International studio (39.1909/1910(1910))

Leon Dabo

specifically related to the art of both of these great
innovators, but still remains, in its essence, peculiarly
personal and Daboesque. It affords an important
and significant clue to his art.

When he had completed his course at the Ecole
des Arts Decoratijs Leon Dabo left Paris and
wandered on foot through Germany and Switzer-
land, eventually reaching Italy, where he sojourned
for a number of years. Here he became attached
to the household of one of the high dignitaries of the
church, and for a time it looked as though Mr.
Dabo might become a prelate instead of a painter.
And, indeed, it is not to be denied that even to-day
this influence is strongly discernible in a certain
Jesuitical finesse, tincturing both his art and
actions, which baffles his friends and confounds
his enemies.

To this stay in Italy may also be ascribed the

classical leit-motif often found in his work, which
lends to certain of his interpretations of Hudson
and East River scenes the color and atmosphere
of the blue, far-reaching, jewel-like Mediterranean.
Like a rose jar, redolent of a dim past, many of Leon
Dabo's canvases evoke the glory that was Greece
and the grandeur that was Rome rather than stir-
ring one with the pungent flavor and tang of our
own day. It is as though the misty veil of time
had been drawn over our contemporary life,
giving a gentle and all-pervasive accent to the
familiar.

Upon his return to America Mr. Dabo secured
employment with a prominent firm of ecclesiastical
decorators. Here his archeological and canonical
knowledge, coupled with his technical ability, soon
won for him an assured position, in which he dis-
tinguished himself for many years, carrying out

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