Studio: international art (69.1916)

The Buccleuch Miniatures

THE BUCCLEUCH MINIA- The greatest of the miniature-painters is perhaps

TURES AT THE VICTORIA after all Nicholas Hilliard. He intoxicates us by

AND ALBERT MUSEUM. BY his design, by a sense of pattern that is as lively

T. MARTIN WOOD anC* delicate as anY master ever showed. And

_ „ . that he should build it all up on the subject of

If any collection of works of art makes it clear, costume does not make k Rny lesg profound The

by contrast, that the d.spersions of great collections sea is not a more profound thi than a lace frin
are disasters, it is that of the Buccleuch miniatures. if it has not given the ^ mQre pleasure When
The comprehensive character of such a collection an artist has repreSented the beauty in anything,
gives it great educational value. Apart from he has reflected that part of the thing which is
the history of the art of the Miniature which it immortal while a reflection of it can be preserved,
unfolds, the exhibition of such a collection may When a work of art falls in the esteem of posterity
well prove in the end to have a far-reaching it falls by the weight of what was neyer beauty in k
influence in correcting the modern aspect and when Miniature engaged itself to the work of
practice of the art. It will not be denied, I think, portraiture, it became so absorbed in the pure repre-
that to-day miniature-painting shows less inspira- Sentation of character that everything else fell away
tion than any other art that we practise upon the from jt) the gay vistas behind the figures which
same principles as our ancestors. This art always the Elizabethan miniaturist introduced, with other
seems to stand hat in hand to the camera, with fairy things. And in giving up the portrayal of cos-
no conceit of its own, and with apology on its tume) w{th every elaboration of ornament of gold ;
tongue for its desire to continue to exist. jn concentrating only on the character of the

The art of the miniature
portrait is bounded on one
side by that of the illumi-
nated missal, and on the
other by photography, but
it is only collaterally related
to these. It is in its true
descent the art of Illustra-
tion, and is never to be
rightly understood except in
that light. Decorated letter-
ing appeared later than the
coloured page-picture. The
portrait appeared in books
before the ornamental letter.
There will not be a school
of miniature-painters again
until the art is understood
as being what it is, namely,
Illustration. Its vitality
rests with that conception
of its mission. It need not
illustrate words. It may
illustrate costume, char-
acter, environment—every-
thing. The art of represen-
tation derives its vitality
from one rule only : that
the thing represented has
charmed the artist. In those
circumstances charm abides
in the execution and sways A lady, probably of the french court (called queen Catherine Howard)
the spectator. minted in oil, style of franoois clouet

LXIX. No. 2S6— January 1917