Studio: international art (15.1899)

Studio- Talk

works of the School of Art Club, a direct inter-
rogation of nature, a study of the refinements
of line, a consideration of the exigencies of
material, and an effort at expression in the
design itself of the purpose of its creation.

W. J. A.

DUSSELDORF—Many art critics
are in the habit of judging every-
thing in accordance with certain
fixed principles of their own.
Thus, they lay down certain rules
as to what is and is not admissible in water-
colour painting. Unfortunately, or perhaps I
should rather say fortunately, artists themselves
pay little heed to these fixed principles. The
modern wielder of the brush says to himself:
" Why should I not use the medium of water-
colour as best suits me ? Why should I allow
myself to be dictated to by some outside art
critic, instead of following the bent of my own
inclination?" The result of this conflict of
opinion is that the work of the great modern

HAMMERED BRASS PLAQUE BY MARGARET WILSON

painters in water-colour is of infinite variety—a fact
well illustrated in the exhibition of water-colours re-
cently on view in the rooms of Bismeyer and Kraus.

Amongst the most noteworthy works in the ex-
hibition were those by A. Menzel, L. Passini, J.
Bergmann, P. Bach, E. Giinter, C. Becker, Claren-
bach, H. von Bartels, L. Dill, Dettmann, G. von
Bochmann, E. Diicker, A. Frenz, E. von Gebhardt,

GLASS MOSAIC WALL MIRROR BY MISS B. MCELWEE

H. Hermanns, P. Jansen, A. Kampf, E. Kampf,
Nitutowski, Hein, Kampmann, H. Hartung, Irmer,
Adolf Pins, Striitzel, Kroner, H. Muhlig, A. Seel,
Fritz and Ernst Roeber, Linde, Mannchen, Skarbina,
Max Stern, Zieger, Storm van Gravesande, Volk-
mann, von Wille and Marold and Rene Reinicke.

One and all of the men we have named—and
the exigencies of space have compelled us to pass
over many as worthy—have their own special tech-
nique, proving what we said at the beginning of
this notice, that no special laws can be laid down
with regard to water-colour painting. All restric-
tions, all that could fetter the original genius of the
artist must be swept away; each one must work
out for himself his own individual style, each must
be free to enjoy that liberty which alone can
result in what is alike beautiful and good. And
there is no doubt that this is the right view to
take.

In the competition open to the artists of the
Rhine provinces and Westphalia for the decoration
of the banqueting-hall in the Schloss Burg, Professor
Meyer was successful, and in conjunction with
H. Huisken he has executed a series of scenes
from the history of his native land. We shall
have more to say of them later on when they are

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