THIS delightful exhibition reopened on Wednesday, with two new views,—
Mount St. Gothard, and the Interior of Rheims Cathedral; the former painted by Mons. DkOUERILE, the latter by Mons. Borrow. The view of Mount St. Gothard is taken from the town of Faido, in the Val Levantine, and exhibits the Passage aux Roches, winding round the side of Mount Piotino, and crossing the Tersin over the bridge of Azio-Grande, which forms a pleasing object in the picture. On the left are seen the summits of Val Bedretto, and in the distance part of the snow-crowned head of Mount St. Gothard. The view presented to the spectator is one of the most strik- ing zoints in the romantic scenery which characterizes this pass of the Alps : on either side stupendous cliffs rise precipitously to a fearful height, forming a chasm of unfathomable depth, into which the Tersin falls in picturesque cascades ; the principal one under the bridge being shown in motion, while the murmuring sound of the distant dashing of the water heightens the effect and vraisemblance. This beautiful representation of one of the grandest scenes in nature, has the effect of bringing the reality before the eye so vividly as to excite those emotions and raise up those associations which a contemplation of the actual scene would produce in the mind ; such truth, force, and feeling is there in the picture. The interior of Rheims Cathedral is a perfect illusion : the simple grandeur of the clustered columns, and the richly painted windows "casting a dim religious. light" upon.the high altar, are not merely accurate resemblances, but the objects themselves seem to be placed before you. It is not only the stain of a lamp on the shaft, and the rust of damp on the base of a pillar, but the effects of light upon the smooth white surface—the reflection of the stained glass upon the marble floor and the side aisles—that aid in the deception. These minutia do not, however, interfere with the general effect : they are not mere con- ductors to the senses—pictorial clap-traps—but parts of the whole, which the consummate skill of the artist renders equally interesting with the grandeur and solemnity of the more important details. These two pictures have deprived us alike of the power and opportunity of finding fault with them : there is nothing to which we can except—no part where we could suggest an improvement.
Previous page
