Studio: international art (86.1923)

MR. RUTHERSTON'S PAINTINGS AND DRAWINGS

BRUSH AND WASH DRAWING
BY ALBERT RUTHERSTON

MR. ALBERT RUTHERSTON'S
PAINTINGS AND DRAWINGS. a

WHENEVER I look at any of Mr.

Albert Rutherston's paintings or
drawings I find it hard to analyse the
particular pleasure his work gives me.
Through the medium of his pictures one
comes in contact with a mind which, at
first sight, seems to be wholly whimsical
and yet which, after a longer and closer
study, one comes to feel with equal
conviction is wholly scholastic. I have
come to the conclusion that the truth
about him lies somewhere between the two:
he has an elusive temperament; his work
cannot be placed as belonging to this or
that group of artists—in the customary
manner, so convenient to critics. It is a
highly original contribution to English art
and has to be regarded as distinctive and
personal. True, there is in it a trace of

“ Slade ” manner, but it is not fundamental
—just a polish : something akin to the
“ Oxford voice,” which so often gives
piquancy to astonishing convictions ! *

Simplicity of statement, where it success-
fully expresses subtlety of mind, is always
fascinating and just this perhaps it is
that endears Mr. Rutherston’s art to so
many of us. a a a a

The fine quality of his mind, with its
distinctly literary turn, is half apparent,
hiding, as it were, just behind the simple
and almost naive terms of his chosen and
always consistent convention. a a
In recent years Mr. Rutherston has been
an active worker, creating many beautiful
things that have established his reputation
in several branches of art. Particularly has
he been successful in designing for the
theatre; indeed, he is one of the leaders
of the movement that so courageously
strives to restore that “ eternal invalid ”

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