DOI Heft:
No. 343 (October 1921)
DOI Artikel:Reviews
DOI Seite / Zitierlink: https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.21393#0200
REVIEWS.
Modern Tendencies in Sculpture,
(Scammon Lectures, Art Institute of
Chicago.) By Lorado Taft. (Chicago :
University Press ; London : Cambridge
University Press.)—In these lectures, de-
livered at Chicago in 1917, and now given
permanence in this well-printed and
copiously illustrated volume, the author,
a sculptor of long standing reputation in
America, reviews the principal manifesta-
tions in the field of sculpture on both
sides of the Atlantic in recent years.
These years, he says, " have quite ac-
customed us to having our pet divinities
assailed and even to seeing them rock on
their time-hallowed pedestals. Among
modern leaders in art the casualties have
been particularly numerous. With every
turn of fashion over goes a figure head."
The first lecture is fittingly devoted to
Rodin, who, saluted by some as " the
mightiest sculptural genius of all time,"
is by others regarded as " the arch-
impostor of our day and the father of all
artistic rottenness." His own estimate
of the great Frenchman avoids these
extremes -.00000
" If Rodin succumbed too early to fatty degenera-
tion of the artistic conscience, he nevertheless pro-
duced in his best years a series of remarkable works
which, for good or evil, have influenced the art of
the entire civilized world." 000
When dealing in another lecture with
modern French sculpture generally, he
discerns in it " a lack of capacity for
monumental design," and attributes this
defect to the " licence which the high
example of Rodin encouraged in the
lesser men." The sculpture of some of
these emulators of Rodin has, he declares,
become taxidermy, " and their stuffed
men and women lack only colour and real
hair to vie with the wax tableaux of
ethnological and surgical museums."
Later on, when discussing American
sculpture, which he considers has made
marked progress since the beginning of
the century, largely through the influence
of St. Gaudens, he says : 0 0 0
" We Americans have been told more than once
that we are too sane to become great artists. We
accept the dubious compliment and acknowledge
that we do not expect to find a Carpeaux nor a
Mestrovic among us. But neither shall we add to
the world's art horrors through the misguided
184
activity of a Matisse or an Archipenko. . . .
The excremental school makes no appeal to the
average American " 0 0 0 t3
With the British school of to-day he deals
very cursorily, giving barely half-a-dozen
pages to it, but though he does not find
much of first-rate significance in its quite
recent output, he. acknowledges that before
the war English sculptors were doing
work that could compare favourably with
anything done on the Continent. 0 0
The Ninth Volume of the Walpole Society,
Edited by A. J. Finberg. (Issued only to
subscribers.) If for reasons that do not
require explanation in these days of high
prices, the new volume of the Walpole
Society does not bulk so large as the earlier
volumes, it is none the less welcome as
evidence that the Society is able to carry
on its important work. The two chief con-
tributions concern London of the past.
One is a paper by the Earl of Uchester, on a
painting by Marcus Gheeraerts depicting
a ceremonial visit of Queen Elizabeth to
Blackfriars in June, 1600, and its purpose
is to establish the fact that a closely similar
painting in the Earl's possession at Mel-
bury (reproduced in the Society's third
volume) was a copy of this one, which
belongs to Major Wingfield-Digby, of
Sherborne Castle. The other paper, filling
about half the volume, is by Mrs. Finberg,
whose investigations show conclusively
that the great Venetian painter, Giovanni
Antonio Canal, better known as Canaletto,
spent at least eight years in England, paint-
ing views of London and other places,
chiefly for the noble patrons who had
already bought his Venetian views. The
paper is accompanied by excellent half-tone
reproductions of nearly thirty of these pic-
tures, and among them are some very fine
examples of his work, especially those in
which the Thames is represented, for he
seems to have taken a special delight in
doing these aquatic views. Following the
paper is a catalogue raisonne of the
painter's English work. 000
Messrs. Frost and Reed of Bristol and
London are publishing large reproductions
in colour of four pictures by Mr. A. J.
Munnings, A.R.A., belonging to the Bel-
voir Hunt series exhibited recently in
London. 00000
Modern Tendencies in Sculpture,
(Scammon Lectures, Art Institute of
Chicago.) By Lorado Taft. (Chicago :
University Press ; London : Cambridge
University Press.)—In these lectures, de-
livered at Chicago in 1917, and now given
permanence in this well-printed and
copiously illustrated volume, the author,
a sculptor of long standing reputation in
America, reviews the principal manifesta-
tions in the field of sculpture on both
sides of the Atlantic in recent years.
These years, he says, " have quite ac-
customed us to having our pet divinities
assailed and even to seeing them rock on
their time-hallowed pedestals. Among
modern leaders in art the casualties have
been particularly numerous. With every
turn of fashion over goes a figure head."
The first lecture is fittingly devoted to
Rodin, who, saluted by some as " the
mightiest sculptural genius of all time,"
is by others regarded as " the arch-
impostor of our day and the father of all
artistic rottenness." His own estimate
of the great Frenchman avoids these
extremes -.00000
" If Rodin succumbed too early to fatty degenera-
tion of the artistic conscience, he nevertheless pro-
duced in his best years a series of remarkable works
which, for good or evil, have influenced the art of
the entire civilized world." 000
When dealing in another lecture with
modern French sculpture generally, he
discerns in it " a lack of capacity for
monumental design," and attributes this
defect to the " licence which the high
example of Rodin encouraged in the
lesser men." The sculpture of some of
these emulators of Rodin has, he declares,
become taxidermy, " and their stuffed
men and women lack only colour and real
hair to vie with the wax tableaux of
ethnological and surgical museums."
Later on, when discussing American
sculpture, which he considers has made
marked progress since the beginning of
the century, largely through the influence
of St. Gaudens, he says : 0 0 0
" We Americans have been told more than once
that we are too sane to become great artists. We
accept the dubious compliment and acknowledge
that we do not expect to find a Carpeaux nor a
Mestrovic among us. But neither shall we add to
the world's art horrors through the misguided
184
activity of a Matisse or an Archipenko. . . .
The excremental school makes no appeal to the
average American " 0 0 0 t3
With the British school of to-day he deals
very cursorily, giving barely half-a-dozen
pages to it, but though he does not find
much of first-rate significance in its quite
recent output, he. acknowledges that before
the war English sculptors were doing
work that could compare favourably with
anything done on the Continent. 0 0
The Ninth Volume of the Walpole Society,
Edited by A. J. Finberg. (Issued only to
subscribers.) If for reasons that do not
require explanation in these days of high
prices, the new volume of the Walpole
Society does not bulk so large as the earlier
volumes, it is none the less welcome as
evidence that the Society is able to carry
on its important work. The two chief con-
tributions concern London of the past.
One is a paper by the Earl of Uchester, on a
painting by Marcus Gheeraerts depicting
a ceremonial visit of Queen Elizabeth to
Blackfriars in June, 1600, and its purpose
is to establish the fact that a closely similar
painting in the Earl's possession at Mel-
bury (reproduced in the Society's third
volume) was a copy of this one, which
belongs to Major Wingfield-Digby, of
Sherborne Castle. The other paper, filling
about half the volume, is by Mrs. Finberg,
whose investigations show conclusively
that the great Venetian painter, Giovanni
Antonio Canal, better known as Canaletto,
spent at least eight years in England, paint-
ing views of London and other places,
chiefly for the noble patrons who had
already bought his Venetian views. The
paper is accompanied by excellent half-tone
reproductions of nearly thirty of these pic-
tures, and among them are some very fine
examples of his work, especially those in
which the Thames is represented, for he
seems to have taken a special delight in
doing these aquatic views. Following the
paper is a catalogue raisonne of the
painter's English work. 000
Messrs. Frost and Reed of Bristol and
London are publishing large reproductions
in colour of four pictures by Mr. A. J.
Munnings, A.R.A., belonging to the Bel-
voir Hunt series exhibited recently in
London. 00000