International studio (55.1915)

Reviews and Notices

— “Our Philadelphia”—is peculiarly felicitous in
its suggestion of that affectionate intimacy which
implies true possession. Perhaps the most
engaging chapter in the book is that of the
“ Romance of Work,” in which Mrs. Pennell relates
with charming frankness how she came to know
at the same time Philadelphia and “ J,” as she
always calls her husband. Trying her newly
fledged wings as a journalist, she accepted a
commission from a magazine editor to “ write up”
a series of etchings of Philadelphia. These were
done by a fellow townsman as yet unknown to her,
and the editor suggested that she should consult
personally with the artist regarding her letterpress.
How the enthusiastic young journalist and the
industrious and no less enthusiastic young artist
walked together about the highways and byways of
Philadelphia, how he taught her to see and appre-
ciate the serene charm and beauty and old-world
picturesqueness of the city that his artistic
intuition and Quaker traditions had taught him to
love, and how this pedestrian companionship in
quest of the picturesque impressions developed
into a life-habit, is a romance of work that Mrs.
Pennell tells with engaging and vivacious pen, and
Mr. Pennell illustrates with that facile expression
of pictorial vision which has given him so dis-
tinguished a place among the graphic masters of
to-day. And as we turn over his appealing litho-
graphs and her interesting pages, alive with the
alertness of her observation and the zest of her
memories, we realise that they are jointly interpret-
ing for us the very spirit of the place. For, while he
shows us, through his artistic visions, the outward
and visible form of the Philadelphia of his early re-
membrance as well as his latest impressions, she
gives us a vivid insight into the very life and
character of the city through the changes of the
years since first she began to know it, with all its
traditions, prejudices, idiosyncrasies and ideals.
The earlier chapters are especially delightful, for
they show us with the girl’s gradually expanding
outlook the beautiful city that William Penn planned
with so sound and logical a sense of practical needs
as well as of the ordered beauty and dignity of life.
We feel as the writer and the artist felt in their
impressionable youth and still feel after their many
wander-years, the gentle charm of the old streets
with their red-brick houses and quiet gardens, all
of a simple and gracious dignity, as they were
before the modern hustling spirit began to make a
new Philadelphia, and the sky-scrapers rose in its
midst. Mrs. Pennell brings back, with many a
vivid personal touch and curious memory, the
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human atmosphere that gives these old Phila-
delphian streets and houses a character of their
own. Equally interesting are her records and
impressions of her native city in its relations to
literature and art. To have been a favoured niece
of the author of “ Hans Breitmann,” and to have
been privileged to meet and talk with Walt Whitman
at street corners and on horse-cars, were surely
sufficient justification for reminiscences, for their
interest is not bounded by the Philadelphia of
w7hioh she writes so attractively.
The Glory of Belgium. Illustrations in colour
by W. L. Bruckman. (London: Hodder and
Stoughton.) 205. net.—With such a title and at
such a time as this, this volume needs no further
recommendation; but were any necessary the
name of the artist whose drawings of Belgium are
thus opportunely brought together would be a
guarantee of its interest and Gharm for all who
have followed Mr. Bruckman’s wrork at the various
exhibitions. The twenty reproductions in colour
are after drawings by the artist executed for the
most part upon brown paper with a sympathy of
line, and embellished with body-colour in an
attractive manner entirely characteristic of his
work. The medium is used always with a restraint
and skill which preserve the freshness and spon-
taneity of the sketches, while they yet lose nothing
of their value as topographical records. And
since the subjects comprise such places as Brussels,
Louvain, Bruges, Antwerp, Lierre, Malines,
Oudenarde, Ypres and others, they possess to-day
an additional and a melancholy significance. Mr.
Roger Ingpen in the letterpress gives an account of
the history and of the artistic treasures and mediaeval
relics which constitute the glory of Belgium.
Southern India. Painted by Lady Lawley.
Described by Mrs. F. E. Penny. (London : A.
and C. Black.) 205. net.—The authors have here
a most fascinating subject and one to which they
have done full justice. By virtue of her residence
in Madras during the period of hei husband’s
Governorship from 1906-1911, Lady Lawley has
enjoyed exceptional opportunities for collecting
material for this book, and has been able to make
drawings of subjects which other artists would
have probably found it difficult, if not impossible,
to secure. Apart from the artistic qualities of
these admirable water-colours, they have a par-
ticular interest documentarily, and the pictures of
single figures especially may be commended for
their technical and illustrative merits. The letter-
press, by a writer whose novels of South Indian
life are well known, is full of interest, for Mrs.