International studio (80.1925)

mceRHACionAL

IV. Three final chapters are devoted to the study of eccle- feathers, hair, gesso, plaster, glass, ivory, bone and horn,

siastical plate, an important phase of silver craft in Eng- enamel, the various metals, paper and papyrus, pictures,

land and there are indexes and lists of hall marks for pottery, stone, textiles and wood, so that one may present

reference at the end a definite problem to this little book and be reasonably

assured of some definite answer. A list of reagents giving

MY LIFE IN ART. By CoriStantin Stanislavsky. t"e solutions required and their uses forms a part of the

. , _ „ „ r> • (P/C concluding chapter on physical and chemical tests.

Little, Brown & Co., Boston. Price, $6.

T n Th.le the story of the origin of the Moscow Art CHARLES FRASER. By Alice R. Huger Smith

1/1/ Theater in a group of amateurs led by Stanislavsky , _ r „ _ f. „ , . b„.

VV forms the essence of the narrative of this unusual and D. E. Huger Smith. Frederic Fairchlld

book of memoirs, the impression that remains is of the Sherman, New York. Price, $12.-5.

progress of Stanislavsky himself, but since without him .

r b , ,, , • » ],„;„„ A SIGNAL service is rendered the cause 01 art bv the

the Theater would probably never have come into being, A .. y

' . .. 1 1 u„+„,ao„ +u„ /M faithful monographers wlio rise m ailectionate con-
it may be that no definite line can be drawn between the /I e .

J..... , r j 1 ,„rtu,„„„ cern to the point ol producing the little memorial

h story of the institution and the development ol the man. t i 1 • • f f, ,• , , , ,

j . • t 1 1 • » r .,„ volumes to the lesser luminaries o the chisel and brush.
This book, then, is preeminently the history of an

... 1 • • 1 + n,- Without these compendiums tliere would be many gaps

artist; outside of his career as an actor the incidents ol his j r l- „• 1 • . r 11 •

' . . . „ • i_ . *i ■ m the records 01 artistic achievements 01 a really serious

life appear only in bnelest mention, but everything that .

FK •' , . . . j tr „„ „r tI,_ nature. 1 he monograph on Charles fraser comes, there-
has reference to his overcoming ol the problems ot the • 1 ■ •,- e +u ■ ■ . • * j • 1

o „ (ore, with special significance lor the miniaturist and with

actor is to d in deta . The means by which he finally ' b -

, " . . 4.1. * - a K,rSe measure of interest for all students ol American

learned to ' fill the inner emptiness on the stage which is . 6 , •• *i. • * *i

J , , , . . „ ■ 1 arts and manners in the nineteenth century,

so terrible to the actor" are unlolded m all their arduous J

A sketch ol f-raser s life takes up the first part of this

acquiring. , 1 n » monograph, giving graphic glimpses of the atmosphere.

"There are no sma parts, there are only small actors. . „ 1 r • 1 1 ' , - , , ■ r-i 1

1 , , influences, and friendships of his early clays in Charleston,

"One must love art, and not one s sell in art. It was on ' -> j

w '. , , 1 p. *.t.' oL-.i etlll South Carolina, where Sullv, Washington Allston and

the "round of such idea s as these that Stanislavsky, still .6

tnc biuunu ui Dum . . ;.t Malbone were his irequent companions, and ol his law

connected with his amateur organization, met witn _ . . . ,

connected ins an . ? f„0„„„ studies and his half-century of artistic development: while

Nemirovich-Danchenko in their hlteen-hour conleience J ^ >

iNc11111uv1v.11 iyiuu.ucu«.u the latter part ol tlie volume deals with some two dozen of

which resulted in the opening ol the Moscow Art 1 heater ^ miniatures ^ ^ Qf & ^ raisonn6 f

in 1898. With such a grasp of basic principles, applicable ^ ^ ^ ^ ^

in all arts, it is not surprising that Stanislavsky should be miniatures of ^ ^ ^

capable of making this remark on the art of criticism fa carefuU devcl d. Wrhten b Carolinians, this

"Am one could blame a thing, but it took a specialist to . -J • .

nny one couiu uiuiuc """f» «" monograph is a happy combination ol fact and affection,

praise it." This is only another instance ol the breadth of & ^ q(. ^ ^ ^ ^.^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^

vision which makes the book interesting, not only to those ^ ^.^ ^ ^ y,^,^ jg {he QnIy „Life„

who love the theater but to all who are sensitive to tne rf ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ q{ monographs deyoted

unity that binds the various forms ol art into one. ^ ^ gre;itest of the ear,y Americ.ln Jmnjaturists.

ANTIQUES, THEIR RESTORATION AND ^ IMp0RTANCE QF BEING RRYTH.
PRESERVATION Bv A. Lucas. Longmans,

rrvLOLrvvAiiuiN. , „ ■ MIC. By Jo Pennington. G. P. Putnam s Sons,

Green & Co., New York. Price, $2. ^ ^ ^.^

5ince the writer of this book was formerly director of the

Chemical Department, Egypt, and for two seasons has ZI7EW WORDS pertaining to the arts have been more

been helping with the cleaning and preservation of the J~' abused than "rhythm." Many writers, at a loss for

objects from the tomb of Tut-ankh-Amcn, this small something to say, drop it into a sentence along with

volume at once assumes an importance for archeologists, "cosmic" in the hope that it will mean something. So it is

museum curators and collectors. The literature on this with great relief that one finds a book about rhythm,

subject is slight, and in general must be pursued through written sanely and with evident understanding. Primarily

. ,' e ,, 1 - t_ enmp work in a foreign it is an exposition of the theories of Jaques Dalcroze,

magazine articles or followed into some worn, in a '«'"6 ^ ..... '

theories which Walter Damrosch, in his preface to this

tongue. , , „ 1 1 1 1 i- , • ,1

While the author avows his book to be an elementary book, says would let daylight into many a dark torture

one it is admirably specific It is also non-technical, so chamber of the ordinary teaching of music." And although

far as is possible He tells how to clean various kinds of the chief concern of the book is with rhythm as applied to

objects, whether water may be used, or petroleum spirit musical education there is no doubt that education by and

or alcohol, acetone, benzol or pyridine, and in mentioning in rhythm is capable of awakening a feeling for art. So far

. , 11 • 1 „ ,0 ^nrofnl to state what may as pictorial, architectural and sculptural art is concerned,

what may be used he is always careful to stare wnat i«j 1 » , , • , • , ...

not be used, which, in working with antiques, is fully half it is not enough that there be schools in which he repre-

the story. How to protect objects from light when they sentation of lines, color, light and shade, relief and grouping

. . • 0 ,mc • anther interesting are taught. The students ol these schools must be trained

must remain on view in museums is anotner iiilcic^.! ft 6 ___

. . , • . 1 ___• „ „r „|[ the other forces to respond with their whole beings to the rhythmic move-
subject, along with the overcoming ol all tne omci 1

c j 1 1 . * j„ot r,,„„; n„d moisture, so ment that animates works ol art.

ol decay, such as bacteria, dust, lungi ana module, _

r • „f-;„„PC Kprnmes a veritable And before evervtmg students must be initiated into

that the question ol saving antiques becomes a veucau c j o

drama with the archeologist as the champion of the past. the sensations that have inspired the composition of these

Mr. Lucas considers the special needs of such substances as works the movement that gave life o their emotions and

alabaster, amber, basket work, beads, clay and faience, the rhythm which has regulated and refined them.

march 1925

jive hundred jive