International studio (53.1914)

John Lavery, R.S.A., A.R.A.

romantic sense to dominate his portraiture at the
expense of what we call life and character. All that
may seem true. But this is balanced by a pictorial
elegance, an ease and fluency of brushwork, and a
distinguished sense of values in form and colour
which commands a fascination to usurp our
criticisms of the result.
In all the attempts there is no “trickery” in
Mr. Lavery’s work, neither is there any humouring
of his reputation. He never stereotypes a conven-
tion. He approaches each sitter free from precon-
ceived notions of how the thing is to be handled.
He does not do his portraits by the yard ; machine-
made things are not in his line. The sitter must
bring a message before the reply is given on canvas,
and, as happens in all portraiture, each individual
sitter cannot command an equally satisfactory
response from the painter. Some people are born
to portraits, some achieve portraits, others have
portraits thrust upon them,
and so many failures are as
much due to the “ empti¬
ness ” of the sitter as to the
inefficiency of the artist.
I am convinced no painter
has felt this so much as
Mr. Sargent. But Mr.
Lavery has so much re¬
source that even if the
model carries no colour or
form in itself, yet he over¬
comes this handicap more
courageouslyand efficiently
than most.
Turning fro m M r.
Lavery’s portraits and
studies in colour harmony
—imaginative portraits in
the romantic spirit—to his
work in landscape, we find
the same qualities and
quantities. The romantic
and decorative elements
dominate the poetic and
intimate. Subtle search¬
ings for delicate contrasts
and co-related notes of
colour as practised so
admirably by William
McTaggart and by his
friend Mr. E. A. Walton
are not in Mr. Lavery’s
metier. But in his capacity
for design, in the propor¬

tions of his “ planes,” and his magnificent sense of the
tonal quality, Mr. Lavery need not fear comparison
with the masters of British landscape painting. The
decorative sense is unfailing and there ever exists
that romantic sense which is the dominant asset of
his artistic inventory. There is no muddiness
of texture, everything is crystal clear, “ singing ” with
light and scintillating colour. Taking his work as a
whole I would place his landscape work in Tangier
and Switzerland as the most significant things that
Mr. Lavery has done. The “charm”of his landscapes
is undeniable. The power of realising time and place
is masterly. Early dawn is early dawn, not high noon,
high noon is high noon, not twilight. Every
landscape is a clock telling its own time to an hour.
As for place there is no danger of confusing a
Tangier coast with Machrihanish, or a skating
scene in Switzerland with one in Scotland, as may be
seen in that picture of Af/ss J/hrp Mond Skating


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“PRINCESS PATRICIA OF CONNAUGHT” (1913)- BY ’OIIN LAVERY, R.S.A., A.R.A.