International studio (60.1916/1917)

The Art of Joseph Cra/whall

method of the great portrait-painter. He wrote,
like Sargent and Guthrie, their individual signifi-
cance in paint. Every duck, every horse, every
parrot had its personal character as certain as
every sitter, male or female, that sat on the
“ throne ” of the portrait-painter. He did not
pourtray animals in the general, but in the indi-
vidual.
It is agreed by all who knew his history well
that Crawhall never passed through the usual
“ amateur stage ” of the artist. His earliest efforts
reveal a strong decorative tendency and a fine
certainty of handling. To quote Whistler’s phrase,
his drawings were “ finished from the beginning.”
His work exemplified more than that of any other
modern craftsman the difference between mere
picture-making and art. His influence in this
direction was great: all those with whom he asso-
ciated have admitted the lesson they learned from
him with an enthusiasm which has little of the
forced or manufactured spirit of the testimonial.
In Scotland at least he
shares with Guthrie the
honour of being one of the
“fathers” of modern
painting. A propos of this
attitude of his contem¬
poraries, it is interesting to
recall an occasion when the
late Phil May declared to
Mr. Walton that Crawhall
was the only man living
who in the matter of
drawing could, to use his
own expression, “ give him
points.”
Mr. Walton, in recalling
this frank admission, told
me also many interesting
facts of Crawhall as a boy.
When he was seventeen
a menagerie came to New¬
castle, and Crawhall would
spend all day and nearly
every day making studies ;
going off early after break¬
fast with his luncheon in
his pocket and returning
late in the evening. All
the work he did in these
younger days was in water¬
colour, and all his draw¬
ings he quickly sold. While
spending the summer with

Guthrie and Walton in Lincolnshire two years later
Crawhall painted a large canvas in oils of a white
cow. This was sent to the Royal Academy and
was hung on the top line in the same gallery where
Guthrie had his famous Goose Girl hung above the
refreshment-room door ! !
It was soon recognised that Crawhall had not
the ordinary ambition of the painter. Alexander
Reid of Glasgow bought every drawing that he
produced, but so difficult was it for him to get
Crawhall “ to produce” that he was compelled to
send him water-colours and paper whenever he
wanted a picture ; the artist neglecting even to keep
himself supplied with painting material.
Crawhall started painting on fine holland, simply
because he had no paper at hand. He found the
holland beside his sister’s work-box. I remember
a time when we were very anxious to secure a
drawing by Crawhall for the Scottish Modern Arts
Association, and I approached Mr. Walton on the
matter. He assured me that the only way to obtain


PIGEONS

'WATER-COLOUR BY JOSEPH CRAWHALL