Imágenes de páginas
PDF
EPUB
[graphic]

PLATE VII. Diogenes Throwing Away his Shell. Nicolas Poussin.

RE

UNIVE

CALIFOR

was Watteau, in France, who painted his 11684-1721. lovely dreams with a strange creative power, and placed the figures of the gay men and women of his fantasies in idyllic scenes of remarkable beauty and charming, sparkling colour. It is in these landscapes with their delicate effects of light and sunshine, and their suggestive quality, that his great gifts and careful study of nature are seen. His life was a short one and his constitution was weakened by constant ill-health. He seems to have painted these scenes of a fairy land where all are happy, and where sorrow and suffering enter not, as a contrast to his own experience and as a relief to his distressed heart.

Then the genius of art touches Constable and Turner in England. Constable was one of the creators and strong forces in the history of landscape. He was the first to give a real out-of-door, atmospheric appearance to his pictures, and he had a very vigorous and personal manner of painting. (See Plate 11.) Some of his pictures were exhibited in France and made a great impression there. A note in

1776-1837.

1775-1851.

Vol. I.

Ibid.

1798-1863. Delacroix' journal says that when he saw the Journal de Eugène pictures of Constable he sent for and comDelacroix." pletely changed his painting, "The Massacre of Scio," which was at the time being exhibited. And in 1847 he writes: "Constable dit que la superiorité du vert de ses prairies tient à ce qu'il est un composé d'une multitude de verts differents. Ce qu'il dit ici du vert des prairies peut s'appliquer à tous les autres tons." And again: "Constable, homme admirable, est une des gloires anglaises. Je vous en ai déjà parlé, et de l'impression qu'il m'avait produite au moment où je peignais le Massacre de Scio. Lui et Turner sont de véritables réformateurs. Ils sont sortis de l'ornière des paysagistes anciens. Notre école a grandement profité de leur example. Gericault était revenu tout étourdi de l'un des grands paysages qu'il nous a envoyés."

Ibid.

Delacroix and the other originators of the Romantic movement in France were very much impressed by the forceful work of Constable and at once adopted many of his principles. They were struck by the originality of his method, and he had a great effect on

[graphic]

PLATE VIII. Cephalus and Procris. Claude le Lorrain.

« AnteriorContinuar »