ART.
SIR WILLIAM RICHMOND AT THE NEW GALLERY.
THE ordeal endured by an artist who has his works collected together into one exhibition is a severe one. In the present instance the trial is not only severe, but hardly fair. Of late years Sir W. Richmond has devoted most of his energy to the decoration of St. Paul's, and this work is, of course, unrepre- sented here except by a few cartoons. But it is this decora- tive work which perhaps shows the individuality of the artist more than his work in paint. When the controversy over the mosaics at St. Paul's was raging their qualities were discussed in these columns, and there is no need now to reopen the question. Whatever may be the verdict of posterity as to the appropriateness of the decoration, there seems little doubt, to judge by the present exhibition, that Sir W. Richmond is by nature more of a decorator than a painter of easel pictures.
To be the heir of all the ages and to be able to sympathise with the art of different times and lands no doubt adds to the pleasure of life. But this very sympathy causes a division of aim and an inconstancy of purpose greatly weakening the force of the painter's appeal to his audience. If an artist can put his memories aside when he begins to paint, it matters not how deep his knowledge of the works of the past may be. But when, as in the present collection, we are reminded of Athens, Ravenna, Venice, Holbein, Ary Scheffer, Leighton, Holman Hunt, Watts, and Costa, we are bewildered in trying to find the authentic Sir William Richmond himself. These allusions to other painters and times are not to be confounded with the mere copying of mannerisms, but rather arise from the oversensitiveness of the painter to the beauty and interest of art of many kinds.
A large number of the works now shown at the New Gallery consist of portraits. In most of them there is a large element of picture-making, sometimes carried to the extent of rather swamping the sitter. Of course, it is not by introducing anecdote and incident that the picture-making is done, but rather by dressing the sitters, when they are women or children, in gorgeous and unusual dresses, or by surrounding them with a wealth of studio properties. There is a beautiful portrait of a child, Miss Campbell (No. 4), in which the little girl is represented in a white nightdress and with bare feet. There is a wise restraint about this simple and charming figure. But the temptation of introducing rich patterned draperies has not been resisted, and no objection would be made to these if it were not for the aggressively spotted pattern in the immediate front. The face of the child approaches the waxen painting of flesh associated with the art of Leighton. Among the portraits which aim at gor- geousness of effect, perhaps the most effective is the Mrs. J". A. Puller-Maitland (No. 21), which is undoubtedly a fine piece of work in its own style. The portrait which is most completely a whole, and which one accepts at once and without question, is the Charles Darwin (No. 114). The red robes in no way distract the attention, but are as much a part of the whole as the hands or the beard. . The picture is carried through with one impressive intention, and appears to be the truest piece of portrait art here ; and if it suggests a Doge by Tintoretto it does not matter, for the picture has far too much vitality of style to make any such suggestion harmful. Not so successful is the portrait of the Bishop of Durham (No. 41), for despite its power there is a little too much the air of a conscious attempt to paint a strong, forcible picture. Two strong heads of Mr. Holman Hunt (Nos. 6 and 10), painted at an interval of twenty years, must be reckoned among the best of the men's portraits,—the earlier deep and brown in colour, rugged and powerful; the later work silvered and softened, and with a wonderful look in the eyes. Those who enjoy the eloquence of the brush will be disappointed in the painting of Sir W. Richmond. The charm of an appa- rently wayward touch, suggesting the logic of structure, is not to be found here. The nearest approaches to charm of execution are to be seen in the landscape studies, of which there are a number shown, and many of which are quite delightful. The Villa in Capri (No. 33), with its patches of white and grey, The Valley of Eurotas (No. 198), with its deep purple mountains, The Castle of Assisi (No. 65), and the Convent Garden (No. 247) are some of the most enjoyable of these sketches. The definiteness of aim in all of them, and the feeling that the painter was impressed by a separate effect in each, differentiate these sketches from the vague repre. sentations of Nature without a special aim, which are so easy to do and which are so uninteresting when done.
The large classical compositions are the most uninteresting part of the present exhibition. If the Greeks had spent their time and artistic energies in trying to resuscitate the art of some defunct nation, it is unlikely that we should care much for their efforts or take the trouble to grub in the earth to look for their buried statues. It is because their art repre- sented their life that it is still valuable to us. In the hall of the gallery is to be found a cartoon for the mosaic of Adam and Eve, and in the South Room two more of the naming of the beasts. These are good designs, and in them the artist has skilfully adapted his forms to the necessities of the archi- tectural spaces. It is to be regretted that there are not more scale drawings showing how the St. Paul's decorations have been planned and arranged. An opportunity to examine the scheme in little would have helped the study of the mosaics
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