Studio: international art (10.1897)

Mrs. Chance s Studies of Cats

A' waitin' for their ain dear loves,
For them they'll see nae mair.

Mr. Beveridge of Pitreavie Castle will soon be O lang, lang may the ladies sit,

the fortunate possessor of a considerable number wi'lheir fans int0 lheir hand>

r , c 1JV iir t\ Before they see Sir Patrick Spens

of mural art-treasures, lor, m addition to Mr. Dun- _ ... , , '

' . Come sailing to the land,

can's Orpheus panels, he is now having some others

painted for his corridor by Mr. Mackie. And lanS> lanS may the maidens sit,
The subjects are suggested by the history of the ,Wi'.lhe, fwd kaims ™ thf hair'

~ * \ limit in' fnv t l-wn *- nin nnnv lnirnr

Castle, whose one-time owner, Lady Wardlaw,
wrote the ballad of " Hardyknute," and had attri-
buted to her that of Sir Patrick Spens. A panel from the Sir Patrick Spens series is repro-
Sir Patrick, as all versed in ballad lore will duced on page 104. Hardyknute gets two panels,
know, is sent on an embassy to Noroway. The Call to Arms (page 105) and The Battle, and

there are to be two more, illustrating the practical

The King has written a braid letter ^ devotional sides of Queen Margaret of Scotland.

And sealed it wi his hand, , .' . . .

. , , .. , c- ii , ■ 1 c Mr. Mackie s Pitreavie work shows a growth in

And sent it to Sir Patrick Spens, b

Was walking on the strand. ornamental treatment. The figures are unmis-

takably conventionalised, but so artfully as hardly
To Noroway, to Noroway, tQ seem wrested at ali from their natural forms;

To Noroway owre the faem, . ,, ... .1 , . .,, ,

.... Jr. , j , ± and the composition, though rigidly decorative, is

1 he King s daughter to Noroway, 1 0 0 '

'Tis thou maun tak' her hame. alive With old-world romance.

It is curious how often from the ashes of a

The ship goes down, and the end is a wail: burnt-out tradition the best art springs. Who

would have looked for such

men as Charles Mackie and

John Duncan from the

school of Beattie Browns

and McWhirters ?

■4 5v

Too often, alas, is the art
of animal drawing given
over to the Philistines.
That great baby, the British
Public, demands its toys,
and cats and dogs are drawn
for its amusement. Hence
a style of art exists, the
ingredients of which are
kittens, puppies, babies, and
children, and out of these
elements are compounded
the confections so dear to
the hearts of the patrons of
Christmas numbers. At
the hands of some black-
and-white artists popular in
illustrated supplements and
on Christmas cards, the
"summer" decorative panel by charles h. mackie dignity and beauty of the

106

i it

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M

RS. W.
CHANCE'S
STUDIES
OF CATS.
BY H.
STRACHEY.