FINE ARTS.
OLD WATER-COLOUR SOCIETY.
THIN favourite exhibition still preserves its superiority as a whole over all others, notwithstanding the changes that have taken place in its composition. Death and desertion have thinned the ranks of the vete- ran corps of water-colour painters ; age, illness, and absence have put some of its members hors de combat; and the young recruits are not become thoroughly incorporated. Yet, while the sweet landscapes of COPLEY FIELDING, Dawncy,:and Cox, fresh as fertilizing showers and dews can make the mead and upland-while HUNT'S sun-bright in- teriors and sun-burnt rustics remain-so long will the peculiar charm of this delightful exhibition continue ; for it consists in the feeling for nature and perception of its atmospheric effects which their pictures embody with such truth, simplicity, and delicacy. The transition from the display of the " New Society" to this was like exchanging the efforts of struggling immaturity for the repose of acknowledged power. The great deficiency is in figure subjects : designs of character and passion are desiderated. The designers are not so numerous as the landscape-painters, and each one produces fewer works : when they fall short, therefore, they are greatly missed. JOHN LEWIS, we hear, is lounging away his life on a divan at Cairo, and has laid aside the pencil for the pipe ; STONE'S best energies are devoted to oil-painting, and he exhibits only one small design ; CATTERMOLE only condescends to show what he could do if he would ; HUNT is content to portray isolated expressions of rustic character ; JOHN WILLIAM WRIGHT is too much occupied with portraiture to do more than produce those graceful studies of feminine beauty in which he excels; JOSEPH Nessfs groups of old English physiognomy and costume are subordinate to the stately interiors of the Elizabethan mansions, to which they bring back the life of other days ; and OAKLEY has yet to show that he pos- sesses the power of telling a story with the same truth, clearness, and vigour, with which be depicts gipsy character. FREDERICK TAYLOR, in himself a host, figures most conspicuously this year ; his greatest and best work worthily occupying the place of honour : it is a chef d'ceuvre. Too Late for Church, (1670 is the title of this lively and humorous picture of the scene from the "Vicar of Wakefield" where the good Vicar returning from church meets the cavalcade of his wife and family on the way thither. Much as this charming story has been illustrated, this particular incident has never been so well depicted before ; neither has any painter more truly en- tered into the spirit of the author. Moses has dismounted, and is tugging at the bridle of the wall-eyed horse, while the two girls are merrily aiding with whip and heel the efforts of their elder brother, who is urging the stubborn beast forward in the rear ; Mrs. Primrose casts down a sidelong look of despair from under the towering plumes of her bonnet ; the rosy-checked urchin before her, thinking only of the plea- sure of the ride, and the inquiring look of the other little one en croupe, contrasting with their mother's chagrin. The great merit of the ex- pression is that :the ludicrous feeling is excited solely by the ridi- culous situation of the party, not by any thing grotesque in the persons; they are all absorbed in the consideration of their di- lemma: the sight of ;the Vicar, who is near, but not visible to them, will complete the humiliation of their pride. The gaze of the sheep on the hill-side is a quiet touch of drollery. The execution is more power- ful than in any previous work of Mr. TAYLOR'S; being not less brilliant but more solid and finished ; yet it is simple, unforced, and free from rigidity : the colouring is sprightly, rich, and harmonious ; and alto- gether it is one of those productions of sterling excellence that stamp an artist's reputation at once.
CArrEamokes designs are rather sketches than pictures ; but as indications they are full of genius and power, suggesting rather than representing the subjects. One is Donnington Castle the night After the Second Battle of Newbury, (333,) with the army of the King bivouacking round the fortress ; another is an interior of the old armoury at the Tower, with figures, illustrating the Scene from Peveril of the Peak, (123,) where the King recognizes his old friend Major Coleby ; and a third depicts Hamilton of Bothwellhaugh, (138,) lying in w 'ait to shoot the Regent Murray. In each and all, the material features -as armour, scenery, and effect-predominate over expression of cha- racter; and a vague impression is produced, as of historical associations called up by the sight of old places. The Interiors are in great variety : the Drawing-Boom, Bramhall Han, (76,) by JOSEPH Nem, is one of his best ; spacious, airy, and full of daylight, with a chaste tone of colour, the key-note of which is the blue china jar on the mantelpiece. LAKE PRICE exhibits a few of his glowing Venetian sketches, which Mr. Nem is now lithographing: among them are some superb interiors, with characteristic groups of
figures, and rich architectural perspectives. HUNT'S London drawing- rooms, country parlours, and cottage kitchens, are equally full of light and vivid colour, but with different qualities of sunshine : the imitative skill with which Turkey carpets, carved cabinets, and pots and pans, are represented, is marvellous ; but the details are always subservient to the effect of the ensemble.
In Landscape, COPLEY FIELDING is the most numerous contributor ; and besides his well-known effects of stormy sea, misty moors, and downs with showers "swathing the green hill in an April shroud," he
has two very remarkable pictures in which he has attempted other aspects of nature: one is a View from TilgaM Forest, (152,) wherein he
has emulated the deep, mellow tone of an oil-painting ; the other is
The Follatone Cliffs-Sunrise, (109,) with the mists of morning veiling the horizon. The middle distance comes too near the eye, the foreground
wanting relief, and the sea-outline being too sharply defined; but a little modification would put all to rights, and make the effect perfectly true ; though the handling is too smooth and feeble.
DEWINT is as vigorous and truthful as ever; no sloppy and negligent handling now obscures the beauty of his rich, sober, russet tones : his Village in Westmoreland, (12,) with a group of sturdy pines ; Harlech Castle, (264,) its grey towers rising from an empurpled expanse of flat country; and An Oat-field, (113,) the golden sheaves of autumn sobered to bronze by the grey of the sultry clouds-are in his happiest manner. DAVID COX'S glimpses of the plashy sands, the harvest-field, and the dewy mead, are less vivid than we have sometimes seen them ; but, looking upon such delicious snatches of nature as this Stubble-field with Gleaners, (156,) and Vale of Conway, (337,) we are content. BENTLEY'S Sea-pieces are full of motion and freshness ; his dashing, uneasy mannerism is subsiding : Brig and Fishing-boats off St. Valery, (21.) is a masterly drawing, with a bright daylight effect and a breezy atmosphere : in his view of Granville, (101,) the crazy houses seem to be rocking as well as the waves. HARDING has only one drawing, a stream with rocky bed and its banks fringed with trees, at Kuhn, Scot- land, (353.) Lism ore from the Fishery, (195,) by W. EvAws ; and Entrance to the Gap at Dunloe, (1420 by W. A. NESFIELD-are too gay in colour and mannered in execution to make us like them, clever as they are. Of the young members, W. CALLOW has made the most ma, ked pro- gress; he has discarded the yellow and chocolate livery in which he used to dress Nature, and now depicts her in the varied local hues that she wears in different places and seasons. In his view of the Hospital of the Grimsel, (1770 the cold gray of an Alpine solitude invests the dreary scene ; in the Street in Bologna, (220,) the bright hues of an Italian city enliven the view ; the Grand Canal, Venice, (2590 reflects the rays of a glowing sun ; and in the Distant View of Exeter, (204,) we breathe the air of England. G. A. FRIPP has completely changed his style, and adopted a loose and washy mannerism : his views of Durham, (8 and 35,) are unsubstantial, and saturated with pinky red, that does not sufficiently resemble the roseate glow of sunset : his river- scene Eel Baskets, (630 is a truthful imitation of the daylight freshness of nature in point of tune; but the handling is too apparent-as in the drawings of W. Scorr, from whom he would seem to have been taking lessons.
Of the three new members who exhibit for the first time, W. C. SMITH and T. M. RICHARDSON junior show great promise: but S. PALMER'S fiery sunsets are so crude that we must wait to see what he will do next year. W. C. SMITH appears equally at home on the river, at sea, and on shore ; his style is powerful, and his effects, though some- what forced, are varied and clever : his Men-of-War in Ordinary, (1,) is a bold and vigorous drawing ; Eagle Tower, Carnarvon, (3,) Clovelly Fishing boat, (13,) and Greenwich Hospital, (20,) are also striking pro- ductions. T. M. RICHARDSON'S views of Elect Bridge, Durham, (176j and the Cathedral, (223,) have the elements of future excellence in the representation of architectural views.
BARTHOLOMEW'S Flowers meet the eye at every corner, and almost exhale fragrance ; and HUNT'S Fruit tempt the touch with their juicy roundness.
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