softener is required4 ,then for materials4 ,a hog-hair softener1 two or three small flat brushes--i4e4 fitches1 with a small sable brush1 half a dozen stiff hen's feathers1 a mixture of ,japan gold size1 turpentine and oil1 and some lamp-black and white-lead4 ,the black and white spread upon your palette separately from each other1 the medium make thin with the turpentine1 something in this proportion3 one-third oil1 two-thirds turpentine1 and a sixth portion of ,japan gold size4 ,the rust markings or gold-tinted veins in this marble usually take the form of a shallow1 half-dried stream of water meandering amongst boulders and pebbles2 fill in these boulders and pebbles1 large and small1 with your black paint1 leaving the underground like a rich golden stream to follow its course between them4 ,then1 when you have done this to your satisfaction1 blend a little white with the black so as to produce an unequal grey over the black markings2 soften very slightly so as not to break the sharp edges1 which must be kept firm and hard at this stage2 next take a sharp-pointed stick--i4e4 your brush-handle will do if it is pointed like a blunt pencil1 and scratch out some small veins through the larger masses4 ,by using the ,japan gold size the paint will very soon set and become 'tacky'--that is1 when you touch it with your finger it will be found sticky1 therefore dry enough for the next working1 the scumbling with the feathers4 ,dip a feather into the thin mixture and draw it across the white so as to get a thin film2 flip this in a free way over the marble1 half obscuring some parts1 leaving others clear and hard1 and only a thin semi-transparent and milky-like film over other portions2 soften these films as they run1 and the result will be an exceedingly rich effect1 like shells and fossils and grey veins passing over and through the black and gold4 ,when this is dry1 varnish it1 and you will have produced a marble which for richness and lucidity cannot well be surpassed4 ,the method which ,i describe is old-fashioned1 and rather slow1 but where time and prices are not to be considered1 it is well worth the extra labour in the satisfaction it gives to the worker1 and its infinite superiority over the other method1 which will always lack purity1 richness of detail1 and all the other added beauties of variety2 for to paint light colours over black is always bad form1 and a mistake1 as the black absorbs the light colours and gives them a dull and heavy appearance4 ,,dove ,,marble ,this is another lovely marble if properly done1 as it is filled with fossils of all kinds1 and the imitation of these natural curiosities is an artistic task which brings out the best qualities of the grainer4 ,generally the ground for this is stone-colour1 and the materials are the same as for the black and gold marble--i4e4 black and white in oil-colour4 ,spread over the slab or mantelpiece a thin and carelessly mixed blending of the black1 white1 and medium1 so that when it is covered the ground shines generally through that scumbly coating with portions all irregular2 then take a long studying look at your work1 and with your sash-tool put in the dark grey portions loosely1 leaving the covered ground for the light as you might if painting a picture2 rub in your larger masses roughly2 soften these off lightly1 and next proceed with a feather smeared with white to put on your light veins2 again soften with your hog-hair tool1 and with another feather1 dipped amongst the black1 make dark veins1 crossing light and dark where needful1 until the effect is all filmy and delicate4 ,finish off with little touches and flecks of black and white on your feather-tips1 so as to produce stronger veins1 remains of fish1 shells1 and the other fossilised life with which this marble is crowded4 ,the ,italian marbles1 such as sienna and other varieties1 are done in a similar way1 with the difference of colour4 ,all marbles1 with the exception of the first working of black and gold1 are worked in oil-colour1 although1 of course1 as in wall-papers1 they may be worked1 after a style1 in body colours1 and when done in distemper they are finished off while the colour is wet4 ,granites may be imitated either by sparking the colours on by striking the charged brush lightly with a stick1 or else dabbing them on with a sponge2 a nice blending of the two methods produces the most natural effects4 ,i often pass painters producing on shop fronts marbles of green1 blue1 and red1 which1 although pretty1 represent no earthly stones4 ,i have stopped to ask them what they were making1 but they could not classify it or give it a name4 ,they had learnt to work from other grainers1 and never paused to inquire what they were producing4 ,many of these grainers never studied a piece of real marble in their lives1 and possibly would not like the sober reality if they did come across a specimen or so in a museum4 ,the subtleties and time-markings would mean nothing to them1 in the same sense that a real bit of ,nature would not appeal to the man who had spent his efforts in copying flashy oleographs4 ,now1 this sort of graining is very abominable to me1 as ,i dare say it would be to ,john ,ruskin1 or any other diligent searcher after truth4 ,every grainer ought to know where the specimen he is imitating or reproducing comes from1 and what has caused those veins and markings which he is putting in2 then he will be able to instruct the masses and satisfy the botanist and geologist3 for as he paints he will be preaching a sermon on the stone1 and writing out a record of the world's history before man came on the scene4 ,he will not then put meaningless figures into his marble1 but every flick and curl of his feather will sketch in the broken remains of an extinct race3 and in this way we distinguish between the artist-grainer and the unreasoning mechanic4 ,alma ,tadema has shown how an artist can imitate marble1 in his ,roman masterpieces1 by his care and tender manipulation4 ,he has raised the art of the grainer to a very lofty pedestal indeed4 ,in the ,royal ,academy ,exhibition1 where crowds gather round his antique revivals1 it is not so much the noble ,roman men and maidens who force the cries of admiration from them1 as the broad spaces of white and coloured marbles which predominate in these compositions2 those time-stained1 rusted blocks1 with the slight suggestion of a flaw here and there2 the iron-stains showing through the subdued lustre of the ,roman limestone2 the polished pillars and inlaid floors all kept under control1 with the veins offered only as an apology at rare intervals4 ,this art of fidelity to nature and rigid restraint have made him the grand master-grainer of the age4 ,and yet ,i have seen as fine specimens of imitation marble as ever ,tadema produced on his canvases wrought upon a show panel1 only that ,i have not seen the same masterly modesty and restraint4 ,the producer of the show panel1 as a rule1 exerts himself too much1 and attempts to put into one panel the results of a whole palace1 and that is the mistake which makes his work appear superficial and unreal4 ,alma ,tadema puts no more work in his slab than what appeared in the slab he copied so literally1 because he never permits his imagination to run away with him1 while he has nature to guide him1 and that is the secret of his wonderful success4 ,and this example ,i would impress upon every grainer1 young and old1 who may aspire to produce something great in his own line of life2 for the work on a door1 a dado1 shutter1 skirting-board1 or mantelpiece1 is of as much importance as the fresco on the plaster above--those frescoes which have been the pride and glory of the best of our old masters4 ,the grainer who desires to be remembered must possess himself with the true diffidence of the uncompromising realist4 ,after he has mastered the freehand of his craft--i4e4 the technicality and manipulation1 he must set diligently to learn the causes for those effects which he has been trying to imitate1 and aim at giving a specimen as free from blemishes as possible--that is1 he must give his patron only the most perfect specimens of the stone or wood which he is striving to realise4 ,he must learn that a block of white marble which has stains and veins in it is rejected by the sculptor and the monumental mason as faulty4 ,in the cemetery at ,stirling there is a very lovely piece of sculpture-work1 representing an angel watching over ,margaret ,wilson1 the virgin martyr1 which was purchased comparatively cheap by the donor1 ,william ,drummond1 because it had a flaw or vein in the knee4 ,if this statue had not been thus blemished1 it would have been considered perfect1 and much more valuable4 ,veins and blemishes in white marble are often caught at by the grainer to emphasise his work and make it more marble-like1 but the great grainer will try his hardest to make his work look like marble without introducing this blemish4 ,the other marbles are easy if he will but be faithful to his copy1 and guard himself from exaggeration and the crowding in of details--the rocks upon which so many split4 ,but when the grainer can produce a panel of white marble to look so like marble that it can deceive the spectator and yet be flawless1 then he may take his seat amongst those immortals who painted fruit to deceive the birds2 and whatever any other critic may say against it1 ,i hold that he is a great and a true painter4 ,illustration ,,chapter ,,ix ,,dress ,,and ,,decoration ,,dress ,illustration3 ,o,f all the many matters which require reform in this world1 ,i place the two above mentioned1 and1 while holding my own opinions with respect1 demand of everyone to reverence his or her opinions with equal respect4 ,i think that we dress altogether wrongly1 and would point out as an artist to artists the ugliness of it3 to the broad masses whom we delight to serve1 the folly and unwholesomeness of it4 ,i hold that we eat and drink altogether wrongly1 and would like to point out as an artist to artists the brain-clogging effect of it3 to the people1 the expense and unmanliness of our customs4 ,i would fain1 while exposing my own follies1 hold up a mirror to others1 showing as a warning where ,i cannot be a guide4 ,in decoration1 my second subject1 ,i would fain point you directly to nature2 look straight at her1 each with the desiring eyes of a lover1 and she will satisfy you all4 ,i suppose1 in spite of the melancholy groans of some and the cynical snarls of other dyspeptic subjects1 that we all agree1 without exception1 to love this life when we can have it tolerably free from pain1 or the pinching of poverty1 and find this much-abused world quite good enough for us and our purposes4 ,the weather is never altogether just what we would like it to be3 it is either too wet or too dry1 too hot or too cold1 to be exactly to our taste2 the direction of the wind bothers us--in fact1 there is a happy medium which we cannot strike2 and yet1 with all the shortcomings1 ,i doubt if there is a single sane ,christian who would like to go to heaven one second before his or her time4 ,of course1 we except the unfortunate insane1 who rush away on the spur of an evil moment4 ,for my own part1 ,i wish ,i could live a thousand years1 and envy the constitutions of the antediluvians1 who could take time to do their work properly1 although ,i will confess to moments--neither few nor far between--when ,i make myself as miserable and disagreeable as anyone could imagine1 and yet live4 ,the earth is all right about me1 the weather is passable1 the machinery which moves me along would be perfection1 if custom1 and fashion1 and general debility of will would only let it alone1 and permit it to do its work in its own way1 and with its own conditions4 ,nature endows us with tastes as simply correct as the horse's2 and custom teaches us to endure1 with martyr persistence1 habits that are as difficult and dangerous to learn as they are hard to break from4 ,nature bestows upon us skin all over our body1 like that upon our face1 and custom covers up part of it1 until it is so sensitive that it cannot be exposed2 and fashion bids us bare it at the wrong moment1 or else load it with all kinds of unwholesomenesses4 ,true ,art stands by the side of ,nature1 both ridiculed1 both lamenting2 while ,fashion and ,custom1 ever capricious1 ride on triumphant4 ,for example1 take the feet3 ,i prefer to raise my eyes from the earth--to begin1 as men begin to build houses1 from the groundwork upwards4 ,we muffle them in wool or cotton1 and cramp them inside the stiffest of tanned skins--dead skins over living skins--and think that this can be healthy2 we shape them according to a fashion--square1 round1 or pointed toes--never according to nature and the foot which we ought to imitate1 therefore not at all according to true art1 which must follow after nature1 never after fashion1 which must always be utterly false and ugly until it emanates directly from nature1 and then there can be no god ,fashion2 for every man and woman will create their own ideal from themselves1 and not from any brainless demi-monde1 and their modesty will not run counter to the virtue which the great ,creator planted within the human mind1 nor shame be created over what ,he said was well done4 ,we hobble about within our wrappings with feet that swell and sweat and steam unwholesomely1 bathing them when they have become intolerable with the exhalations from the living skin1 and the impurities which they have drawn out of the dead hides4 ,we hobble about with our raised heels and our square toes1 admiring one another1 or envying one another1 for the smallness and the tightness of the cramping1 never revealing1 till some one tramps upon them1 the painful fact of bunions and corns1 which1 in silence and with ,spartan endurance1 we are growing all to ourselves1 in order to reach the ideal that the world has set up for us to follow4 ,a host of other ailments are the lively produce of our efforts2 but1 as beauty is my aim1 ,i will pass them over1 content to regard the ugly abortion which that most lovely portion of a faultless machine has become4 ,the overpowering influence of fashion even on well-balanced minds must not be overlooked4 ,when crinolines were in vogue1 even men of taste were weak enough to admire the fearsome abomination--at least1 they admired the creature inside that circumference1 to which usage made them blind4 ,none of us admire the ,chinese ideal of a foot1 yet we are ready to grow poetic over the chef-d'oeuvre of a shoemaker2 we sing to the boot1 for of course it would be impossible1 not to say imprudent1 to sing about the foot4 ,once ,i lived near a woman who had lost her nose4 ,at first ,i thought this a great disfigurement1 and did not like to look in her face1 but by degrees ,i grew to lose the first horror1 and ,i dare say might have grown to think the want an improvement in the way of faces1 had ,i lived near her long enough4 ,we admire the ,greek ideal1 because the ,greeks had perfect untrammelled nature to copy4 ,their models were not curbed by stays or tight-lacings2 their training was severe1 and their eyes were accustomed to flowers4 ,luxury and sloth were crimes in ,greece2 in the high times of ,greece1 ,i mean1 when simplicity was admired1 and slaves were the ,sybarites1 naked men and women vied to show perfect limbs1 not rich attire4 ,the barbarians were the fashion-mongers4 ,what so like the classic ideal as the ,highland woman who puts on boots at the church-door1 and doffs them again with the benediction8--useless to her amongst her native hills--an agony endured1 because the poor thing imagines that it looks respectable and religious-like4 ,what so unlike this idea as the fashionable votary1 while she strangles and strains to get out of the superfine1 creaseless kid cages8 ,did they look like mice peeping in and out as she tripped 7limped7 along according to the poet8 ,who wants to see mice under petticoats8 ,who1 with poetry or taste1 cares to see feet that can be compared to mice8 ,and can those long1 splay1 aristocratic1 high-heeled1 superbly-arched1 pointed-toed1 tightly1 so tightly-fitting1 importations from tinsel ,paris be called feet8 ,alas6 they are all that the envied1 favoured one has to represent what ,god ,almighty was already pleased with4 ,he gave her roundness1 which she has flattened--fulness1 which she has reduced--softness1 which she has made hard2 all that ,he did she has attempted to undo1 until what she is dipping into the tepid and aromatic bath is neither useful for walking nor tempting to the eye4 ,they are white enough--almost white enough for leprosy1 except when the boot has been perchance extra hard2 then they are red or horny1 according to the time the bruise has been endured4 ,soft underneath1 where nature meant them to be hard--so soft and useless that a crumb under the carpet causes them to double up--hard and lumpy where nature intended them to be soft6 ,how modest fashion is to hide all the uglinesses she creates1 and what fools men are to rave about a piece of leather6 ,our ,highland girl1 with her boots slung over her shoulders1 and the marks all washed away in the streamlet she has just passed1 is springy in her gait as a young stag1 lithe in her movement as a young panther--every fleshfold has its own room to move and make grace2 the heels are broad to meet emergencies1 round where they rise1 flat where they press the earth2 the soles hard1 as they ought to be1 to encounter the roughnesses1 with an instep just big enough to skim the ground1 not high enough to attract the eye--nature is far too subtle for that2 flexible and free1 the toes are dimpled loves1 each carrying his own pink sea-shell1 with blue veins that run over strong sinews1 and appear mellow under the gold of the sun-flush--an ankle that is godlike in its concealed strength1 and the portion of a leg that might serve the painter as his model for the huntress ,diana4 ,fashion makes us bond-slaves4 ,we put on boots to keep out the cold1 and they soak in the damp2 stockings to help the absorbing process1 and thus confirm the risk of consumption4 ,nature makes us all beautiful1 or would do so if we gave her a fair chance2 and we spend years in bringing nature down to a level not to be described in any simile4 ,nature meant to endow us with sinews and muscles to give and take a squeeze1 and we poultice them all over until they are flaccid1 and shrink at the slightest force4 ,nature made the ,greeks1 and the ,greeks owed what powers they possessed to the restraint they displayed in letting nature alone4 ,art1 having no human nature now left unspoilt1 points to the old ,greeks4 ,taste admits art to be right1 yet yields to fashion1 while that graven calf stands with senseless hoof upon the roses and the lilies1 calling itself the ,god of ,modesty1 ,purity1 and ,taste--a modesty which ordains the female to cover her hands and feet1 and lay bare her breast2 purity which can show a naked arm1 and blush to show a naked foot4 ,we cannot improve upon the naked foot4 ,the hand may wear rings1 and to degraded senses look improved 7we who look straight to nature1 and find the finish of the ,creator finish enough1 doubt this--but let that pass72 the neck may have its chains1 the ears1 the arms1 and ankles1 even the nose1 rings1 according to the fancy of the wearer or the taste of the nation4 ,i do not like rings1 or anything that divides the lines of symmetry1 yet if one part be covered1 gold may be worn with advantage on other portions2 but ,i defy any cover or ornament yet invented by man to improve the foot which ,god has already so beautifully covered4 ,the world is all false--false aims1 false motives1 false pride1 false modesty1 shame bred from impurity1 blushing at what it should be proud of4 ,if we dared1 we would fain set up woman as she dawned upon primitive man4 ,imagination pictures to us the first male and female1 without a physical flaw1 in the perfection which the ,creator considered costume sufficient4 ,reason may bring forward scientific theories respecting the origin of man1 but the poetry of our natures will not permit us to accept of them4 ,we like to see that young man fresh from the hands of his ,creator1 meeting his mate with her first blush of womanhood in those spring-tinted glades of ,paradise2 we like to think of the child-minds waking up1 each drinking in the other's fascination1 each unconscious of its own perfection1 filled with the new-breathed life1 the joy of existence1 the lavishness of surrounding nature1 alone in their joint humanity1 the centre of myriad wondering eyes1 with the great ,eye of dawning ,day laving them and all creation in that rosy light4 ,we like to see her standing breathless before the splendour of that youthful manhood1 soft mists wreathing from her like a bridal veil1 her blue eyes like the forget-me-nots1 into which her tender feet are sinking1 pushing back with those shell-tipped1 tapering fingers the wealth of golden tresses which roll from the azure-veined1 ivory forehead1 that she may be the better able to peer within those wells of amber brown1 all unknowing of the loveliness she is herself revealing4 ,but the world has fallen from that state of purity1 and we have the sordid substitute1 shame1 to warn us against any return2 therefore we must perforce drape our ideal before we can present her to the many eyes4 ,yet in our draping we would consult nature with grace1 rather than fashion2 cover our woman without losing her identity2 imitate naught except her own lines1 in her drapery2 let her breathe freely1 move easily1 and appear before us as she ought to do1 wide-waisted1 a woman with the look of a future matron1 and not the rickety imitation of a wasp4 ,fashion is a mighty power1 and yet1 after all the periods and changes with the world1 we must return to our admiration of the ancients4 ,we must love our girls1 no matter how they are costumed1 and love will make the costumes appear becoming2 yet1 can we compare the intricate flounces of to-day with the grandeur and grace of those simple antique folds1 without deploring the influence of that ',monster1 ,fashion1' which compels ,love to make such an effort8 ,think of our gigantic headpieces1 and then of the classic plait and coil2 in the one case measuring four instead of the classic eight heads to the figure4 ,compare the gigantic hoop1 with the clinging robe which revealed sufficient for grace without offending modesty2 the easy swing of the antique1 with the affected limp of the modern4 ,although we know the story of the first body covering of foliage1 it is difficult to trace back to the first foot cramp4 ,an old legend has it that when ,adam was forced from ,eden he bruised his foot1 in the hurry1 against a bar of the massy gate1 and so1 with the pain1 thought upon a bandage4 ,pain is mostly our first1 and most effectual1 instructor4 ,the red-hot poker must be a pretty sight to the eye of innocent childhood2 the touch generally suggests the necessity of cultivating the organ of caution4 ,so with man1 the ignorant2 he covered his body because sin showed him it was naked1 and tied up the wound upon his bruised foot because it smarted4 ,granted that the roads are hard1 and the feet of the wanderers unfit to encounter the roughness1 the sandal of the ancients comes nearest to our ideal of a graceful protection4 ,to those who must have luxury1 who have wealth to spend and like to spend it on themselves1 what a glorious opportunity is here6--straps inlaid with gold and gems1 the poetry of the jeweller expended in chaste designs and ornate extravagances--straps that catch a thousand sun rays1 and break them into prismatic splinters2 gems that get loosened from their elaborate settings1 and1 rolling amongst the grey dust1 attract the beggar's eye with their flashing1 and fire the hearts of the finders' friends with the fleeting joy of possession2 straps that leave the toes free room to move1 and be seen1 open to the fresh airs of heaven1 like the hands and face1 with the same advantages of getting dust-grimed1 and the same chance of getting often washed2 straps that may cost a fortune1 or be had at a quarter of the price of boots4 ,what a delightful custom after the sandals were doffed1 when the guest entered1 and the women of the household brought water and towel as the welcome home6 ,think of it1 on a summer march1 with your feet sweltering and blistering inside cramping boots--the comfort of it1 the beauty of it1 when the tired feet were placed on the mat1 or amongst the rushes1 rosy1 fragrant1 and purified6 ,in summer1 ay1 or in winter either1 are we warmer gloved or ungloved on a winter day8 ,which protects the nose most in a frost1 a veil or a handful of snow rubbed briskly over that organ8 ,which feels the cold most1 the ,highlander with his kilt and bare legs1 or the ,sassenach with his drawers and breeches8 ,with the hands and the feet1 habit solves the problem2 our summer is a ,calcutta winter4 ,fashion is for ever changing4 ,why8 ,because men and women cannot feel satisfied with their inventions--because the instinct of the ,true is in us all1 and we are miserable when we attempt to beat it down4 ,god gave man a costume which man cannot rival1 and man must come back to it before he is satisfied4 ,it is well to foster a taste for china or old books1 to rave of the quaintness of ,queen ,anne1 the shepherdesses of ,watteau1 the flowered vests and cocked hats of the beaux1 the patches and periwigs of the be-hooped and be-bustled belles1 cracked plates with fragile morals1 manners of the stage--all that the idiots who get up the forced ecstasies rave about2 but the talk grows low-toned1 and the tinsel tongues are hushed1 as the ,apollo and ,achilles1 or the ,venus and ,andromeda of the ,greeks1 loom up1 with the grandeur of their ,god-beauty clinging to them like an imperishable robe4 ,where is the mock modesty that dares to blush before these perfections8 ,gaze upon them long1 and learn the secret of the changing fashions4 ,men and women must yet learn to dress so as to move and breathe freely and naturally before they reach the point where fashion will stand still--having folds that fall simply1 short for action1 long for show4 ,woman must appear yet before us as she should do1 supple and free4 ,the world must yet wake up to the truth and purity of beauty1 and to do so must come back to its ,creator--delicacy weighed in the scales with the virtues of nature2 the beauty of strength admired1 before the whiteness and softness of the drooping flower4 ,we must love all that is beautiful4 ,the naked form of a woman is beautiful1 but the folds of a loosely-fitting1 simply plain costume are also beautiful1 and perhaps the whiteness and softness gained1 if it can be gained without loss of strength1 by shading it from the sun1 is a point gained2 for it is lovely in its fragility--a loveliness which the air of heaven would roughen1 which the eye of day would cover as thoroughly as a veil--subtle gradations which are never seen except by the painter4 ,cover it1 if you will1 with soft folds that will fit to the motions1 not with the snaky outer skin which reveals the shape completely1 but without a touch of the multitude of colour charms4 ,we can never return to the innocence of ,eden until we fling off the clay portion of us1 and look upon life with spiritual eyes4 ,then the ugliness of sin and crime will make us droop our eyes1 but never the perfection of nature4 ,i have seen people turn with blushing faces at the sight of a naked child1 as if it was something to be guilty about4 ,education had debased their minds4 ,in the ,south ,seas ,i have watched the sexes together plunge into the coral-washed waves1 and discourse on passing events ashore1 and they had no thought of shame4 ,nature had left them where education will bring us all1 if the time ever comes when knowledge can be surmounted4 ,choose1 while you must dress1 each a fashion to suit yourselves4 ,begin with the figure which your ,maker has given you1 and assimilate as nearly as your material will permit your fashion to that figure4 ,consult the hygiene of that form1 and make your fashion subordinate to those laws4 ,perfect health and perfect grace go together4 ,consult the colour which nature has given to you1 and place the colour of your costume in harmony with that1 to keep that colour1 when dressed1 exactly in the same position as it is when you are nude2 for depend upon it1 if you are in health1 no heightening or lowering will ever become you so well4 ,remember that fashionable colours may have suited the particular woman who made the fashion2 seldom anyone else4 ,think you are as good a woman as any other1 and bring pride to the rescue4 ,you have equal right1 through the royalty of your perfect womanhood1 to make a fashion as any duchess or demi-mondaine in the land4 ,banish false hair1 which only heats your brains and wears away your own hair1 besides carrying dead impressions and nameless diseases into your system4 ,banish hats that hide or kill faces1 or weigh down heads4 ,a light cover for the sun1 if fierce3 yet the hair was given to man for this purpose4 ,banish stays1 which murder not only yourselves1 but the races coming after you4 ,banish waist-bands and petticoats1 which are deforming your hips4 ,look to the waist and hips of the ,venus of ,milo for my meaning4 ,live for yourselves1 and for the future4 ,be the founders of virtuous and wise ,titans4 ,saturn is not nearly dead yet1 and ,rhea is still kind1 if you will4 ,but as ,jove fought for life1 so must you4 ,on the milk of goats he grew strong to defy ,father ,time1 the devourer4 ,be strong to defy the laughter and the sneers4 ,set up an ,image of ,life and worship this only1 for this is the earth-symbol of ,god4 ,,decoration ,art1 in the general acceptance of the term1 is all that is apart from mechanical dexterity2 as the man is not his brain or heart or muscles1 but the immeasurable force which controls and moves all these parts1 so ,art is that immeasurable force that appeals to and speaks through all our senses4 ,truth is the primary principle of art2 the lever of life1 the mainspring of society4 ,if we are not true to ourselves1 we cannot be true to one another2 therefore1 our plans must come to naught4 ,madame ,modjeska1 one of the greatest of living actresses1 is said to be able to do two things at once--to present to the public a face expressive of the most intense agony1 shedding tears1 and seemingly writing a letter which is breaking her heart1 and actually making comic caricatures on the sheet of note-paper4 ,admiring this gifted woman as ,i do1 this is a knowledge to shudder over4 ,i hope it cannot be true1 for if ,i thought of art reaching this doubtful state of perfection1 ,i could never again see all the agony of that acting1 only the mockery of the caricatures4 ,falsehood is not power2 it may impose1 but unless the actor1 or the poet1 or the painter1 can lose himself or herself in the part with which they are involved1 all the rest is only nerve-twisting1 meaning nothing1 conveying nothing4 ,beauty is the embodiment of truth1 as man palpable is the embodiment of soul4 ,falsehood may come draped in the appearance of truth1 which is beauty1 but that only testifies to the rigid impersonation of truth2 falsehood1 being hideous1 has to come like truth before it can impose4 ,beauty being thus the incarnation of truth1 and the mission of art being to present this body to the senses1 it becomes the stern duty of artists to find out what she is before they attempt to reproduce her4 ,hence also art takes its proper position in the world2 hence its utility to society4 ,truth is the binder of society1 the leader upwards2 ,beauty1 the form of that divine force2 ,art1 the interpretation of that holy principle2 ,honour1 ,faith1 ,trust1 ,love which casteth out fear--all are outsprings from the spirit of ,truth1 which ,art has to present to the people1 and teach them to see and love4 ,beauty1 therefore1 is the chief quality of art1 and while the standard of beauty rests in our eyes--a perfectly formed face often appearing repulsive1 and a figure seemingly faultless devoid of grace1 whilst the expression and the action transform the plain face and common figure into beauty and grace--so old age can be as beautiful as early youth1 and the ugliness of power made to embody rugged grandeur4 ,but although we create our own ideal of beauty1 it is the mission of the painter1 poet1 sculptor1 novelist1 and dramatist to educate the world1 and refine and elevate their creations and ideals2 and this mission is not fulfilled in the mind that merely reports the tittle-tattle of everyday life and no more1 or that relates the improbable adventures1 frivolities1 and vices of a fashionable upper ten thousand1 nor the burlesque or comic opera1 that turns to buffoonery all those sentiments which tend to melt or ennoble in the language and moral of the tragedy1 from which they draw their ribald nonsense4 ,nor is it fulfilled in the poem that only deals in mystery and new-forged words1 that mean nothing unless the suggestion of a harmonious sound--unless the reader fills it up with his own suppositions2 or1 if meaning anything1 only suggestions which the writer is too cowardly to tell out openly and therefore knavishly sends forth to engender its own poison under its specious and subtle mufflings of musical jargon4 ,nor is this mission fulfilled in the picture that speaks a soft1 hazy blending of harmonious tints1 because a weaver can do and mean as much with his loom1 or the display of a dexterous manipulation learnt1 as any other dexterity in craft1 by rule4 ,neither is it fulfilled in the scant imitation of a bit of nature1 although here more than in the meaningless blendings1 because any old stump lying by the roadside1 with its moss and time-dressing1 must look beautiful1 although with no great credit because of no great effort of the imitator1 and presenting none of his mind1 which is the vital force we look to for elevation4 ,we turn to the ,greeks for our ideas of refinement4 ,they have left nearly perfect forms in ornament1 architecture1 and sculpture1 and they have also left examples1 in their habits and mode of living1 that they were simple to severity4 ,when ,i speak thus ,i except the debauched followers of ,bacchus and ,venus2 for these poets1 like ,anacreon1 belong to the decline of ,greek life1 and therefore must only be looked at as the foul fungi and rotten growths bred from decay4 ,the early ,greeks fulfilled their mission1 because they gave us beautiful forms to look upon1 beautiful lines1 beautiful curves2 the ,egyptians and ,assyrians fulfilled their mission1 because they gave us massive forms and gorgeous tints2 the savage tribes fulfil their mission in their fantastic images of terror2 the early painters fulfilled their mission1 because they sought to raise up feelings of devotion1 or pity1 or horror in the spectator2 the modern painters1 bowing down to the golden calf1 paint what will suit best1 and sink their art into a trade and traffic4 ,give painters commissions1 is one suggestion to create high art2 so far1 good for the buyer4 ,painters must live1 as preachers must live1 and the labourer is worthy of his hire2 but the painter who is also a preacher ought not to think of the price of his picture4 ,robert ,burns had the true estimate of his poetry4 ,we cannot judge a picture by its price4 ,if it is a true effort1 it is part of the painter's soul1 which cannot be bought4 ,let him not say it is worth #djjl4 or #cl42 rather say it is not money-worth2 take it and give me what ,i need to live3 it is mine for ever1 because ,i made it1 and ,i only give it up to hang on your walls1 in that ,i need your help to be able to live and work4 ,ornament or decoration being one of the many outcomes of art-teaching which can be applied to the continuance and comfort of ordinary life1 we take it up in its broadest meaning4 ,to ornament our persons rightly1 first studying the laws of health1 cleanliness1 and sympathetic attraction2 to bring grace into our language1 and actions1 and morals2 after we have administered to the sense of sight and smell1 that we may always be lovers and ideals to our wives1 banishing from us utterly all habits and liberties that tend to destroy the lovely gloss of that first love2 words that may lower or corrupt2 jests that may rub off the modesty of first friendship2 actions that may tend to deaden the finer romance of the tender dream2 all these come within the category of ,decoration1 and require to be carefully studied4 ,to ornament our house discreetly1 so that we may always find a pleasure in the sitting down1 a harmony all over that will soothe us after our day's work2 a quiet colourless patterned paper will be as cheap as a gaudy glaring1 and will comfort you where the other will not2--a knowledge of how little is wanted to make life pleasant1 a method to get true style1 and save money1 an idea of the decoration or useful laws of colour2--a taste in the way of books and dress and behaviour1 a general blandness1 which etiquette aims at1 improving the high tone1 which some aristocrats have1 and some must pretend to learn1 and which may be acquired by any one studying the first law of ,christianity1 which selfishness1 and coarseness1 and falseness cannot successfully imitate or keep up for long1 no matter what title comes before or after their names1 or the pedigree they may be able to tot up1 or the appearance their tailor or dressmaker may give to them2--which only require the instincts of honour and truth to do it all to perfection4 ,it does not really matter whether you use your bread or fork or knife at the orthodox moment2 if you can keep down the scoff or the sneer where another has tripped4 ,the fork or knife mistakes only want a hint to rectify1 the sneer or scoff cannot be rectified1 for the one has been the want of knowledge1 while the other has been the want of soul3 the one is a novice1 to be trained2 the other a cad1 to be kicked4 ,that there are tastes acquired1 and instincts born in us1 we all have hourly and abundant proofs4 ,but the love of ornament ,i take to be an instinct bred in the bone and born with the breath4 ,we have records when and how the world began1 but never a record of the beginning of ornament4 ,adam saw that ,eve was fair to look upon1 and she1 ,i doubt not1 long before the serpent tempted her1 knew of a method to deck up her tresses so as to increase the fascination4 ,in this world1 and age1 and short life1 when science has taught us the fallacy of our eyesight1 and the imperfection of those organs which the ,creator gave to us and called good2 when knowledge must be concentrated and bottled into the mind like a quintessence1 over-proof1 we have no time for wandering amongst words2 with our girls1 scientific and exact1 ,cupid must learn to be brief with what he has to tell and not dally with soft nothings4 ,language must be chosen for its directness rather than for its elegance1 if the speaker would not be flung aside like the useless rubbish his weak flourishes have made him4 ,pure ornament1 like pure language1 should be simple in its construction and expression1 clear in its meaning1 with just sufficient embellishment about it to interest the imagination1 leaving the intention honestly revealed to the passing glance4 ,the truest lines of grace are the plainest2 the most majestic designs are those freest from detail2 the greatest charm about the disposal of drapery is in the fewest folds1 big folds1 falling straight2 the best dressed men or women are those costumed the quietest4 ,the sign of a lady and gentleman is simple1 unaffected ease--an ease which embraces the comfort of all round so completely that the effort cannot be observed1 only the effect1 which is kindness and equality4 ,the cynic cannot be a lady or a gentleman1 for the province of a cynic is to wound1 therefore what cynics gain through being feared they must lose in one boon1 that of being loved4 ,culture or education does not make a lady or a gentleman2 much oftener it makes prigs and insufferable pedantic bores1 by rendering the woman and man--through her or his very surface cramming of technical names and scientific phrases1 without the more complete training of restraint or the polish of consideration--offensive by the air of utter knowledge they put on during conversation1 or worse than offensive by the patronising leniency they assume towards the ignorance supposed to be around them4 ,i have seen fearsome clowns whose boorishness raised all the brute within me before ,i had talked to them five minutes1 to whom ,euclid was a relaxation1 and a volume of ,tyndall or ,huxley regarded in the form of light literature4 ,the utility1 or rather the necessity1 for ornament runs like an artery throughout our lives1 not only in our houses1 and dresses1 and persons1 and possessions1 but in our morals and manners2 hence my passing observation upon the latter1 first3 ,the savage1 with his tattoo and war instruments1 attaches a religious importance to it4 ,the lines in the face of the ,maori1 which mean each curve a grade in his knighthood1 or caste dignity1 until the face and the body are covered with symmetrical designs1 tell to the initiated a family history of sustained honours and glory2 and this is the utility of the ornaments of the ,maori3 indeed1 it ought to be the intention of ornament1 as of all arts1 to serve another purpose than mere show1 which is only the flashing of a paste brilliant4 ,from the days when man1 like ,jacob1 set up his immortal stone1 to the classic altars of gold which the ,greeks and ,romans set before the statues of their gods1 it marks an epoch1 and points towards an aim4 ,i cannot conceive man content with his rough tanned skins1 and his knobbed branch club1 or sharp stone fixed into an uncarved handle2 void of the instinct of decoration1 his woman1 like himself1 squatting in the sun1 without any other intention than to eat1 fight1 and sleep4 ,no race on earth has been so low1 no time so primitive1 that love did not lighten it--love the subduer1 the purifier1 the knight creator4 ,and love never yet shot his arrow where squalid contentment reigned4 ,the women wove their mats1 and the men cut out the handles of their tomahawks4 ,the moist-eyed young ,kotori listened to the pipe of the stalwart ,toa1 and thought of flowers to adorn her braided locks4 ,and the warrior plucked the tendril from the tree as he passed through the forest1 and wound it round his brows that the maiden might like him all the better4 ,cupid first1 and afterwards ,mars1 breathed into the spirit of man the stern necessity of ornament4 ,primitive man then looked straight at nature in his adorning of his surroundings4 ,inspired by love1 he became more sympathetic in his tendencies1 courteous to the female1 zealous of his self-constituted rights1 like the ,count ,falko in that matchless ,german poem-story of ,sintram1 more appreciative of the beautiful about him4 ,fruit attracted him by its colouring1 and bloom1 and shape1 when before he had only thought upon its taste2 he fondled the dog which before he only noticed by his rigid discipline2 and from the twisting of the real leaves and flowers round himself and his accoutrements1 he grew to imitate them in relief and colours1 so that he might have the remembrance always with him when the originals lay withered into dust2 bringing to the wigwam1 whar1 hut1 or palace1 the green of ,june in the white sheet of ,december1 stamping on the icy heart of winter the glowing monogram of festive summer4 ,so with his animals4 ,the favourite dog was immortalised in this rude1 primitive way2 the wild beast whom he had fought and conquered single-handed1 as ,david did the lion--boasting about it at camp-meetings1 taking it as his ensign1 with the motto1 ',i did it all4' ,so every man became his own sculptor1 historian1 poet1 and herald2 and when language failed1 he attempted1 by carved ornament and painted symbol1 to fill out the want4 ,i like a consistent boaster4 ,he is honest if not modest1 and honesty is far to be preferred to that contemptible mock-modesty which inclines a man to hide what he must have been proud to inherit4 ,hereward the ,wake1 in ,charles ,kingsley's romance1 is a fresh boisterous character whom we must like better when he rode sarkless out to meet the foe than ,hereward the false lover and astute politician1 who could forsake the woman who had suffered by his side4 ,i cannot appreciate the poet who is so modest that he requires pressing to read his manuscript4 ,he must have felt that he was doing something worthy of being read or listened to1 or surely he would never have wasted his time over the elaboration of the thought2 and thinking this1 he is an impostor to pretend to cover that honest outcome of his pride and not seek his reward4 ,does not the painter paint his picture to be seen1 and can anyone admire the modesty that will not hold it up to the passer-by8 ,give me the ,hereward of the brush and pen2 the man who button-holes you like ,coleridge1 and1 shutting his eyes1 recites all the ideas which he thinks are fine2 the ,swinburne who can see his own beauties and not be ashamed to point them out2 the ,walt ,whitman who sings about himself2 the man who works for praise and is not ashamed to ask for his reward4 ,is it subtlety to mask over your meaning with words8 ,is it the mark of high-toned education and refinement to pretend to comprehend this category of manufactured and meaningless words1 this jingling of obscurities8 ,is it a sign of ignorance to frankly confess that this sort of thing is beyond you8 ,then ,i don't admire subtlety2 ,i don't pretend to be high-toned1 ,i glory in my ignorance4 ',sartor ,resartus' does not seem to me to have any special mission4 ,there are strong passages in it1 disconnected pieces that ,i look upon as a vocabulary1 and use accordingly2 but the author to me represents neither a seer1 a prophet1 nor a moral teacher1 but only a used-up1 tobacco-smoking1 ill-natured old man1 who ill-used himself1 his wife1 his friends1 and did nothing beyond stringing together a few volumes of vivid expressions to enlighten the nineteenth century4 ,but he understood the ornamental part of language1 and for that ,i like him1 if for nothing more4 ,to leave a modern savage and return to man the primitive4 ,war taught him the utility of ornament1 how to make objects and curves to inspire the foeman with horror2 and in this we see the first departure from direct nature watching1 to invention2 the lion or boar was not fearful enough1 so he combined their ferociousness and made a mixture4 ,religion stepped in next with stiff rules and unalterable decrees1 and man no longer sought to imitate nature1 but gazed beyond her to the mystic symbol of the unseen4 ,an error in the first instance1 in the ornamental expression of her imagery1 became a fixed law1 as in ,egypt and ,india1 where century after century the lines were repeated without the slightest variation1 and a conventional false symbol served instead of the clumsy but truthful imitation of the savage4 ,the ,greeks stand the exception to all the barbarism of the world about them2 they rose to perfection by quick degrees1 and that is about all we can say of their art history4 ,they were refined and simple in their manners1 rigid in their habits1 before the ,olympian court was arranged into order or ,homer had invented poetry4 ,hardy health was their aim and stalwart beauty their standard4 ,the flowing grace of their own unfettered limbs taught them the purity of true art lines4 ,vintage time was a joyous season to be remembered during winter1 so they raised pillars to mark their joy1 and cut upon them memories of the vine leaves and honeysuckle which they had watched clinging over their porches in the golden hours4 ,very early in the world's history man found the use of metals1 and learned by mingling to harden them4 ,the first statues and ornaments were formed by hammering the metals and beating them into plates and cords to lay upon or twist round blocks of wood and stone--a slow1 hard1 laborious process with little effect4 ,these were the days when ,vulcan and his demons burrowed in the earth's vaults to forge the armour of ,mars4 ,gods with glass eyes and the stiffest of limbs yet bore a resemblance to human beings4 ,egypt was working away content with her foldless draperies and indiscriminate finishing of detail1 handing down from father to son their arts and sciences--everything hereditary1 from the many grades of the priesthood to the low office of the accursed dissector of the sacred body to be embalmed2 building her mighty monuments and laying on her rigid tyrannic colours--the harmony of law that was right by chance4 ,phoenicia was waking up and gaining a name amongst nations2 the dyed stuffs and embossed golden cups and clean-cut coins of ,tyre1 ,sidon1 and ,carthage1 which sent out laden ships and grew rich through industry4 ,greece was striding on through wars and revolutions and conquests1 art and ornament grew strong and refined1 and thus became daily a stricter necessity4 ,their own habits were simple1 but their gods were extravagantly administered to4 ,homer taught them to sing1 and to work broadly and delicately4 ,homer1 the grand old man1 the blind beggar who could look with those spirit eyes into centuries1 who assembled the gods in order1 placed the immortal stragglers in poetic arrangement1 utilised the court of love to his own imperial cadence1 and became the father1 not of his own tribes only1 but of all nations4 ,what had their battles done but for his pen8 ,helen were a forgotten sin1 ,troy a fleck of white dust--all the heroes of that deathless romance only the vanished marshalling of an ant-hill2 for what are we after our lives have gone unless the poet or the novelist creates us afresh and gives us actions that will not die8 ,what is our pain or our pleasure to the partner of it all8 ,we cannot feel theirs1 they cannot know ours4 ,my sorrow will not let me judge of yours1 for ,i look upon yours from the outside--a sight1 the glimpse of a covered volcano--while mine is here where ,i can see it no more than you can1 but my living soul is writhing in the flames4 ,will my pain give me yours8 ,no6 and so the griefs and passions of two centuries dead and unchronicled cannot stir a thought4 ,the writer lives and cries3 ',come out1 ,o ,lazarus6 shake from you the dead cerements1 live as you lived1 think again2 and as you think so shall your thoughts be fixed and roll through ,time4' ,homer lived and sang1 and heroes rose1 and virtue became tangible1 and right was fixed1 and wrong grew a thing4 ,the painter and the worker in stone and metal had a theory4 ,beauty was fixed by the ,judgment of ,paris1 mythology became a living creed2 while he1 the blind father1 spake on1 sang on1 unheeded1 yet insensibly becoming the educating founder of a school where the world must enter and learn till the end has come4 ,as ,homer did to the ,greeks1 so the novelist does for us--presenting to our eyes the world we have not seen1 society we may not enter1 manners we could not know but for him2 virtue gets the reward1 vice gets the punishment1 the knight of chivalry inspires us with the desire to emulate4 ,the noble path of honour is pointed out1 and we glow as we read1 with the desire to follow3 what sermon could teach us more8 ,the theatre is a church of refinement and morality1 teaching us how to act in this world1 which1 as inhabitants1 we require as much as the tenets of the next1 about which we know nothing3 so the novel4 ,i have read all kinds of fiction3 ,george ,eliot1 who tells us things as objectionable as the author of ',the ,lady of the ,camellias'2 ,dumas1 who points out the virtue of fidelity even in a demi-monde1 that false heroine2 ,zola1 the needful man with the muck-rake4 ,i have seen the novel-reader world-wise1 and the philosophy-devourer a fool4 ,novels are the histories of humanity3 they teach us a wisdom that years of sorrow only could reveal2 through them we may look into the hearts of men and women and not be deceived by the smiling mask of deceit2 they bring to us a world we dare not visit1 telling us what we ought to know about sin and suffering2 they inculcate knowledge in a pleasant way1 preaching to us virtue and nobility1 warning us of falsehood2 in them we go out to the ,valley of the ,shadow of ,death and are able to conquer the ,monster without any risk of scars1 to pass through the world and yet be pure1 to know all things without tasting of the forbidden tree3 and can the preacher do more8 ,ornament your houses1 ornament your persons1 your manners1 and your morals2 even morality can be made very ugly if it is presented to us gaunt and square--without the undulating lines of forethought and forbearance1 without the graceful folds of divine charity4 ,i have seen morality brought out and held up such a forbidding skeleton that the soul artistically inclined shrank back aghast from the weird spectre4 ,take one short half-hour to glance over your own faults of a morning1 and you will be astonished at the perfection you see around you4 ,think but for a few moments upon the wisdom you have gained in your earth sojourn1 and ,i defy you to open your mouths when even ignorance boasts4 ,it is so nice to be sure of our subject1 to sit down and listen to a tinkle of babble and know what ought to be1 to enter the room we have decorated and feel that there is nothing wanted1 to look into the mirror and feel we are dressed1 to clasp our friend by the hand and feel we are united3 that this is contrast sufficient1 and harmony through it all4 ,i have said nearly all that is required about ornament1 because ,i intended to speak to you in a general way4 ,true1 ,i might tell you about the rules of the ,greeks regarding ornament2 how they modelled1 punctured1 painted1 and fired their vases2 how they preferred a cameo to a costly stone1 a bit of mind to a rare flash2 but what would that avail to what ,i want8 ,i want my friends to be men and women1 to have a reason for all things1 to know why the scarf goes round their neck or the boots upon their feet4 ,i don't want them to like ,henry ,irving only because he is fashionable1 or to talk cant about pictures4 ,i want them to be honest--to like1 and openly say so1 in their ignorance the things of ignorance1 and come from the outer to the inner circle by degrees and openly4 ,i want my friends to eat1 drink1 dress1 and sleep as they ought to1 as creatures who have inherited an immortality2 who are all one 7except by learning71 patrician or plebeian1 and who aim at refinement2 not to be dazzled like weak moths by a glitter1 but to enjoy the light if it is a good light1 yet not to mistake the farthing dip for the electric flame2 to look past the splendid expression in a poem or speech and see if the centre line is straight2 see what the motive is1 for that is the soul of the poem or picture4 ,i have met men and women with souls so colourless that1 but for the bodies which gave them a place1 they would never be observed2 souls which could never reach a heaven or be carried the length of a hell1 but with the dissolution of the carcase2 which might1 through an outside effort1 be able to flicker up for a moment1 but must eventually collapse1 and be blotted out as completely as the droppings of a meteor on a midnight sky4 ,the reflection of a religious or an atheistic colour may pass over them1 as the sky colour is cast upon a fragment of jellyfish lying in a sea-side puddle1 but they are no more than that shugging mass2 the colour goes or the tide leaves them1 and they are immediately rendered void4 ,the ,egyptian has a dog who sits waiting on souls of this description1 who repeat other people's words1 who borrow brains from books1 and can neither feel wicked nor good of themselves4 ,the forty-two avengers relate their actions1 the ,judge weighs them in the scales3 there is no heaven for them1 for the heaven wants self-illuminated spirits2 there is no hell for them1 for they are not bad enough2 so the ,judge scoops up the scales and the limp soul flops into the watchdog's open jaws1 is gobbled up at a gulp1 and so there is an end of that poor ghost4 ,the ,hindoo1 the ,chinese1 the ,moor1 and the ,oriental like gorgeous colouring and intricate lines and twistings in their ornament1 because they have been accustomed to see nature in her most lavish way4 ,the sun never blinks his eye1 or seeks to cover his full strength where they are2 straight down he flings himself upon ,rhea1 and she1 the earth1 responds with the fervency of a consuming passion1 or the love fever of a sea-voyage4 ,there is no place for grey here--it must be white1 yellow1 red1 greens of the richest1 russet of the most positive1 purples that are not disguised3 the fumes of the panting mid-day may be pallid1 yet it is not the pallor of ashes1 but the gas-haze which quivers above the white intensity of the bloom4 ,jungles1 and closely-knitted bush-tracks1 where the speckled adder swelters in the rayless fire2 up1 down1 over-laced1 across1 there is not an inch which is not covered with its tendril patterns--not a patch where light can pierce that has not its cluster of orange or vermilion blossoming4 ,life is a delirium in those tropics1 the night a fever1 and the day a dream2 and can we expect calm thoughts to be displayed1 or reposeful hues1 when even the moonlight is a golden thrill1 and stars are shining globes of magnifying power8 ,those who live in the north1 where the skies are softened veils1 and the lakes are placid sheets--where the soul is braced by the north wind1 and subdued by the gently wafted west--may well be refined4 ,they are classic born1 and to love the simple in ornament or life should only be the effortless yielding of their wills to the instincts of our race4 ,study comfort first when you plan your ornaments3 if it is a garden or a park1 plant the trees that will shelter you best without hurting your health or offending the eye4 ,build your houses for the sake of the street1 the street for the sake of the town1 the town for the sake of the land in which it is cast4 ,assimilate your taste with the taste of other people1 sacrificing a little yourself to get some things from them1 but not too much2 for ,jerusalem was kept clean 7if it ever was kept clean7 by every man looking after his own doorstep4 ,plan out your rooms for health3 first must come cleanliness and fresh air1 next grace and comfort--be comfortable before you are beautified4 ,get space first4 ,put out as much furniture and accessories as you can2 no more chairs than you want for visitors1 no more tables than you strictly need2 look round your walls and relieve the blankness with a picture1 or a plate1 or a vase1 or a cast1 just to fill up a bareness1 not to call attention4 ,we cram on ornaments when we want to cover or screen a defect4 ,have your furniture consistent with your room4 ,if you are ,orientally inclined1 and like a glare1 be ,oriental to the uttermost--do not stop short at a footstool or a tea-cup2 but if you like to rest in your houses1 and to be able to think while you rest1 have all things plain and sober4 ,homer and ,milton were both blind1 and the great serenity of a noble purpose shines like an unflickering alabaster lamp from both4 ,do not mix things if you can avoid it2 if it is a lion you are making1 never blend it with an ape4 ,observe the flowers and fruits of a season when you plan out a scroll of flowers and fruits1 and never bind winter to summer2 they cannot agree1 and it is better never to join than have to divorce4 ,every ornament must have a backbone to start with1 or it will fall to pieces as surely as a society-girl would collapse without her whalebone stays1 the modern substitute for the backbone of ,mother ,eve4 ,therefore1 if you wish to exercise an influence on the world about you1 and raise the ideas of beauty1 seek after health first1 comfort next1 and beauty will follow of its own accord4 ,every man and woman ought to be able to draw as well as see a straight line2 should be able to take down the impression of the place they visit as well as they are able to write out descriptions of it in their letters home2 they ought to study painting1 and know the reason for certain colours being mixed and put on1 because taste1 although a natural gift1 is also an acquired habit up to a point4 ,imagination is a universal power shared by the lower world as well as man3 the dog dreams and hunts or fights1 thereby proving that his brain is repainting a scene gone by4 ,i may describe a picture in words1 and you will all see the image of it vividly in your brains1 thereby proving that you might reproduce it if you had been trained4 ,as ,i briefly describe some view in words1 your brains will have photographed the picture1 for it is instantaneous work with the brain2 and the wondrous part of it all will be1 that the picture ,i describe and the picture ,i draw will not be as you think it is going to be--at least1 ,i cannot hope to be so vivid in my word-painting1 for every mind has its own way of calling up the pictures which we hear or read about1 each mind taking up its own standpoint1 and seeing differently the general aspect and self-constituted aspect4 ,in fancy ,i take up a piece of charcoal 7the most delightful and freest of all art work71 and with a few dashes of my charred vine wand may transport you to the balmy ,south1 where ice the thickness of a sixpenny piece is a sight to boast about1 and mosquitoes are an incontestable fact4 ,this piece of charcoal1 which we take on faith to be the remains of a vine stalk1 even as ,i name it conjures up the vineyards ,i have seen1 and my memory is flung under avenues where the broad leaves and the purple clusters hung down1 and1 interlacing1 broke the intensity of the mid-day glaring4 ,i look down a clustering summit to a gleam of deep blue ocean and snow-white strand beyond4 ,this is what the word vine has done to me1 and something like this1 or perhaps1 if not so realistic1 more beautiful1 would have been the mind-picture even if ,i had never actually witnessed the vine lanes4 ,memory is brought into action in my case2 in yours1 who may not have seen it all1 it becomes the higher quality1 creation or imagination4 ,the human mind is the most perfect painter we can have1 without a limit to its invention or a stop to its rapidity--each word becomes a fixed photograph1 instantaneously drawn out in all its parts1 and coloured to the last hair-stroke4 ,you see it all1 but take a pencil and try to make it corporeal4 ,as you sharpen the lead it is all there1 vividly distinct2 but while you are thinking where to begin to reduce it into form1 it becomes a slender suggestion of dancing outlines--you dash in the first stroke1 and it has become an indefinite blurry mess4 ,that is our difficulty--the reader and myself--for ,i can see before me just now a full round golden moon in the softest of green-grey hazes1 with the thrilling effect of the theatrical limelight all around it2 not a cloud in the misty atmosphere shows above that balloon-like ball2 it is lying light as a ,chinese lantern on the exotic-freighted air2 floating over the dim film which represents a mountain in the mid distance2 pouring down a flood of white ripples on the river or lake2 making a mass of indistinct shadow under the tree roots--liquid shadow where the water laps the winds1 velvet shadow where the grasses and plants are all mixed up2 an ebony line of carving runs up the shafts of the feathery-crowned palm and the bulby banana tree2 a broad black fan drops across the outer rim of that electric circle1 as the banana leaf quits the shelter of the broken shade-work and asserts its independence2 the tendrils are twisting about1 but a pale sparkle alone reveals them2 the big spider is hanging from his lair1 but a diamond point only shows us where the dew is caught upon the gossamer web--all is breadth and shadow1 or glittering silver flame1 but our hearts go into the shade that is manifold1 into the thickness of that impalpability1 and our nostrils drink in the swimming perfume of the lilies and trumpet tree2 and although it is but suggested1 we can see the tracing of the palm fringes overhead1 we can feel the heat of that languid night4 ,to recapitulate4 ,dress for your own comfort1 and you must please everyone round about you4 ,eat for the sake of health--that is1 eat to live--and you will have sound teeth1 sweet breath1 and merry months4 ,love will come to you early and stay long beside you1 for years are only grains of sand in the calculating glass of ,cupid1 if the hand which holds it is steady and moist4 ,time limps1 and an hour is lingering pain2 or else flies1 and the brown locks change to silver in a song of joy4 ,illustration3 ,,the ,,avenue-,,hobbema ,,chapter ,x ,,some ,,of ,,the ,,old ,,masters ,a ,,cursory ,,examination ,illustration3 ,w,e will1 in this chapter1 take a quick run round the walls of our great ,national ,exhibition1 at least round that portion of it where the early masters of painting are at present represented4 ,i am going to give my impressions about those masterpieces which have been secured by experts for the benefit and pride of the nation2 speak about them without any more reverence than the modern art critic might talk about a ,millais or a ,leighton1 or any other living master who by reason of his body being still with us1 and being still able to eat and drink1 places his work within reach of the everyday critic2 and in this spirit of independent impartiality ,i wish my readers to try to follow me4 ,i intend to give to these old pictures all the praise that ,i can bestow consistently with my own art knowledge1 because being one of the owners of them ,i do not wish to decry my own property4 ,indeed1 as a painter ,i should like to make every allowance for the faults of men who1 coming before the modern masters1 had so many more technical difficulties to overcome than their successors had at the start of their professional education2 but ,i wish to look at their works as the production of human beings who lived in their own times as we do in ours2 in fact1 ,i want to look straight at them1 without regard for their names1 and tell you1 as students1 the pictures which are of the greatest value to you as well as to me1 and point out why1 in my opinion1 they are thus valuable4 ,therefore1 if you are not prepared to follow me in this spirit1 you had better read no more of this chapter1 for ,i may shock your sensibilities with my remarks4 ,if you cannot look past the halo which ,time has placed round the head of ,raphael1 for instance1 and view the man in the same independent spirit in which you would look at the work of a man whom you might meet any day in the street1 do not go on1 for ,i shall only rouse in you a fury of scorn or indignant pity2 and although ,i do not mind personally being considered a presumptuous fool and iconoclast1 still ,i have no desire to lash anyone into fury or make him stain his soul by hatred4 ,i would rather keep the whole world happy and at peace with me than rudely disturb the serenity of their pet delusions4 ,still1 in spite of my own inclination towards comfort1 ,i must tell the truth for the sake of those who wish to see things as they really are1 and not as they have been taught to believe they are4 ,i will try to be plain if terse1 and while extolling the virtues1 point out the smaller vices1 without considering my own private feelings in the matter4 ,for instance1 ,i have been taught from my earliest years to regard ,raphael as removed beyond criticism1 to accept all that came from his brush as almost divine--himself as the perfect painter of perfect pictures4 ,judge1 then1 and pity my feelings1 when1 with a temerity approaching to the suicidal1 ,i begin my critical and analytical remarks with the picture which1 'by common consent1 is considered to be one of the most perfect pictures in the world1' as 'it is also one of the noblest embodiments of ,christianity4' ,i refer to the ',ansidei ,madonna1' ,no4 #aaga1af purchased for the nation from the ,duke of ,marlborough for #gj1jjjl43 the highest-priced old master perhaps in existence4 ,let us regard this great picture quietly for a few moments1 and try1 if we can1 to forget its price and its painter1 while we analyse its composition and other artistic qualities1 i4e4 bring it down to the standpoint of a picture painted by a living artist1 and exhibited1 say1 in last year's ,academy2 for that is the way ,i am going to treat them all1 for the benefit of the student who may wish to copy them as well as of the ordinary owner1 who desires to learn why his representatives have paid so much for his property4 ,from a decorative point of view ,i readily admit that this is a fine work4 ,as the design for an altar window1 to be reproduced in stained glass1 it seems to be much more suitable than as it is at present1 inside a frame4 ,but it is not the finest picture in the world2 it is not even the best example of the same master that we have in the ,national ,gallery2 it is greatly inferior as a painting to ',pope ,julius ,,ii41' ,no4 #bg1 which is1 in technique1 the best work we have of ,raphael's4 ,it is not nearly so good in its design as the ,garvagh ',madonna1' ,no4 #gdd2 nor in expression can it be compared to the ',st4 ,catherine of ,alexandria1' ,no4 #afh4 ,as a painting it is not a success2 in design it is stiff and commonplace in the extreme4 ,the throne of the ,virgin ,mother is an ugly dividing blot in the picture1 allegorical although it may be in its accessories and details2 it is a hideous box which breaks the picture into three parts1 and utterly destroys all sense of unity and harmony4 ,the emblems1 although freely enough painted1 are forced and badly placed4 ,the ,virgin ,mother's face has no expression1 unless it be that of inane contentment4 ,she is certainly not studying the book which she holds on her knee and fingers so affectedly4 ,the baby ,christ is well painted and good as a baby1 but ,he is held with too careless and limp a hand by his emotionless and expressionless mother4 ,i have no fault to find with the figure of the good ,bishop ,nicholas of ,bari2 it is realistic and natural1 and stands as a ,bishop might stand if reading aloud from his prayer-book to his congregation4 ,but ,st4 ,john the ,baptist is not nearly so satisfactory a piece of work2 the position is strained even for ecstatic contemplation2 the advanced leg does not seem to be connected enough with the body1 and in its pose appears to be pointed with the exaggerated attempt at grace of a dancing master2 therefore1 although the general colouring is pleasing1 and the manipulation of detail easily managed1 without too much minuteness and labour1 this picture is not a work which ,i would advise students to copy1 if they wish to cultivate good composition1 perfect drawing1 and general unity4 ,as to its intrinsic value1 ,i should price it at #h1jjjl4 instead of #gj1jjjl41 because ,i do not think the best picture in the world is intrinsically worth more than #aj1jjjl41 no matter how rare it may be as a picture pure and simple4 ,in consideration of its merits1 which certainly counterbalance its demerits1 ,i would fix its price as it now stands at #ejjl42 but because it was painted by ,raphael ,santi1 and therefore has its value over and above its merits as a work of art1 ,i put it at the figure ,i have named--#ejjl4 for the picture and frame1 and #g1ejjl4 for the name of the painter and the antiquity of the article4 ,i limit the price of this work of art because1 while the great bulk of the nation1 to whom this ,raphael belongs1 are writhing under the awful ills of the direst poverty and affliction1 it becomes us as units to consider whether we have a right to spend so much money upon a single picture with the starving owners of it all round us2 to weigh it in the balance and think whether the spiritual or artistic pleasure which the contemplation of that work gives or may give to the educated masses is a just and fair equivalent for the starving or slaughtered thousands which the money that purchased it might have kept in comfort and life4 ,if the work of the ever-living ,raphael is not sufficient equivalent for a starved thousand or two1 if it does not yield complete satisfaction to all1 in their every phase of contemplation1 then ,i hold that the dead and gone ,raphael has cost the nation #fb1jjjl4 too much1 which might have been expended better in other art directions4 ,personally1 in spite of all that ,i have read in praise of it1 this picture does not give me complete satisfaction as an artist1 and none whatever as a devotionalist4 ,perhaps it may affect the general masses differently1 however4 ,returning to my favourite1 or1 as ,i consider it1 the best ,national ,gallery example of ,raphael1 ',pope ,julius ,,ii41' this is a work of art which may be examined by both artist and amateur with unqualified pleasure and instruction4 ,it ranks with such realistic masterpieces as ,rembrandt produced1 and it is almost as unaffected as the ',portrait of a ,tailor1' by ,moroni1 ,no4 #fig4 ,it is painted in a rich colour scheme of red2 warm1 ruddy complexion1 scarlet cap1 and cape lined with white fur1 and a soft1 creamy under robe of some woolly material1 with red and gold tassels on the chair behind4 ,the hands and finger rings are splendidly painted1 the expression is masterly in its combination of power and repose4 ,anyone can tell at a glance that this is a true likeness of the ,pope1 taken when he had an hour of leisure1 and faithfully reproduced without any attempt to idealise4 ,it is said not to be so well authenticated as some of the other works by this painter1 but for the purpose with which ,i now write it is better than any of the others1 and of most value as a study for the copyist4 ,the ,garvagh ,raphael1 #gdd1 ',the ,madonna1 ,infant ,christ and ,st4 ,john1' is a picture not too dear at the price it was bought for1 viz4 #i1jjjl41 for it is well worth #b1jjjl4 more than the ',ansidei ,madonna1' in consideration of its superior composition1 chiaroscuro1 drawing1 and colour4 ,it is all beautiful and human4 ,the comely mother with two lovely children beside her gives us the true divinity of holy maternity2 the landscape behind is deliciously and tenderly painted1 and the only blemish in the composition is that discordant and mannered pillar behind the ,madonna1 placed there for the too obvious reason of throwing her face1 with that of ,christ1 into better relief1 as in the ,ansidei picture1 and1 like it1 spoiling the concord with its heaviness and the stiff1 stage-wing-like uniformity of the two windows behind4 #afh1 ',st4 ,catherine of ,alexandria1' is a sentimental study of a robust and soft-handed young woman1 with a sketchy background in umbery tones4 ,it looks like an experiment of ,raphael's1 and in pose is almost grotesque in its lackadaisical rapture1 yet it is finely painted as to flesh tones and other details4 ,so also is ,no4 #bfi1 ',the ,vision of a ,knight1' which is1 as an example of this painter at the age of seventeen1 positively marvellous2 yet for all that1 although the design is good1 and the composition freer than the general laws at the time laid down1 as a study for the young painter it is not good2 it will make him too easily satisfied with himself and with his drawing4 ,still1 it has its special interest to the painter1 as revealing what ,raphael could do in his early student days4 ,my present task1 however1 is not to waste time going over the indifferent works in the ,gallery1 but rather to point out1 as they occur to me1 those masterpieces1 the studying of which may educate the mind of the outsider to whom ,art is a mystic term1 and advance the student in his education as a painter4 ,i therefore turn from the formal and affected ,ansidei to a picture which at the present time is placed near at hand in the same room1 as ,i think it will make your minds rebound with real relief2 at any rate1 ,i know that it will go far to educate you in the knowledge of what a good piece of masterly work is4 ,i refer to ,no4 #acae1 ',admiral ,adrian ,pulido ,pareja1' by ,velasquez4 ,for a full and sympathetic account of this great painter's work1 the student cannot do better than read ',annals of the ,artists of ,spain1' by ,sir ,william ,stirling-,maxwell1 published by ,john ,c4 ,nimmo1 in four vols4 ,this portrait comes upon us like a revelation of ease and masterly handling4 ,there is nothing like it in this respect in the whole ,gallery2 indeed1 it was considered so life-like when it was first painted that ,king ,philip mistook it for the man himself1 and gave it a royal chiding for wasting his time at ,madrid4 ,sir ,joshua ,reynolds says of this master3 ',what we are all attempting to do with great labour1 ,velasquez does at once4' ,i fix upon this portrait because the copyist will learn more from a single figure than from a crowded composition1 and the drawing out and copying of this work will do more to make a master of him than any other study4 ,it is like painting direct from nature1 with a teacher of great experience at your elbow to prompt you as to the right brushes and colours to use4 ,it is all fire1 dash1 and vigour1 bold and free as the best work of our own contemporary1 ,james ,mc,neill ,whistler4 ,the drawing is perfect and the colours are nearly as brilliant as when they were first put on4 ,here1 as in the works of ,shakespeare1 we have the 'mirror held up to nature4' ,opposite to this work in the present arrangement of the pictures we have a companion as to size and quality1 although not quite so simply treated1 ,no4 #acaf1 ',an ,italian ,nobleman1' by ,moroni--the painter of the most perfectly natural portrait in the ,national ,gallery1 ,no4 #fig1 ',portrait of a ,tailor4' ,in the ',italian ,nobleman' the quality is so good and unforced1 the art so covered up1 unobtrusive1 and natural1 that the student is apt to begin copying without considering the difficulties before him2 therefore ,i would advise him or her to turn first to the ,tailor's portrait before he tackles this less perfect1 yet more difficult1 ',nobleman4' ,this1 the ,tailor portrait1 looks at you to-day as quietly and modestly as if still waiting for your instructions1 with his shears in his hand1 as the original must have done more than three hundred years ago2 it is so highly finished in all its details1 so perfect in its expression and pose1 and1 as ,i have said1 so undemonstrative on the part of the master1 that one is apt not to wonder he had no honour in his own country4 ,it takes a painter of some experience to appreciate ,moroni properly1 as ,titian did1 although ordinary spectators will hardly pass it over without saying ',how natural6' ,the other pictures of this rarely gifted master all bear the same stamp-mark of matchless workmanship and power of depicting character3 ,no4 #ajbc1 ',portrait of an ,italian ,lady1' in red satin dress2 #gdb1 ',portrait of a ,lawyer1' in black velvet2 #ajbd1 ',portrait of an ,italian ,ecclesiastic2' and #ajbb1 ',portrait of an ,italian ,nobleman4' ,while the student may satisfy his cravings with that likeness of ',pope ,julius ,,ii41' ,no4 #bg1 and perhaps one of ,raphael's infants1 he cannot do better for himself than take the whole of the ,moroni works1 and follow up with what he can get of ,velasquez4 ,while giving these hints to students about single subjects1 ,i will run over those heads or portraits which have mostly impressed me as being more or less useful to take in this course of study for their special qualities1 after which ,i shall take up some of the larger compositions1 and finish up with the old landscape and seascape painters4 ,no4 #heb1 the ',chapeau de ,poil1' by ,rubens4 ,for ease and strong colouring1 as well as expression1 this is one of the best for a young artist who has experience enough with his brush to paint it quickly4 ,you may labour with improvement upon the portraits of ,moroni1 but you must work quickly and decidedly when you attempt to reproduce ,velasquez or ,rubens4 ,there are two portraits which ,i have always been fascinated with for their delicacy of execution4 ,one is #ehe1 ',portrait of ,isotta da ,rimini1' by ,piero della ,francisca1 and the other ',the ,doge ,leonardo ,loredano1' ,no4 #ahi1 by ,giovanni ,bellini4 ,both have been painted about the same period1 at least within the same century1 the fifteenth1 and are distinguished by their high and minute finish and tenderness of outline2 they are both well worth copying4 ,the ',ecce ,homo1' ,no4 #bga1 of ,guido ,reni1 is a good study of pain1 and also good for the copyist because of its free and sketchy execution2 it ought to be copied1 as it was painted1 in one working4 ,thus1 the student who desires to be successful in his work ought to study the original well1 and determine1 if he possibly can1 how many workings the master took to complete his work4 ,in this case1 ,guido ,reni began and finished his sketch at one sitting1 meaning it only as a rough study for some larger work4 ,rubens did a number of his in the same method2 indeed1 if the artist is decided enough about his effects and intentions1 he will endeavour to finish his work as far as possible in the one working1 for oil-painting1 like fresco-painting1 is apt to look hard1 artificial1 and waxy1 if worked over too much2 in water-colour the artist need not place any limit to his different workings4 ,the best and richest colourists1 with perhaps the exception of ,rembrandt1 finished as they went along1 particularly in the flesh portions4 ,the drapery and accessories may be retouched without so much damage1 but excepting those masters who cultivated and depended upon the art of glazing1#ag most of the best men finished their backgrounds and draperies before they touched the figures1 i4e4 their pupils did all that was in those days considered subordinate parts1 and left the flesh for the masters to do at the last3 a great mistake on the part of the masters4 ,the other pictures of ,guido ,reni are not worth much consideration4 ,his ',the ,magdalen1' #agg1 is a fascinating study for young people1 as it is intensely sentimental1 with lavish masses of fair hair floating about1 while the face expresses a sweet abandonment of large-eyed sorrow4 ,i am afraid that ,i must echo ,john ,ruskin's sweeping verdict on his ',susannah and the ,elders1' and say also that it is 'a work devoid alike of art and decency4' ,the ',portrait of ,himself1' #fij1 by ,andrea del ,sarto1 is a piece of rich1 quiet colouring and fine drawing2 so also is his other example4 ,no4 #ag1 ',the ,holy ,family4' ,he was counted one of the faultlessly correct painters of his age1 and his pictures command high prices4 ,they are excellent alike in tone and the other academical qualities which are useful to young painters who aim rather at mastering the technical difficulties of their art than the imitating of style2 therefore1 ,i recommend this portrait particularly as an early subject before grappling with such overpowering masters as ,rembrandt1 ,velasquez1 ,murillo1 or ,moroni4 ,for a young artist wishing to form a good manner on the old masters before he takes to the new1 ,i would recommend him to take as a course the following masters in the order in which ,i place them4 ,begin with ,fra ,filippo ,lippi4 ,i do not mean the whole of his compositions1 but a few of the solitary figures4 ,take next that spiritual and melancholy picture1 ,no4 #bge1 ',the ,virgin and ,child1' c41 by ,sandro ,filipepi ,botticelli1 and copy it all through carefully1 particularly the soft1 yet artificial1 outlines which he gives4 ,take next the ,venus in that splendid masterpiece by ,angelo ,bronzino1 ,no4 #fea1 ',all is ,vanity4' ,i do not know anywhere in the whole ,national ,gallery a picture where the flesh tones on a nude figure are more perfectly painted4 ,there is hardly any shadow at all about this figure1 and hardly any positive colour1 yet the flesh stands out voluptuously and softly1 and the drawing is exquisite4 ,next take ,moroni1 whom ,i have already described1 and after working at him conscientiously1 release yourselves by taking up ,murillo and ,correggio--his ',mercury instructing ,cupid in the presence of ,venus1' ,no4 #aj4 ,rubens1 copy just a little4 ,velasquez1 copy the whole of his examples1 and lastly try ,rembrandt4 ,you may then study one or two of the living masters1 if you think fit1 and have the time4 ,if you have worked conscientiously with the earlier masters and in the spirit of the later ones1 ,i can trust your own judgment to choose which modern man you are inclined to follow for a little while2 but if you have got the gift of the true painter in you at all1 after the course which ,i have prescribed1 ,i expect you will dash along and try for academical honours1 without any further delay1 by aiming at originality2 for amongst the mighty circle whom ,i have mentioned you will have discovered a style all your own1 and ,i predict that it will be a good style4 ,hans ,holbein1 the younger1 is a fine man to copy if you wish to get a firm grip of your subject3 there is little or no sentiment about him1 but what he saw he painted with fidelity and care4 ,no4 #acad1 ',the ,two ,ambassadors1' is a picture which is not only interesting as a painting1 but also for the uncouth historical object which occupies the centre of the foreground1 a kind of ex libris puzzle1 meaning the painter's name1 which does not improve the painting as a work of art1 even although ,shakespeare does mention it1 or puzzles of the like description4 ,it appears to me unworthy of any painter to spoil his picture with such a childish mystery as this elongated or distorted projection of a human skull1 hollow-bone1 or hohl bein represents4 ,i do not pretend that this is a great picture--none of ,holbein's are4 ,henry the ,eighth was a man of strong material tendencies1 who liked things tangible1 and who was without a particle of imagination1 tenderness1 or ideality in his composition1 and therefore this ,german materialist exactly suited him4 ,hans painted men and women as he saw them1 without attempting much in the way of grouping or posing2 he painted them hard and fast in their extravagant costumes1 with all their family jewelry upon them1 and as many accessories round them as he could possibly cram in1 because he loved to work and did not think to spare himself a week or two longer of patient energy1 care1 and labour2 but he painted well what he did paint2 therefore ,i recommend him to the young student who is disposed to become ambitious1 ,frenchy1 dashy1 and careless before he has learnt how much1 or rather how little1 his brushes can do to bring his ideal to fruition4 ,in ',the ,two ,ambassadors' the student will find all sorts of articles crammed in for the purpose of giving the painter something more to do4 ,he had no higher aspiration than his august master had1 therefore he exactly suited him1 but he possessed the talent of infinite patience2 and so ,i offer you ,hans ,holbein as the best mechanical workman of his country4 ,he is a typical ,german in the hardy sense1 as much as his countryman1 ,albert ,drer1 was in another and a loftier sense2 for they are1 like the ,scotch1 either sure or hard-headed materialists or else seers and dreamers3 often both combined4 ,we turn from hard ,holbein to ,murillo with a sigh of relief4 ,we have done our dry-as-dust task2 now let us take our fill of solid pleasure1 of which there is no let in the works which this painter has given us3 ',a ,spanish ,peasant ,boy1' #gd2 ',st4 ,john and the ,lamb1' #agf2 ',the ,birth of the ,virgin1' #abeg2 and ',boys ,drinking1' #abhg4 ,i like all his pictures1 but ,i like his boy best of all2 in fact1 if you want good solid practical painting--stuff which will help you on in life1 and give you real comfort as a painter or as a looker-on--go either to the ,dutchmen or the ,spaniards4 ,look at that kneeling figure1 ',a ,franciscan ,monk1' #bcj1 by ,francisco ,zurbaran1 for chiaroscuro and bluff power2 ',the ,dead ,christ1' #bce1 by ,spagnoletto1 for vigour and strength of touch2 ',the ,dead ,warrior1' #gda1 by ,velasquez4 ,could any man want to paint better8 ,for the ,dutch and ,flemish1 turn to ,gallery ,,xii41 and be satisfied that you have got real men to deal with and to copy1 instead of flimsy ,italian sentimentalists1 like the ,church-bred early masters4 ,take ,teniers1 with his delicious silvery tones and crisp touch1 the man who paid his dinner with a picture1 and painted his picture first while the dinner was cooking3 compare ,david ,wilkie with him1 and see how ,david ,wilkie shrivels up with heat before the cool tones of ,david ,teniers the younger4 ,consider ,cuyp1 with his precise touch2 ,van ,eyck1 the father of oils1 with his quaint medivalism and patient symbolism2 ,weyden1 as in #fec1 with his rigid adherence to facts2 ,quintin ,matsys1 with his hard high finish2 ,rubens1 the lavish and exuberant2 ,vandyke1 the refined2 ,gerard ,dow1 with his exquisite delicacy2 ,frans ,hals1 with his vigorous handling and open colouring2 and lastly1 the greatest master of all1 the immortal ,rembrandt1 whom1 for his portraits1 chiaroscuro1 colour1 and vigour1 ,i cannot find words to praise enough4 ,no one has a right to speak as an art critic about pictures unless he can paint a picture himself1 or at least is able to copy faithfully the picture which he criticises4 ,i trust that ,i may say1 by way of apology for my present free criticism1 without being carped at as a vain boaster1 that ,i have painted original pictures in landscape1 seascape1 and composition4 ,i can also say that ,i have copied some of the masters whom ,i recommend1 and can copy any picture ever painted1 provided ,i have the leisure2 and also ,i can tell you1 after ,i have copied a picture carefully1 exactly how the master painted his picture1 the number of times he worked over it1 and sometimes also not only the time he took to do it1 but also his moments of hesitation and inspiration1 depression and artistic exultation4 ,but before ,i can tell you all these secrets about the mystic dead1 ,i must first study his work by copying it2 it would be only guesswork were ,i to content myself with looking at his canvas or panel2 and what ,i am unable to do with my long and extensive training as a painter1 ,i defy any non-painting art-critical dilettante to be able to do4 ,john ,ruskin qualified himself as an art critic by learning to draw and paint1 and when bigotry or bilious bad temper does not interfere with his critical vision1 he stands1 and must for ever stand1 pre-eminent amongst art critics4 ,no human being1 however gifted he may be1 is able to see colours or any other merit in either a picture or a book when he has a fit of indigestion or dyspepsia4 ,the blue appears green1 the clouds heavy1 the firm lines shaky1 the composition vile1 the chiaroscuro gloomy1 and the general colours dirty and unsatisfactory4 ,a proper pill taken in time by the critic has often saved the reputation of the painter1 poet1 or novelist4 ,as one patent medicine advertisement has announced1 with a wisdom which should go far with sensible thinkers to recommend the drug3 ',dyspepsia leads more often to the divorce court than vice4' ,to return1 however1 from these reflections to ,rembrandt1 the master whom ,i am at present examining4 ,we have fourteen examples of this art-,shakespeare in our ,gallery at present1 and ,i only wish that we had an apartment devoted entirely to him1 as we have to ,turner4 ,i should have been well content1 and should never have uttered a word about the indigent poor1 had the #gj1jjjl4 been spent on ,rembrandts1 and the ',ansidei ,madonna' still remained in the ,marlborough or some other private gallery1 because ,i think that the ,british public would then have had better value for its money4 ,i will grant at once that his drawing is abominable in his larger compositions and his figures taken individually are undignified and often even ludicrous1 or rather they would be all this in any other painter who had not his scheme of chiaroscuro and colour-intentions1 but with him ,i would not have them altered4 ,as they are1 they all go to complete the harmony2 indeed1 ,i believe that he gave them this grotesque appearance intentionally1 because his portraits prove that no man could draw more perfectly1 as no other man could use the brushes as he could4 ,no4 #ea1 ',portrait of a ,jew ,merchant1' three-quarter length2 #aff1 ',a ,capuchin ,friar2' #aij1 ',a ,jewish ,rabbi2' #bba1 ',his own ,portrait2' #bcg1 ',a ,woman's ,portrait2' #bdc1 ',an ,old ,man2' #fgb1 ',his own ,portrait' 7#afdj72 #gge1 ',an ,old ,woman' 7#afcd72 #hej1 ',a ,man's ,portrait3' all these portraits are so splendid in their qualities1 and appeal at once so strongly to the sympathies of artists and ordinary sightseers1 that ,i must leave them to speak for themselves4 ,you look into the frames as through a window into a shady room1 and see the living characters sitting before you2 the texture of their clothing is reality rather than realism2 there is no attempt on the part of the painter to assert himself2 he has buried himself in his subject4 ,as for the skill involved in all this unaffected simplicity1 begin to copy one of these portraits1 and you will find out a portion of it1 and as you finish off with your glazings then you will look vainly into your colour-box for browns and siennas and lakes to get at that translucent depth1 and at your colour lists with dissatisfaction4 ,this master will be too much for you to penetrate through all his films1 yet rest content if you are able to dive a little way below the surface without stirring up the mud4 ,james ,mc,neill ,whistler alone has been able to approach ,rembrandt in his etching qualities2 no one yet has been able to come near him in his wonderful shadows1 except ,george ,paul ,chalmers4 ,yet we must not forget that ,time has to be taken into consideration with much of the depth and richness of the old masters4 ,with paint we may1 after a measure1 imitate a painter as he left his picture when finished2 but ,time1 the constant worker1 has put on subtle gradations of glazings which no madder or brown can imitate1 and this must be your consolation4 ,before leaving the portraits ,i must call your attention to ,vandyke's masterpiece in this walk--#eb1 ',portrait of a ,gentleman1' a head only1 therefore we are not aggravated by the display of any of those unnaturally refined hands which disfigure so many of his full-lengths2 this portrait may take its place with any other likeness in the world4 ,we have nothing of ,michael ,angelo ,buonarroti in the form of painting worth looking twice at in the ,gallery2 he did not like oils and he did not succeed with that vehicle4 ,leonardo da ,vinci is represented by one specimen1 #ajic1 ',our ,lady of the ,rocks4' ,it is a heavy but fine piece of work1 and well composed--all excepting the rocks1 which are not good4 #fih1 ',the ,death of ,procris1' is a masterly study of a satyr2 the other portions of this picture are also fine1 particularly the landscape behind4 ,there are two specimens of ,tiepolo1 ,nos4 #aaib and #aaic1 sketches for altar-pieces1 than which no works in the ,gallery are more useful to the young painter4 ,his scheme of colour is low-toned and restrained1 yet delightfully good and pure1 while his handling is masterly and free4 ,tintoretto and ,titian come next2 the latter is the most lavishly represented1 and the former not seen at his best1 even in the three specimens we have1 yet they are worth looking at4 ,titian of course is always masterly1 both in his landscape and in his figures4 ,tintoretto unfortunately was forced by necessity to paint too many pot-boilers1 and his fame suffers accordingly4 ,amongst the many masterpieces in the ,gallery1 for majestic composition or fine colouring1 ,i place ,fra ,filippo ,lippi's ',vision of ,st4 ,bernard1' #bdh2 ',the ,circumcision of ,christ1' #aabh1 by ,luca ,signorelli2 ',venus and ,adonis1' #cd1 by ,titian2 ',the ,crucifixion1' #aajg1 by ,niccolo of ,fuligno2 ',the ,marriage of ,st4 ,catherine1' by ,lorenzo da ,san ,severino2 ',the ,virgin and ,child1 with ,saints and ,angels1' #aajc1 by ,fiorenzo di ,lorenzo 7,i name this early painting for its exquisite decorative qualities and its harmonious combination of carving1 gold and paint1 as well as for the general design72 ',bacchus and ,ariadne1' ,no4 #ce1 by ,titian2 ',mercury1 ,venus1 and ,cupid1' ,no4 #aj1 by ,correggio1 for its fine drawing and colour2 ',san ,arnolfina and his ,wife1' ,no4 #ahf1 by ,jan van ,eyck1 for its minute detail and realism2 ',the ,virgin and ,child1' #bgd1 by ,mantegna2 ',madonna and ,child1 with ,saints1' #aaai1 by ,ercole de ,giulio ,grandi1 another rich and decorative combination of gold leaf1 colour1 and carving2 ',christ at the ,column1' #aadh1 by ,velasquez2 ',the ,nursing of ,hercules1' #acac1 by ,tintoretto2 and ',the ,raising of ,lazarus1' by ,sebastiano del ,piombo and ,michael ,angelo1 ,no4 #a4 ,this last picture is one of the most vigorous in design and execution in the whole ,gallery4 ,about the landscape-work of the old masters there is not very much to be said1 as they are mostly conventional1 and were painted in the studio from studies2 therefore1 nature was always falsified and improved 787 upon4 ,hobbema ranks first amongst the old landscape painters for fresh1 pure colour1 and close adherence to nature4 ',the ,avenue1 ,middelharnis1' #hcj1 is as fine a piece of work as any modern work2 it is true and rigid to facts1 with a fine command of drawing1 perspective and colour--one of the few landscapes really worth copying in the ,gallery4 ,salvator ,rosa is perhaps one of the most spontaneous amongst these early landscapists1 and the most reckless4 ,he painted a picture at the one working1 and composed a poem afterwards by way of relaxation1 and although almost as exaggerated and theatrical in his effects as ,gustave ,dor1 yet his works have an appearance of nature about them1 even if it is nature convulsed1 which is often lacking about the manufactured efforts of his contemporaries1 ,claude ,lorraine and ,gaspard ,poussin4 ',mercury and the ,woodman1' #hd2 ',tobias and the ,angel1' #haa2 and ',a ,river ,scene1' #ice1 are fair examples of this vigorous artist and versifier4 ,that of ',mercury and the ,woodman' ,i like the best4 ,gaspard ,poussin ranks between ,salvator ,rosa and ,claude1 not because he was not so good a workman1 but because he was not so original in his style as either4 ,his two best examples in the ,gallery are ',the ,sacrifice of ,isaac1' #ca1 and ',a ,land ,storm1' #cf4 ',dido and neas taking shelter from the ,storm1' #ie1 is also a fine work4 ,everyone who admires ,turner must certainly honour ,claude ,lorraine2 and as ,i am one of those admirers1 ,i look upon the earlier painter of sunsets1 classical temples1 and artistically arranged trees with much interest4 ,he does not1 of course1 paint atmosphere2 only one master did this properly1 and that was ,turner1 but he presents to us a placid and smiling world which promotes comforting thoughts of rest and joy1 and so ,i give him all due honour as a pretty landscape painter and also an original master4 ,what he did came from his own invention1 and if ,turner painted better1 that was only because he commenced where ,claude1 his first master1 had left off4 ,the ',landscape with ,figures1' #ab1 and ',seaport with the ,embarkation of the ,queen of ,sheba1' #ad1 are two of ,claude's best examples4 ,turner was a daring man to risk the test of ,time with the four pictures2 at present his two look the best1 but in another hundred years1 while ,claude's will still appear almost as fresh1 ,turner's will have vanished1 as all his pictures must1 and leave only a few stains and cracks behind4 ,so much for the modern masters when they try to compete with their manufactured tube colours against the wise men of old1 who ground their own paints1 studied the chemistry of colours1 and knew how to prepare their own canvases4 ,a century after this1 readers of old books will wonder what ,john ,ruskin meant by praising ,turner so extravagantly1 when they go down to the vaults where the ,trustees are vainly trying to keep the remains of those fugitive masterpieces1 by secluding them from the light1 while ,claude ,lorraine will still hang on in his old places1 calm1 fresh1 sunny and metallic4 ,so much for atmosphere against artifice4 ,illustration3 ,,harmony ,,chapter ,,xi ,,the ,,sacred ,,and ,,the ,,comic ,,sides ,,of ,,art ,,part ,i4--,,the ,,sacred ,,side ,,of ,,art ,illustration3 ,y,,ou have doubtless all seen a photograph of that fine head of our ,saviour by ,gabriel ,max1 illustrative of the legend of ,st ,veronica4 ,the story tells us that ,veronica wiped the face of ,christ with her napkin as ,he passed along cross-laden1 blood-stained1 mud-stained1 and sweating to ,calvary1 and in token of her kindness the ,lord left the impression of that world-wasted face upon the napkin4 ,it is a beautiful legend1 and ,gabriel ,max has illustrated it as1 without exception1 no man before him ever did4 ,the dimness and uncertainty have aided the painter's conception4 ,it is not so much a face as the shadow of a face which is presented to us--the shadow of a lamb-like face1 full of infinite meekness and patience1 dirty and wounded1 with masses of hair draggled and stuck with the blood which has trickled down the brow and cheeks to that indefinite beard4 ,this1 to me1 constitutes the great charm of this masterly work2 that the painter has left to the spectator the task of embodying this divine shade4 ,the trick about the eyes is the weak and common portion of an otherwise matchless work of subtlety4 ,it may please the people1 and make a multitude of inartistic minds marvel at the cleverness of the illusion1 but it is only a small trick at the best1 and unworthy the mind which could conceive and execute all the rest4 ,sacred art1 from the specimens ,i have seen1 has not yet fulfilled its aim or intention4 ,those ,madonnas of ,raphael are only pretty women nursing their babies2 that is1 if you can tear down the mystery and veneration which time has thrown about those dead masters and darkened masterpieces2 so perhaps it is as well not to dwell at length upon olden art1 which represented sacred art1 but to come to my present purpose1 which is art sacred1 or the sacredness of art as a life calling4 ,i have often wondered whether there are many young men or women showing pictures in exhibitions who think seriously upon the calling they are devoting themselves to2 do they think upon the duties before them1 and the obligations they are binding themselves to fulfil8 ,to be a painter means a great deal more than to have learned the blending of a few harmonies1 the proportions of a model1 or some years of outline practice2 more than sitting down before an object and reproducing it faithfully1 as far as the outward eye sees4 ,it means the subduing of self1 and the taking up of a daily cross2 the following of an ideal in spite of all obstacles1 jeers1 laughter1 or pity4 ,it does not mean to be able to sell well to the public or to dealers1 as any clever mechanic can learn to paint to sell3 you have only to acquire the fashion and the trickery of the trade1 which1 with a little practice1 will make you popular4 ,sacred art means patience--not that patience which is composed of pitiful detail or painstaking1 but the patience which will make you follow out your ideal1 regardless of all consequences4 ,this is where young artists err in taking to the brush4 ,a little dexterity is acquired1 and they imagine that they are done1 and able to criticise all and sundry4 ,i generally know a novice from an earnest seeker after the truth4 ,the beginner laughs outright at first sight1 and the learned student looks and probes2 the intention being gravely weighed in the balance with the execution1 and the worker getting all the benefit of the doubt4 ,when an artist first begins to tread his journey 7after he has left school1 ,i mean71 it has mostly a very pleasant and sunny appearance4 ,of course he can draw and copy casts nearly as well as the master1 a great deal more neatly than most artists who are half-way down the road2 all the maxims are fresh in his memory1 with the colour blendings1 which he has learnt by rule4 ,hope sits lightly in his heart1 because he has one or two commissions1 or perceives the distant promise of a few4 ,so the morning sky above him arches without a cloud1 and the early rays are falling slantingly upon countless diamonds at his feet4 ,there is a valley in front of him 7but that is far off71 a place of darkness1 where high rocks are cleft to meet again overhead so that the sunlight cannot pierce through the gloom2 a place of skulls--the ,golgotha of the painter--where the armour of conceit is broken into pieces and left amongst the wreckage with which the place is strewn4 ,those who come out of this valley of humiliation live on for ever afterwards grave men1 who look more after their own imperfections than the faults of their neighbours4 ,countless hordes rush into the darkness and are never seen again2 the bones of some whiten there1 pits on the roadside swallow up others1 while others again get into false tracks and are never able to retrace their steps4 ,a number shirk it and go by this side backwards1 as happy in their ignorance and foolish laughter as when they began so hopefully4 ,and the world is so blind that it consents to honour and pay those shirkers1 oftentimes better than it does those grave survivors of the black valley4 ,when the artist first begins his pursuit he ought to begin with the high sense that his profession is a calling1 and that he is the eye-preacher of beauty as the pastor is the ear-preacher of religion2 he must go out with the intention always to do his very best in his own natural way1 for no other man's habit of walking will do for him4 ,to be a painter is a great pleasure and a great pain2 pleasure in the summer1 when the sun is ripening the pale golden ears of corn1 and the painter walks out amongst the lights and shadows1 the fresh air and the singing of birds1 and1 fixing upon something beautiful1 sits down to listen to the divine concert and sketch it all in--the music and the magic changes of ,mother ,earth2 pleasure when he gets up in the night-time1 thralled with his great idea1 yet unborn1 and labours to bring it out--those gracious hours of ecstasy when the charcoal smudges over the paper1 and the brain is reeling with the intoxication of the ,creator4 ,,imagination ,gift of ,god to erring mortal1 promise of a life divine1 ,when the creature is admitted to that awful inner shrine2 ,there is naught of earth remaining1 kings and princes hedged about ,with divinity the circle1 leaving lesser beings out4 ,gifted with the ,maker's magic1 out of nothing they create ,crowded earths which rise before them1 void1 until they animate4 ,they are passed in scorn or pity1 beggars in their fellows' eyes4 ,what are rags and empty purses when to heights like these they rise8 ,for alas6 with this gift comes too often tactlessness1 a glorious capacity to build castles in the air1 with a most deplorable incapacity of being able to reduce those splendid edifices to any marketable value4 ,when the artist has laboured at his idea until it takes a form1 not quite the matchless creation he dreamt1 but as nearly approaching to it as his skill or paints can come1 a glow of unearthly passion and wonderment at his own work comes over him2 he has caught something more than he dreamt about1 even although it be not quite so fair2 for the vague indefinite is always more perfect than the embodied reality4 ,he looks at his work with awe and wonderment4 ,,soul ,yes6 the image is completed1 every feature there is caught1 ,death is conquered1 and immortal we have made it out of naught2 ,and from that strange spark within us1 that strange spark of inner fire1 ,it is like ourselves1 immortal1 it can grovel or aspire4 ,what is that which we have given it8 something that we cannot tell1 ,something of a life beyond us1 for we feel it oft rebel2 ,something thrilling1 something noble1 something leading to a goal1 ,ours--and yet beyond explaining1 call it ,heart or call it ,soul4 ,the artist wonders at himself1 and1 with the excitement1 sees past the form to the ideal4 ,it is like a draught of nectar to him1 that ,olympian wine which made the gods mad in the pleasant court of old ,jove4 ,,adoration ,i have made it4 ,have ,i made it8 ,it is noble1 it is good4 ,it seems perfect1 can ,i wonder that it is not understood8 ,there were pangs in its out-coming1 efforts of the clouded ,will1 ,but it forced its way to being1 all my frame is trembling still4 ,i have made it4 ,have ,i made it8 ,can the wish engender power8 ,i am humble1 yet adore it2 it was in me scarce an hour4 ,i but yielded up volition1 not one effort did it cost1 ,only pangs of indecision when ,i feared the thought was lost4 ,he is exhausted with the effort and goes to bed1 sleeping a dreamless sleep1 while the dormant mind sobers down2 and now comes the hour of reaction and icy pain1 when he rises changed and cool to review the fevered work of yesterday4 ,reflection sets in1 and he tastes of the cup of doubt and despair4 ,,reflection ,from the clouds we have descended1 time hath cooled our fevered brains1 ,reason pounces on her victim1 rivets round him iron chains1 ,pointing out each imperfection with a finger tipped in ice1 ,jeering tells him his creation cannot bear the looking twice1 ,sets him up1 his harshest critic2 now the labour has begun1 ,hours of thinking1 watching1 working1 when the spirit part is done1 ,timid touches1 happy chances1 beatings of the fearful heart2 ,first creation1 second motion1 then the patient tricks of art4 ,last state1 repose4 ,when he has done his very utmost1 listened to the opinions of doubtful friends1 with friendly and hostile critics2 when he has altered and re-altered as far as he possibly dare go1 he lays down his brush with a defiant gasp1 dogged in his resolve to spoil it no further1 deaf to any further suggestions2 he is as contented as his sacred but exacting art will permit him to be4 ,,repose ,it is finished1 all imperfect1 but it is our very best1 ,we can come no nearer ,nature1 here are all our sins confess'd4 ,if we spent another hair-stroke something precious would be lost1 ,ye that see it but a second cannot reckon up the cost4 ',twas an altar of the passions1 burning hopes were offered up1 ,prayers and fastings followed after1 we drank deep from sorrow's cup4 ,through dark hours of cold affliction1 from sharp thorns we pulled the rose2 ,marvel you at our assurance1 at the pride of our repose8 ,unfriendly critics are not much trouble to a true painter2 he hears them talk with the consciousness that he will benefit from their jeers when they jeer with discretion1 and be able to trip them up when they display their ignorance4 ,the public1 not appreciative1 does not move him much either1 further than he has the gaunt wolf to keep back1 and must study their wishes so that they may help him to kill this monster4 ,what is his great grief and tribulation8--the inner voice which tells him every step of the way that he is so far behind1 that he has so much to learn and so little time to learn it in4 ,every picture he sees by another artist seems so much better than his last picture1 that his life would be a constant misery if it were not for those poetic visions and sunny hours of open-air exercise4 ,to be able to paint a tree or a street or a face does not fulfil all the mission of sacred art4 ,it demands more4 ,nature1 which for ever changes1 demands from her votaries constant change of subject and constant change of treatment1 and the hour which finds the painter contented with what he has learnt1 and satisfied to go on reproducing his effects1 finds him a hopeless invalid as far as art-progress is concerned4 ,like the poet1 he must go on1 go upwards for ever2 for nothing can remain stationary either in this or the next world2 if we do not climb upwards we are bound to descend4 ,as ,buddha tells us3 ',the devils in the under worlds wear out deeds that were wicked in an age gone by4 ,nothing endures4' ,we must go on1 or go out1 go on searching after purity and elevation and beauty in its highest sense2 not the beauty of an inane face or fashion-plate figure1 not even the ideal beauty of the ,greeks1 but the beauty to which we are most adapted in each stage of progression as we mount toward the infinite4 ,,beauty ,what is ,beauty8 the perfection of the type it represents1 ,and the true fulfilment of the picture that the mind contents4 ,it is in the babbling streamlet1 with its birch and fern-lined strands1 ,it is in the factory chimney which against the cloud gaunt stands1 ,in the blasted trunk that fork-like rears its bleached bare arms on high1 ,framing sedgy moors and uplands past soft tones that melt in sky4 ,nestling in the yellow short-gown1 couched in costly wreaths of lace1 ,in the heart1 voice1 walk1 and gesture1 more than in the form or face4 ,the painter must work out his own redemption in this pursuit of the beautiful4 ,no imitation of the beauty of another will help him2 his sense must be innate and out-coming2 from him the well must spring which has to quench the thirst of nations--living water and quenchless fire--to flow on and light on1 long after his own creative powers have ended4 ,as ,buddha again tells us3 ',ask not from the silence1 for it cannot speak2 vex not your mournful minds with pious pains4 ,ah6 brothers1 sisters1 seek naught from the helpless gods by gift or hymn1 nor bribe with blood1 nor feed with fruit and cakes4 ,within yourselves deliverance must be sought4 ,each man his prison makes4' ,as ,i have said1 the beginning of painting is very easy4 ,a straight line done fairly well1 drawn with the full comprehension of the mind1 and a flowing hand which can pause and run on at will1 the knowledge of the rainbow colours and blendings1 are the alphabet of the artist4 ,afterwards1 as he grows in stature1 his wants and wishes grow in proportion2 and the nearer we seem 7to the eyes of those behind us7 to be approaching the goal1 ,perfection1 the farther away it is from us4 ,to the public1 for whose instruction and pleasure the artists paint1 ,i would fain close this by saying just a few words4 ,beware how you are satisfied with a picture2 misjudge your own eyes when they are gratified only4 ,is the painted cornfield exactly like the cornfields you have seen8 ,is it a dead or a living portrait of the corn-ears8 ,has the painter1 in letting go the exact facsimile1 not given you something beyond and better--the motion and soul of that cornfield8 ,are those eyes exactly like the eyes of the one you love or mourn for8 ,they may be the exact shape and size and shade1 but are they the eyes you used to look into and let out your soul after8 ,or has the painter been careless about the shape or shade or size1 and yet given you a gleam of the heart-longings that cling to your heart-longings with unseen angel-claspings8 ,weigh it all carefully1 whether you want the shape and number of the houses in the home of your childhood1 or the indefinite thrill which shall wake into the active music of long ago4 ,do you want the cold clay that is lying under the senseless stones1 or the spirit which is hovering about you still8 ,this is the mission of sacred art--to teach us to be better and not to go back2 to bring us from the fierce chasing after the world1 and make us forget the golden links we are striving to forge for the sinking of our manhood or womanhood2 to tell us how the nations long ago lived and loved and laboured1 and now lie dead in spite of all their pomp1 as we shall be in spite of all our hankerings after what is ours no longer than a day of ,time4 ,to give us gleams of sunshine and green fields and cooling streams1 when we are parched by the dust of the streets4 ,to give us glimpses into the wisdom of innocence1 when we are blinded by guilt and shame and crusted selfishness4 ,to give us glowings of chivalry and patriotism1 when we are forgetting all these inspirations in the ignorance of this book philosophy4 ,to make us more merciful to the poor and unfortunate1 the maimed in mind as well as body2 to make us love all as our brothers and sisters1 no matter what their faults may be4 ',living pure1 reverent1 patient1 pitiful1 loving all things that live1 even as themselves1 letting unkindness die1 and greed and wrath4'--,buddha4 ,this is the mission of our sacred art--to educate each soul1 painters and people2 to subdue the self that is now dominant1 and plant the other on its throne2 to make men and women of us all1 in the highest1 truest1 grandest sense4 ,,part ,,ii4--,,the ,,comic ,,side ,,of ,,art ,art is many-sided1 but with the exception of one1 or perhaps two1 of the sides1 all the rest are comic4 ,viewed from the outside1 that is1 the standpoint of the buyer and the critic1 the ludicrousness of it is almost appalling4 ,it would be tragic in the intensity of its farcical characters1 even as a very hearty laugh sometimes will cause sudden death by choking1 were it not for the shades of the pitiful or contemptible which relieve it of the load of laughter1 and change the downward curve of the broad grin into a decided upward smiling termination4 ,i dare say you will think my subject should be composed of illustrations from ,cruikshank1 ,gillray1 ,leech1 and other masters of the comic muse1 and so it ought to be1 perhaps1 and for that very reason ,i do not feel inclined to treat it so4 ,i do not like to see ladies dress all by the month's fashion-plates1 whether it suits them or not1 nor men do exactly the things expected of them4 ,where would be those delightful throbs of surprise if it were not for the tangent starts of the unconfined lunatics who pass for men and women of talent on this very superficial1 thin-crusted globe of ours8 ,one of the most amusing sides of art is the method people have of judging a picture4 ,say an old gentleman with his wife and two or three daughters come by mistake into an exhibition with the catalogue of some other exhibition in their possession4 ,they glance at a picture1 and fall into raptures over it3 ',beautiful1 the feeling is delightful4 ,what force of touch1 strength of character6 ,who is it by8 ,number ,so-and-,so4 ,ah6 ,i knew it4' 7,the number in the wrong catalogue points to a well-known name47 ',i felt that ,i could not be mistaken4' 7,the old gentleman adjusts his glasses and looks at the title with triumphant conviction47 ',odd title1 though1 for the subject2 eccentricity of genius1 ,i suppose4 ,no matter1 it is splendid4 ,quite ,dutch-like in its subtlety2 quite ,israely in its character2 delicate1 refined1 realistic1 bold1 masterly6' ,one of the daughters1 blessed with keener vision1 has here discovered another signature on the corner of this masterpiece1 a name not in the fashion1 in fact one despised4 ',papa1 it isn't by ,mr4 ,smudge1 ,r4,a42 it is by ,ernest ,tyro4' ',eh6 what8 ,nonsense6 why1 the catalogue says ,smudge4' ,the mistake is discovered1 and at once the tune changes4 ',ah6 vulgar1 coarse1 commonplace4 ,let us go out before we are contaminated4' ,now1 this is the comic part of it1 with a dash of the pitiful4 ,what difference did that signature make in the merit of the picture8 ,if it was delicate1 refined1 bold1 masterly before1 how could it be vulgar1 coarse1 or commonplace afterwards8 ,a man with piles of money to spend and a moderate modicum of brains gets hauled into the artistic stream1 and goes gasping and spluttering around1 spending his money on what he knows nothing about1 and never will while ,god blesses him with cash1 and his tongue can patter cant4 ,somebody takes him kindly in hand and educates him1 as ,buchanan did ,james ,,vi42 he raves about the painter he has been taught to consider the master4 ',look at it6 what colour1 what masterly brush-marks4 ,did you ever see the like of that8' ,never1 except in a white-washer with his broad brush1 or a scavenger sweeping a crossing4 ,in his natural state he may get a picture which he can comprehend1 because the houses are like the houses he sees every day1 and the trees have branches and leaves definitely painted on them2 that picture represented ,nature as he saw her1 therefore he considered it good4 ,but under training he is taught to despise this sort of thing1 and obediently despises it2 the old love is turned out or with its face to the wall1 and the splashes which have neither form nor finish are doted upon4 ,would this man care to have a wife without a nose or with indefinite features8 ,would he be charmed with the colour of a mashed-up bit of flesh8 ,it is all right enough for musicians to rave over the sweetness of a piece of catgut1 but the world wants to hear the whole tune1 and what we as artists know to be good quality is comical affectation on their part4 ,artists are no exception in this curious alteration of opinion4 ,i have heard artists shouting with contemptuous laughter over a picture1 calling it rubbish1 and crying that the man who painted it ought to get six months for doing such deeds2 taking it to pieces1 running down the drawing1 the composition1 and the colour1 until some authority said it was good1 and then they saw as by a miracle beauties in the very faults4 ,what was bad drawing before this became a splendid piece of handling2 what before had no composition now teemed with poetry1 and from bad it became beautiful colouring2 and ,i have wondered how it all came to pass1 seeing that they ought to know what is good4 ,there is a story told of ,tintoretto1 who was kept down and scoffed at nearly all his life by the school of ,titian2 for even in those far-off balmy days fashion ruled the roost1 and the great masters acted about as contemptibly as do the little masters now4 ,poor ,tintoretto could not paint to please anyone1 and when he did sell1 it was only for canvas and stuff1 if he got a patron generous enough to give him so much1 brains and labour being flung in by way of apology4 ,it was the price of a spoilt bit of cloth he generally managed to get from his patrons4 ,sometimes1 when the people were surprised out of their habitual doubt and suspicion by some brilliant flash of fancy1 and the wealthy controllers of men's destinies were inclined to pitch the poor wretch a sop1 it was passed over his head to the hangers-on of the school then in repute2 what the decorated old ,titian could not swallow himself he handed over to some of his satellites1 and left ,tintoretto outside4 ,tintoretto1 although an amiable sort of fellow1 was not altogether an angel1 and1 therefore1 naturally resented this sort of starving process1 and kicking out1 as some of us still do1 got laughed at for his pains1 as ,i dare say is as much the habit still as it was in those golden days of old in ,italy4 ,jerusalem is not the only city where donkeys thrive by braying4 ,notwithstanding the constant snubbing to which he was subjected1 ,tintoretto was generous enough to be able to see and appreciate the good qualities of ,titian a great deal better than the prosperous painter could see his beauties in return4 ,if ,i had to express an opinion on the two men1 ,i should say1 ',tintoretto was the prince of painters1 and the lucky man was ,titian4' ,amongst ,tintoretto's few possessions was a picture by his tyrant1 and ,tintoretto had the meekness to copy it so carefully that he was pretty well pleased with it himself2 so he hung them up together1 with 'original' on the one and 'copy' on the other4 ,the critics came in1 as usual1 to laugh or encourage the mighty but stricken heart with words like this3 ',ah1 if you could only paint like ,titian6' or1 ',not the least degree like the original4' ,now1 ,tintoretto had his own opinion about his abilities1 as we all have1 ,i dare say1 about ours1 and he thought at nights1 when he looked over his creations1 that they were as good as ,titian's1 and some of them better1 if not nearly so well paid for2 and after all these years a great number of sensible people have come to see and believe the same as the poor old man did of himself4 ,of course it wasn't much consolation to him1 this conviction1 seeing it didn't change the sour wine and black bread of his table into the ,cyprus and cake of his rivals4 ,no matter2 the old man determined to have his joke1 if he could have nothing else out of the gold-laden quadrupeds2 so he wrote on the original 'copy1' and on the copy 'original1' and waited for the kindly-disposed visitors to come and comfort him1 as usual4 ',ah1 a very far way behind1 old man6 it won't do2 you haven't the go of the master in you4 ,it wants strength and purity2 the chiaroscuro is shallow as a summer stream4 ,why can't you do it like this1 now8' pointing contemptuously from the original to the copy4 ,that was the method of judging pictures long ago1 as it is now4 ,if a man paints something that becomes the fashion1 then he may do what he likes with his paper or canvas4 ,a drunken smudge or a meaningless splash of the brush will be raved over as if the man had wrought a miracle4 ,and how a man gets into fashion is often as great an astonishment to himself as it is to the people coming after him4 ,one artist tried everything1 from still life to a vision of the infernal regions1 and still he could neither please the public nor pay for a respectable suit4 ,one day1 in a moment of frolic1 he put a priest's robe upon a brother artist1 and painted him in that fashion1 sending it into ,paris1 as usual1 to stand in the windows for an indefinite time4 ,a distinguished ,english art patron passed1 looked at it1 praised it1 and gave the dealer the price asked for it4 ,presto6 the painter was famous1 and found his vocation marked out for him for ever after2 and ,i suppose now drinks absinthe and smokes cigarettes during the intervals of priest-making without a single care for to-morrow4 ,a man may paint and paint until he is white-headed1 or has worn the hair off his scalp altogether1 and all to no purpose4 ,he may rack his brains until the cords crack to invent a new subject1 and propitiate fickle fortune1 and not be able to earn salt for his broth4 ,he may produce picture after picture1 with all the conceptive power of a ,michael ,angelo and the colouring of a ,titian1 and still be no nearer his aim4 ,and1 in a fit of desperation1 he may dash off a piece of brainless rubbish1 and for that hasty bit of caprice become the lion of the day4 ,and when he does succeed1 has he not justice on his side if he curses the goddess ,fame1 and laughs to derision the senseless crowd of worshippers who have raised him up on high8 ,when he thinks on the guineas he is making now1 and the coppers he was not able to earn before2 when he thinks upon the pictures which he created before1 and the worthless daubs which he is flinging off now2 when he thinks upon what might have been1 or upon the woman he might have married1 or1 if married1 on the woman who might have been still alive1 if his deserts had been rewarded as his folly is--the woman who pined and grew haggard with anxiety1 and starved to death through the want of the paltry gold that now curses his present blasted life--this is the kind of comedy to make men stand up and blaspheme1 and to make women lay down their heads and weep themselves blind4 ,the painter who was a man1 and has become a machine2 the man who grew by his earnestness near to ,god1 and now must work for an earth-idol6 ,it is a comic sight to see pictures which are the fashion2 colour-blendings1 the outcome of craft only2 men who have had aspirations after great things content to lay down a noble purpose before an order4 ,one trick or one accident did it1 and so they must run the vein threadbare or else starve4 ,i remember once three young fellows who went gold-hunting2 they bought a digger's claim and dug away for six months without a single sight of gold-earth colour1 and at last caved in4 ,two new chums came along and took the claim on chance2 the ex-proprietors had pocketed the transfer-money1 and squatted on the surface to take a final pipe before leaving4 ,the new hands went down and filled the bucket2 it came up bulging with a fifty-six pound nugget of pure gold in it4 ,the old hands had worked six months without avail1 and the new chums struck at first sight4 ,art is like gold-digging1 all a blind chance4 ,it isn't good work that takes1 it isn't earnest thought2 it is all a turn of the wheel1 and the man may be a genius or a jackass4 ,if his turn comes up he wins the hour4 ,gold6 ,ah1 when will the power of it cease8 ,the first digger who saw the nugget appear clasped his hands in front of him and took a header down the pit1 dashing his brains out in the paroxysm of his disappointment4 ,i remember once a man who had made a fortune came on board ship with the load converted into sovereigns and sewn inside a broad belt round his waist4 ,he tried to be calm and reasonable1 but it was of no use2 he went frantic with his good luck1 and one day1 after being three weeks out at sea1 he came up on deck in a frenzied condition1 took off his valuable belt1 opened it1 and pouring the glittering contents overboard1 sprang in after them1 and so settled the grand problem4 ,there was one painter who knew the difficulties of art and the capriciousness of fortune very exactly4 ,in early life his good pictures could hardly bring him in #cjs4 a week1 and latterly1 when he could sell all he put his name upon1 he used to say that the ,british ,lion would give fifty pounds for a dirty piece of paper if it only had his name on the corner4 ,it is this truckling to gold that makes art comic and common1 this buying and selling custom which takes all the inspiration out of it and renders the pursuit of it a few degrees below the honest efforts of the mechanic1 just as we know the glory of womanhood loses all its sacredness when it is made the end of a commercial bargain4 ,if the beauty is not beyond price it is worthless2 so1 if the picture is not too precious to sell1 it is nothing greater than the price it brings4 ,artists will for ever imitate tradesmen1 and want to stand on their dignity at the same time1 which is an impossible combination4 ,it is a very curious trouble1 this disease of ,dignity4 ,a man may do a thousand mean contemptible actions1 and yet stand back indignant at the one over and above4 ,he may sin his soul away1 traffic his manliness for a few paltry shillings1 and yet feel fearfully outraged because someone proposes one other shabby trick to him2 as if it mattered much one shuffle more amongst the others1 one more dirty spot amongst the many defilements with which his soul is smudged over4 ,he may feel no shame1 for instance1 in taking away characters1 and yet stand out very rigidly against taking a purse2 as if the stealing the paltry contents of the one were one-tenth part as great a wrong as the other4 ,a man may feel very much ashamed of a parcel because it isn't done up in brown paper1 or feel very unhappy over a collar half dirty1 when he would think nothing at all about the bit of villainy that is so much uglier than the half-dirty collar4 ,you all know those pictures and engravings of ,hogarth1 who painted like the moral preacher that he always was4 ,he is of the comic tribe who set up vice as a warning1 and with a laugh give you a lesson to make you grave4 ,that is the sort of art ,i should like you to study when you are too self-satisfied4 ,david ,teniers and the other ,dutchmen only half did their work1 for they just painted the merry outside of iniquity without giving us a single glimpse of the soul1 which is ,ruin4 ,all along1 art has been a mystery and a problem for the wisest to solve1 and ,i do not know anyone yet who could point out the real good of it4 ,a man may exercise the brains ,god has given him1 and make a chair or a table1 and no one thinks he has any cause to feel proud2 and another may take a paint-brush1 and1 with less of the ,god gift1 dabble over a bit of canvas1 and feel qualified thereby to strut along and feel mighty4 ,what about8 ,just because he used paints and brushes and the other man used wood and glue4 ,as if the one wasn't as much to be boasted about as the other4 ,again1 an artist paints away and thinks he is doing splendidly1 and that all the other work in the world is rubbish compared to his2 or he may be painting away splendidly1 and thinking all the time that he is wasting good colour1 and producing rubbish4 ,or you may hear a man who has not a vestige of colour-perception in his eye or mind pooh-poohing a piece of perfect colouring as being devoid of the very quality which it possesses1 if it possesses any merit at all4 ,we see something done and we jump to conclusions right away1 or we take offence without rhyme or reason1 and never give the offender the benefit of a single doubt4 ,what is clean colour to us1 through force of habit1 looks a singularly dirty combination to someone else4 ,with a jump the artist sees what he thinks is an oversight or weak spot without giving his own mind time to investigate1 or the picture time to explain its intention4 ,a black spot is wanted there1 or a white splash1 or a spark of red1 or a dash of blue1 to make a picture of it4 ,how does he know that the painter has not tried all these stale old tricks1 and1 rejecting them1 chosen something better1 newer1 more subtle1 if not quite so apparent8 ,it isn't jealousy that is troubling the artist when he laughs or condemns the work of a brother2 it is prejudice1 that will not let him look more than one way out1 that fastens upon him like a pair of blinkers1 and makes of him an animal under control--drawing him along in the one direction in spite of his eyes or judgment4 ,the thing is bad2 it looks good1 but it must be bad4 ,this is one of the comic sides to ,art4 ,a man has learnt to paint and draw1 and ought to know when the work set before him is good or not1 and yet1 like other people1 he will look at the name in the corner1 and heroically strangle the knowledge which he must have1 in order to chime in with the clanging bells of ,fashion4 ,or he will see one unfortunate picture1 a poor example1 crop up at a sale or hanging on someone's walls1 and straightway judge all that the man does from that1 knowing1 as every artist must1 that all have sins of the past to repent of1 that there are pictures which they have painted of which they are themselves ashamed1 but which some purchaser has taken willy-nilly1 and necessity has forced them to part with4 ,knowing this of themselves1 it does seem strange that they never take into consideration these probabilities when looking at the works of some other man in or out of the ,art upper ten4 ,a painter cannot paint well when starving1 neither will he paint well when replete2 so the time to regard a man at his very best is just that happy moment when the big elephant ,public ,opinion kneels down to take him up4 ,he is elated1 but not puffed up2 eager to deserve the honours which he has won1 not yet arrogant with success1 or content to bestow a swish of the brush for sovereigns1 or think that he is composed of some finer kind of material than the house-decorator who makes his walls and woodwork beautiful1 without considering the value of hog-hair as he works4 ,be faithful to yourselves and your intentions1 and you don't need to care much whether the people about you consider you an object to be comic over or not2 hold fast to your purpose1 and never truckle to a whim or a caprice1 and your art will be true and grand whether you are painters or plasterers4 ,yield to be the toy of the hour1 and whether you are making for yourselves guineas or grins1 you are only the shadow in a poor1 low comedy2 and your art is comic without a single point about it to raise it from the burlesque1 which serves no higher end in creation than does the bashed hat of ,ally ,sloper4 ,illustration3 ,,art ,,subjects ,,chapter ,,xii ,,on ,,various ,,subjects ,,connected ,,with ,,art ,,ex ,,libris ,illustration3 ,i,t is only when a man settles down in life that he begins to gather books around him1 and to think about the outside as well as the contents of his favourite volumes4 ,first editions1 and rare1 early volumes1 as well as ditions deluxe1 occupy his attention during his leisure from business cares4 ,the young man is quite content with a yellow cover and a thrilling or racy inside1 while the elder man views these abominations in the shape of binding and get-up with horror4 ,artists as a rule are not great readers of books1 and the more modern and realistic they are1 the less they read2 their eyes are occupied solely in watching and studying passing effects1 while they can always depend upon some bookworm friend to give them the particulars if they want a subject from history4 ,they take their characters from their models1 the bookworm friend provides them with all the other information about costumes and historical details which they may require2 therefore unless1 like ,alma ,tadema1 ,walter ,crane1 or my old friend ,sir ,j4 ,noel ,paton1 his art inclines towards antiquity1 decoration1 or history1 the true painter is not much of a book authority4 ,i have found also1 from observation1 that the man who is fond of his garden does not care much for his library2 indeed1 although no man can reach middle age without having some hobby1 he is a very unfortunate man who has more than one4 ,my own life has been so arranged by ,providence that ,i have never had long enough time to get firmly rooted on any special soil1 for always when ,i have just been settling down ,i have been transplanted quickly and ruthlessly1 and the tender mosses about my roots have been torn ruthlessly from their premature clinging and scattered4 ,at one period ,i took to collecting delf and china1 one of the most seductive1 extravagant1 and dangerous of all passions2 in this direction my artistic instinct of colour found vent4 ,but having inherited a love for books1 ,i indulged in that habit also when ,i could afford it--often1 alas6 sacrificing other interests for the gratification of these two absorbing passions4 ,fortunately for my peace of mind1 a clumsy joiner cured me of my hobby for china4 ,he had lined a room with shelves from ceiling to floor1 assuring me that his work was strong enough to carry the contents of the ,british ,museum2 and foolishly ,i believed him4 ,at this time ,i had about four and a half tons weight of books1 and about five hundred pounds worth of china2 therefore1 to make my library attractive1 ,i placed the books above and below the centre shelf1 which ,i devoted to my specimens of china1 so as to bring them1 as it were1 on the line4 ,on the second night after ,i had arranged my treasures ,i was awoke by a fearful crash1 and on going into my library1 ,i found shelves1 books1 and rare china1 now a confused blending of fragments on the floor1 as complete a mass of wreckage as mine enemy could have desired to see4 ,the books were not much damaged1 nor the shelves1 but the fragile loveliness which ,i had doted on with such uxoriousness had taken wings and left me for ever4 ,no man born of woman dare indulge in two grand passions with impunity4 ,that ogre joiner added the last blow to my vanished delusion when he generously offered to put up my shelves again without extra charge4 ,i have loved china ever since1 but never since that hour with the unholy desire of possession4 ,i have been content to admire it in the cabinets of my friends4 ,the true collector of china does not trouble himself greatly about the artistic qualities of his wares2 it is the rarity which he runs after1 and this is one of the most pitiful of human follies1 unless he chances to be a dealer4 ,what fascinated me in this pursuit was the beauty of the designs or the richness of the colouring4 ,i delighted to make my room one complete and harmonious picture1 rather than divide it into different pictures2 and in this1 while it lasted1 ,i had the most unalloyed pleasure that mortal man could have4 ,and this is how ,i should like to recommend men1 who are rich enough to afford the luxury1 to decorate the rooms in which they study or think2 for while pictures may tell their own story1 they are apt to become assertive in time1 while the stories grow stale4 ,but with beautiful works of china1 tastefully assorted and harmoniously arranged in combination with finely bound books of favourite authors1 no matter whether they are first or last editions or contemptibly modern in the estimation of the china-maniac1 you will find yourself constantly surrounded with old friends who are never prosy1 and by an orchestra of ever-changing songs without words--silent harmonies and poetic suggestions without limit4 ,i like my shelves to be open and roomy1 so as to hold any size of volume2 made plain and dark coloured1 with little ornament1 and attached to the wall4 ,yet the beau idal of a perfect library is to have it made medival in its design1 in old and unpolished oak1 with ,gothic carvings where bare spaces occur2 the ceiling divided into oak panels and rich with design1 the furniture in harmony1 so that nothing may distract the eye from the richness of the binder's art1 or the tender flower-like glowing of the vases1 cups1 saucers1 and plates1 stirring up while they at the same time soothe the jaded imagination of the wearied thinker with their vague suggestions4 ,,book ,,plates ,illustration3 ,t,,his is an old art or taste which is being once more revived with great activity through the timely efforts of the ,ex ,libris ,society4 ,it is a pursuit which is most educative to the lover of books1 because it is filled with symbols and leads on to the noble art of heraldry and spiritual intellectualism1 in which such men as ,albert ,drer stand so pre-eminent4 ,at first sight it may appear like the pandering to the vanity of book possessors1 but it is not so in any sense2 rather is it the connecting link which binds men of taste and research to each other1 and which leads them on to that higher level of humanitarianism and faith for which purpose the grand laws of ,heraldry and ,masonry were first instituted4 ,,artistic ,,astronomy ,illustration3 ,i ,,think that a man to be a painter1 more than any other student of life-lore1 ought to probe a little into every science2 anatomy he must have1 geology1 botany1 and astronomy he ought to know something about4 ,i do not mean the very painful and exact knowledge which is begun and ended in learning the names and probable distances of the planets1 or the exact theories which books teach2 that sort of lore is very well in its place1 so that it does not interfere with the gracious if delusive investments of fancy4 ,but none of us like to hear a discourse upon the exact sciences from the lips of young love2 we would rather have her more ignorant and responsive to our extravagance--think that her 'eyes are stars1 and would in heaven stream so bright that birds would sing and think it were not night'--than to be reminded that this ,romeo nonsense is exploded1 and be told the scientific composition of those sapphire or amber orbs1 and the cold attractions and revulsions of those rolling earths4 ,the painter and the poet1 like the lover1 should be impassioned and impulsive1 keeping his knowledge only for similes and parts of the glowing idea4 ,he ought to know all things1 but be1 besides1 ',dowered with the hate of hate1 the scorn of scorn1 the love of love1' able to see through life and death1 through good and ill1 and into his own soul4 ,regarding the stars1 we must indulge in fancy1 for science will not enlighten us much1 with all the help its magnificent telescopes can give us2 for1 after all is said and done1 the wisest of scientists are forced to admit that the truth is not quite certain1 either one way or the other4 ,before the ,beginning1 we will suppose this earth to have been a molten globe of fused material1 perhaps the fragment of some other vast globe1 one of many sparks flung from the great flame that had spun round for myriads of centuries with other fires in the black space4 ,to attempt in words to produce an estimate of the magnitude of this stupendous scene would be as weak a failure as to attempt by figures to describe ,eternity4 ,the circle is our only sign in the one case2 let imagination's broadest and vaguest conception grasp the other as it best can4 ,the fearful concussion as two fires met and clashed and became a blazing shower1 the weird effect as the sparks1 to us monster planets and measureless suns1 fell whirling into the chaos of that awful night6 ,all are silent as the stars are in their distance1 and we watch at night the shining and the sparkling1 giving them1 with our intense narrow egotism1 a place in our emotions and our sentiments1 as if they were ministers of fate for earth1 so trifling do they seem to our mite world4 ,science blunders on1 one generation of savants giving us theories and blinding themselves to prove them correct1 which another generation of as wise men flatly contradict1 and set up fresh theories to be again knocked down4 ,i pay thirty shillings for a valuable work on astronomy to-day that next year ,i find not worth a sixpence4 ,they coolly inform us that at length the distance to some star is certainly discovered--at least1 with the slight margin of some tens of thousands of millions of miles1 to be afterwards determined as they think best1 and that is our knowledge of the stars4 ,this is science4 ,a man makes himself a mole1 scratching up a mound of earth1 boring and thinking and wasting his eyes and his brains for fifty or sixty or seventy years to try to find out what he never can while his body consumes bread1 and what the most ignorant clown will discover with a single flap of the wing of ,death1 if our belief in a future state is fact4 ,the poet is the wisest astronomer4 ,he gazes an hour on the stars1 with his eye rapt and his mind fallow1 and the spirits or the spirit of inspiration ploughs it up and fills him with the knowledge unconsciously1 and if the withered old astronomer with his lines and earth laws is so far astray in his conclusions1 seeing the poet cannot wander much farther1 why may he not be the only one correct1 in that he writes what he knows nothing about8 ,we1 reading it1 call it deep1 mystical1 splendid1 because we cannot understand it2 while the poet1 poor fellow6 reading our criticism1 and thinking that we understand it from our subtle explanation1 rests perfectly content1 feels it is all right1 and that he is a very clever fellow4 ,to us these stars are serene1 as all action is when viewed from distance4 ,the carnage of the battle-field is but an ant-covered spot of the landscape to the spectator ten miles away2 a little puff of blue smoke here and there1 blotting out the insignificant black and red dots1 is the whole picture of the fierce drunkenness and savage lust of blood which transform men into devils2 those desolate hearths where the curse of the widow and the wail of the orphan are the most enduring1 trophies of victory4 ,myriads of miles away1 and all the thunders and rapidity become silver pin points3 yet they joined in that warfare1 or watched it as we do them1 saw it cooling down until it died from their range1 until the white glare that it once gave out became a crimson glow1 to be swallowed in the oceans of steam that rolled about it4 ,and so we are told that the slow stages went on--the fire1 the steam1 the waters1 the sediment and slime that bred the life1 the life that was rank and low1 the preparation for other life1 the light which was forcing its passage through the mists1 that came and made the life robust2 the convulsions that overthrew the whole1 and the work that began once more1 ever growing higher1 as death purified and blotted out the errors1 until the first perfection stood up from the other animals1 and1 as man1 continued the work of creation4 ,sciences so blend together that it is impossible to take up one without finding tendons of another passing through it4 ,astronomy teaches the student that this earth is only one of a cluster2 that our sun is not the sole candle of the universe1 nor our moon the only ,luna who touches the brains of men and poisons the flesh of fish2 that on each of those countless needle and pin points1 love1 war1 and work may be going on while our tiny star is out of the range of their glasses1 and speculation sets to work filling up all the blanks1 and tinkering up the broken links1 while imagination gilds the repairs until we can behold worlds like our own1 but larger and fairer2 for man ever takes himself for his model of an angel1 and his world for the image of the hereafter4 ,fairer1 because imagination hangs up a gauze veil to soften the general effect and the blemishes4 ,we look at the sky2 mellow grey at the horizon1 going through gentle gradations towards the deepest ultramarine overhead1 and science tells us that this is formed by miles of atmosphere1 and behind the ether belt spreads the black vacuum4 ,sometimes we think we can almost trace the airwaves1 one behind the other1 until the last thin layer is reached1 and the glance is lured on as through a crystal1 and we are soaring lark-like through the azure fields1 the world beneath us lost1 as when the swimmer in mid-ocean turns his face from the ship that represents land1 and floats away on a blue sea under a blue sky1 a solemn silence over all1 the heart filled with the trembling delight and awesome majesty of boundless space4 ,but to the poet they are angels2 to the prisoned wisher they are fairy barks to wing him away from this earth1 which is too small for his immortal cravings and desires4 ,we like the science of the child1 the lover1 and the savage the best1 for we think it as near truth as any other1 and ten myriad times more satisfactory to the feelings4 ,claud ,melnotte is our best guide to astronomy4 ',to sit at nights beneath those arching heavens1 and guess what star shall be our home when love becomes immortal4' ,that is the sort of astronomy for the poet1 the child1 and the quivering heart4 ,i would fain bring back the world to its belief in fairies--tear it now and then from the hard facts which are being now so constantly driven into aching brains4 ,were they not happy times when ,jack the ,giant-,killer was the veritable history of a brave boy8 ,were they not sunny hours when you peered under toadstools for the little fairy who was to build you up a crystal palace1 where gorgeous cakes were to be served on service of gold8 ,is there no cause for regret that the time is past when out of glowing embers on winter nights sprang forth knights on their war-steeds1 or funny little old men and women with high-crowned hats1 who you knew were all there1 because you had been told about them8--days when falsehood was an unknown quality1 and 'yes' meant surely 'yes1' and only 'no' was possible to doubt4 ,now it has become the large 'no1' with many a 'yes' much more than doubtful4 ,what were stars to you then but golden lamps of heaven2 shining ornaments on the foreheads of angels2 windows of another beautiful world2 or little sparks put up there all for your own special delight8 ,and that vast immensity1 to contemplate which the horrified brain of the astronomer reels with madness1 and reason is nearly dethroned3 what was it to you then but a cosy curtain of the earth's bed1 drawn over it at nights to keep it warm while it slept1 decorated with all those pretty spangles that people might count them until they fell asleep8 ,what did those worlds teach you in the hours of your young romance1 as you turned up your flushed face1 after parting for the night1 and sought out the brightest one to say your prayers to--young idolaters that you were8 ,did they not comfort you more then than now when you know what they really are1 as you watched them grow moist with their great sympathy8 ,it was a flick of vapour crossing them1 or a tender tear creeping up to your eye in reality1 but to you it was a star watching over you both1 and carrying the wishes of the one to the other4 ,science tells us that those fantastic shapes flying above us are caused by the vapours absorbed from the ocean1 condensed up there1 and sent down again in the form of those grateful showers upon which the sun paints the prismatic rainbow1 the sign of grace and hope1 the index of the painter4 ,we see the sun rising out of the vapour in the morning1 a pale disk1 surrounded by wreaths of the softest grey1 here of the pearly ash1 there of the citron bloom1 broken by the salmon and the amber1 while over them gleam the golden spokes and white bars of the wheels of glory1 surrounded again by the curtains of grey to the chastened fringes of azure and silver1 the golden car into which the king of the morning leaps1 guiding his winged horses out into the day with a lustre overpowering1 flinging his glittering shafts down the mountain sides1 into the streams and torrents1 into the mists of the valleys1 breaking up the solid masses1 tearing ragged edges from them1 and scattering them until they fly away round the rocks1 amongst the furze1 in a panic of confusion1 and the marble wall of an hour ago has become but a little smoke amongst the heather4 ,we see the mid-day lights and shades1 the clouds that trail slowly along like a flock of tired sheep with languid motion and drooping head1 now like chubby infants flinging about their dimpled limbs1 and casting fat depths of purple over the ivory shoulders of the children underneath2 white-skinned cherubs whose antics have diverted us during a sleepy afternoon sermon1 as they rolled past the diamond panes and cast their gigantic grey shadows on the whitewashed church walls opposite2 or the drift of dapple and scumbly white overhead1 like snow-flakes melting on a deep river1 stippled all over with the ripples between4 ,then comes the night1 and we know that the earth is turning round1 and that it will soon be dawn with our friends in ,australia1 but to us it is the sun which is sinking behind the waves4 ,it was a white flame on a blue field before1 then the blue passes through changes of grey to gold1 and the gold deepens to orange1 and the orange glows to crimson1 and the sun has become a blood-red eye glaring out of a purple mask1 while overhead gather armies clad in regimentals of every shade4 ,the red coats are struggling with the black and green1 and the yellow and white facings are savagely torn off and sent flying after the tattered banners stained with the clotted gore of the slain1 and the castles they were swarming about are crumbling to pieces4 ,then the battle is over and the stillness of death settles down1 the purple grows grey1 the amber afterglow is cooling behind it1 and those wonderful little spark worlds are coming out to watch4 ,on the earth long lines of silver vapour lie like stretches of water with fen-lands between2 the tree trunks are submerged in the deluge1 and only the tops of brown ranges float above4 ,a sigh comes over the land1 that enters into our spirits and finds an echo there1 as we turn to the east to watch the mellow moon rise out of its umber grey background1 giving us thoughts of rest after the day's work is over1 bringing out young lovers1 imparting to rosy cheeks the spiritual pallor of tender sympathy1 throwing into dark eyes1 that might flash mischievously in the sunlight1 the melancholy languor that rivets the pensive chains1 and a host of vague forms to the dreamy student1 as he leans back1 while the thin wreaths created by his meerschaum pipe circle heavenward from his meditative lips4 ,,artistic ,,botany ,illustration3 ,i ,it is astonishing how insensibly we are drawn on to moralise when in the mood4 ,a stone in our path1 over which we stumble1 may become the text for a long sermon2 a little piece of crumpled1 torn newspaper may lead us along a train that seems endless--the power of the critic and the abuse of that power1 the art of printing1 and how people got on without the use of type to spread their gossip1 the machinery used for it1 and the boon steam will be to the poor horses who may yet become our friends instead of our slaves2 the garment that scrap of paper once was1 and the romance of the wearer1 the loom where it was spun1 and the weavers1 the vessel that bore the little balls of cotton from the western fields where the lash of the overseer once cursed the land--and we have taken up the science of botany all in a single thought1 and fly backward by flashes until we come to the period when earth was like a fair garden waiting upon its owner when the work was all but finished1 and the nameless lion and lamb together grazed by the ,tree of ,knowledge4 ,the great hush of fifty centuries hangs over it all1 flinging before it the haze of a far distance4 ,the date-palm waves like feathers in the silver space1 the cocoanut hangs from the roof of its fan-like branches4 ,the banana is green1 or ripens without the decay of a leaf2 the many bright-winged songsters are sparkling with their hundred warm tints1 and the fresh first spring1 for they have suddenly burst into joyous animation to hail the new life4 ,we mingle with the morning mists1 the white forms of the angels who watched that great work1 and the diamond drops of dew which are lying in the mouth of the lilies get between us and the starry diadems which crown their glowing heads1 until we cannot separate the flowers from the deathless host4 ,shall we break it all up with our relentless science1 get out our trowels and our tin cases1 and scatter the angels until we classify some of the unknown specimens8 ,this purple flower with its drooping bells1 to the half-open mouth of which the black-and-amber coated bee hangs sucking1 is our own foxglove1 a useful foreground ornament for the painter4 ,adam has yet to christen it1 so ,i may be homely in my title and leave the ,latin to the professors4 ,an orange and scarlet toadstool rests against its grey green leaves1 while the greyer boulder against which they grow absorbs the grey from the green until the leaf seems as bright as the fern-tree overhead1 for after this manner ring out the chimes of colour in ,nature1 the high note only high until we strike the next4 ,yes1 it is amazing upon how slight a foundation a very plausible and fine theory may be built up4 ,i had almost fancied1 while ,i was watching the rich crimson juice oozing like blood from the cracks of that dragon-tree1 that the finale had come1 and that it was our forefather ,adam who clung in that most undignified fashion between me and the sky to that high branch of the upas1 until ,i perceived the long hair upon his arms as he reached to the cocoanut alongside of him1 while his graceful tail like a black snake twined round the white stem2 then ,i recognised with feelings of relief that it was only our familiar caricature the monkey4 ,how familiar it all seems as we ponder6 ,this gnarled tree trunk is the oak of ,england1 while yonder faint mountain-top1 that we can just see between its twisted limbs1 looks like the cobbler at work on the lofty ,ben ,lomond1 giving us almost the right to claim our little island as the original site of ,paradise1 did not those many pillars which are shooting up and drooping down from the archways of this mighty banyan stop our ideas from going farther in that direction4 ,let us pause for a moment to regard the vegetation around with the draughtsman's glance4 ,the oak rising like a pyramid1 with its rugged horizontal masses1 light1 raw siennaish-green leaves clustering round the spreading knotty branches at right angles to its corrugated trunk4 ,the elm1 lime1 and chestnut1 not unlike in general outline1 yet with distinctive shapes that separate them all4 ,the rough trunks of the elm1 pine1 and fir may be distinguished at once from the smooth bark of the plane1 chestnut1 beech1 birch1 bamboo1 and upas4 ,the branches of the fir and beech are straight2 the weeping willow and birch droop under their light load to kiss the river4 ,then there are the serpentine ash1 and the irregular elm1 cedar1 and poplar1 the long tapering leaves of the ash and willow1 the round flakes of the beech and cedar1 the fan-like masses of the chestnut1 the little needle points of the fir4 ,all these stand out stamped with their type marks1 and proclaim what they are by their form and by their colour4 ,we see1 too1 the dark olive duskiness of the fir crown1 with its flesh-like arms flung outwards1 and the warm glow of the upper limbs dying out of its body as it nears the brown earth1 reddened like the bed of the larch with the dropping spray of cast-off shreds2 the fir and the larch1 that never change their entire garments winter or summer1 but only cast away the worn bits they have done with2 the willow1 that grows paler as the summer advances and the other trees flush1 until she stands out white amongst the orange and the russet1 and the intense purple fumes of the passing year2 the fairy birch1 lady of the lee1 with her indefinite toned festoons1 her delicate madder-brown branches1 and her silver crackle bracelets1 reflecting all the colours in our paint boxes4 ,under foot we trample a perfect world in miniature--the velvet moss and grey lichen1 the vivid sparks of green amongst the bronze1 the rose and golden hairs that shake brown balls at us1 and lure us into grottoes where nymphs and lady-birds slumber together4 ,the ferns are making themselves studies in foreshortening as they spread over the broad-leaved docken1 under which the eye may penetrate the damp shadows to find that the range is endless2 furry rosaries swing on green strings1 little leaved tendrils that half smother blue and pink stars with white centres1 brambles and ivy shooting over knotty roots upon which cling verdigris1 tinted cactuses1 and perfect gardens of flowers and grasses1 trailing like auburn tresses1 all in the space of a square inch1 and veiled with the close meshes of that great spider web on which the dewdrops swing by thousands4 ,that wonderful dew1 flashing like the purest diamonds under foot1 glowing like rare opals a little way off1 glittering like powdered snow farther off still1 floating over the roses like the gauze webs away in mid-distance1 bringing us back again to the scene we left to burrow in details6 ,let us bundle up our specimens1 and try not to feel any smaller than we can help while we put our trowels and tin cases out of sight1 and crouch down with the hot-eyed monster cat panther within his leafy shelter1 and in company with the cunning cobra watch the work that is being done out there in the broad sunlight4 ,is it the heat fumes which are growing denser as the day advances8 ,can the sunlight filtering down between those green fringes make those shapes upon the grass and on the trunks of the trees8--trailing robes of filmy white1 dove-like wings of faintest pink that sweep across the glade and crowd in circles round4 ,the lioness does not think this strange1 for she squats and blinks lazily in the light like an over-fed yellow mastiff4 ,there is a rustling like birds rising4 ,the locust chirps in the grass2 the bee is busy1 so does not hum2 the red-coated soldier ants defile along in rigid order1 and are allowed to pass by the active little black-coats4 ,those that have work to do1 do it1 and all the rest sleep4 ,we have surely been dozing also1 for the picture is finished1 the dewdrops are almost dry1 the mists are sweeping away1 and the red man lies in his death-like slumber1 while bending over him1 with the staring eyes of a newly-awoke baby1 stands that white wonder of creation1 woman4 ,,the ,,spirit ,,of ,,beauty ,illustration3 ,t ,there is nothing more interesting in all the sights which bountiful nature provides for the entertainment of man than the shapes1 colours1 frolics1 and labours of the insect world2 and nothing more dastardly and contemptible than the way man has of enjoying those pleasures1 trapping the spirit of liberty1 mutilating the exquisite bodies1 ruthlessly cutting short their transient lives and merry pranks1 brushing away the subtle delicacy of that matchless colouring1 leaving only stiff1 tattered corpses1 that may appear fair in comparison with the clumsy work of their destroyers1 but bear no resemblance to the sportive specks of splendour they were before3 melancholy specimens stuck upon a card or in a glass case in order to gratify a latent lust of cruelty or acquisition1 which is rechristened 'the curiosity of science1' or worse still1 when it is to minister to the vilest of all vain passions1 the empty desire to be thought oracles4 ,to the sensitive mind the spectacle of a show case of these poor little insect samples1 pierced through with thin pins and having their ,latin titles attached to each1 is almost as excruciating a sight as a vision of ,calvary would be1 with the mockery of that ,greek1 ,latin1 and ,hebrew superscription suspended from the freighted ,cross2 and the utility of these crucifixions is about as great to the private collector and his narrow circle of admirers as the deliberate vivisection of a fly is to the idle mind of the vicious boy1 who dismembers a being of more exquisite formation and greater usefulness than he may ever become1 with those instincts1 in order to see how it can wriggle along after the power of walking and flying has been torn piecemeal from its quivering sides4 ,what can all this wanton waste of the spirit of life teach them that they may not read in the works of others1 or see in any museum where the sacrifice has already been made1 that they must trample like savage senseless cattle through fields already carefully gone over by men who have devoted their lives to this branch of science8 ,we all know that science must at times be unsparing and merciless in its hunt after knowledge1 but the discovery once with certainty gained1 cruelty ought to cease for ever1 and the mind rest satisfied2 or if unsatisfied with the dead example1 seek to learn the grace and beauty of the life1 the motion that must be preserved alone by memory1 for the corpse can tell us nothing of life1 and it is life we are most interested in knowing4 ,we can learn from death only decay1 and any hour's walk will show us that without our paltry aid towards its manifestation4 ,when education costs the student labour or even agony and self-loss1 consider no exertion lost time1 for experience must ever be better than theory2 but if it is at the cost of a single life1 or even a thrill of agony to another life1 then let him pause1 for no life is trivial that the spirit animates1 and where the mechanism is so perfect2 and the lowest form of life may be of greater value in the universal scheme than the life that destroys it4 ,let him pause1 for the experience is too costly1 the sacrifices already made should satisfy2 for what is the life of a man1 except that the shell is larger and coarser and clumsier1 more than the life of the tiny midge that sings about our ears in the sundown1 or the silent insect that1 all unconscious of its danger1 crawls under our feet8 ,i speak here with all due reverence for science1 when it is science that demands the sacrifice1 and not the ostentatious vanity of superficial ignorance2 also with reserve1 for we know how men's lives have been the price of many trivial discoveries1 and while we may lament1 we must yield to the relentless force of circumstances4 ,,the ,,butterfly ,,symbol ,,of ,,art ,illustration3 ,t ,the butterfly is the symbol of the painter and the poet1 and so ,i choose it as my present symbol4 ,as it must first be a caterpillar1 and devour greedily leaf1 fibre1 and all that can be devoured by caterpillars1 so the student must settle down and devour all the knowledge that he can find1 and crawl slowly along unheeded1 or be looked at perhaps with contempt4 ,as it changes its skin many times while growing1 so must he change the style of his admiration4 ,as it carries within it the wings and the colours in the egg state1 so the light wings of fancy and the pure instinct of colour must be born in the painter1 or it cannot be altogether trained3 a perception which1 like the perception of music1 will cause his nerves to quiver at a discordancy1 although he never handled a brush4 ',full many a poet never penned a line1' and so with the painters who have lived and died with their dreams unchronicled1 the perception being too fine for the material contact of earth1 which must pollute1 even while it embodies2 a perception ever running before the knowledge1 ever torturing the possessor with the innate consciousness of his errors before he has learnt enough to perceive them4 ,form is the grammar of art--a thing of measurements1 which can be tested1 corrected1 and satisfied by the exact laws which govern it2 but colour is too fitful a possession to be tested or controlled by rule or education beyond a certain stage4 ,we have it when we least expect it1 and find it slipping from our grasp1 after a life-long experience renders us confident of its control4 ,it is a quality far too subtle to be described by words2 a sensitive gift which will torture the gifted1 as ,george ,paul ,chalmers1 the ,scottish ,rembrandt1 was tortured until his spirit became unnerved with the galling longing1 and his brush blundered and would not finish4 ,it is not the wings of the butterfly but the golden dust which covers them1 and which is so easy to rub away2 not the genius of the painter1 but the precious garment of his genius1 to which genius is as much indebted as her mortal sisters are to the costumes of a more terrestrial texture2 too fine a fabric for earth looms to spin1 too delicate to be measured or shaped by fashion2 and even as the caterpillar must suffer the throes and self-efforts of ,nature1 and lie under the wearied languor of spent exertion1 so must the student painter torture and weary his heart out with his many struggles to do that which his instinct tells him must be4 ,many caterpillars perish from their own efforts1 many are destroyed by enemies1 many are killed by their own kind2 and how like is all this experience to that of the student painter6 ,and the critics1 who fawn upon the rich and powerful1 while they sneer in their meaningless fashion at the student who adds poverty to the crimes of daring and young impotency2 who1 besides being devoured by the gnawing consciousness of failure1 has the gall and wormwood of witnessing greater ignorance1 because talentless ignorance1 in the favoured1 praised up as virtues2 the bitterness to see them airing all the paltry tricks which their money has brought them from the studios1 while his poor attempts have to be sent forth bare and ragged1 because he has had to find out all that they have had held up before them1 for what is given eagerly to the rich is charged double rate to the poor6 ,his dreams are as great as theirs1 but theirs are nursed and dressed while his are sent beggars to the icy atmosphere4 ,the world says1 ,what right has he to attempt art1 a clown1 an apprentice1 an ignorant ragamuffin1 while the pets have been to college and ,paris life schools8 and it is very well for him to read up in his garret that men have risen from his level1 that ,murillo was a half-naked peasant boy1 ,homer a poor blind beggar1 ,claude a cook1 ,angelo a mason's apprentice1 ,mahomet a camel-driver1 and long lists of illustrious characters1 originally nothings like himself--if1 when he appears and presumes on these great precedents1 the cold iron wedge of derision is driven into his heart4 ,if a man1 his sense of purpose will support him through it all1 but precedent will not much console him4 ,and yet1 what does it matter in the end what we have to do in order to keep up the life1 if the life is devoted to the thought8 ,what though we hold horses like ,shakespeare1 or blacken boots1 or sweep chimneys1 sell cloth or make it up1 prime doors and panels for others to decorate or decorate them ourselves8 ,if a painter he is a painter1 whether he splits up or imitates rails1 cuts down or copies trees1 whitewashes ceilings or paints skies2 it is all right and proper if he is keeping himself devoted to the end4 ,the dexterous workman is not the artist1 tricks are not talents1 craft is not art1 any more than the dress is the woman1 although men do buy tricks and pass by talents1 as men often court and marry dresses4 ,in both cases they are all the better for the tricks and the dressing3 but keep the facts separate if you can4 ,it is the innate impulse and power that makes the painter in spite of his own efforts otherwise1 or the advice of his friends--the impulse that forces him on in the face of all omens4 ,as an artist he requires no peculiar cut of hair or livery to mark him so4 ,art is above1 therefore quite careless of1 keeping up her dignity4 ,she is quite as ready to sit and hob-nob with the beggar as with the baronet4 ,again1 if he succeeds in a very slight degree1 for no man jumps at success or perfection1 he is like the little caterpillar crawling out of his shelter and shadow to be pounced upon by the large caterpillars1 torn in pieces and gobbled up2 for although most of us have generosity enough to pity1 and perhaps help1 misfortune1 how few are there with sufficient philanthropy to crown success6 ,he will suffer all the pangs of conception to hear his infant called an abortion1 he must endure all the suggestions of puffed up1 purse-proud ignorance1 which imagines it can comprehend1 with a glance through its gold glasses1 what has taken months to plan4 ,he must make the alterations the patron may desire1 although his whole being shudders at the sight of a spoilt idea1 or else starve2 while the favoured caterpillar can laugh them to scorn in his plenty1 condemn the treason of the poor1 and deride the weakness of his necessity4 ,if he remains firm to himself he will be a martyr without the small consolation of the martyr's niche2 he will see his original failures ignored for pretty imitations1 and so he may struggle on to the bitter end1 to be forgotten1 a dead chrysalis to be blown about by the world's winds1 or drifted under the wheels and crushed4 ,but what of all that8 ,whether he lives despised1 or dies unknown1 this would be a grief to the glory worshipper1 but not to the true painter1 because the consolation of the painter rests in a higher pleasure than the trickster's craving after renown4 ,the painter labours to satisfy his ideal3 he knows that fame is not the reward of merit1 that it has nothing to do with merit1 although merit is sometimes crowned by mistake4 ,if he gains the laurel he knows that it is the accident of chance1 or the degradation of influence1 and he wears it with the indifference which it deserves1 or blushes at the shame of it2 for if by influence it has been bought at too great a price1 the cost of self-respect1 he must wear it with deceit1 while he struggles for ever after1 not to please his own consciousness1 but to prove to unbiassed posterity that it was his by right of worth4 ,this is the image of fame to the true painter1 a pillar whereon he is set by blind admirers1 who crowd about its base and shout at the image they cannot see1 while the strangers who look on at a distance behold its imperfections bare and ghastly in the sunshine4 ,but still1 for all the frost and the evil influences brought to bear against the chrysalis1 if it is to be1 its time comes1 and we see the butterfly breaking from its gloomy death1 and fluttering away gaily through the summer air1 happy1 careless1 beautiful1 every hour an effortless success1 its sole mission pleasure1 working good unconsciously1 rocking in the breast of the rose1 rising to light up some shady nook like a fleck of sunshine1 hovering over the lemon-coloured grain fields like animated scarlet poppy flowers1 settling down like winged pansies in our gardens1 hovering overhead like the spirit of the lovely things it sports with a golden gleam upon the violet1 a sapphire on the buttercup1 a velvet page amongst the lilies1 a giddy flirt with all1 blending1 harmonising1 contrasting wherever it lights upon to kiss and beautify2 thus it passes on1 doing the duty of its creation1 aspiration1 and fitful fancy4 ,and so with the painter4 ,he may take up the traces of custom1 chain himself with laws and methods1 go out with his buckler of tinsel1 and his bindings of green withes1 to watch the sun setting1 to reckon up its strength and classify its dyes1 gauge all the glories with his measuring tapes1 and bring his weak knowledge to the mighty test1 when1 even as he seeks for precedents1 he is caught up by the spirit1 as ,philip was of old1 and borne1 not to the chariot of a great eunuch1 but unto a chariot all his own1 made of pure beaten gold1 lined with purple and crimson1 and studded over with the richest of gems1 and thus rolled like a conqueror through the glowing gateways of the eternal space1 his frame quivering with the intoxicating joy of that fleeting hour1 his tinsel buckler and green withes shrivelled up and cast behind1 and his unshackled mind sent bounding through the endless vistas of dreamland4 ,illustration3 ,a ,,garden ,,scene ,,chapter ,,xiii ,,nature ,,worship ,illustration3 ,l,,abour being done1 we naturally look for reward1 which is the legitimate termination of work4 ,this reward may be rest1 or wealth1 or fame2 it is the spur of our exertion1 the caviare of our ambition2 upon it we exist through the famishings and the anxieties1 the hard roads and long miles2 it is the destination which fills our imagination from the very first step of our journey1 else would we have fainted twenty times over4 ,it is the day's wage or week's wages which supports the toiler or the workman through all the hours between him and the hour of pay4 ,and this is not wrong4 ,buddha bids us seek truth and morality without hope4 ,the sentimentalist would say1 ',work for the love of labour2' but we hold that this is not inducement enough4 ,walk hard1 because fatigue ought to be a pleasure8 ,no6 walk to produce the fatigue1 that you may be able to know to the full extent the delightful flavour of rest4 ,work1 be it at painting or writing1 that you may see the idea embodied and perpetuated2 if it be at bricklaying1 that you may see the wall rise up1 layer by layer2 help the needy and afflicted1 that you may comfort them2 raise the fallen1 that you may see them rise4 ,be pure and charitable and as sinless as you can with the help of ,god1 that you may stand holy in that holy ,light4 ,use your influence to make those purer around you1 that you may have only the incense of purity surrounding you now and hereafter4 ,thus1 to be virtuous after the creed of ,gautama is work such as ,hercules worked at the stables of ,augeas2 to be virtuous1 as ,jesus ,christ taught1 is to be inspired with the presence of ,god all through earth's life and stand unsubdued at its close4 ,when ,hannibal1 and after him ,napoleon1 crossed the ,alps1 ,italy lay to their hand2 the certain prospect of ,italy1 fertile and rich1 aided them in the removal of fearsome barriers1 imparted to them the daring to brave toppling crags1 slipping ice-ridged streams1 appalling heights1 quivering avalanches1 swaying to and fro as they passed1 swinging over in their rear with that muffled soul-sickening thud which they knew meant a snowy grave to those behind4 ,italy1 the grape-hung1 the sun-laved1 was before them on the other side1 with its wealth and power--nay1 it was with them1 in their hunger and bitter cold1 as the presence of ,god is with the devout every hour of his earth-life4 ,but when ,bonaparte came within sight of ,moscow1 the vision of which had supported him and his famished army all through those awful icy leagues1 and beheld in the light of those blazing domes the destruction of his hopes1 then1 and only then1 the full bitterness of that winter march began4 ,so with the warrior prince-leader of ,israel1 when he stood up face to face with ,god and cried out in the passionate strength of his man-thirst1 ',let me go over and see the good land'--the land he had worked and walked so long to see1 for which he had given up all the pomp of the ,egyptian court1 and1 still greater sacrifice1 the erudite society of the sumptuous priesthood1 to consort with a nation of spiritless1 ignorant1 and discontented slaves4 ,i like to embody this great leader of ,israel1 not as his countrymen knew him when he led them out of the land of bondage1 the snowy-bearded grave statesman and law-giver1 but as the ,prince ,rameses1 the mighty ,egyptian ,lord of ,lords1 the favoured son of the ,queen ,amense1 always the companion of philosophers and sages1 hearing the petitions of his people in the outer courts1 driving his gold-embossed chariot between long avenues of sphinxes1 reviewing his countless hosts in the open plain outside the great royal city of ,on1 crowned victor as he swept home from battle1 over garlands of roses and lilies1 with armies of white-vestured priests of ,ptah1 dancing girls1 singing maidens1 and the sacred women of ,bast 7the lady of ,auchta71 all surrounding with fumes of incense and hymns of praise ,egypt's pride ,rameses the ,mighty4 ,illustration3 ,,the ,,ancient ,,nile ,i think of him in the palace of his adopted mother2 on the terrace1 decorated with chaste designs of lapis lazuli1 malachite1 and precious stones2 sitting upon ebony-carved byssus-draped couches1 ,rameses1 with the royal lady1 gazing over their good land4 ,away in the distance the red-tinged hills lifted above the tawny sands2 between the palace and the ,libyan hills are hordes of slaves brickmaking and temple-raising1 with a white-grey sky above them and choking dust all round2 slaves toiling on foot1 mostly female2 strong young women whom labour will not tame2 dark-skinned matrons who find a joy in that they have once more sons to suckle1 even in that hour of quenchless thirst2 wrinkled-skinned old women who have grown passive to rebuke1 and deadened to the lash2 old men sweating and dropping dead or afaint1 some digging trenches for the fancy lakes1 some dragging the stones that have come down the ,nile4 ,the girls and boys are the brickmakers1 and the strong men are the drivers1 copper-tinted ,egyptians who sit on chairs which the strong women bear1 while others hold up the great sun-shades1 or fan with ostrich fans the heat which the lashing exercise brings upon them4 ,it is a good land4 ,nile spreads along in sight of all1 prince and slave1 with its sweet treasures and its clouds of bird-life1 and by its banks rise those columned buildings4 ,colour is over all1 rich tints in yellow1 blue1 red1 and black1 grounded with white1 symbolic in design1 each tint a law unchanging4 ,over red and white walls the fruit trees hang1 and the spreading ,nile bears upon its breast the echoings of fertile gardens1 and the barges ever passing from the city of the dead to the city of the living1 pleasure boats with golden-wigged ladies and jewelled men1 and the sounds of instruments joining and jarring upon the groans of the afflicted4 ,i think more of ,moses as ,rameses1 discussing with his queen-mother that vexing conundrum of the day1 increasing ,israel1 than of ,moses solving the question later on4 ,i seem to see his aged father and unknown mother amongst that seething mass1 hiding their secret between their hearts1 shouting with the crowd1 ,hosanna to the king of kings1 their ,god-like son4 ,and then my vision shifts1 and ,i see him taking leave of his people1 none there now who knew him in his royal pomp and splendid manhood4 ,what a life of abnegation6 ,bred for a king1 laying down his crown1 happy in his desert freedom1 giving up his rest1 daring in his faith1 becoming the chief of a horde of ignorant serfs and advocating their rights in the throne-room--once his own--leading them out from the tyrant power1 yielding but a little when sorely tried1 creating reason in brains all reasonless1 wandering through a land of doom1 with his ,god ever beside him1 helping that mighty work4 ,think on the task of raising the serfs of ,russia to reason out their own condition and so help themselves6 ,hundreds of earnest souls have been hard at the work for hundreds of years1 and yet they are still hundreds of years from the promised land4 ,imagine a lower state1 viler than any race you can bring up as an example on earth's face1 more hopelessly sunk in the satisfaction of apathy and degradation1 and you have not reached the moral level of ,israel when ,rameses put forth his hand to lift them out of their slough3 slaves of centuries to be educated in forty years2 slaves with all the whip-checked vices of slavery let loose by an acquired power4 ,the first instinct of liberty was the beast instinct of destruction running and tingling like mixed wines through every vein4 ,moses and ,aaron1 with the ,lord about and before them1 led out of ,egypt a congregation of mind-crusted1 unreasoning serfs4 ,but now his task is done and he can go to his well-earned repose2 the slaves and slave-binders are dead who came out of ,egypt1 and are buried by the way2 the rest are free men now1 and under control4 ,they have their laws and obligations1 which makes them a people2 they have their leaders appointed1 which makes them a state4 ,pharaoh is a thing of the past1 ,egypt a myth-land1 ,canaan the good country towards which their wishes tend4 ,already have their souls crossed the ,jordan2 and though they wear sack-cloth for thirty days on the plains of ,moab for the old man who has gone from them up the hill of ,nebo1 though their tears flow apace1 yet the strong men are grinding their steel1 with their hearts soaked in triumph and conquest4 ,up the mountain the great old seer passed4 ,i think ,joshua supported him up so far1 to the foot of ,pisgah1 and then they parted4 ,a thin mist was creeping from the brow of the hill1 and even as the warrior gazed it caught the statesman1 and drew him from the sight of all4 ,no man saw within that veil of mist1 for ,god was there4 ,yes1 once it parted1 when he reached the top4 ,that mist was made of angels' wings4 ,they drew aside1 and for a time permitted him to view the promised land1 and the ,lord was with him1 pointing it all out4 ,a voice from the mist of the angels' wings told him of the presence of ,god1 so he stood up1 clutching to the rock beyond which he gazed1 the shadow of the mountain over the plains of ,moab and the last fiery ray of evening laving the land in front4 ,he saw all ,gilead unto ,dan1 to the utmost sea1 where the line of unbroken amethyst crossed the scarlet clouds2 ,naphtali1 ,ephraim1 ,manasseh1 the valley of ,jericho1 and the city of palm-trees4 ,his back was to the sun1 and for a moment it fell upon him1 casting his shadow over the hill-edge1 a statuesque1 white-clad1 unbent figure1 with rolling tresses of grey and streaming beard1 looking out4 ,then the legions closed upon him and the sun went down4 ,to the poet the death of ,moses is filled with glorious imagery4 ,nature is here absorbing a grand portion of her own spirit to give it out again to other souls4 ,god is the mighty mover of all1 but ,he is indefinite--in the wind bearing melancholy sounds and bodes1 in the waters lapping the shingle or rushing over the great rocks1 in the vague dreams which possess him as he gazes out upon the countless planets1 in the wild yearning to be solved by that overpowering impregnation of silence4 ,to the painter it all comes in a vision of colour2 it is a blending of spirit harmonies1 rainbow shades1 a sense of the eye that embodies the spirit into a definite pleasure4 ,by faith he sees revelations1 the golden streets and crystal rivers1 and1 above all1 the great prismatic light4 ,to the utilitarian ,nature represents a scheme of economy and utility4 ,we are one of a countless cluster of planets4 ,the sun which shines over us is but one of a vast chain of reflections and magnetic communications1 the moon is but one of many discs2 the world swims in chaos2 all partake of the bountiful provision of an unchangeable law2 not one world is to be considered more than another1 not one accident to be deplored1 from the combustion of a globe to the crushing of a worm1 while it only affects its own destiny4 ,it was good that the ,son of ,man should die for men1 good for the minority to suffer1 if by their pangs the harmony of the majority is secured4 ,virtue is only according to circumstances2 morality is a thing of adjustment2 there are no fixed laws of conduct4 ,if vice conduce to the happiness of men1 then it has become a virtue2 if the removal of a man lead to the restoration of peace1 then to kill him is not murder4 ,the end justifies the means3 a ,jesuitical policy1 which has been flung in their teeth as a sign of distrust2 the policy of ,england's ,commonwealth1 when ,oliver ,cromwell1 with the other members of ,parliament1 signed away the life of their king4 ,to the utilitarian the earth is a garden for the use of mankind2 it is the religion1 since men began to herd together2 it recognises only the ,gods or ,god of the day4 ,it is the keynote to the sacred bond of ,freemasonry4 ,love is good for the community2 set up love and friendship1 and rear an altar to them4 ,unity is well for man1 so lay down all private likes and dislikes1 annihilate all personal speculations which may breed discord2 for the spirit of ,truth as she hovers in mid-heaven has the hues of the chameleon1 and changes in shape to each eye4 ,what ,i see1 you cannot4 ,therefore the fact must be carried by vote if you would be perfectly utilitarian in your aims4 ,the reformer is a disturber of concord always4 ,cassandra disturbed ,troy1 ,jesus ,christ disturbed ,jew and ,gentile2 so for the sake of utilitarian peace ,pilate washed his hands1 and the crucifiers had it all their own way4 ,henry ,george is a utilitarian in principle1 but as he speaks as yet in the minority1 albeit advocating the welfare of the majority1 until men are convinced as to his line of argument he is a disturber of the peace of present society4 ,whether his scheme for the regulation of mankind would be successful is as yet doubtful in the extreme1 seeing that he ignores all other means except his pet theory4 ,as we find man at present1 poverty is in many cases a protection rather than a curse4 ,with passions paramount by ages of contamination1 and habits confirmed1 opportunity would only sink them deeper in the mire4 ,drink reformers1 food reformers1 crime reformers1 have before them superhuman labour ere the ,henry ,george jubilee will be of utility to the lower strata4 ,sanitation1 knowledge1 morality must be universally taught first1 and what is good will follow as a consequence4 ,to us it seems that poverty is of greater utility for the redemption of mankind than wealth4 ,we would see all men poor and sacrificing4 ,it is better for the rich to become poor than for the poor to become rich4 ,to the utilitarian ,nature has a spirit1 but it is a spirit of convenience4 ,floods rush1 not to destroy houses1 but to water districts4 ,hurricanes come1 not to strew strands with wrecks and wasted lives1 but to carry off infections1 clear the poisons from the atmosphere4 ,nature is a great manufactory1 where benefits are created for the use of man2 and the ,spirit is the worker who is busily coining good for the greater number4 ,trees are admired1 not for the waving of the foliage1 not for the serpentine curvature of the branches1 the half tones about the boles1 or glad tints on the leaves1 but for the uses of that tree when it is cut down4 ,a true utilitarian is the direct antithesis of the poet or painter4 ,to the agnostic ,nature is a solemn image set up before the eye2 the veiled ,isis1 soulless1 or endowed with a spirit unseen and therefore unknown4 ',before ,i go whence ,i shall not return1 even to the land of darkness4'--,job x4 #ba4 ,the agnostic does not deny ,god or the possibility of eternity2 ,genesis is not a legend to be laughed at2 soul is not to be disputed4 ,agnostics only stand upon the platform of their senses2 they know by geological research that earth was not created in six days2 they know by astronomical observation that the sun and moon could not stand still1 that if the earth paused one second of time in its velocity it would be destroyed--blotted out utterly from the clusters of stars2 by naturalistic knowledge they have proved that the fauna of the earth could not be gathered together or carried inside the ,ark2 souls have not returned to them from that dark land beyond the grave2 if there be secrets1 death has locked them up1 and they cannot get past it and return to tell their tale4 ,they doubt not1 because they know not1 neither do they believe4 ,faith is a sentiment1 as love is1 or fear1 only built up on a more slender foundation2 what they can see and touch they testify to1 all beyond that is beyond them4 ,some say that agnostic means atheist2 it does not4 ,there are no atheists1 nor could any human mind capable of reason be atheistic1 because to be one it must be convinced beyond dispute and declared definitely that there is no futurity and no ,god1 and the most that incredulous science can assert is that there is no evidence palpable of the existence of a ,god4 ,the atheist would be a fool unredeemed and unredeemable1 like to the man who1 shutting his eyes1 shouts out insanely that it is dark to everyone1 whether it is or not4 ,the agnostic by research has proved that he knows nothing1 and there he stops2 there may or may not be4 ,if bold he takes his risk of that 'to be'2 from the evidences of the beneficent order of ,nature1 he trusts his case in the unknown hands3 if it is ,providence1 that ,providence is too all-wise to revenge ignorance2 if it is chance1 he counts upon the hour4 ,youth and strength and beauty and health are the aims of life to strive after1 the golden hours of summer1 when sunshine lights up the heart of all creation1 and man1 with the plants1 feels the divine instinct of life surging in him4 ,he pauses irresolute at the first stratum of earth's crust2 beneath that metal plate seethes the fire2 that represents to him the beginning4 ,yet he knows that it was not4 ,the world revolves the portion of a circle2 yet why that circle of a sun-centre1 or that wider circle within which both suns and earths revolve1 or what the centre which controls the entire system of immensity may be1 he dares not affirm4 ,our lives are miracles1 yet we are habituated to them1 and name them chance4 ,that the earth revolves is no greater wonder than that it should stop and roll again2 yet that it revolves constantly and only stopped once1 is the point that they will not approve4 ,they learn that era after era the earth was destroyed1 and species created without connecting links4 ,theorists as mad in their dogmatism and desire to prove evolution1 as they consider the devotionalist to be in his supernatural credences1 try to hang facts upon threads and dovetail corner-pieces and centres1 but science gives no encouragement to theory4 ,the agnostic1 to be consistent1 must hold aloof from ,darwinism as he holds back from faith doctrines2 he must be content to use his eyes1 ears1 nostrils1 fingers1 and mouth4 ,instinct or surmise with him cannot be sense4 ,it is a fair day and a blue sky4 ,the mountains are piles of softest velvet1 grey1 mauve1 olive green1 and bistre2 a soft air that inebriates the brain and shakes the petals of the flush-rose2 a day amongst fine days to be hereafter long remembered1 for the woman of his choice has listened to his words ,eros-shafted1 and yielded up her will to his discretion2 is she not a type of more than earth-life as she stands before him in the clear lustre of her maidenhood love-glorified8 ,it is not flesh-worship which sways him now1 for her beauty has about it to him the sanctity of the religion he cannot receive2 in the humbleness of his awe-freighted triumph he could forget his naturalism and cry out1 ',be thou my ,god6' ,around them wafts the odour of gardens and fields1 the spirit of the flowers is floating around1 the soul of the sunbeam is kissing them both1 the union of outer beauty and inner life wraps them in the all-pervading1 everlasting folds2 for who dare say that the soul of a perfume can fade8 ,his spirit clasps with her spirit1 and both soar away1 with the multitudinous souls of things gone by1 and things drifting on1 up those ladders of light into the presence of ,god4 ,in this moment the agnostic is an agnostic no longer1 for he has seen heaven1 whether he believes it hereafter or not4 ,so love has opened to him the vision of ,st4 ,john4 ,it is woman who has become the typified divinity1 love which embraces faith and hope1 casting out self1 yet surrounded by barricades of fears2 it is an instinct of humanity1 as pity1 grief1 or that innate combination which modern philosophy terms superstition1 an elevated instinct of humanity1 for it is not the woman-flesh which inspires him with this rapturous awe2 it is the magnetic influence of the woman-soul over the man-soul1 and this the agnostic feels1 in spite of all his former scientific rant about body and brain4 ,at the present hour we stand on the threshold of mysteries1 with the rusted key in our hands which will open the closed door4 ,four thousand years ago man halted here1 with the key in his hand1 only it was new and glittering then1 and used to that easily turned lock4 ,behind that door waited legions of souls1 upon the opening by man1 when they would come and tell him all that lay beyond the good land1 his by right of gift1 theirs by right of heritage1 and they brought with their knowledge great power4 ,that was the hour when myriads of agencies--each agency strong enough to stop a planet--waited on the voice of the man who held the key of the portals between their worlds and his2 that was the hour when ,abraham and ,lot spake with angels1 when ,pharaoh bent his scientific neck before the miracles of calamity2 that was the hour when the pillar of fire passed through the sea1 and unseen forces swept back the water till they reared up great protecting walls--wondrous walls of sea-shells and conglomerate1 like some rare kind of polished marble1 the specimens alive but struck death-still with amazement1 the roaring hushed as they passed under the arching crests1 a gleam of starry space far above1 and a glare along the watersides from that crimson pillar in front4 ,that was the hour when familiarity made remonstrance possible1 and man gauged the strength of his science against ,almighty prescience1 as he does still1 only then prescience replied directly to reason1 and power refuted by immediate evidence of cause and effect1 for then reason did not wilfully close its eyes upon possibility1 and man owned the superiority of his ,creator4 ,it was a good land when the angels of ,god visited man upon the plains1 when the voice of ,god was heard within the mountains1 when ,enoch1 by preparation1 body and soul1 became spiritual enough to dispense with the services of death2 when ,moses went up1 with clear eye and upright head1 to make the last peace-offering--himself1 on ,mount ,nebo3 ,moses who by philosophy had rendered his mind fit to consort with the inner circle around the throne1 who by abnegation had rendered his body fit to offer up the last great sacrifice for his people in the land of darkness1 with soul ready to be redeemed4 ,ah6 what an audience waited upon that solemn change1 upon the dimming of that eagle eye1 the relaxing of that upright figure6 ,no man can find his grave--no man knows his end2 yet we may conjecture that as he looked and longed1 with his body chained to ,mount ,nebo and his spirit flying over the land1 held to the mortal portion but by a thread1 as the falcon is held to wrist1 an elastic cord that elongated as he flew1 waxing thinner as it farther stretched1 until it was almost unseen2 then death came from that white-draped crowd1 draped in the red robe of man's passionate desire1 flitting over1 like a gleam of sunset1 from the midst of cherubim and seraphim1 angel and archangel1 flitting over his 'abeiyeh' with gleaming fingers1 lighting up his 'kefiyeh' as it sought for the source of that unseen cord--the shears of death--red1 golden shears have clipped the link1 and ,moses is in ,canaan1 the heaven of his present desires1 and the supine clay is being attended to4 ,nearly two thousand years ago the climax came to all that mystic intercourse3 from the supernatural unseen ,teacher1 ,god became the natural sure friend and teacher of man1 and so ,he has continued ever since--amongst men when they like to have ,him1 imparting the knowledge of the supernatural to those who choose to learn1 holding out a key all unrusted1 in exchange for the key which we have ourselves left to lie and become thickly clotted with rust4 ,there are angels passing still1 for men have used that key2 when the lives are pure and the habits simple1 when charity extends to wider circles than humanity1 and mercy embraces all creation2 at times and in obscure places1 where ,god can speak1 the ,son of ,god instruct1 and the angels work miracles1 as they did of old1 where faith is paramount and science can only gibber and scoff outside4 ,it is a good land to all2 even to the agnostic1 as he waits for darkness1 or annihilation1 the sun shines hope1 the west wind breathes peace1 the dew speaks promise when he walks abroad4 ,science is like the mole1 it must bore2 it has no affinity with moving creation1 it has no interest with life or hope1 it lives and battens with the ghouls amongst the dead2 yet the deepest borer in philosophy is but a man1 and the man part of him must enjoy light as long as science keeps from blinding him entirely4 ,but to the devotionalist1 the ,christian1 the ,god-worshipper1 what a land of bounty it is6 ,i do not mean those narrow souls who dwell in a vale of tears1 those dyspeptic souls who can no more enjoy this world than they will the next1 but the man who honours ,god sufficiently to know that all ,he created must be perfect--this world for man1 the other worlds for those who inhabit them1 heaven only fair to the spirit to whom this earth is good4 ,are not the summer clouds as they float through the atmospheric belt the emblems of the angel forms which are ever passing to and fro in the state beyond--the hills1 and rivers1 and valleys1 the ever-changing landscapes and aerial effects1 all created for the pleasure of man by the good ,father1 all symbolic and typical of the pleasures of the future8 ,it matters little what are the individual or sect ideals of that ,creator or futurity toward which they are wending1 whether they sit down in ecstatic contemplation1 in the midst of ,nature's splendour1 with the moment of final merging into the great light before them1 or look forward to that future when individuality is retained and time alone is merged into eternity4 ,to the man who believes in immortality this earth smiles her sweetest1 because there are no melancholy surmises mingling with the present enjoyments4 ,virtue appeals alike to believers and unbelievers as the wisest guide to follow1 the consequences of departure from her laws being immediate and independent of the fear of future punishment4 ,it is not hell which appals the intellectual sinner and deters him from crime1 but earth2 manhood1 not morality2 the pride of honour rather than the hope of everlasting reward4 ,but to the hopeless1 or spirits who cannot rest upon a hope1 what are the pleasures of time but days spent in a condemned cell to the doomed8 ,every sunset which glorifies the world is a day stolen from precious existence4 ,they glance backwards upon the past with yearning pathos1 to the hour when boyhood bounded along the track of life1 and religion was the pabulum of custom and ,sunday-school the turning point of the week4 ,how foolish it all appears in their intellectual advance1 yet how joyous2 with what hopeless envy they hear of the ambition of young men and women1 who rest their fame upon a class-prize or the applause attending a choir-concert6 ,ah6 those were days when the ,son of ,man came near enough almost to be seen with the earthly eyes1 and the divine messages were palpable4 ,to the ,christian poet and painter nature appears animated by the spirit of a deathless ,creator2 the body dies1 the seasons fade1 but another body as real comes forth1 and nature spiritualised is revived as the spring drapes the limbs of winter4 ,to the poet and painter to whom this earth means all1 to whom the spirit of nature is but the ,greek soul that goes out with the change1 never more to be revived unless in the soul left behind1 it is all beautiful1 but filled with woe2 a soul of spring dying before the breath of summer1 summer shrinking before the chill of autumn1 autumn crouching under the iron heel of winter2 death over all--death and despair2 and this is the creed of the agnostic4 ,but to believers1 what is it but a continuation of everlasting joy8 ,in pain they see the blessed surcease2 in sorrow the golden alleviation2 in death1 the balmy sleep1 and afterwards the glorious waking up2 earth1 the garden of the ,lord1 where sthetic tastes are gratified1 where love is generated and friendships are formed to be continued and cemented in eternity1 where soul-philosophy1 and not pitiful brain-logic1 is begun to be followed out without an end1 where problems are given to be hereafter solved4 ,is it not a good land to poet1 painter1 utilitarian1 agnostic1 and devotionalist8 ,when the sun rears from the ocean-bed and rides over the fleecy clouds of morning1 while all the ground is teeming with the silver evaporation of pearly night dews2 to the poet and painter as they watch the tender colour-shafts1 the subtle play of light and delicate blue-grey shadows on the meadows where the cattle graze1 over the furrows that the plough is turning up1 amongst the dancing ripples adown the waste of heaving waters4 ,a good land1 despite the evils which erring man has brought upon it--the drink-devil who riots in palace and den and wanders even to the verge of pellucid springs1 the demon who is sapping the manhood from the human race1 who is making bare and bleak the fairest spots1 the most consecrated things on earth1 whose lank talons spread beyond the grave and rob ,paradise of its rarest flowers2 despite the smoke-fiend who is aiding and abetting his brother drink to enervate the brain of workers2 the devils called luxury and indulgence in all their thousand disguises1 whether it be in eating1 or drinking1 or dressing2 despite the vampire called poverty1 who squats hand in hand with crime1 attended by despair and utter misery4 ,a good land1 where we can cast aside the trammels of cities and get out to see it2 where we can forget our brothers in iniquity1 our brothers in sorrow and starvation1 depths which charity cannot cure1 or investigation eradicate1 which rise up like black waves against our stemming and threaten in the future to engulf us all4 ,a good land1 where we can abnegate desire1 learn to be poor as ,christ was poor in order to correct poverty2 where we can conquer ourselves1 lay down the most clinging habit1 for the sake of mankind1 and by example teach others at the lower level to be content with ,god's air1 and ,god's light1 and go out to get them2 where we can live with less comfort1 fewer tastes1 and greater simplicity4 ,a good land1 where the great social problem is solved and self-abolished for cause1 and men1 proud of being poor1 as now they grow arrogant in wealth1 join hands as little children1 forgetting that bat-ghoul philosophy1 taking the gifts which ,god has given to them as the foretaste of better things in store4 ,a good land here2 but what is there to come1 where ,art begins8 ,,index ,abbey1 #aeg ,a ,b ,c of art1 #aae ,aberdonian clipper1 #adf ,academies1 #if ,actions of nature1 #bh ,adoration in art1 #bee ,age of romance1 #bha ,agnosticism1 #cjf-i ,aikenhead 7,major71 #ig ,aissouas1 the1 #ajg ',ally ,sloper's ,half ,holiday1' #aff1 #afg ,alma-,tadema1 his work1 #hj1 #aic1 #aid1 #bgc ,almanack1 ,comic1 #aff ,anatomy1 #ie ,ancient ,egypt1 style of1 #bii-cja ',ansidei ,madonna1' its value1 #bca ,apocalypse1 ,albert ,drer's1 #aef ,ark1 dimensions of1 #ace ,art1 realism in1 #cd2 fashion in1 #ij2 instinct of1 #ih2 lessons in1 #ajb2 savage1 #ajb1 #bad-af2 ,eastern1 #aje2 false1 #ajg2 true aim of1 #ajh1 #beb2 ,a ,b ,c of1 #aae2 uses of1 #aag-ah2 practical1 #aeg2 individualism in1 #afj2 influence of ,turner on illustrative1 #afc2 sacred1 #bej2 sacrifices of1 #beb2 imagination in1 #bed2 adoration in1 #bee2 soul in1 #bee2 comic1 #bfj2 ,dutch1 #bfh2 dignity in1 #bfh1 #bic2 symbol of1 #bia ,art course1 time of1 #aaf ,artist and butterfly1 #bia ,artists as readers1 #bgc ,assyria1 styles of1 #fj ,astronomy1 artistic1 #bgf ,atheism1 #cjg ,australian experience1 #ajh-ab ,backgrounds1 old style1 #g ,barnard 7,f471 #aeg ,bayeux ,tapestry1 the1 #aci ,beauty1 #bji1 #beg2 spirit of1 #bhi ,bell1 his ',mary ,queen of ,scots1' #de ,bellini 7,giovanni71 #bch ,bewick1 #aei1 #afj1 #agc ,black and gold marble1 #ahi ',black and ,white1' #afe ,blake 7,william71 #ce1 #hi ,blemishes in marbles1 #aie ,blunders of science1 #bgh ,boats1 ,egyptian1 #acf ,body colour1 #ib ,bolton1 #aga ,book1 an illustrated1 #aeb1 #agb-e ---- plates1 #bgf ,books on painting1 #hc ,boots and feet1 #bjj1 #bja1 #bjc ,botany1 artistic1 #bhd ,botticelli 7,sandro ,f471 #bdj ,bough 7,sam71 #hb ,breydenbach's ,travels1 #aee ,bronzino 7,angelo71 #bdj ,brushes1 #fi ,buddha1 #bih ,burnett on painting1 #abg1 #abi ,burns 7,robert71 #baa ,byron 7,lord71 #hi ,cameron 7,hugh71 #dg1 #dh ,canvas1 preparing a1 #agi ,carlyle 7,thomas71 #bj1 #hg1 #aja ,cassell ,co41 #aee1 #afi ,centre line1 the1 #bbe ,chalmers 7,george ,paul71 #hb1 #bci1 #bdf1 #bib ,champs and champing1 #ahc1 #ahd ,chatto 7,w4 ,a471 #aej1 #aeb ,chatto ,windus1 #aff ,chemistry of colour1 #ib ,chevreul1 his book1 #aae ,china collecting1 #bgc ,classification of light1 #abi ,coleridge1 #hi1 #bag ,colour1 body1 #ib2 chemistry of1 #ib ---- perception1 #bfi ,colours1 blending of1 #ei2 the primaries1 #eh ,combing1 #aha1 #ahb ,comfort in ornament1 #bbd ,comic ,almanack1 #aff ---- art1 #bfj ,consistency in ornament1 #bbe ,constable 7,john71 #hf1 #afj ,contrast of ships1 #adb-e ,contrivance for lighting1 #ah ,copying1 benefit of1 #ce2 its use and abuse1 #ha ,correggio 7,allegri1 ,a4 da71 #he1 #bdj1 #bdg ,cox 7,david71 #ia ,crane 7,walter71 his work1 #aee1 #agc1 #bgc ,creswick 7,thomas71 #afa ,critics1 #hj ,cromwell1 #cje ,cross-bars1 #ahd ,cross-hatching1 #aee ,cruelty of science1 #bij ,cruikshank 7,george71 #aeg1 #afj1 #aff1 #afg1 #bfj ',daily ,graphic1' #agj ',death of ,procris1' #bdf ,decoration1 #bjh ,designing1 #aad ,details1 #gg2 of foregrounds1 #bfh ,dignity in art1 #bfh1 #bic ,distortion of vision1 #cc ,dobson 7,austin71 #aej ,dor 7,gustave71 #hb1 #hi1 #ie1 #afj1 #afh-aga1 #bdh ,dove marble1 #aia1 #aib ,dow 7,gerard71 #bdc ,drawing1 #aad2 on the wood1 #aeg ,dress1 #ii1 #aif2 modesty in1 #bja2 fashion in1 #bjc-g ,drummond 7,william71 #aie ,dumas 7,a471 fils1 #bbj ,drer 7,albert71 #cd-i1 #dd1 #eb1 #aee-g1 #bdb1 #bgd ,dutch ,art1 #bfh ,eastern ,art1 #aje ,economy in ,ornament1 #bbd ',editions de ,luxe1' #age ,egypt1 style of1 #fj ---- ancient1 style of1 #bii-cja ,egyptian boats1 #acf ',eight ,bells1' #aac ,eliot 7,george71 #bbj ',english ,illustrated ,magazine1' #afe ,etching and ,etchers1 #da ,ex ,libris1 #bgb1 #bgf ,ex ,libris ,society1 #agc ,exhibitions1 #if1 #bfa ,expression1 #bc ,eyck 7,jan van71 #bdc1 #bdg ,faed 7,thomas71 #dg1 #hb ,failures1 the benefit of1 #aab ,faith1 #cab ,false art1 #ajg ,fashion in art1 #ij2 in dress1 #bjc-g ,feeling1 #bh ,fildes 7,luke71 #hb ,fiorenzo di ,lorenzo1 #bdg ,first coating1 #agh ,foreground flowers1 #bhe ,foster 7,birket71 #agc ---- 7,john71 #ec ,francesca 7,piero della71 #bch ,frith1 his ',derby ,day1' #hg ,fuligno 7,niccolo di71 #bdg ,furniss 7,harry71 #afg ,gainsborough 7,thomas71 #id ,galleys1 ,greek1 #acg ,garvagh ',madonna1' the1 #bcb1 #bcd ,george 7,henry71 #cje ,gillray1 #bfj ,glazing1 #ha ,goethe1 #hi ,goodwin ,sands1 #adh ,gradation of shadows1 #abd ,graining1 #hf1 #agf1 #agh ,grammar of ,art1 the1 #bib ,grandi 7,ercole de ,giulio71 #bdg ,granite1 #aib ',graphic' 7,daily71 #agj2 7,weekly71 #afe ,greek ideals1 #aii ---- ships and galleys1 #acg ,grey1 the quality of1 #ah ---- paper1 the value of1 #acj ,ground for black and gold marble1 #ahi ---- for maplewood1 #ahg ---- for oak1 #ahj ,gum tree1 the1 #aaj-b ,hag1 the1 #df ,half-tones1 #ai ,hals 7,frans71 #bdc ,hamerton1 #da ,hannibal1 #bif ,harmony1 #abh ',harper's ,monthly1' #afe ,harvey 7,sir ,george71 #hb ,hatching work1 #ib ,hatherell 7,william ,r4 ,i471 #afe ,hayden 7,dr4 ,g471 #da ',henri ,grce ,dieu1' #adj ,henry the ,eighth1 #bda ,heraldry1 #bgf ,herdman1 #hb ,herkomer1 #da ,hobbema1 his work1 #bdh ,hogarth 7,william71 #aeg1 #aei1 #afj1 #bfh ,holbein 7,hans71 his work1 #bda1 #bdd ,homer1 #bah-bbj1 #bic ,hunt 7,holman71 #fc ---- 7,william71 #ae1 #cf1 #ed ,huxley1 #bad ,illusive ,effects1 #abc ,illustrative art1 ,turner's influence on1 #afc ,image1 the1 #bi ---- of ,fame1 the1 #bie ,imagination in art1 #bed ,imitation of nature1 #bh ,impressionists1 school of1 #ec ,impressions of pictures1 #bcj ,individualism in art1 #afj ,insects1 #bhi ,instantaneous effects of nature1 #abf ---- photography1 #bi1 #afd ,instinct of art1 #ih ,irving 7,henry71 #bbb ,israels 7,jozef71 #fd ,italian marbles1 #aib ---- school of painters1 #abh ,jackson1 #aeb ,job1 #ajb ,judgment in painting1 #bgj ',julius ,,ii4 7,pope71' #bcd ,kingsley 7,charles71 #baf ,knotting1 #agg ,knowles 7,davidson71 #ade ,knox 7,dr471 his work1 #aae ,landscape ,photography1 #db ,lastman 7,peter71 #ce ,lawrence 7,sir ,thomas71 #ai ,leech 7,john71 #bfj ,leighton 7,sir ,f471 #hj ,lessons in art1 #ajb ,libraries1 arrangement of1 #bge ,lichens1 mosses1 c41 #bhg ,life and nature studies1 #aaf ,light1 classification of1 #abi ---- and shadow1 proportions of1 #ag2 the effect of1 #abg ,lighting1 #af2 contrivances for1 #ah phenomenal laws of1 #abj ,lippi 7,fra ,filippo71 #bdj1 #bdg ,lockhart1 #hb ,lorenzo da ,san ,severino1 #bdg ',lorna ,doone' 7,blackmore's71 #afd ,lorraine1 ,claude1 #bdh1 #bdi1 #bic ,loutherbourg 7,p4 ,j4 de71 #adf ,love the revealer1 #cji ,low-toned ,school1 the1 #fd ,macdonald1 #hb ,madonna1 ,ansidei1 its value1 #bca ',magazine of ,art1' #afe ,mahogany1 to grain1 #ahh1 #ahi ,mahomet1 #bic ,mannerism1 #afj ,mantegna 7,cav4 ,andrea71 #bdg ,maple wood1 to grain1 #ahg1 #ahh ,marble1 black and gold1 #ahi2 blemishes in1 #aie2 method of working black and gold1 #ahi-aia ,marbles1 ,italian1 #aib ,masonry1 #bgf ,matsys 7,quintin71 #bdc ,max 7,gabriel71 #bej1 #bea ,mechanical workers1 #abf ,memory1 #bbf ,michael ,angelo 7,buonarroti71 #ae1 #hj1 #bdf1 #bdg1 #bic ,millais 7,sir ,john71 #eb1 #hj1 #hi ,millet 7,j4 ,f471 #ed ,milton1 #aja ,modern painters1 #ff ,modesty in dress1 #bja ,modjeska 7,madame71 her art1 #bjh ,mora1 his photographic work1 #bg ,moroni1 his work1 #bcd1 #bcg1 #bch1 #bdj ,moses1 as ,prince ,rameses1 #bii-cjd2 death of 7word picture71 #caa ,murillo 7,bartolomeo ,esteban71 #agi1 #ahi1 #bdj1 #bdb1 #bic ,napoleon1 #bih1 #bii ,national ,gallery1 #bbi ,nature1 imitation of1 #bh2 sketching from1 #ca2 how to approach1 #gc-e2 instantaneous effects of1 #abf2 the guide to taste1 #ahi2 different methods of seeing1 #cac1 #cad ,nature worship1 #big1 #cjd ,nimmo 7,john ,c471 #bcf ,notes1 shorthand1 #hc2 how to take1 #ajc1 #ajd ,oak graining1 the art of1 #ahj2 tools required for1 #aha ,oil painting1 #aae ,operators1 photographic1 #f1 #g ,orchardson1 #dg1 #dh1 #di1 #ej1 #hj ,original ideas1 #aja ,ornament1 #baa-c2 comfort in1 #bbd2 economy in1 #bbe2 consistency in1 #bbe ,outline work1 #aed ,over-graining1 #ahd ,overwork1 danger of1 #ga ,painters1 modern1 #ff2 ,italian ,school of1 #abh ,painting1 books on1 #hc2 water-colour1 #ib2 oil1 #aae2 judgment in1 #bgj ,paper1 a scrap of1 #bhd ,parsons 7,alfred71 #aeg1 #afc ,paton 7,sir ,j4 ,noel71 #hb1 #bgc ---- 7,waller71 #hb ,p4 and ,o4 ,liners1 #add ,perspective1 #id ,perugino 7,p4 ,v471 #cf ,pettie 7,john71 #dg1 #hj ,phoenicia1 #bai ,photographic operators1 #f1 #g ,photography1 instantaneous1 #bi1 #afd2 landscape1 #db ,picture1 what to seek in a1 #beh ,pictures1 the buying of1 #ia2 impressions of1 #bcj ,pilkington1 #cd ,piombo 7,s4 del71 #bdg ,poliphili1 the1 #aee ',pope ,julius ,,ii41' #bcd ,popularity1 #bde ',portrait of a ,tailor1' #bcd ,posing1 #ab ,poussin 7,g471 #bdh ,practical art1 #aeg ,pre-,raphaelitism1 #fc2 mistaken efforts of1 #abf ,primaries1 the1 #eh ,priming1 #agg ',procris1 ,death of1' #bdf ,proportions of light and shadow1 #ag ',proserpina1' #gb ,public opinion1 #bga ',punch1' #aff ,rameses1 ,prince 7,moses71 #bii-cjd ,raphael1 #cf1 #ia1 #bca-e1 #bea ,rat-tails1 #ahb1 #ahc ,reade 7,charles71 #agf1 #agg ,realism in art1 #cd ,reflection1 #bee1 #bef ,relief1 #abh ,rembrandt1 #bj1 #bc1 #ce1 #ci-db1 #de-ej1 #fe1 #hf1 #abi1 #aeg1 #aei1 #bcd1 #bci1 #bdj1 #bdc-e ,reni 7,guido71 #bch1 #bci ,repose1 #bef ,retouching1 #bj ,reuwich 7,erhard71 #aee ,reynolds 7,sir ,j471 #ae1 #ai1 #hc1 #bcf ,riggers1 #ahe ',rivers of ,france' series1 #afb ,road1 effect of light upon1 #abg ,roman ships1 #acg ,romance1 age of1 #bha ,rosa 7,salvator71 #gh1 #he1 #bdh ,rubens 7,sir ,peter ,paul71 #ae1 #ai1 #hj1 #he1 #bch1 #bdj1 #bdc ,rules1 #gi ,ruskin 7,john71 #cb1 #ec1 #ef-h1 #fe1 #ff1 #gj-b1 #hc-g1 #ia1 #aja1 #agi1 #ahf1 #aic1 #bci1 #bdd1 #bdi ,sacred ,art1 #bej ,sacrifice of art1 #beb ,sandals1 #bjd ,sarony1 his photographs1 #bg ,sarto 7,andrea del71 #bci1 #bdj ,savage art1 #ajb1 #bad-g ,science1 blunders of1 #bgh2 cruelty of1 #bij ,scott 7,david71 #hi ',scribner's ,monthly1' #ed ,scumbling1 #ha2 for oak1 #aha ,seavey1 his backgrounds1 #bg ,second coating1 #agh ,shadows1 gradation of1 #abi ,shakespeare1 #gj1 #aja1 #ajd1 #afj ,shelley1 #gc1 #hi ,ships1 #acc1 #acd1 #adj1 #afa2 ,greek1 #acg2 ,roman1 #acg2 contrast of1 #adb-e ,signorelli 7,luca71 #bdg ,sketching from nature1 #ca ,sky pictures1 #bhj1 #bhb-d ,small 7,william71 #aeg1 #afe ,social problems1 #cad-e ,soul in art1 #bee ,spagnoletto1 #bdb ,spirit of beauty1 #bhi ,stages of painting1 #fg2 of the globe1 #bgi1 #bhj ,stanfield 7,w4 ,c471 #adf ,stanley 7,h4 ,m471 #bi ,stars1 #bgg ,stippling1 #ib ,stirling-,maxwell 7,sir ,w471 #bcf ',stones of ,venice1' #ga ,studio visiting1 #hh ,style1 #hb ,styles1 #ahd ,subject1 confidence in1 #bba ,subtlety1 #bag ,swinburne1 #bag ,symbol of art1 #bia ,teniers 7,david71 #ce1 #dg-i1 #bdc1 #bfh ,third coating1 #agh ,thomson 7,d4 ,c471 #aej ,thomson 7,joseph71 #bi ,tiepolo1 #bdf ,time for art course1 #aaf ,tintoretto1 #hj1 #he1 #bdg1 #bfc1 #bfd ,titian1 #ae1 #he1 #ia1 #bdg1 #bfc1 #bfd ,tone1 #ha ,tones1 half1 #ai ,tools required for oak graining1 #aha ,torchlight1 effect of1 #aba ,trees1 #bhf1 #bhg ,true aims of art1 #ajh1 #beb ,tunny1 #ec ,turner 7,j4 ,m4 ,w471 #cb1 #fe1 #gj1 #hf1 #aeg1 #afa1 #agc1 #bdd1 #bdh1 #bdi2 his influence on illustrative art1 #afc ,tyndall1 #bad ,uses of ,art1 #aag1 #aah ,utilitarianism1 #cje1 #cjf ,vandyke 7,sir ,a471 #cf1 #hj1 #bdc1 #bdd ,velasquez1 #bcf1 #bdj1 #bda1 #bdg ,viking craft1 #ach1 #aci ,vinci 7,leonardo da71 #aae1 #bdf ,vision1 distortion of1 #cc ,walnut1 how to grain1 #ahh1 #ahi ,water-colour painting1 #ib ,weyden1 #bdc ,whistler 7,j4 ,mc,neill71 #bj1 #hf1 #ia1 #bcf1 #bde ,whitman 7,walt71 #dd1 #de1 #bag ,wilkie 7,sir ,david71 #ej1 #bdc ,wohlgemuth 7,michael71 #ce ,wood1 drawing on the1 #aeg ,word-painting1 #cjc1 #cjd1 #caa ,wordsworth1 #hi ,worth1 #ii1 #ajj ,wyllie 7,c4 ,w471 #afe ,youth and ,age1 #cac ,zola1 #dc1 #dd1 #bba ,zurbaran 7,francisco71 #bdb ,zwanenburg1 #ce ,,the ,,end ,,printed ,,by ,,spottiswoode ,,and ,,co41 ,,new-,,street ,,square ,,london ,illustration ,,footnotes3 #a ,only1 not to the encouragement of lazy habits2 at times 7for the sake of practice7 a painter ought to draw the most minute point-detail with the pencil1 as a singer practises his scales2 otherwise1 for the object1 the photo is most to be relied upon for truth in all1 except in perspective4 #b ,for an example of what ,i mean1 see the effects in ',choice ,blends' in ',the ,idler'4 #c ,see ',specimen ,days and ,collects1' by ,walt ,whitman1 page #cjf of ,collects4 ,want of room prevents me giving the specimen in full1 and ,i dare not mutilate such a literary masterpiece4 #d ,see ',mary ,queen of ,scots1' by ,bell--last scene4 #e ,the snow scenes are exquisite1 and one exhibited1 of a camp fire with figures1 a perfect triumph of misty refinement2 the faces seen through the smoke particularly to be observed4 ,i would also call the reader's attention to his cattle studies1 and the printing done on rough hand-made paper--flat and like sepia and ,indian-ink work1 only far more refined than hand-work could be4 #f ,some days before the death of ,millet1 a stag was chased by hunters and dogs into a neighbour's garden and butchered before the dying man's gaze4 ',i take it as an omen1' he said mournfully1 and prepared for the earth-end4 #g ,esther i4 #f4 #h ,i have seen this picture since writing these remarks1 but without changing my opinion concerning it4 #i ,as a worker of broad effects1 ,i lay myself open to be charged with bigotry when ,i condemn the pre-,raphaelites1 and accept the risk4 #aj ,see ,life and ,nature ,studies4 #aa ,i called attention to the marvellous medicinal virtues of this ,eucalyptus-tree long before it was generally accepted by the ,faculty4 ,see ',picturesque ,australasia' and ',a ,colonial ,tramp1' c4 #ab ,see ',a ,new ,guinea ,village1' p4 #abe4 #ac ,see ,frontispiece3 ',a ,new ,zealand ,fern ,gully4' #ad ,see also ,a ,treatise on ,wood ,engraving1 by ,chatto ,jackson1 p4 #df4 #ae ,the same excuse applies to this present work4 #af ,the numbers in this chapter are those of ,february #ahib4 #ag ,george ,paul ,chalmers1 an ,edinburgh artist1 is the only colourist who really followed ,rembrandt in his method4 ,he used sometimes to take sixty sittings to one portrait1 and hardly ever finished any of his works1 so fastidious was he2 yet as far as he perfected he was very perfect as a colourist4 99 99 99 99 99 ,typographical errors corrected by the etext transcriber3 thum-bhole thumb-hole pg #fh thes ame the same pg #aia ,niccolo of ,fuligno2 by ,niccolo of ,fuligno2 pg #bdg ,no4 #ce1 ,titian2 ',mercury ,no4 #ce1 by ,titian2 ',mercury pg #bdg ,savage art1 #ajb1 #bad-a ,savage art1 #ajb1 #bad-g pg index