Studio: international art (59.1913)

Reviews and Notices

colour contained in the portfolio which is issued in
connection with the book.

Lawrence. By Sir Walter Armstrong. (Lon-
don : Methuen and Co.) 215. net.—In this day of
revaluations, what is the position of Sir Thomas
Lawrence, President of the Royal Academy from
1820 till his death in 1830, and one of the most
sought after portrait-painters of his day, as witness
the long catalogue of portraits appended to the
present work ? At the present time his reputation
is, as the author remarks, higher perhaps than at
any time since his death, and this assertion is con-
firmed by the records of the auction sales of the
past season, when two of his paintings fetched close
on seven thousand pounds apiece. But it is pretty
generally agreed, we think, that as compared with
his great predecessors or contemporaries, Reynolds,
Gainsborough, Raeburn, and Romney, he is dis-
tinctly second rate, and probably few will be dis-
posed to challenge the opinion with which Sir Walter
Armstrong concludes his review of the painter’s life
and achievements—that “ blameless and lovable as
he was, Lawrence had neither the intellect nor the
character required to constitute what the world
means by a great man.” The two weak points in
his work as a painter were, as Sir Walter Armstrong
points out, “ a want of significance in his execution ”
—a defect due mainly to a constitutional “ inability
to keep his inspiration alive long enough ”; and,
secondly, poor colour, also the outcome of congenital
disability. Lawrence’s real genius expressed itself
in those charming drawings and studies which
he made in considerable abundance and of which
a few examples are reproduced with a number
of his paintings to illustrate this latest volume of
the “ Connoisseur’s Library,” and the many admirers
of this phase of his art will learn with regret that
an important collection of these drawings, lately
exhibited in London, has now left the country,
probably for ever.

A Londoner's London. By Wilfred Whitten.
With twenty-four illustrations by Frank L.
Emanuel. (London : Methuen and Co.) 6s. net.
—The very interesting historical reminiscences,
culled from the annals of those neighbourhoods
that “ John o’ London ” has chosen as being most
familiar to him to deal with in this book, their old
associations, both literary and artistic, which the
author evokes, his own personal recollections of the
town dating back just over a quarter of a century,
coupled with the engaging style in which the text
is written, all combine to form a volume that will
be read with keen enjoyment by every one who by
birth or by adoption calls himself a “ Londoner.”

The Renaissance and its Makers. By J. D. Simon
and S. L. Bensusan. (London : T. C. and E. C.
Jack). 10.L 6d. net.—The number of books which
tell the story of the Renaissance under its diverse
aspects is legion, and when a new one appears the
question naturally arises whether it is really needed.
In the case of the volume before us, the authors
candidly acknowledge that there has been much
traversing of old ground, but they plead that the
established facts are presented in such a way as to
bring into interrelation and new prominence main
factors in the movement that have not always been
taken into account by other writers. The plea is
justified, and as an outline of the rise and progress
of the movement in the various countries of Europe,
the book may be heartily commended to the general
reader, the more so on account of the excellent
reproductions of notable works which it contains.

Byways in British Archaology. By Walter
Johnson, F.G.S. (Cambridge University Press.)
ioj-. 6d. net.—In the very limited space at our
disposal for reviews it is hardly possible to give
more idea of the wealth of information regarding
ecclesiastical archaeology contained in the 500
pages of this interesting volume, than is expressed
in the mere bald statement of its title. The
numerous illustrations add to the value of a work
which, bearing as it does evidence of careful and
painstaking research, should make a strong appeal
to all students of this subject.

Mr. Heinemann will shortly publish an im-
portant work on French Colour Prints of the
Eighteenth Century, with reproductions in colour of
fifty representative prints of the period dating from
the beginning of engraving for colour in France to
the advent of the Revolution, when the climax was
reached. Mr. M. C. Salaman is contributing the
text, which will treat the subject in relation to the
spirit and manners of the period.

Excellent reproductions in photogravure of
several of the pictures presented to the National
Gallery by Rosalind, Countess of Carlisle, are
published by the Fine Arts Publishing Co. Ltd., of
Green Street, London, W.C., among them being
Caracci’s The Three Maries, Gainsborough’s Mrs.
Graham, and the Rubens landscape.

We have received from Messrs. Arnold and
Foster Ltd., of the Eynsford Paper Mills in Kent,
some samples of the drawing papers made by them.
These “ Unbleached Arnold ” papers are made in
various finishes and thicknesses and their excellent
qualities for drawing of various kinds, and for water-
colour in particular, are endorsed by many artists
who regularly use them.

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