FINE ARTS.
THE GERMAN SCHOOL OF PAINTING : MR. HENSEL'S PICTURES.
THE descliptions given of the magnificent galleries of painting and sculpture erected by the King of Bavaria at Munich, the Glyp- tutlick and Pinucothek, and the glowing account we read in Mrs. JAMESON'S " Visits and Sketches" of the frescoes that adorn them, make us curious to see the glories of the Vatican emu- lated by the Gothic school of painting. That SCHNORR, Coa- NELIPS, and OVERRECK have as far surpassed their predecessors, VAN EYE, ALBERT DURER, and HOLBEIN, RS MICHAEL ANGELO and RAFFAELLE transcended the illustrious founders of the Italian school, CINIABUE and Giorro, is not to be supposed ; but it is something for them to have raised the character of the modern German school to the level of its contemporaries—a merit which, notwithstanding the sneer- ing depreciation of their efforts by the portrait-painting President of our Royal Academy, they may justly claim. It is impossible to form any thing like an adequate idea of the designs of these frescoes, or the slightest notion whatever of their colouring, from the outlines that have found their way into this country ; but the general character of German art may be deduced from the lithographs and etchings that one meets with in print-shops. From these we infer, that the dry, hard, quaint style of the Gothic age of art, as seen in Asserts. DUltER, and also in the works of the early Italian painters, still prevaile in Germany ; though modified by the study of classic sculpture and the pictures of the great Indian masters. In their acquaintance with the skeleton or framework of the art—drawing and composition—they equal the French ; and in the spiritual part—the expression of character and sentiment—we think them superior to every other school. The devotional feeling, earnestness of intention, and patient elaboration, which give such value to the crude and meagre attempts of the early painters, are in the Germans joined to simplicity of character and learned exactness of perception ; and the combination produces effects the very opposite of the morbid affec- tation and theatrical display of the French school. You never take up a German print but you feel that the artist had his heart in his work, and meant even more than he was able to express. This is the great charm of all pictures ; wanting which, the strongest talent is powerless to interest the mind and excite the feelings, however it may dazzle the senses : it is what renders the homeliest efforts of the Germans at- tractive, as the want of it neutralizes the most ambitious efforts of the French, and makes their bold dexterity and dashing facility seem hollow and lifeless.
From the remarks of Mrs. JAMESON on the frescoes at Munich, and the imperfectly-expressed opinions of travellers, coupled with our own limited observation, we infer that in colouring and chiaroscuro the Ger- mans are very deficient—as much so alt the French ; and that the too strongly pronounced outline gives to their paintings a flatness and rigi- dity very repulsive to our taste; and, indeed, opposed to all that is most beautiful and attractive in painting. The predominance of out- line is sufficiently evident in their drawings and the engravings from their pictures : how gracefully RETZSCH has turned this defect to ad- vantage in his picturesque outlines, is well known ; and he is but one, though the most popular, of many who excel in a similar style. Entertaining these opinions of German art formed, we freely admit, from very slight and insufficient knowledge of its productions— we were much gratified by seeing lately two or three pictures by a German painter of some celebrity at present in London—Mr. WILLIAM HENSEL, painter to the King of Prussia, a brother-in-law of MENDELS.SOHN the composer. One of them in particular, "Miriam Singing the Triumph of the Israelites over the Host of Pharaoh," struck us by its purity and brilliancy of colour and the solidity of the painting, in which the artist has emulated the Italian itnpasto. These are qualities that we did not expect to find in the works of a German artist. Mr. HENSEL'S style of colouring, however, we consider to be an exception ; and we are confirmed in this supposition by his frank reply to a remark on this point, that he had been greatly indebted to the English school in his study of colour and effect. Miriam, followed by two virgins with timbre' and harp, and preceded by a lovely boy, are the principal figures in the picture ; the rest of the train and the assembled Israelites filling the middle distance ; while Moses and Aaron stand on a rock above, overlooking the sea that is strewed with the wreck of the Egyptian host. The grace and beauty of Miriam and her attendants is quite classic, as is their costume, with the superaddition of some Oriental gorgeousness ; and combined with this ideal elegance of form, is expression of a really intense kind : Miriam, as she casts up her fine dark eyes to heaven,-while she beats the timbrel, looks like one rapt with holy fervour. The execution is highly wrought, and the minutest points of propriety in the incidents and accessories are ob- served. The composition is perhaps too crowded ; and this is more evident from the want of gradation of tone to give the effect of atmosphere between the near and the more distant figures. The pro- minent forms are round and well relieved, without a cutting out- line; but the consequence of too much elaboration of the remote objects is a want of perfect keeping.
In speaking of the colouring of this picture as superior to what we had expected from the German school, ( Mr. HE.NSEL'S mo- desty will shrink from the position in which accident has here placed him, of exemplar of the genius of his countrymen,) we would not be supposed to instance it as an example of what is understood by the term "fine colouring." The rich harmony of tone and breadth of effect that give an air of repose and solemn beauty to the most gor- geous assemblage of hues, as seen in the works of TITIAN and Palm VERONESE, and that impart splendour and brillancy to the most sober tints of REMBRANDT andCon Recto, are only attainable by a long course of study and practice, and require, moveover, an intuitive feeling for the beauties of colour and chiaroscuro. If these refinements of art are reducible to system, the employment of them to en imaginative pur- pose belongs only to genius ; which raises colour and effect from the con- dition of mere ornamental aids to eye-pleasing, to an essential part of the sentiment of the subject. Here the German school is as yet, we conceive, entirely to seek ; and English artists are but on the lowest step of this golden ladder to the glorious summit of painting. We are far from thinking that knowledge of form and correctness of outline are incompatible with supreme excellence in colour; though the two facul- ties on which they depend are rarely found together in an equal degree of power and activity, and the exclusive attention of" schools" is too often given to one at the expense of the other : but whether the genius of the Germans will take the direction of colour, is a question that has yet to be answered. The three leading designers of the present German school appear to be SCHNORII, CORNELIUS, and OVERBECK. Mrs. JAMESON'S estimate of Justus SCHNORR is very high ; and the few fragments of his works that we have seen—especially those from his Illustrations of the Niche. lungen, (the German national epic,) in the Palace at Munich, entitle him to rank as the greatest history painter of his day. The gigantic forms and robust proportions of his figures, characteristic of the heroes of the Teutonic race, are boldly developed, and relieved by attitudes easy and graceful, nobly expressive of the repose of power, and almost reaching the material sublime. CORNELIUS, whose designs from Faust
are quaint and fantastic to grotesqueness, and whose chivalric heroes have a grim sternness and less romantic elegance than those of SCHNORR, in his treatment of classical subjects evinces a perception of antique beauty and statuesque purity that is extraordinary in an artist who seems to revel in the dry Gothic manner. OVERBECK'S Scriptural designs are imbued with a devotional spirit art with him seems • religious exercise. The grave solemnity of his men, the meek sweetness of his women, and the seraphic grace and fervour of hiss& gels, remind one of the ecclesiastical painters of the early Italian sehool. He snatches a grace from RAFFAELLE ; btlt, indepelldehtly nr meagre style, he has none of the dramatic force and variety, the re; jesty and grandeur, of the divine painter. In the expression 0 adore: tion, sorrow, pity, melancholy, and the more tender emotions, he h
most successful. Of the merits of these artists i
, however, in depiefil individual character and expressing emotion, it s hardly possible tie judge from imperfect copies of their pictures ; and our knowledge°, them is limited to the lithographs and etchings that we have met with in looking over the portfolios of Mr. SCHLOSS, of Great Russell Street, who obligingly facilitated our search. The talent of BENDERANN LESSING, SCHADAW,ZIMMERMAbl, and others, we have not the roma: of estimating. The most original inventions of German art are the arabesques NEUREUTHER, and others of the Dusseldorf school ; in which the foliage of the scroll.work luxuriates in all the redundancy of mute. and the figures, instead of hippogriffs and chimeras, are human being; in the costume of the scene they illustrate. With these remands arabesques the galleries at Munich are embellished ; and many popuh, German ballads have been also illustrated in this style. A deep border of fantastic devices of flowers and tendrils, peopled with birds and animals, surrounding a verse or two of the ballad, form, a setting for a variety of delightful little designs : these are ells racterized either by homely simplicity or poetic fancy, a style classical or romantic, and humour jovial, pathetic, or comical, as the occasion may require ; and they are drawn with facility and gusto. These picturerque novelties, especiatly one with the title of Lieder and Bilder, are rely popular in this country. A similar work, taking a wider range of Get. man poetry, has been commenced by SONDERLAND alone. Trani- lations of the text would be an acceptable addition to the English pur- chaser. The English taste for German prints is a favourable symp. tom, and will do much to counteract the injurious influence of French art ; which, beyond croquis and caricature, has little reel worth. Among single prints, the pensive grace and beauty of the Tiro Ito. sores, by CARL SOHN, the quiet humour of The Cardplagers, by CAM. SCRIM:EDER, and the painfully.distinct expression of the various charm ters of madness in The Madhouse, by KAUI.BACII, impressed us most forcibly. But as a general observation, we should say that a certain formal precision prevails in all; which, in the scenes from common life, bas the effect of stamping the national character more strongly on them, so that the people as well as the art of Germany are brought before you.
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