DOI issue:
Nr. 107 (January, 1906)
DOI article:Schmidt, Anna Seaton: The paintings of Elizabeth Nourse
DOI Page / Citation link: https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.26961#0331
The Paintings of Elisabeth Nourse
Studio. The medium which he uses, the technique
by which he arrives at his finished results, are
matters of interest, especially to his fellow painters.
But something higher is demanded of one whose
pictures are destined to outlast his Century. They
must express some significant truth, must carry
some personal message to the world. It is this
which raises the paintings of Elizabeth Nourse
above mere technical perfection and places her
among the great interpretative artists of our time.
No one is more willing to admit failure in the
writing of her message. Her own most severe
critic, she is never satisfied with her work, and
is willing to endure any hardship that will enable
her the better to comprehend the life of the poor
peasants whom she loves to paint.
All nature appeals to her, and some of her most
beautiful pictures are landscapes of Brittany or bits
in the old forest of Rambouillet, where she has
spent many summers. In the Oriental exhibition,
held in Paris last winter, her sketches of the African
desert, of Tunis, held a place of honour. In her
Procession de Notre Dame de la Joie we almost feel
the cool air which unfurls the banners and drives
the fleecy clouds through the blue sky. Those who
have never attempted such a picture can realise little
of its difficulties. To pose a group of children in a
gale of wind, to keep one’s easel chained to the earth
in an open field, swept by the sea-breeze, requires
a patience and perseverance that few, even of the
strongest artists, possess. Absorbed in her work,
she is oblivious of all personal discomfort ; her
only anxiety is for her models, whom she dislikes to
tire. Her goodness to them is so well known in
Paris, that all who are in trouble come to her for
advice and help. She gives them not only money,
but her precious time and strength. ATsiting them
when they are ill, carrying them food and clothing,
her presence is like a ray of bright sunshine in
their dreary lives. But her deepest tender-
ness is lavished upon the babies, who appeal
most strongly to her motherly heart. It is
this profound love which has enabled her to
paint the baby life of these tiny creatures—
the soft, helpless little heads, nestling against their
mothers’ breast, the curling rose-leaf fingers, the
dewy mouths and eyes of the nouveau ne, or the
ineffable love of the young mother as she gazes at
the sleeping child in her
arms. Les Heures Heu-
reuses, exhibited at the last
Salon, is one of her happiest
interpretations of a mother’s
joy in her children. The
composition is harmonious,
decorative, enveloped in
luminous colour and re-
flected lights. The hand-
ling is sure and vigorous,
presenting the large lines
with great beauty.
The art of Elizabeth
Nourse has been influenced
by no other painter. With
a mind open to all beauty
she is a sincere admirer oi
many French artists. Years
of study in Paris have
broadened her technique—•
her brush-work has become
more firm, herjcolour more
beautiful; but the character
of her painting remains
unaltered. AVe find the
same strength, the same
revelation of human charac-
ter in the pictures painted
before leaving America as
‘'LA PROCESSION DE NOTRE DAME DE LA JOIE,: BY ELIZABETH NOURSE
253
Studio. The medium which he uses, the technique
by which he arrives at his finished results, are
matters of interest, especially to his fellow painters.
But something higher is demanded of one whose
pictures are destined to outlast his Century. They
must express some significant truth, must carry
some personal message to the world. It is this
which raises the paintings of Elizabeth Nourse
above mere technical perfection and places her
among the great interpretative artists of our time.
No one is more willing to admit failure in the
writing of her message. Her own most severe
critic, she is never satisfied with her work, and
is willing to endure any hardship that will enable
her the better to comprehend the life of the poor
peasants whom she loves to paint.
All nature appeals to her, and some of her most
beautiful pictures are landscapes of Brittany or bits
in the old forest of Rambouillet, where she has
spent many summers. In the Oriental exhibition,
held in Paris last winter, her sketches of the African
desert, of Tunis, held a place of honour. In her
Procession de Notre Dame de la Joie we almost feel
the cool air which unfurls the banners and drives
the fleecy clouds through the blue sky. Those who
have never attempted such a picture can realise little
of its difficulties. To pose a group of children in a
gale of wind, to keep one’s easel chained to the earth
in an open field, swept by the sea-breeze, requires
a patience and perseverance that few, even of the
strongest artists, possess. Absorbed in her work,
she is oblivious of all personal discomfort ; her
only anxiety is for her models, whom she dislikes to
tire. Her goodness to them is so well known in
Paris, that all who are in trouble come to her for
advice and help. She gives them not only money,
but her precious time and strength. ATsiting them
when they are ill, carrying them food and clothing,
her presence is like a ray of bright sunshine in
their dreary lives. But her deepest tender-
ness is lavished upon the babies, who appeal
most strongly to her motherly heart. It is
this profound love which has enabled her to
paint the baby life of these tiny creatures—
the soft, helpless little heads, nestling against their
mothers’ breast, the curling rose-leaf fingers, the
dewy mouths and eyes of the nouveau ne, or the
ineffable love of the young mother as she gazes at
the sleeping child in her
arms. Les Heures Heu-
reuses, exhibited at the last
Salon, is one of her happiest
interpretations of a mother’s
joy in her children. The
composition is harmonious,
decorative, enveloped in
luminous colour and re-
flected lights. The hand-
ling is sure and vigorous,
presenting the large lines
with great beauty.
The art of Elizabeth
Nourse has been influenced
by no other painter. With
a mind open to all beauty
she is a sincere admirer oi
many French artists. Years
of study in Paris have
broadened her technique—•
her brush-work has become
more firm, herjcolour more
beautiful; but the character
of her painting remains
unaltered. AVe find the
same strength, the same
revelation of human charac-
ter in the pictures painted
before leaving America as
‘'LA PROCESSION DE NOTRE DAME DE LA JOIE,: BY ELIZABETH NOURSE
253