Contemporary Painting at the Lefevre and Wildenstein Galleries. ART SIR
KENNETH CLARK'S recent broadcast annihilation of the art critic requires this non-existent creature to take stock of himself and his fellow-shades, as a result of which justifiable censure by Sir Kenneth I am inclined to add my own accusation. I accuse—and I include myself equally—the present collection of my compatriots of " dissecting the obvious, discovering new facets of the commonplace and squeezing the last drop out of a foregone conclusion." I also accuse them and myself of being hair-splitters, shilly-shalliers, hacks playing for safety. Where is the splendid enthusiasm of a Ruskin for a Turner or the ruthless, if wrong- headed, vituperation of a Sarradin for a Cezanne? Either would be of more value than the avuncular disparagement, the omnipotent if kindly damnation by faint praise of the present arbiters of elegance in the fine arts. Let us, if a drop of blood remains in us, assess the good and the bad, as we are supposedly capable of doing, in terms of intensity rather than ennui. Let us cease waiting for the horse to win the race before placing our bet, and let some of us be prepared to make a howling error of judgement.
Our business is primarily to make the public go and see the pictures, either because we think them very good or very bad, not to dispense sixpennyworth of paternal condescension with income- tax deducted at source. The painter requires strong criticism, whether in praise or disparagement, on a basis of absolute values, which, as Sir Kenneth points out, is based on a knowledge of the art. On a basis of this knowledge, even though it must he diluted with prejudice, since the critic is human, let the critic back his fancy among the untried and the half tried, for it is idle to siress the fact that Renoir is a fine painter.
With this in mind, go to the Lefivre Gallery, where may be seen a superb drawing by Robert Colquhoun, and upon request may be seen works by John Minton, Lucien Freud, Keith Vaughan and other young men who have yet to make their names. On the shoulders of these young men, and others whose names are not yet even thus well known, lies the burden of the future of British paint- ing. Let there be no mistake, the future is a splendid one, for I believe the time approaches when England will succeed to the laurels laid down by France after her triumphant century. Let the reader watch the work of John Craxton, Robert Macbryde, Michael Sallaman and Clifford Frith, together with those mentioned, when next it may be seen ; let the reader go to Wildenstein's and take note of the drawing " Studies of Refugees," by Mazy Kessel, and the watercolour by Francis Macdonald called "Roman Wall, Carlisle." It is possible that certain of these young painters will fail to fulfil their promise, but the stuff is there.
MICHAEL AYRTON. MICHAEL AYRTON.
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