International studio (42.1910)

Studio- Talk

DRESDEN.—If you are aiming at any- The "Walze," after arranging exhibitions in

thing new and especial in art it is various Swiss towns, displayed the work of their

necessary for you to join some society members in succession at Munich, Aix-la-Chapelle,

or club and persuade them to take up Essen, Frankfort-on-the-Main, Elberfeld, Magde-

your plans as a body. There is hardly any show burg, and Dresden. Besides looking after their

for a lone outsider in Germany to-day at the great own interests the society thereby does some good

exhibitions. All the reputations that have been work; for if any one takes the trouble and risk of

made, for a decade or two now, have been made in arranging a month's or six weeks' exhibition of

this way, and various small (or large) groups have pure black-and-white work, I call that doing a

succeeded in pushing themselves into the notice of piece of good work towards the education of the

the public, the single members of which, if left to public. The middle-class public, or rather the

themselves, would probably not have gained one- public with a middle-class purse, will, and must, in

half the recognition. course of time become cognisant of the fact that

- black-and-white art is peculiarly their art. At

Reflections like these, and in addition the springs present it still requires patient enlightening to

of national pride, have led to the formation of the effect this happy goal; and the continuous arrang-

society which goes by the name of " Die Walze." ing of first-class black-and-white shows is the surest

" Walze" is the German for roller, the instru- kind of enlightenment,

ment with which stones and blocks are inked, and -

which in etching is at least used to lay or re-lay Many of the woodcut artists among the " Walze "

the ground. The "Walze" is a club of Swiss people turn their attention to colour-printing,

artists, started in 1904 at Munich, which har- There is a good deal of this being done at Munich,

bours quite a colony of them. In course of most of it under the more or less acknowledged

time it grew to embrace thirty-five members, guidanceship of Neumann. The effect produced

among them names of such good repute as Dr. is not always satisfactory, and there is a tiring

Otto Gampert, Vibert, Welti, Meyer-Basel, Wieland, sameness in the quantity of coloured woodcuts

and others. that Munich throws upon the market. The diffi-

"evening" (sandpaper mezzotint and soft ground etching)

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by carl felber