DOI Heft:
No. 365 (August 1923)
DOI Artikel:Stephens, Jessica Walker: The Royal Scottish Academy exhibition
DOI Seite / Zitierlink: https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.21398#0088
THE ROYAL SCOTTISH ACADEMY
EXHIBITION. BY JESSICA WALKER
STEPHENS a a a a 0
TO the Southron, accustomed to viewing
British art through English eyes, the
Royal Scottish Academy, when seen for the
first time, brings something of a shock and
a violent readjustment of ideas. On more
mature consideration one remembers that,
after all, there are some good works in
exhibitions south of the Border which are
not by members or associates of the
Scottish Academy or people with Scotch
names and addresses. Sundry foreign pro-
ductions have been included, some of
which are interesting, but not all of which
are of the first order. One cannot feel that
these inclusions are an improvement from
either the point of view of the stranger or
that of the native artist; and they cover
much space, so limiting the exhibits of the
Scottish artists themselves. 000
Edinburgh, it seems, should make much
of her young talent, that she, like Glas-
gow in other years, may boast a school
of eminence. The high standard of the
work being done by her younger artists
makes this seem quite possible. The broad
and deep-minded Scot must surely be
equal to the task (reputedly neglected by
lesser races) of giving honour to the home-
made prophets, and must see in many of
the younger of the 600 artists in the Edin-
burgh of to-day legitimate successors to
the brilliant men who brought recognition
from all Europe to their country, and whose
work has much to do with the impressive-
ness of the present exhibition, though death
is thinning their numbers. The loss of the
late Mr. E. A. Walton is a serious one.
The impressiveness is enhanced by the
finely professional feeling in the work of
both older and younger artists, and by the
presence of various types of imagination.
Each artist has seen and felt for himself,
and the bond between him and his fellows
is simply that of strongly gripped method
and power of expression. It is, for instance,
a far cry from the stern, rather Scandi-
navian objectivism of Stanley Cursitor
to the untrammelled versatile imagina-
tiveness of Eric Robertson, with its
heights and depths of mood and its varied
methods. To Cecil e Walton art means a
68
giving of her thoughts on life to the world
by means of beautiful allegories ; to
Dorothy Johnstone a giving of the fair
contours and glowing complexions of her
country's children. To John Duncan life is
a series of Celtic dreams of exquisite old
romance ; to James Paterson a vista of deli-
cate atmospheres and wide, far-off skies.
But none of these can tolerate anything
slipshod or meretricious in the painted
presentment of their visions, though their
methods may vary infinitely. This indi-
viduality of ideal and unanimous deter-
mination for a high level of workmanship
is more marked in the Scottish capital than
in any other British town one knows, and
even many contributors to London exhibi-
tions might do well to study it. The
Scotsmen have taken the poet's excellent
advice and are unashamed of soul, soul
being in Scotland apparently an artistic
necessity, as fully required as paint surfaces
or composition. 0000
The art of Scotland, like that of every
other land, is the sign manual of the race,
and if there are traces of French feeling it
is because there is some French sympathy
in the people, ancestral, doubtless, and
dating from the lively centuries, happily
(for English and Scotch amity), long
dead. 0 0 0 0 0 0
Distinguished works by Sir James Guth-
rie, D. Y. Cameron, Sir John Lavery, Sir
J. L. Wingate, the late Sir Thomas Brock,
Sir Robert Lorimer, William Nicholson,
Albert Besnard, George Clausen, R. An-
ning Bell, Frank Brangwyn, Pierre Braecke,
Gemmel Hutchison, Henry Lintott, the
late Robert MacGregor, the late J. Camp-
bell Mitchell, T. Austen Brown, Edwin
Alexander, W. S. Anderson, Ian Macnab,
G. W. Hall, E. S. Lumsden, David Alison,
and numerous others attracted the eye in
the painting, sculpture, architectural, or
drawing sections of an exhibition worthy
in culture and artistic standing of the
famous Society which promotes it in the
stately capital of Scotland. 000
The illustrations which follow are se-
lected from the Royal Scottish Academy
and from recent exhibitions at the Fine Art
Society's Gallery, the Goupil Gallery
(Messrs. William Marchant & Co.), the
Grosvenor Galleries, and the Leicester
Galleries. 00000
EXHIBITION. BY JESSICA WALKER
STEPHENS a a a a 0
TO the Southron, accustomed to viewing
British art through English eyes, the
Royal Scottish Academy, when seen for the
first time, brings something of a shock and
a violent readjustment of ideas. On more
mature consideration one remembers that,
after all, there are some good works in
exhibitions south of the Border which are
not by members or associates of the
Scottish Academy or people with Scotch
names and addresses. Sundry foreign pro-
ductions have been included, some of
which are interesting, but not all of which
are of the first order. One cannot feel that
these inclusions are an improvement from
either the point of view of the stranger or
that of the native artist; and they cover
much space, so limiting the exhibits of the
Scottish artists themselves. 000
Edinburgh, it seems, should make much
of her young talent, that she, like Glas-
gow in other years, may boast a school
of eminence. The high standard of the
work being done by her younger artists
makes this seem quite possible. The broad
and deep-minded Scot must surely be
equal to the task (reputedly neglected by
lesser races) of giving honour to the home-
made prophets, and must see in many of
the younger of the 600 artists in the Edin-
burgh of to-day legitimate successors to
the brilliant men who brought recognition
from all Europe to their country, and whose
work has much to do with the impressive-
ness of the present exhibition, though death
is thinning their numbers. The loss of the
late Mr. E. A. Walton is a serious one.
The impressiveness is enhanced by the
finely professional feeling in the work of
both older and younger artists, and by the
presence of various types of imagination.
Each artist has seen and felt for himself,
and the bond between him and his fellows
is simply that of strongly gripped method
and power of expression. It is, for instance,
a far cry from the stern, rather Scandi-
navian objectivism of Stanley Cursitor
to the untrammelled versatile imagina-
tiveness of Eric Robertson, with its
heights and depths of mood and its varied
methods. To Cecil e Walton art means a
68
giving of her thoughts on life to the world
by means of beautiful allegories ; to
Dorothy Johnstone a giving of the fair
contours and glowing complexions of her
country's children. To John Duncan life is
a series of Celtic dreams of exquisite old
romance ; to James Paterson a vista of deli-
cate atmospheres and wide, far-off skies.
But none of these can tolerate anything
slipshod or meretricious in the painted
presentment of their visions, though their
methods may vary infinitely. This indi-
viduality of ideal and unanimous deter-
mination for a high level of workmanship
is more marked in the Scottish capital than
in any other British town one knows, and
even many contributors to London exhibi-
tions might do well to study it. The
Scotsmen have taken the poet's excellent
advice and are unashamed of soul, soul
being in Scotland apparently an artistic
necessity, as fully required as paint surfaces
or composition. 0000
The art of Scotland, like that of every
other land, is the sign manual of the race,
and if there are traces of French feeling it
is because there is some French sympathy
in the people, ancestral, doubtless, and
dating from the lively centuries, happily
(for English and Scotch amity), long
dead. 0 0 0 0 0 0
Distinguished works by Sir James Guth-
rie, D. Y. Cameron, Sir John Lavery, Sir
J. L. Wingate, the late Sir Thomas Brock,
Sir Robert Lorimer, William Nicholson,
Albert Besnard, George Clausen, R. An-
ning Bell, Frank Brangwyn, Pierre Braecke,
Gemmel Hutchison, Henry Lintott, the
late Robert MacGregor, the late J. Camp-
bell Mitchell, T. Austen Brown, Edwin
Alexander, W. S. Anderson, Ian Macnab,
G. W. Hall, E. S. Lumsden, David Alison,
and numerous others attracted the eye in
the painting, sculpture, architectural, or
drawing sections of an exhibition worthy
in culture and artistic standing of the
famous Society which promotes it in the
stately capital of Scotland. 000
The illustrations which follow are se-
lected from the Royal Scottish Academy
and from recent exhibitions at the Fine Art
Society's Gallery, the Goupil Gallery
(Messrs. William Marchant & Co.), the
Grosvenor Galleries, and the Leicester
Galleries. 00000