FINE ARTS.

A DIALOGUE ON DRAWING.

Is people did but know how easily they may learn to draw—what a useful and delightful acquirement it is—nay more, how much of every- day enjoyment is lost for want of it—drawing would become as uni- versal as writing. " Any one who can write can draw," says FRANK HOWARD, in his little book The Science of Drawing : this should be an axiom of education.

" Delightful it may be, but I have not found it easy "—poutingly in- terrupts a pretty listener, just returned from school with a portfolio of laboured copies of her drawingmaster's mannerisms, and who is vainly trying to sketch a tree from the window—" I have been learning these three or four years, and I can't sketch the commonest object from nature."

The fault is not yours, ray dear young lady, bat your drawing• master's—or rather, his wrong method of teaching.

" It's very provoking to find out that one has been wasting one's time and pains for nothing with a Lad master—stupid man 1 " Do not blame him, but the system. " What, then, creeybody has been wrong taught to draw ? It is some consolation not to be the only one."

And it is more consolatory to know that you may turn your present knowledge to account, and soon get into the right way.

(Yining Lady clears her brow and brightens up.) " I'm glad I've not been learning for nothing, after all. But how am Ito get into the right way ?—aud who is this Mr. Howard, who is to set all the world right on this point ?—How is one to know that his is the proper method?" It will take some little time to answer all your questions ; first of the last. You will know this method to be the true one by its results : it will soon enable you to do what you cannot accomplish now : more- over, it is according to nature and common sense. Mr. FRANK Howann is the son of the Royal Academician, and has published a set of Designs from SHARSPERE, in the manner of HETZSCH'S Outlines ; and all that knowledge and skill which outline requires he has acquired by the method of learning he inculcates. "They are very clever, certainly ; but there are a great many devir artists besides Mr. Howard, and they have not all learnt in that way, I suppose. But what is his plan ? "

To draw from objects at first, instead of copying the pictures of others.

"Why that is just what I cannot do, though I have learnt "-- Because you have learnt—pardon the interruption, and hear me out. " The power of drawing resides in the head—in the intellect—not in

the hand," is the axiom on which Mr. Howany's method is based—we

will call it his, because he is the first professional artist who appears to have advocated it. The first process of drawing is the perception of form (Kim!' Lady smiles)—in the thorough understanding of the pro- portions of the different parts of an object, and of its general charac- ters as shown by them. To perceive these correctly is the chief diffi- culty ; to indicate the leading characteristics, when they are perceived, is comparatively easy—

"I must interrupt you: but do you really mean to say that it is so difficult to see what is before one ? "

Even so.

"Amid that it is easy to draw what one sees?" Exactly.

"Then why cannot I draw that tree ? I can see that is an oak, but I cannot imitate the foliage." Do you know the character of the tufts of leaves—the masses of foliage—the ramifications of the branches ? " I confess I do not ; but if I did, I could not define them on so small a scale : besides, I have only learnt to imitate a general idea of a tree, and that is all I wish to do now."

But your general idea is too vague ; it is not formed from a knowledge of particular characteristics : you are trying to imitate more than you understand ; and when you get beyond what you know, your skill fails

you, and the more you do the further you are from the reality. You can sketch the outline, and indicate the forms of the masses, but more than this you should not attempt ; and that is enough for ordinary purposes.

' But it did not require three or four years' instruction to teach me that."

Assuredly not : yet you cannot do more. " I can copy pencil-drawings of my master's, which are highly finished : why can I not finish a drawing from nature ? "

Because you have only learned a few conventional phrases, not the whole language of the pencil ; so that you cannot express your own ideas or perceptions. . To copy drawings, where all that you..want• know how to do is done for you, is not the way to learn.

" How then is drawing to be acquired?" • By studying first the objects themselves ; and next the principles on Which solid forms and space are imitated on a flat surface. " Andthose principles are? "-

Perspective, or the laws that govern the proportions and distances of objects; light and shadow, by which their forms and surface are shown, and atmospheric effects are imitated ; and colouring—whose uses I need not define.

• " But perspective is so difficult—it is quite a science of itself." Its leading rules are few and simple, however complicated their ap- plication. Few artists even possess more than a slight knowledge of it ; and to amateurs that is quite sufficient. The same with light mad shadow, and colour. " But I cannot learn these without a master ; and all masters, accord- ing to you—and Mr. Howard—teach wrong." They begin at the wrong end, and teach you to use a pencil and brush dextrously, instead of showing you how to define objects. " How can one define objects properly, without using the pencil and brush properly ?" The practice of imitating objects will give the requisite facility, just BS well as copying their pictures ; and you will be learning the proper- ties of light and shade and the rules of perspective gradually as you proceed from simple to more complex forms, and groups of objects.

" This appears plain enough : but if it is so difficult for a beginner to copy a few touches in a drawing-book, how much more must it be to draw a real object, however simple ?"

It is not so much so • for the lines of the object have meaning when the form is understood% but the touches of the master's hand have none to the pupil. The first step to imitation is to understand the thing to be represented. A clever draughtsman will not satisfy the architect in drawing a building, unless lie understands the character of the "order" and of its ornaments; nor will a painter satisfy the surgeon in de- picting the human form, or the naturalist or sportsman in delineating animals, who does not know their anatomy.

" Yet you said, that to see aright was the grand difficulty ; and draughtsmen must be practised in that part of their art ?" But in order to see rightly, understanding of what is before you is necessary. "Then the surgeon, the naturalist, and the architect should be able to draw men, animals, and buildings, better than the draughtsman ? "

Not so : they know the forms, but they have not been used to regard them with a view to their pictorial characteristics. The art of making pictures is distinct from the power of delineating objects : the two com- bined make the complete artist. All the world need not be artists ; but everybody ought to be able to draw so as to express those ideas that cannot be conveyed in words—and there are many such. For instance, how can you describe the shape of a mountain, the character of a face, the style of a building, the fashion of an implement or piece of furniture, the form of a vase, and so on, without drawing ? Nay more, it sharpens the perception itself, and enables you to detect nice differences and re- condite beauties unseen by others. How many. picturesque combina- tions of form and colour are perceived by the artist thit escape the un- cultivated perception! Even the study of pictures etish ens the eye to the observance of the charms of nature. Thousands go through life in a state of half-sightedness " seeing they see and do not perceive."

" Is not this owing to a defect in the faculty of vision, rather than a want of knowing how to draw? There are sonic that would never learn to draw, as there are people who cannot hum a tune." The perception of form is as common a gift as most faculties ; that of colour is more rare ; and the two combined, are yet more so, of course.

"You really consider then the faculty of perceiving form all that is requisite to be able to draw ? "

Undoubtedly. It is in the eye that the power resides, as Mr. How.anD says: the hand obeys the eye instinctively, as you may see by the juggler balancing the sword and catching the balls that he throws up— his hand mechanically adapts its position to the direction of his eye.

"That, then, accounts for the wonderful talent that a young lady of my acquaintance possesses of cutting out paper profiles of persons with her hands under the table, and her eyes fixed on the individual all the while."

A happy instance: it completely proves the assertion. " Yet this same your lady cannot match the colour of a silk accurately." • This shows the distinctness of the two faculties whose combination is necessary to make a painter. "Now you have convinced me of the justness of his opinions, I shoeld like to hear inure of lir. lloweed and his book."

It is the first of a set of three smell volumes on the science of draw- ing; icing a progressive series of the characteristic forms of nature ; and this first part treats of trees. The olieet of Mr. I-TowAnn is " to alkyd those who desire the power tit' &hoe.' tin e objects, without at- ttaapting to convert the representation into a picture, a sound and suple method. of instruction in the art of draNving, upon the only solid basis cf science."

" The rcienee Of drawing," he goes on to say, "consists in the know- ledge of the Arms, in reiwesenting which consi4ts the art. Hitherto, in the education of the draughtsman, -whether as as amateur or as a pro- fessional man, it has been the custom to devote attention solely to the art, and to leave the scicuee to intuition or to chance."

After observing that this mode of teachiug has caused drawing to be regarded as an art attainable only by a few gilled geuuises, he remarks on the absurdity of the course of study adopted for learners : " they arc required to begin with details—with heads, hands, and feet, which are considered the test of the skill of the master."

".1.ow I perceive the force of your remark on the necessity of under- standinr, the meaning of forms in order to draw thou : I could never sue.ceetf in copying even the drawings of hands and feet that wore put hcfore me, for want of being acquainted with the details of the anatomy. The reason one so seldom sees a hand well drawn in a portruit, I suppose, because the painter does not understand anatomy, not that he neglects the hands as unimportant parts of the picture." He makes it appear that he thinks them unimportant, because he cannot draw them properly. To resume. Mr. HOiVARD lays great stress on the character of objects. ",It is the first and indispensable qualification of drawing as a means of communicating ideas, that it should convey a distinct and intelligible impression : for this purpose, it must possess character"—not the character of the artist's manner, or style, observe, but of the object itself. He defines character to be " that quality by which one object differs permanently from anothely whether the distinction be in size, form, colour, or any other property;" and thus illustrates its importance—" A pupil shall make a drawing almost a hair's-breadth of perfect accuracy ; the lines shall be firm, and the form most carefully defined ; nevertheless, it shall be pronounced ill drawn ; while the master shall make the rudest sketch, without one single line correct, and yet it shall appear and be approved well drawn.

* In caricature, the skilful are able to take the greatest liberties with the human form, and yet the drawing is good ; whilst the bungler

shall avoid all defect and yet be pronounced deficient. The cause of this will be, that the student's work shows a want of intention, and is want of knowledge, in what parts defects are admissible and in what parts correctness is indispensable ; in other words, what is absolutely. wrequi- site to preserve character. Correctness consists in conveying the pm- Sion intended; bad drawing is the deficiency of the characteristic." " This is very sound and intelligible : but if correctness and chop. meter be one and the same, how can the learner hope to attain it P' Of course, by degrees: " the roughest, rudest general characteristics, should at first be attempted," says Mr. HOWARD ; " drawn with decision and without correction. The details should be added as the hand ac- quires facility, and the head knowledge to direct it."

To exemplify his meaning, Mr. HOWARD gives a number of plates With little outlines and shaded figures of trees, each showing directly

the characteristic form of the tree ; and he has added some little sketches of the details of each—as the trunks, forms of branches, and leaves. You will observe an error, by the by, in the lettering of two of the plates, 0 and P—these letters should be reversed.

We conclude our conversation with a bow to our imaginary fair one, and a recommendation of Mr. FRANK Howann's Science of Drawing, to all who wish to learn to draw in a rational, simple, expeditious, and efficacious way. It is hardly necessary to add, that the figures are illustrations of the author's meaning, not examples to be copied.