Sin 3rts.
CITY EXHIBITtON.
(28, Coartnm.)
Mzssits. Hayward and Leggatt's second annual show of modern pictures is in some respects better than that of last year. In a col- lection of nearly three hundred works, got up solely for the purpose of sale, and which by the variety in subject and often flimsy cha- racter of the paintings is evidently designed to suit all tastes and all pockets, it is only natural to suppose that the majority will bear palpable evidence of having been painted for a public whose notions of art are more remarkable for absence of taste than accuracy of per- ception. Accordingly, three-fourths of the works are composed of indifferent landscapes, inane female heads christened with Shaks- pearean and Tennysonian names, objectionable boys in pink and green jackets playing eternal games at marbles, an infusion of insipid Chelsea pensioners, and those singular representations of cottage life the originals of which are undiscoverable in the actual world. To these must be added a few old "shopkeepers" whose acquaintance we have already formed at the Royal Academy or the British Insti- tution years ago, and a sprinkling of works above the usual average which just serve to redeem the collection from utter sverrthlessness. A peculiar feature in a gallery of this kind is the number of "stifl life" pictures.' These things, so easy to paint, are just what strike the uneducated in art as works of the highest genius. If the object represented. be something eatable, an additional interest is excited. A Titian or a Raphael has no charms in the eyes of a country clown, but a tolerably truthful imitation of eggs with the accompaniment of a lump of well-streaked bacon appeals to his inmost sympathies. Thus, where pictures "of all prices" are congregated together, the proportion which aims at stimulating the physical appetite is more than usually conspicuous. In glancing through the catalogue such titles as "Ducks," "Plums," "Fruit," "Fruit and Cakes," "A Quiet Meal," &c., occur with frightful frequency, while the changes rung on grapes are almost instructive from their variety. First, simply "Grapes," then a combination of "Grapes with Plums," fol- lowed by "Black Grapes," "White Grapes," and " Hamboro Grapes." It will be a happy day when the pictorial game, fish, and fruit markets are overstocked, their products could in most cases be so easily spared from our exhibitions. Conspicuous amongst the few historical works here, is Mr. Cope's engraved picture, "The Departure of the Pilgrim Fathers." "Lati- mer preaching at St. Paul's-Cross to the City Authorities," by Sir George Hayter, is a tame, uninteresting group of portraits, wrought with a dull care, but displaying little pictorial capacity. Far better is "Mary Stuart hearing her Death-Warrant read," by Signor Angell. This work proclaims its foreign origin at once. The vigorous draw- ing, the concentrated effect of light and shade, the studied composi. tion and opaque sombre colour, are in direct contrast to the crude, gaudy pictures in its vicinity. The condemned queen sits calm and impassive, surrounded by her male and female attendants. To the right is Beale reading the warrant. Grouped around him are the Earls of Shrewsbury (gaily dressed in white and crimson), Derby, Kent, and Cumberland, Dr. Fletcher, the Dean of Peterborough, and the executioners. The expression and attitude of Mary are well chosen. The attendants are too demonstrative in their grief, and there is a deficiency of strongly marked character in the other figures. With these exceptions, this is a very praiseworthy work. Mr. G. L. Brown is an American artist of some repute, whose works are, I believe, exhibited now for the first time in London. Three pictures by him will be found here. The largest and best, "The Bay and City of New York," has been presented by the artist to the Prince of Wales. The view is taken from the New Jersey shore, the coast of Long Island appearing in the distance to the right. The time chosen is shortly after sunrise. The city already gives signs of activity in the smoke issuing from the tall factory chimneys, and the movements of the steamers and other craft in the mouth of the Hud- son. The sky is capitally and very truly painted, though it occupies too large a portion of the canvas; a nearer view of the city would have been desirable, the spectator deriving little information as regards its general aspect and features as the picture now stands. "The Crown of New England" and "View of Florence at Sun- set," prove that Mr. Brown has strong feeling for atmo- spheric effect, shown more particularly iii the latter, which is firmly and solidly executed though not without a taint of coarseness here and there. No exhibition would be complete without one or more specimens of the Williams family. Some dozen of their landscapes, all marked by that manufacturing clever- ness beyond which these artists have no ambition to go, may be dis- covered. Mr. Sidney Cooper sends "Cattle in a Landscape," which may or may not be a new work from his hand. In either case, it so exactly resembles many others that he has exhibited before as to call for no special remark. Mr. F. W. Moody contributes a very good interior, showing the "Choir Screen, St. Paul's Cathedral." "The Psalm" and "The Sermon" are a pair of characteristic pictures by Mr. J. Morgan. In the first, a country labourer in his Sunday best is joining in the choral service of the parish church with unrestrained energy ; his little daughter stands at his side. In "The Sermon," both, of courses are soundly asleep. Not so good, but still showing considerable aptitude for expression and individuality, is "The Village Doctor." He feels the pulse of a little girl whose tearful mother sits near. She is unnecessarily anxious, as the child, judging from her looks and the fact of her having walked to the doctor's, can have nothing very seriously the matter with her. The author of these little works must not be confounded with Mr. 31. P. Morgan, whose " Fish out of Water"—a sailor in a draper's shop buying silks for his sweetheart—is as improbable in conception as it is vulgar in treatment. Mr. Rossiter's "Dancing Lesson" has, I think, been previously exhibited. "The Portrait," is a young woman calling a boy's attention to a pictured similitude of some ancestor. Both figures are in the costume of the time of Charles II., and bear a striking resemblance to the son and mother in Mr. Ressiter's Academy picture of "Puritan Purifiers." The execution of this example is dainty and pleasing, but the figures lack grace and movement. The name of Mrs. Rossiter must now be added to the list of female painters. If "Liitle Nell" be her first effort at picture-making, it promises well for the future. "The Penitent," a wayward but sub- dued child praying at its mother's knee, by Miss Blunden, is tender and quiet in feeling. Mr. M. Claxton is always imitating some well- known painter, but always at a respectful distance. He has recently been devoting his attention to Mr. Phillip, of whose works " Spanish Lovers" is a feeble imitation. "An Awkward Pause," by Mr. C. Earles, is one of the most singular productions in the room. A girl in a lavender dress, and a man with thin ragged whiskers, stand by a window. Another female, very common-place in character, sits at a table near, staring into vacancy. The man looks simply idiotic. What it all means it is impossible to say. "Styrian Peasants re- turning from Market" is a pretty notion, by Mr. J. E. Hodgson. Two peasants, male and female, are paddling a quaintly shaped boat. They have placed their two-year-old child in a sort of tub at the prow, in order that he may not in an unlucky moment fall overboard. As their heads come together in the action of rowing, they regard the infant with rough parental pride. A head and bust of a young girl, entitled "Devotion," by Mr. Chaplin, is well drawn and modelled with some good passages of colour, though the head suggests the coquette rather than the devotee. Mr. Holiday's "Burgess of Calais," exhibited at the Academy some two years back, though hard and dry in execution, is thoughtful and painstaking.
DRY POINT.
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