AR T THE New English Art Club is all that the
Academy ought to be At times I have been able to praise the Academy for the technical proficiency which was displayed on its walls ; I have condemned it as a devitalized piece of mechanism which failed to put the public in touch with what was taking place in modern art. Besides showing a technical efficiency equal, at least, to that of the Academy, the New English Art Club has also a vitality which the older body lacked. To judge from this Retrospective Exhibition at the Spring Gardens Gallery, Trafalgar Square, the New English has always been a fluid and dynamic society, ever revaluing its type in order that it might keep abreast of the times. Its slogan seems to have been, "toleration with dis- crimination." Some of its members, like Sir William Orpen, have consistently developed along a safe, technical line, others, like Mr. Ambrose, ,McEvoy, have had a deve- lopment of reaction, whilst others still show, that strong advance which comes of growth. The earlier ,work of Mr. McEvoy is executed with such meticulous yet uninspired care, that one feels his easy, haphazard and meaningless later work would be almost bound to burst upon him as a release, unless, of course, he had had a greater power of resistance. Mr. Albert Rutherston, on the other hand, shows a steady progression
towards a highly controlled and disciplined freedom which can be seen even in the small fan-shaped designs, Nos. 299 and 823. Professor Tonks has always combined a loose freedom of brushwork with a thorough organization of tonal values and design. Visitors to the exhibition will receive certain surprises ; certain preconceived notions concerning some of the artists will require readjustment. Reputations which were inclined to sag will again receive a new run of apprecia- tion. We have an opportunity of seeing what Mr. Augustus John could do in earlier days before he had grown careless by too easy applause. In the sureness of its draughtsmanship " Ardor " (50) recalls Holbein ; the manipulation of the pig- ment is reminiscent of Hals. Mr. Rothenstein has been, for long, associated with the painting of the figure, and perhaps to an even greater extent with drawings of celebrities ; yet here is a landscape painting of a tree, "St. Martin's Summer" (58), 'which has all that intensity of light and colour to obtain which the French Impressionists threw themselves over to all kinds of scientific formulae. In this respect it is interesting to compare Mr. Rothenstein's picture with the true-to-formulae " Notre Dame de Constance" (82a) of Mr. Lucien Pisarro. Through being hung above a doorway, and consequently being seen at the focal distance necessary for the proper inter- mingling of the jewel-like little dabs of colour in juxtaposition, this picture becomes merely insipid—the formula has defeated its purpose. What a much greater colourist than any of the French Impressionists was the late Mr. Harold Gilman! Although he has retained the juxtaposition of square touches of pigment, as in his "Mother and Child_ " (31), yet his colour harmony is extended to the large related masses of the whole picture. His work sings out a note of vitality and originality which is apparent in his design as well as his colour. Whistler's "Harmony in Red-Lamplight "(13) becomes a dull monotony in comparison with Mr. Gilman's resonant colour schemes. It is unfortunate that Sir C. J. Holmes is not seen at his best in this exhibition, for he is one of the finest water-colourists 'we have in England. Some of the younger men, too, are but poorly represented. In none of the works of Mr. Stanley Spenser does he do himself justice ; nor can Mr. Henry Lamb's talent be fully appreciated here. Mr. W. Roberts, whose large painting of Dock Gates (exhibited recently at the Chenil 'Gallery) stands out as one of the finest pieces of design in modern painting, shows three drawings, two of which, " Decapitations " (226) and " Shipping " (292), give some slight inkling of his potentiality.
Amongst the other interesting exhibits special notice should be taken of the work of Mr. Walter Sickert, Mr. Muirhead Bone, Mr. A. Neville Lewis, Miss Dorothy J. Coke, Messrs. -Paul and John Nash, and Mr. Ethelbert White.
It is to be hoped that the Club will find a permanent head- quarters in this pleasantly situated and suitable gallery.
W. MCCANCE. •
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