DOI Heft:
No. 242 (May 1913)
DOI Artikel:Wood, T. Martin: The gift of Dutch pictures to South Africa
DOI Seite / Zitierlink: https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.21160#0298
Dutch Pictures for South Africa
the destiny of South Africa first came together of spirituality, and, except that the extreme zest ot
without rivalry. the Dutch appreciation of material appearances
In the light of the aims that pre-eccupy the partakes by its very intensity of the character of a
minds of the present generation of painters, Dutch spiritual fervour, their absolute contentment with
painting of the seventeenth century has an enhanced things that are fascinating to look at and handle,
value and a value that will always tend to increase, silver cups and rich cloths, would savour of worldly
For one thing it will never again be possible for complacency.
realism to be absolutely unselfconscious ; the It is just in this zest and in this fervour that
presence of the science of photography has put an we should seek for the strength of the impulse
end to that. Moreover, though the attention of by which the Dutch painters were able to transform
modern painters has been attracted to the same an inventory into the most eloquent description of
themes that attracted the Dutch painters, the the charm of every-day things ever uttered. It
interpretation is in another spirit. is safe to say that the art of the Netherlands and of
Perhaps there is no art in the world which Flanders renovated the vision of civilised men,
shows quite such an acute consciousness of material adding immensely to their consciousness of the
beauty as Dutch art. The common phrase or beauty of every-day surroundings, thus forming the
description of a scene as being of " unheard-of base upon which the most delicate realism, both of
beauty" fits in with nothing that the artists of modern impressionist painting and of the art
Holland describe, but their art is a wonderrul in- of modern novel-writers, has raised itself to its
ventory of every-day things that are beautiful. present pitch of expressiveness. All our refine-
We have used the word " Dutch " up to the ments in this direction rest upon the solid founda-
present almost entirely, but
the art of Flanders is also
represented in this collec-
tion. Dutch and Flemish
arts are as unlike as brother
and sister, but yet again
alike in this relationship,
and distinct from every- ^ ^Hflj
thing of other countries.
The Flemish temperament ^^^m "*V /'"H^HH
is feminine compared with
the Dutch, infinitely . *^ '^^^^HI^fl^^^l^m
more sensitive, whilst it V-.-,.*tB(v3mL- ^l^^l
is sensitive to the same '^r ' ■Jm/tukk^.
things. It is more re-
ligious, not only in subject
but in the approach to the
subject; more romantic
and less matter-of-fact.
But the strength of the 4S^- • ip^^H
Dutch school is its matter- ^Hkh^^
of-factness, its exquisite W^^^'-^^KKH^ fl^Bffik ___ ff \J
truthfulness and precision f^f^^^f^^^
of representation, the ^^^ZjSaHf
miraculous clarity of its A
vision—so clear that colour
and outline have an in- |k HaPliH
tensity in this art which
shames all other artistic
representations into a
comparative vagueness.
But things are always
vague upon the border-line portrait of a lady in grey and red by nicolas maes
275
the destiny of South Africa first came together of spirituality, and, except that the extreme zest ot
without rivalry. the Dutch appreciation of material appearances
In the light of the aims that pre-eccupy the partakes by its very intensity of the character of a
minds of the present generation of painters, Dutch spiritual fervour, their absolute contentment with
painting of the seventeenth century has an enhanced things that are fascinating to look at and handle,
value and a value that will always tend to increase, silver cups and rich cloths, would savour of worldly
For one thing it will never again be possible for complacency.
realism to be absolutely unselfconscious ; the It is just in this zest and in this fervour that
presence of the science of photography has put an we should seek for the strength of the impulse
end to that. Moreover, though the attention of by which the Dutch painters were able to transform
modern painters has been attracted to the same an inventory into the most eloquent description of
themes that attracted the Dutch painters, the the charm of every-day things ever uttered. It
interpretation is in another spirit. is safe to say that the art of the Netherlands and of
Perhaps there is no art in the world which Flanders renovated the vision of civilised men,
shows quite such an acute consciousness of material adding immensely to their consciousness of the
beauty as Dutch art. The common phrase or beauty of every-day surroundings, thus forming the
description of a scene as being of " unheard-of base upon which the most delicate realism, both of
beauty" fits in with nothing that the artists of modern impressionist painting and of the art
Holland describe, but their art is a wonderrul in- of modern novel-writers, has raised itself to its
ventory of every-day things that are beautiful. present pitch of expressiveness. All our refine-
We have used the word " Dutch " up to the ments in this direction rest upon the solid founda-
present almost entirely, but
the art of Flanders is also
represented in this collec-
tion. Dutch and Flemish
arts are as unlike as brother
and sister, but yet again
alike in this relationship,
and distinct from every- ^ ^Hflj
thing of other countries.
The Flemish temperament ^^^m "*V /'"H^HH
is feminine compared with
the Dutch, infinitely . *^ '^^^^HI^fl^^^l^m
more sensitive, whilst it V-.-,.*tB(v3mL- ^l^^l
is sensitive to the same '^r ' ■Jm/tukk^.
things. It is more re-
ligious, not only in subject
but in the approach to the
subject; more romantic
and less matter-of-fact.
But the strength of the 4S^- • ip^^H
Dutch school is its matter- ^Hkh^^
of-factness, its exquisite W^^^'-^^KKH^ fl^Bffik ___ ff \J
truthfulness and precision f^f^^^f^^^
of representation, the ^^^ZjSaHf
miraculous clarity of its A
vision—so clear that colour
and outline have an in- |k HaPliH
tensity in this art which
shames all other artistic
representations into a
comparative vagueness.
But things are always
vague upon the border-line portrait of a lady in grey and red by nicolas maes
275