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#0301
Dutch Pictures for South Africa
human character registers itself whilst he is A Cat attacking poultry, by Hondecoeter (below);
perhaps far more consciously bent upon the an interior painting, Interior of a Church, by
expression of mere shape and colour. All this is Houckgest (p. 272); an interior painting with figures,
at the very root of the success of the Impressionist A Musical Party, by Dirk Hals, brother and
movement. pupil of Frans Hals (p. 271); further a delightful
If modern painters are, after all the refinements sea-piece by Dubbels ; a flower-piece by Cornelis
to which, with art for art's sake, they have subjected de Heem ; a portrait by Pieter Nason ; and an
their methods, once again looking back to the dream exterior scene by Jan Steen, The Dancing Dog,
of making "subject-pictures" it is because in fore- formerly in the Poullain collection and illustrated
going everything for technical refinements, art has, in Dr. Breduis's book on " Jan Steen," the fiddler
so to speak, gone round after its own tail. Success- in this picture being a portrait of the artist. There
ful expression in art makes us think, and it makes is a very beautiful painting of the interior of the
us think of everything except itself. Oude Kerk at Delft, painted with the peculiar
In the light of its bearing upon the aims of subtlety that is only characteristic of artists who
modern artists we have allowed ourselves to dwell have painted for a life-time, signed J. Vermeer,
thus lengthily upon the influences that begin with 1651. As the Vermeer was but nineteen at that
Hals and his school and flow into the varied date the question arises—was there another
sensibility of modern painting. If we had space Vermeer with the same initial ?
there might be shown too the counter-movement The painters represented in our illustrations all
beginning with ancient classic art, never leading on lived and died in the seventeenth century, except
to this modern art—which begins in Holland—this de Gelder, who died in 1727.
instinctive, emotional if often merely sentimental The Max Michaelis gift in all amounts to nearly
art, but opposing it with intellectualism, unim- fifty pictures, the Hals, the Rembrandt, the re-
passioned correctness, and scorn of the theatricali- markable still-life pieces, alone being priceless
ties of chiaroscuro. treasures which any gallery should be proud to
The illustrations of this article represent various possess, while their still more unique value to the
branches of Dutch art which grew out from the National Gallery of Cape Town has been hinted
central influence of Hals and Rembrandt. Among at in this article. Before the works leave England
other notable features of the collection must be they will be exhibited at the Grosvenor Gallery
mentioned the portrait of the Count of Sodremore from May 23 to June 11. T. M. W.
by Van Dyck ; a portrait
of Govaert Flinck by him-
self ; Lady at a Foun-
tain by Caspar Netscher;
the portrait of A Lady
in grey and red by N.
Maes included among our
illustrations (p. 275); a
portrait of A Man holding
a Glove by Verspronck
(p. 276); a subject paint-
ing, The Taxidermist, by
Aert de Gelder (p. 277);
a large painting of birds,
A Concert of Birds, by
Frans Snyders, a highly
remarkable work show-
ing the great painter 01
feathered life and ex-
quisite colourist at his
best (the companion pic-
ture to this one is in the
Kaiser's collection at Ber-
lin) ; a subject painting, "a cat attacking poultry" by melchior d'hondecoeter
278
human character registers itself whilst he is A Cat attacking poultry, by Hondecoeter (below);
perhaps far more consciously bent upon the an interior painting, Interior of a Church, by
expression of mere shape and colour. All this is Houckgest (p. 272); an interior painting with figures,
at the very root of the success of the Impressionist A Musical Party, by Dirk Hals, brother and
movement. pupil of Frans Hals (p. 271); further a delightful
If modern painters are, after all the refinements sea-piece by Dubbels ; a flower-piece by Cornelis
to which, with art for art's sake, they have subjected de Heem ; a portrait by Pieter Nason ; and an
their methods, once again looking back to the dream exterior scene by Jan Steen, The Dancing Dog,
of making "subject-pictures" it is because in fore- formerly in the Poullain collection and illustrated
going everything for technical refinements, art has, in Dr. Breduis's book on " Jan Steen," the fiddler
so to speak, gone round after its own tail. Success- in this picture being a portrait of the artist. There
ful expression in art makes us think, and it makes is a very beautiful painting of the interior of the
us think of everything except itself. Oude Kerk at Delft, painted with the peculiar
In the light of its bearing upon the aims of subtlety that is only characteristic of artists who
modern artists we have allowed ourselves to dwell have painted for a life-time, signed J. Vermeer,
thus lengthily upon the influences that begin with 1651. As the Vermeer was but nineteen at that
Hals and his school and flow into the varied date the question arises—was there another
sensibility of modern painting. If we had space Vermeer with the same initial ?
there might be shown too the counter-movement The painters represented in our illustrations all
beginning with ancient classic art, never leading on lived and died in the seventeenth century, except
to this modern art—which begins in Holland—this de Gelder, who died in 1727.
instinctive, emotional if often merely sentimental The Max Michaelis gift in all amounts to nearly
art, but opposing it with intellectualism, unim- fifty pictures, the Hals, the Rembrandt, the re-
passioned correctness, and scorn of the theatricali- markable still-life pieces, alone being priceless
ties of chiaroscuro. treasures which any gallery should be proud to
The illustrations of this article represent various possess, while their still more unique value to the
branches of Dutch art which grew out from the National Gallery of Cape Town has been hinted
central influence of Hals and Rembrandt. Among at in this article. Before the works leave England
other notable features of the collection must be they will be exhibited at the Grosvenor Gallery
mentioned the portrait of the Count of Sodremore from May 23 to June 11. T. M. W.
by Van Dyck ; a portrait
of Govaert Flinck by him-
self ; Lady at a Foun-
tain by Caspar Netscher;
the portrait of A Lady
in grey and red by N.
Maes included among our
illustrations (p. 275); a
portrait of A Man holding
a Glove by Verspronck
(p. 276); a subject paint-
ing, The Taxidermist, by
Aert de Gelder (p. 277);
a large painting of birds,
A Concert of Birds, by
Frans Snyders, a highly
remarkable work show-
ing the great painter 01
feathered life and ex-
quisite colourist at his
best (the companion pic-
ture to this one is in the
Kaiser's collection at Ber-
lin) ; a subject painting, "a cat attacking poultry" by melchior d'hondecoeter
278