FINE ARTS.
Miss FANNY KEMBLE ; drawn on Stone by R. J. LANE, from a Sketch by Sir THOMAS LAWRENCE.
An exquisitely beautiful portrait of this young actress, in her own proper cha- racter—that of an intelligent and interesting girl. It is not only by far the best likeness that has appeared of Miss KEMBLE, but one of the finest of the President's sketches, and the most successful effort of Mr. LANE'S talent as a lithographic draughtsman. The figure is a half length, seated in a familiar and graceful atti- tude, the face looking directly at the spectator. Intellectual sweetness of expres- sion, tenderness of manner, natural feminine grace, and unaffected ease, are the most striking characteristics of the drawing. As a specimen of lithography it merits the highest praise, for the air of originality which it possesses, the nice gradations of tint, purity of tone, delicacy of pencilling, and completeness of effect. A flowing line is visible throughout the composition, with the exception of the right arm, which has a stiffness and abruptness rarely seen in the drawings of Sir THOMAS LAWRENCE, and which would not be so remarkable were it not fur the harmonious blending of the other parts. The hands are beautifully drawn ; their position is simply natural, the left, partly open, resting on the right, the fingers of which seem playing with the gem of a ring on the left hand. Altogether it is such a drawing as LAWRENCE alone could make, and none but Mr. LANE transfer to stone. It is a portrait that we look upon with unwearied delight, and one in which the artist, without condescending to flatter, presents us with a faithful delineation, not only of the features, but the character Of the lovely original.
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