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CAMERA PRINTS SHOW IMAGINATION AND HUMAN TOUCH CLUB WORK EXHIBIT Telephone Enthusiasts Represented in Collection—Splendor in Fan Types Norwegian Purchase of Art. “Abstractionist" by Nat Norman, included in the exhibition of pictorial photographs by the Associated Telephone Camera Clubs, at the National Museum. “The Market,” by Alice Acheson, on exhibition at the Studio House. “Farragut Squareby Robert Franklin Gates, on exhibition at the Studio House. By Leila Mechlin. AN INTERESTING and most ex cellent exhibition of pictorial photography is now on view in the National Museum, Arts and Industries Building, section of photography. These prints are all by members of the Associated Telephone Camera Clubs, employees of the Tele phone & Telegraph Co. commonly known as the ‘‘Tel and Tel.” Obviously, therefore, it is the work of those who practice photography as a hobby, but, like all hobbyists, they are enthusiastic riders and spare no pains to attain suc cess. This determination, care and enthusiasm show in their prints. For subjects they have gone far afield, but in merit of transcription they are well matched—extremely even. And, after all, those fundamental prin ciples which govern all works of art— composition, relation of light to shade, line and rhythm—are controlling in photography as in all the graphic arts. Not only have these photo-pictorialists chosen good subjects, but they have rendered them with great sympathy choosing just the right moment to get a desired effect. This is art and of a very genuine sort. There are in this exhibition some admirable portraits and figure studies. Two of these, by K. A. Kjeldsud, are more like drawings than photographs, exquisitely delicate in delineation, but neither vague nor exaggerated. In ap pearance they are like silver points. Equally charming is a study by E. S. Hemsted entitled "Motherhood.” From Nat Norman comes an engaging portrait of an "Abstractionist.” an artist working on an abstract composi tion. R. S. Kennedy’s portrait of "W. K.” is likewise an excellent piece of work, strong in modeling character istic not forced. T. M. Odarenko shows two pleasing compositions—one of horses on a hill side silhouetted against a sunset sky— the other of a heron in the water ob serving its own reflection. Subjects so handled have not only technical merit, but imaginative appeal. Edward Alenius contributes two studies of sky scrapers which have pictorial con tent—"Downtown New York” and “Step by Step”—the latter showing a group of "set-backs.” "Manhattan Mist,” by M. S. Thomas, is outstanding for atmospheric effect. “Across the Sun,” by J. M. Bridges, and "Before the Wind," by J. C. Sellers, both are charm ing boat pictures. There are some good still-life studies, such as "Decora tive Panel,” by H- M. Larsen, and “A Cellar Corner,” by Edward Alenius. Occasionally a print is found to have a glint of humor, or a very human ap peal, aside from picturesqueness or charm of characterization. “Can I Make It?” by J. C. Dassler, is a squir rel in a snowstorm as seen on a win dow-sill. anxiously measuring a jump. The question is, “Did he make it?” There are, in addition to these prints mentioned, others of equal interest and merit—telephone wires against the sky. architectural themes, landscapes. All In all, it is a most enjoyable and creditable showing. Fans and Pictures. tTHE collection of fans assembled in l-*- Spain by the late Duchess d’Arcos (nee Virginia Woodbury Lowery of this city) and bequeathed to the National Gallery of Art. is beautifully displayed In one of the small galleries on the second floor of the National Museum^ Tenth street and Constitution avenue. Spread out in two flat cases, in the center of the room, 14 in one, 13 in the other, they can be well seen and studied. Two, possibly more, are Ori ental, but the majority are Spanish and vividly recall scenes of romance and of splendor. And what part fans have played in court life in the past! How much they have meant to Spanish ladies peeping from behind them! How almost essential they have been con sidered as an adjunct of the dance! Oftentimes, as one sees in this collec tion, these fans were the work of accomplished artists and craftsmen. Not a fan in this exhibition is minus carved sticks and painted folds. The paintings are of mythological sub jects, of court life, of historical scenes artistically and colorfully displayed. The sticks are of Ivory, wood and am ber, exquisitely carved, gilded, and in one instance lacquered. It is a most Interesting array. As a setting for this exhibit of fans, the walls of this gallery have been rehung with paintings by American artists, mostly drawn from the William T. Evans collection, which accord in color and tone, and collectively create an appropriate atmosphere. The ma jority of these paintings have, on account of lack of space for display, been for some time in storage and their return gives pleasure as of re newed acquaintance with erstwhile friends. Here are two paintings by George Inness, "Georgia Pines” and “Niagara.” both unusual subjects, very deftly portrayed. Here is Twachtman's “Torrent,” a most typical example one of his best—and Theodore Rob inson’s lovely French landscape, in high key, dominated by a provincial church spire, to say nothing of Murphy’s entrancing "Indian Summer,” like a violin aonata, and Blacklcck’s two sonorous landscapes, deep toned and resonant. There are two heads—good to see again and at any time—a por trait of Walter Shlrlaw by Duveneck and a girl's head, without name or identification, by George Fuller. Recalling the days of genre paint (\ A ing—which, by the way, is having new vogue today—are paintings by Alfred C. Howland and W. T. Smedley—the former “Friendly Neighbor,” a farm scene; the latter “Gossip," a man lean ing on a window sill and conversing with a woman, busy with homely duties within. The subject picture has been brought back to attention by the emphasis placed by the P. W. A. P. on the American scene and by exhibi ! to today, that thoroughness of knowl edge, technical skill, are in any way I a handicap to the creative artist. Homer began as an illustrator and a genre painter, he developed into one of the strongest, simplest, most ele mental painters of the past century— perhaps of many centuries. He had | imagination and power, but he did I not try to walk before he could creep— [ he knew the value of self-discipline these young artists’ fresh and lively interpretations. (F. S. B.) Sculpture Competition. 'T'HE new competition for sculpture is for large panels in relief to decor ate the facade of the Bronx Posti Office. The subject is to be appropriate to a Post Office, the style in keeping with divided as to subject types; two por traits, one flower and still life, three each of birds, ships, river and harbor scenes, and trees, five landscapes with buildings, two industrial scenes. All are painted with fluid color, and broad, sweeping brush strokes. In “California,” Miss Brown pro duces a sense of sunshine, spaciousness and clear atmosphere, apparently by A number of Miss Ryerson's etch ings represent children playing on j musical instruments. The simplest children to keep still, she said, are musical children, for whom radio and singing work magic. Preoccupation with piano and violin produce the most unconscious posing any artist could want. Miss Ryerson started to paint settlement children one Winter, when she taught a hundred little Italians in an East Side church school; she has subsequently sketched all kinds of children, rich and poor, and of various nationalities. Consequently, she has some interesting comments to make about them. She has found Jewish children, generally, the most musical, as they will listen spellbound to music, while the Italian child wants to join in and sing himself. The charming little etching called “Andante,” depicting a little girl, evi dently weary of practicing, to judge by the droop of her body and hair falling over her cheek, has recently been acquired by four museums: The Nelson Gallery, Kansas City; the Montclair (N. J.) Art Museum, and others in Hawaii and Ohio. tF. S. B.) Donna Crabtreee Exhibits. ^N EXHIBITION of paintings by Donna Crabtree opened last Sun day afternoon at the Burlington Ho tel, in the rooms of the League of American Pen Women. It may be reviewed next Sunday. IF. S. B.) Other Exhibitions. ] The Society of Miniature Painters, Sculptors and Gravers of this city held a meeting recently and elected the following officers for the ensuing year: President, Frederich W. Von Dachenhausen; secretary, Allen Sher win, and treasurer, Katerine Page. Plans are being made for an exhibi tion next Winter, none having been held during the current season. The Society of Washington Artists is assembling an exhibition to be shown in the And-rison Gallery of William and Mary College, Richmond branch, at the invitation and under ; the auspices of the Richmond Academy ; of Art, the descendant of one of the ■ oldest art organizations in this country. From the most recent annual ex hibition of the Washington Water Color Club, at which, incidentally, four paintings and nine prints were sold, ; a traveling collection, consisting ! chiefly of works by local artists, was j selected by the American Federation j of Arts to send on an extended circuit. In the Public Library, Takoma Park, ' Md., an exhibition of portrait, land scape and still life paintings by Mrs. \ Cherry Ford White has lately opened, to continue for five or six weeks. Mrs. i White is a charter member of the Arts Club of Washington and has exhibited extensively here and elsewhere. Second Washington j Independent Show. DECAUSE of the interest shown in and the success of the First Wash . ington Independent Show, a second is now planned. A preliminary meeting for organization has been held at Mrs. Eugene Meyer's residence, at which Mr. Charles Bittinger, president of the Society pf Washington Artists, was appointed chairman. —r - .— ' ■ — . —— Left "A Teton Scene” by Charles B Robertson, and right, “Before the Wind,” by J. D. Sellers, included in the exhibition of pictorial photographs by the Associated Telephone Camera Clubs at the ' ‘ ’ . National Museum. tiona of genre paintings by great masters held last Winter in Paris and in New York. This season a collection of American genres has been making a circuit of American Art Museums, lately being displayed in the Carnegie Institute, Pittsburgh. Truly the world goes around and around even more certainly than on and on. But to return to the paintings in the National Gallery. Places of dis tinction in rehanging have been given to a marine by Hobart Nichols, a land scape by Chase and an idyllic figure composition by P. Ballard Williams. There is also a marine by Leon Dabo, painter and writer, disciple of Whistler, and there are landscapes by Wyant, Lathrop and Charles H. Davis—the last distinctly a masterpiece. Hang ing space is at a premium in the Na tional Gallery of Art’s present restrict ed quarters and storage rooms are regrettably full, but on the whole it may not be bad to have works tempo rarily withdrawn in order to bring them back for fresh inspection with added appreciation, as in the present instance. In the hall adjacent to this exhibi tion have been hung Alphonse Jongers’ portrait of the late William T. Evans and Irving Wiles’ portrait of John Gellatly, both generous donors to our National Gallery—men of wealth who, after making their donations to the Nation, lost their fortunes and died in greatly restricted circumstances. They should not be forgotten. National Gallery of Art Lends to Public Library. 'J'HE National Gallery of Art has lent to the Public Library five important and interesting canvases from the William T. Evans Collection, which have been hung on the walls of the art reading and reference room in the main building. Three of these are portraits by three very distin guished American figure painters. One is a head of Henry Fuller, the mural painter (so admirably represented in the Library of Congress) j when he was a little boy, and is the work of his famous father, George Fuller. One is a portrait of the painter, Wyatt Eaton, by J. Alden Weir—a token of friend ship. The third is of a young girl, Jessie J. Burge, by Abbott H. Thayer, than whom America has produced no greater painter. Each of these por traits is very different from the others, but all three evince, on the part of the painters, spiritual Insight and are truly interpretative. Doubtless in style they belong to a day that is past, but because of this, their real value is by no means diminished. In addition to these portraits, the National Gallery loan includes a famous and very beautiful nocturne— a seascape—by Ryder, and a genre by Winslow Homer. The latter, entitled “The Visit of the Old Mistress,” was painted in Petersburg, Va., in 1876. It represents the interior of a Negro cabin. The Old Mistress—“Ole Miss” —has come to see that all is well with her ex-slaves. The family have risen to greet her and are gathered in an interested, smiling group. This picture was first purchased by Thomas B. Clarke, but at his sale in 1899, was bought by M. H. Lehman, from whom it passed to William T. Evans and eventually to the National Gallery of Art. It is interesting, not only as an historical document, but as evidencing the folly of supposing, as many seem M ' and equipment, he acquired freedom through submitting to bondage, and hence was able to use it not merely well, but magnificently. j i , Paintings by American Artist Purchased for Legation. 'TWO paintings by an American A artist. William H. Singer, jr., were purchased last Summer by Norway to hang here in the Norwegian Lega I tion. They are both of Norwegian 1 scenery, of which, during many years residence in Norway, Mr. Singer has made profound study. When Mr. Sin ger exhibited recently in the Galerie Schusterman, Paris. Camille Mauclair. one of the leading French critics, had the following to say of his work: "Mr. William H. Singer, jr., has perfectly understood that a landscape must be a transcription of nature, but that it only deserves to be called a work of art if the artist, with all due respect to the truth, rises to a per sonal interpretation—gives us, in a language of his own, the blended re sult of sense and intellect. Norwe gian scenery captivated him—he fath omed its character—he lived and med itated long among it in various sea sons—he learned it by heart. Then he composed, and his compositions are poems—realities with all the magic of dreams. • * • They are by turns intimate and majestic. They are very silent with the silence of nature. Like certain poems of Heine, Keats and Poe, they hold some faint and surpassing sweetness.” Most of Mr. Singer’s paintings of Norway are Winter scenes—snow pic tures—painted with short strokes and in a high key, yet very subtle, recog nizing, as do the Japanese, snow as a pause, something gentle and envelop ing, rather than hard, brittle, and associated with storm and force. Bom in Pittsburgh and a student at the Julien Academy, he has lived most of his life abroad, but never lost his in terest in art in America. It was through the generosity of Mr. and Mrs. Singer that the Washington County Art Gallery, in Hagerstown. Md., came into existence and has been sustained. Exhibitions of his paint ings have been held in New York, Sa vannah and other cities. He is rep resented In yie National Galleries of Norway, Holland, Belgium and France, as well as in the leading museums of this country. The Royal Order of St. Olaf was conferred upon him by the King of Norway in 1929. In recent years he had divided his time between Norway and Holland. Mural Paintings jor Justice Department Building. T"*WO new competitions—one for three murals for the Department of Justice Building and one for sculp ture for the facade of the Bronx Po6t Office, New York—are announced in the lately issued bulletin of Treasury Department Art Projects, Public Works Branch, Procurement Division. The murals are each to be 7% feet wide by 11*4 feet high; are to go in lobby No. 9 on the first, second and third floors of the Justice Building and will cost $2,000 apiece. Designs, rendered preferably in oil on canvas, are to be on the scale of 2 inches to the foot and must be submitted by June 1. Artists who submit outstand ing designs which are not accepted may have the consolation Pf being "seriously considered” for appointment to do murals for other buildings, for which the contracts will be given out right. The jury, which will act in an ‘‘ad visory capacity” to the section of painting and sculpture for this com petition. will comprise Edward Bruce, Olin Dows, Leon Kroll, Ernest Peix- j otto, Henry Schnakenberg, Jonas Lie, j Bancel La Farge and Eugene Speicher, j none of whom, unless Mr. Peixotto be : excepted, is a mural painter. Juries j as a rule are judicial bodies, render ing judgment, making awards. Under any other circumstances they are mis named and without authority. But that is perhaps neither here nor there in the present instance. The subject matter, according to the program for this competition, must deal with some phase of the admin istration of justice in relation to con temporary American life—and in order that these panels may accord with others already under construction, the following themes are suggested: 1. Man—Justice toward labor. 2. Wom an—Emancipation of woman through suffrage. 3. Child—Protection of the child by child labor laws and old versus contemporary juvenile courts. What the competing artists will make out of these suggestions remains to be seen. Nowhere in the program of com petition is the suggestion made that a mural painting must, in the first place, be a decoration. But possibly that is so obvious that It is taken for granted. Also there is another rule that seems to have been overlooked, and that is that which is for all time —permanent placement—must be conditioned on universal truth if its interest is to endure as well as its significance. After all, why waste time and money recording contempo rary progress which will soon be out dated? Why not rather look to the future, and foreshadow our dreams— then would art lead us on to greater and finer achievement. Six painters have already been commissioned to execute murals for the Justice Department Building, and some of these panels are well under way. The names of the painters and the subjects that they are interpreting are given with the program of the new competition, as follows: George Biddle. “Tenement and sweat shop conditions versus society planned with Justice”; John Steuart Curry, "The movement of the population westward across the country, and the freeing of the slaves”; Leon Kroll, “The defeat of justice and the victory of justice”: Henry Vamum Poor, "Bureaus of prisons, pardons, customs, land of Jus tice Department” and “famous legal cases”; Boardman Robinson, “The great codifiers of the law, ancient, medieval and modern”; Maurice Sterne, “The search for truth and the history of Justice.” Sections of Mr. Biddle's murals, which are in true fresco and will, it is said, be finished during the coming Summer, have been emit* wiriclv nubllshed in rmrnrinrHnn Paintings of Washington At Studio House. THE exhibition of water colors by Robert Franklin Gates and of paintings and prints by Alice Ache son. which opened at Studio House with a private view on March 14, is strong, vital and subjectively interest ing. Nearly all of Mrs. Acheson’s works, and a number of Mr. Gates’, are views of Washington and vicinity. Mr. Gates shows river and land capes and street scenes, painted gen , erally in clear water color, dominated h by deep-toned browns, blues and greens, with heavy accents of black. Some visitors will doubtless discern a subtle undercurrent of humor in his paintings of Thomas and Scott Circles and Farragut Square. Active inci dental figures contrast in each case with the motionless statues sil houetted against the sky: uncon cerned hucksters and pedestrians in baggy trousers pass below the majestic figure of Gen. Thomas: children on velocipedes whirl around Scott, and a flock of pigeons picks up crumbs near Farragut, poised dramatically above his cannon. Mr. Gates' well-organized composition is easily discernible in such paintings as "St. Clair River,” a romantic night scene involving a steamer, a moon and its reflection on the water. A view of the Potomac River near Key Bridge and another at Great Falls are also shown. The far-reaching landscape in "North Fork Mountain,” with successive planes of hilly ranges, is reminiscent of the method of obtaining distance seen in ancient Chinese landscape paintings. In his country scenes, all of Mr. Gates’ farmers are so industrious, laboring over their hay in the* very “teeth” of an onrushing storm, or doing their "Spring Planting.” that one feels they deserve to be subsidized, if necessary. No loafers are portrayed in any of these paintings. Firemen are battling a "Fire at Dawn” with feverish energy, but the monstrous flame and smoke seem to be getting ahead of them. Mr. Gates’ ability to capture the ob server’s interest, characterizes nearly all the paintings in the current show. Some of them are in gouache, and the technique is varied according to the effect desired, but all the work is infused with vitality. Mrs Arhpsnn'* and Mr. Gates' naint ings make a very harmonious display, yet they are distinctly individual and could not possibly be confused as to origin. The majority of Mrs. Acheson’s paintings are in oUs, with a mat sur face. She achieves a decorative all over pattern effect with fresh colors, by avoiding extensive sky areas, even In her landscapes. In some instances she does this by painting a scene as though viewed from a slight elevation, thus omitting the sky; or she fills the sky space with tree branches or foliage so that only glimpses of it are visible. The figures in Mrs. Acheson's paint ings verge upon caricature, yet are so truthful that one recognizes them all. She has captured the jaunty angu larity of young Negroes’ walk in “Go ing Down the Road,” and in her “Market" she presents a gallery of “portraits” seen in any market place; the heavily-budgeted house wives, sharply examining the produce; the casual, well-fed market man; tne limpness of dead fowls laid out in decorative rows alongside the vege tables, and live chickens crowded into coops, pushing heads out here and there to pick up a stray grain. One should not* how the backs of grazing cows repeat the sloping angles of farm buildings in "Pasture.” There is a note of irony in the arresting “Fine Day.” interpreted by slum dwellers taking the air on their crowded door steps and miniature grass plots, witn their dogs and chickens, and children on “scooters.” Mrs. Acheson also shows a few woodcuts of Georgetown houses, beautifully cut, strong and in cisive. This exhibition will remain through March 28, affording residents of Washington an opportunity to view local scenes through the medium of A a building classical in design. The building is of gray glazed brick on a gray granite base. Seven thousand five hundred dollars will be paid for each of the panels in plaster, the Gov ernment furnishing material for the finished work and undertaking to have the model transformed into marble. The sketch model and the scale mod els. approved by the Director of Pro curement, shall, as well as the finished works, be the property of the Govern ment, together with copyright. The “Advisory Jury" for this competition 1 is made up of Lee Lawrie, Maurice Sterne, Paul Manship, Edward McCar- ' tan and the architect of the building, j Thomas Harlan Ellett. The four sculptors on this committee are all men of distinction. Exhibition of Etchings By J. T. Arms Extended. 'T'HE exhibition of etchings by John Taylor Arms, which was to have closed tomorrow afternoon, has been extended for another week. It has at tracted much favorable attention and several sales have been made. How ever, the record here has not equaled that of a similar exhibition In New York last Autumn, when 62 sales were made and one edition completely ex hausted. This interest and demand w’ould seem to show that wrorks of dis tinguished merit are appreciated, and that the public is ready to buy that which is really fine and has intrinsic beauty. Even a grotesque gargoyle may have these qualities through artis tic interpretation, as Mr. Arms himself has proved. in an article published in tne "Print Collector's Quarterly.” in 1934. Doro thy Arms said this about her husband and his work, which is so true that it is worth quoting and remembering: ‘‘John Taylor Arms, a modem mediev alist, is one of those men, born out of their times, who have been like re incarnations of an earlier age. • • • He is not concerned with the modern thought which feels that self can only be expressed by a ruthless disregard of the past and its traditions and that nothing is new save the bizarre and the grotesque. To him art is an end less chain, to which each sincere artist adds a link of his own individualism; and he personally is driven by an un conquerable force to recall beauty and the motives which brought that beauty into being. His prints are not slavish imitations of the actual physical as pects of existing structures. Instead, they rightly may be called spiritual reconstruction, in which are embodied all the faith or aspirations or thoughts of a far-away age. As he recreates he also creates, imbuing the ancient build ings he so loves with the medieval spirit which is, in the last analysis, the creative force of all times—the need to give lavishly of one’s self as the one significant offering worthy to be laid upon the altar of beauty.” It is for this reason that this etcher classed as a ‘‘supreme realist” pro duces works most appealing to idealists —primarily interpretative of feeling and spirit. Water Colors and Etchings At Arts Club. /GERTRUDE G. BROWN’S water colors, now on view in the gallery of the Arts Club, reveal not only her competent handling of her medium, but also her versatility in choice of subject matter, and a sensitive feeling for the distinctive quality of locale. Her 18 paintings ara rather evenly a such simple means as the height of her eucalyptus trees and the extent of sky visible beyond them. Several paintings of "Boothbay Harbor. Me ,” are infused with the tang of salt air, and the steepness of the land rising out of the water, with its precariously set houses. Deeper toned, warmer colors give the characteristic "feeling” of Charleston. S. C., in her paintings of "St. Andrews near Charleston,” "Pet's Place.” “South Carolina Cabin” and "Ha'nted.” The last-named is particularly engaging: moss-draped trees completely overarch a country road, along which a solitary Negro trudges. No glimmer of light in the distance disturbs the "spooky” mood of this lane of trees. "Pet's Place” is picturesque and colorful, its red roofs echoed in the red sweater and beret of a Negro girl. Miss Brown utilized the decorative quality of sea birds in her “Flying Gulls.” In “Break fast.” she depicted sparrows and other small birds fluttering down to get the seed scattered for them on a snowy morning, outside a kitchen door. She has made strong compositions out of commonplace industrial scenes, in "Rock Quarry” and "Steel Mills In leuui, zwiapuit. Miss Brown is a teacher of art at Central High School. In connection with her own work on view at the Arts Club,, it is interesting to see the work of some of her pupils now shown at the National Museum, in the public school art exhibition. Etchings by Margery Ryerson of New- York occupy the walls of the hall and reception room at the Arts Club. There are also included two water colors and two water-color etch ings. She is interested almost ex clusively in figures, particularly chil dren and their mothers, as was Mary Cassatt; but Miss Ryerson's manner is thoroughly her own. The “childish” quality of her children is to be noted in such details as backs of legs, set of heads, gestures of chubby hands. The simplicity of her little compositions and restrained use of her sensitive line are in harmony with the subject mat ter. Any one under the delusion that this delicate figure work betokens in ability to handle detailed subjects of other types need only look at the ex quisite rendering of the “White House." This plate was made for the Woman’s Republican party in New York State at the last election. II _ ■ r, p