Studio: international art (6.1896)

Reviews of Recent Publications

It must, however, be said that the essential, prac-
tical shape of the article is often disguised in a
mass of over-elaborate ornamentation. M. Vall-
greu's little bronzes are always full of interest, if
only for the rare ingenuity of their oxidations, as is
the stamped work of M. Pierre Roche for its ex-
treme delicacy. Remarkable ingenuity of compo-
sition is also seen in the bell-handle by M. F. M.
Taubman (representing a horseman fighting a
dragon), and in the plain bronze and ivory vase by
M. Charles Samuel, illustrating the Temptation of

Eve. -

In addition to M. Delaherche's well-known cera-
mics, with their lovely velvety blues, and those of
MM. Dalpuyrat and Lebros, with their bold reds,
not forgetting M. Bigot's delicate harmonies in
ochre and sky-blue, we have M. Finch's varnished
pottery, somewhat rusty-looking in its brown
colouring, but with the merit of cheapness—a re-
commendation which cannot be applied to the
work previously mentioned. M. Tiffany's glass is
really lovely. This original and valuable work
takes the most graceful shapes, while its greenish
colouring, blending in extreme delicacy of material
with others of equal charm, makes one think of
fresh fruit. As a last word I must mention Mr.
William Morris's bibliographic treasures, with Sir
E. Burne-Jones's wonderful illustrations; the cases
containing them are a never-ending source of de-
light to visitors at the gallery.

The society known as " Le Sillon," composed of
a group of young painters and sculptors, has just
opened, within the precincts of the Brussels
Museum, its third annual salon, which starts a
series of minor winter exhibitions. Taken as a
whole, the collection is, relatively speaking, well
chosen, and free from the mass of studies, sketches,
and more or less rough attempts peculiar to young
artists' displays. Sir Edward Burne-Jones is the
only foreign painter who has been invited to ex-
hibit, and he has sent some of his beautiful draw-
ings, both pencil and red chalk {a la sanguine),
wherein the delicate line suffices to convey his
feeling of far-away legendary art.

In the February number of The Studio men-
tion was made of a sort of renascence of ivory-
carving in Belgium. This revival continues to
hold its own, and it would seem as though natural
ivory will soon take the place of the mechanically-
treated bronze, which had come to be universally
used whenever something more than a simple
memorial medal was required.

By way of celebrating the completion of the re-
storation of the Maison du Roi, one of the archi-
tectural gems in the " Grande Place " of Brussels,
an ivory statuette by M. Dillens has been presented
to the architect, M. Jamaer. M. Vanderstappen
is at present engaged in completing a very decora-
tive figure of St. Michael in ivory and onyx, to be
presented at an approaching ceremony of inaugura-
tion. F. K.

REVIEWS OF RECENT PUB-
LICATIONS.
Notes on Shippo. By James L. Bowes.
(London: Kegan Paul, Trench, Triib-
ner & Co.)—There is probably no section of
Japanese art-work about the history of which so
little is known as that of Cloisonne Enamelling, or,
as it is called in Japan, Shippo. With the excep-
tion of a book, which appeared some years ago, by
Mr. Bowes, on " Japanese Enamels," there is abso-
lutely no work printed in Europe dealing exclusively
with this interesting subject; whilst in Japan
written accounts are of the scantiest nature. A
student has, therefore, such a small supply of in-
formation to refer to, that any addition to the
records is peculiarly welcome.

Mr. Bowes, in his " Japanese Enamels," ad-
vanced certain hypotheses in relation to the history
of the art, based to some extent upon the many
examples contained in his well-known and highly
valuable collection, which have met with some
opposition. Whether or no he be justified in the
conclusions formed by him we do not pretend to
decide, but it appears to us that some, at least, of
the unfavourable criticisms which have been levelled
against his opinions have been made too hastily
and without sufficient premisses.

In his " Notes " now before us, Mr. Bowes has
collected many interesting facts, and the thanks of
lovers of Japanese art are unquestionably due to
him for his painstaking labours.

We are glad to see that Mr. Bowes inveighs
against a form of enamelling practised to-day in
Japan. The work we refer to is, at times, techni-
cally, very clever. It consists of imitations in
enamel of water-colour drawings in which the
Cloisons, if any, are not apparent to the eye, or,
if apparent, are introduced, not legitimately as
walls for the enamel, but for the purely decorative
value they possess. Such examples have no more
claim to be considered artistic than have the
stained-glass windows often to be seen in the

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