The Gentle Art of Making Enemies Part 27

He is not guilty, this honest a.s.sociate! It was _I_, Atlas, who did this thing--"alone I did it"--_I_ "hand-painted" this room in the "mansion of modern construction."

Woe is me! _I_ secreted, in the provincial shipowner's home, the "n.o.ble bird with wings expanded"--_I_ perpetrated, in harmless obscurity, "the finest specimen of high-art decoration"--and the Academy is without stain in the art of its member. Also the immaculate character of that Royal body has been falsely impugned by this wicked "_Plumber_"!

Mark these things, Atlas, that justice may be done, the innocent spared, and history cleanly written.

_Bon soir!_

Chelsea.

[Ill.u.s.tration]

_Early Laurels_

_TO THE EDITOR:_

[Sidenote: _The Observer_, April 11, 1886.]

Sir--In your report of the Graham sale of pictures at Messrs. Christie and Manson's rooms, I read the following:

"The next work, put upon the easel, was a 'Nocturne in blue and silver,' by J. M. Whistler. It was received with hisses."

May I beg, through your widely spread paper, to acknowledge the distinguished, though I fear unconscious, compliment so publicly paid.

It is rare that recognition, so complete, is made during the lifetime of the painter, and I would wish to have recorded my full sense of this flattering exception in my favour.

Chelsea.

[Ill.u.s.tration]

_A Further Proposition_

[Sidenote: _Art Journal_, 1887.]

The notion that I paint flesh lower in tone than it is in nature, is entirely based upon the popular superst.i.tion as to what flesh really is--when seen on canvas; for the people never look at nature with any sense of its pictorial appearance--for which reason, by the way, they also never look at a picture with any sense of nature, but, unconsciously from habit, with reference to what they have seen in other pictures.

Now, in the usual "pictures of the year" there is but one flesh, that shall do service under all circ.u.mstances, whether the person painted be in the soft light of the room or out in the glare of the open. The one aim of the unsuspecting painter is to make his man "stand out"

from the frame--never doubting that, on the contrary, he should really, and in truth absolutely does, stand _within_ the frame--and at a depth behind it equal to the distance at which the painter sees his model. The frame is, indeed, the window through which the painter looks at his model, and nothing could be more offensively inartistic than this brutal attempt to thrust the model on the hither-side of this window!

Yet this is the false condition of things to which all have become accustomed, and in the stupendous effort to bring it about, exaggeration has been exhausted--and the traditional means of the incompetent can no further go.

Lights have been heightened until the white of the tube alone remains--shadows have been deepened until black alone is left.

Scarcely a feature stays in its place, so fierce is its intention of "firmly" coming forth; and in the midst of this unseemly struggle for prominence, the gentle truth has but a sorry chance, falling flat and flavourless, and without force.

The Master from Madrid, himself, beside this monster success of mediocrity, would be looked upon as mild: _beau bien sure, mais pas "dans le mouvement"_!

Whereas, could the people be induced to turn their eyes but for a moment, with the fresh power of comparison, upon their fellow-creatures as they pa.s.s in the gallery, they might be made dimly to perceive (though I doubt it, so blind is their belief in the bad), how little they resemble the impudent images on the walls! how "quiet" in colour they are! how "grey!" how "low in tone." And then it might be explained to their riveted intelligence how they had mistaken meretriciousness for mastery, and by what mean methods the imposture had been practised upon them.

[Ill.u.s.tration]

_An Opportunity_

Cher Monsieur--M. ---- m'a remis votre pet.i.te planche--port d'Amsterdam avec une epreuve. Elle est charmante et je serais fort heureux de la faire paraitre dans l'article consacre a vos eaux fortes. Seulement, je crois que vous avez mal interprete ma demande et que par le fait nous ne nous entendons pas bien. Vous me demandez 63 guinees pour cette planche, soit plus de 2000 francs, outre que le prix depa.s.se celui de la planche la plus chere parue dans la _Gazette_ depuis sa fondation, y compris les chefs-d'oeuvre de Jacquemart et de Gaillard, il n'est pas dans les habitudes de la maison, de payer les planches d'artistes qui accompagnent un compte-rendu de leur oeuvre.

C'est ainsi que nous avons agi avec Meryon, Seymour Haden, Edwards, Evershed, Legros, &c.

Du reste, la planche pourrait rester votre propriete. Nous vous la remettrions apres avoir fait notre tirage. Il est entendu qu'elle serait acieree.

Si ces conditions vous agreent, cher monsieur, je me ferai un vrai plaisir de faire dans la _Gazette_ un article sur votre beau talent d'aquafortiste. Dans le cas contraire, je me verrais avec mille regrets, dans la necessite de vous renvoyer la planche que je me fusse fait cependant un veritable honneur de publier.

Veuillez agreer, cher monsieur, l'expression de mes meilleurs sentiments.

LE DIRECTEUR de la _Gazette des Beaux-Arts_.

PARIS, le 12 Juin 1878.

_The Opportunity Neglected_

Cher Monsieur--Je regrette infiniment que mes moyens ne me permettent pas de naitre dans votre Journal.

L'article que vous me proposez, comme berceau, me couterait trop cher.

Il me faudrait donc reprendre ma planche et rester inconnu jusqu'a la fin des choses, puisque je n'aurais pas ete invente par la _Gazette des Beaux Arts_.--Recevez, Monsieur,

[Ill.u.s.tration]

_Nostalgia_

[Sidenote: Extract from a letter _a propos_ of Mr.

Whistler's contemplated visit to his native land.]