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Literature.
reputation , and his engravings are still highly valued by connoisseurs . One of his most celebrated prints is after Rembrandt , " Cornelius the Centurion . " It was comparatively late in life when he became an academician , as he had taken up tho profession of painting when he was verging ou middle age . He adopted the profession , in which he established so great a reputation , against the advice of his friends . The success , however , which he gained as an animal painter was signal ; he
was what we should now call tho Landsecr of his day ; and , in the zenith of his reputation , earned his £ 50 , and sometimes £ 10 a day by his portraits of horses and bulls . Not content with mere animal painting , and being ambitious to distinguish himself iu high historic art , he competed for a large picture of the " Triumph of tho Duke of AVcllington , " painting a vast allegorical work ; and carried tho day over tho heads of Haydon and Hilton . This work is now in Chelsea Hospital for which
, institution it was painted . Alany of his early works resemble Atorlaud ' s in their general style ; but there was a humour and a touch in them peculiarly his own , tho evidenco of original and independent genius . Mr . AVard was at all times a most indefatigable student . Up to eighty years of age ho always rose at four o ' clock in the morning , and was in his study at that time . George tho Third was one of his most constant patrons ; for this sovereign he painted several works ; he was also
employed by George the Fourth . For many years past Mr . AVard had lived at Cheshunt , Herts , and up to a few years of his death he came to London regularly once a year at the time of tho Alay exhibitions . The work of his which the public of fifty years ago most admired , and tho ono which procured for him the general designation of the English Paul Potter , is tho marvellous picture of " The Bull , " which picture is now the chief attraction of the Crystal Palace picture gallery . A fine specimen
of his landscape faculty is tho work called " A Scene in Lord do Tabley ' s Park , " now in the Vernon collection . Outside of his artistic works , Mr . AVard was a man of gentle manners , of conspicuous personal accomplishments , and of profound piety . His death was peculiarly simple
aud tranquil . He died full of honour and fame , and has left behind him the memory of a good artist and a true gentleman . The death of Colins , the French socialist writer , has created a vacancy in tho ranks of the champions of tho weak against the strong . Colins was a retired officer of cavalry , who had left the service at an early age , disgusted with the falsehood of the military career , to devote himself exclusively to tho search after truth in the great question of the rights
and privileges of the working classes . The energy and industry he displayed havo left as their record more than forty volumes of manuscript . Theso are not to bo published for some years to come , the times not being ripe for tho disclosures ho has made therein . An Englishman has borne the expenses of the previous publications issued by Colins , and is left sole legatee of his unpublished works . It is generally thought that he will cause thorn to appear in English .
The following announcements appear in the Critic : — " At the time of his death , Leigh Hunt was collecting a complete and final edition of his poetical works . The greater portion of them received a finishing touch only a month previously to his death , aud it is much to be regretted that lie did not live to sec tho proof-sheets . The literary world , however , will [ not bo disappointed , as [ his son , Mr . Thornton Hunt , the
wellknown journalist , has finished tho work begun by his father . Air . Thornton Hunt has also contributed two now chapters to the new edition of his father ' s autobiography , published this week by Messrs . Smith , Elder , and Co . —Mr . J . C . llobiusou , tho author of 'AVhitefriars , ' has just completed a new novel , the subject of which is historical . It will not bo published before the spring . —Mr . J . Payne Collier , the scholar
Shakspcrian , has in the press a new and complete edition of tho works of Edmund Spenser . The work will bo published in the spring , by Messrs . Bell and Daldy , in their 'Aldine l ' oets . ' --Mr . Buckle has nearly ready for publication the second volume of his valuable ' History of Civilisation . ' In this volume the mode of arrangement is much superior to that adopted in tho previous volume . "
Fine Arts.
FINE ARTS .
THE ART UNION OF GLASGOAV . Tire annual selection of paintings , for which the discrimination ot the committee of this society is responsible , is now exhibited in in ! . "' n at tllC Vl < r toriil Cross Ga ]] ei'y of ti , c E gyptian Hall , and win ueii ropay a visit from the connoisseur . The number of the pictures is small-onl y Sixty--but the hi gh character which distinguishes the whole collection is such as to make a morning spent
in their examination a trul y pleasant task , and justifies completely the peculiar system of the society which prevents the absurd exhibitions of want of taste and ignorance of art which have ere now too frequently characterized the choice of the supporters of similar institutions who have been left to their own unaided judgment . The success of this Art Union is , to a great extent , due to the principle which it initiated and which has been adopted b the
y Crystal Palace Art Union and by other associations of the kind all over the country . Wc may for a moment remind our readers in what this principle consists , and how it differs from the original London society . AVhen , tben , the subscriber to the London Art Union is fortunate enough to hold a prize , ho is bound to choose the value of that- prize ( except in the case of statuettes , & c ., published by the society ) from one of the exhibitions of the
current year . Not so in the Glasgow Art Union . The society itself makes a collection of pictures , and the subscriber , instead of gaining a money ticket , as in the London Art Union , to be expended in the galleries already opened , wins a ri g ht of choice from the collection previously formed , the value of the prizes depending on the degree of priority which they confer . The consequences of this are that the pictures chosen by the Scotch committee of
taste with the advantage of connoissenrship , and with a view to their collective effect , have been generally above the average in quality at the prices , and the exhibition as a whole has become more attractive than its metropolitan precursor . Tho quality of the works exhibited this year in Piccadilly is decidedly excellent , yet there are few dear pictures . Let therefore those who have little confidence in their own knowledge of the value of pictures
, and who would make a safe investment , entrust the thrifty Scot to bargain with their guineas . But the connoisseur would of course prefer to have the power of choosing revert unrestrictedly to himself , and it is needless to add that there will be always a large number of persons who would as soon commission a second person to choose a wife as a picture . The first in nominal value of the works of art exhibited is
undoubtedly the picture of the most artistic excellence , and moreover the subject of it is Scottish , which description will apply to but few of the others . This is The Tod Hunter of Mr . E . Ansilcll , to which has been allotted the high prize of . £ 350 . The scene is a Highland moor , in the delineation of which the peculiarities of the national scenery have been happily transferred to canvas , and wc would especially commend the perspective and atmospheric
effect . For the figures wc need only say that they well sustain the character of the painter as a depieter of animal life , whose efforts in that walk of art have been excelled perhaps by none but his great countryman , Landscer . The principal figure represents a stalwart Hi g hlander , who stands with a remarkabl y fine specimen of the genus Eeynard slung across his shoulder ' , which in accordance [ with the custom of the sister kingdom , has fallen a
victim to the rifle of the sportsman , instead of terminating his career in the English orthodox style , with a field of mounted red coats to assist at his funeral obsequies . This hunter is surrounded , with gillies and ponies , hounds and terriers , iu the drawing and colour of which the truthfulness to natnre is equal to the spirit which characterises them . Mr . John Facd , U . S . A ., has two works which rank next in importance—these arc the Bedouin Arab Exchanging a Slave for Armour ( No . 4 ) , and Job ( No . 2 . ) The former of these , though not the highest classed , is in our
opinion , possessed of the greater merit ; the subject ( which certainly is not a pleasing one ) is admirabl y handled , and the painting , especially of the arms and drapery—masterly—the whole of the accessories indeed show evidence of great skill and study . The anxiety of the Nubian slave girl is touchingly expressed , and Oriental indifference of the barterers as to her sentiments on the occasion is felicitously shown . The other work , which represents
the patriarch brought to the earth in the greatness of his despair , and surrounded by his consolers—though marked by very great ability , is not so truthful in its expression , nor so happy in the general effect produced . The figure of the most patient of men is well conceived , and his attitude is grand in its misery—but the friends who surround him arc merely the same fine eastern half robed figures whom we have seen so often before—without any
particular variety of expression in the present instance . The sky too , which is represented as overcast in accordance with the poetical view of the subject , partakes more of the leaden coldness of a Scottish than the lurid heaviness of an Arabian storm . The Picnic ( No . G ) , by Mr . D . Pasmorc , represents a deli g htful forest scene , with a village church in the distance , and a merry group of revellers in the foreground . This is a capital picture , though not one of hi gh pretension ; both the landscape and figures are beautifully executed , and the humorous points presented by the subject , arc duly taken advantage of . The Tinkers ( R . M . Junes )
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Literature.
reputation , and his engravings are still highly valued by connoisseurs . One of his most celebrated prints is after Rembrandt , " Cornelius the Centurion . " It was comparatively late in life when he became an academician , as he had taken up tho profession of painting when he was verging ou middle age . He adopted the profession , in which he established so great a reputation , against the advice of his friends . The success , however , which he gained as an animal painter was signal ; he
was what we should now call tho Landsecr of his day ; and , in the zenith of his reputation , earned his £ 50 , and sometimes £ 10 a day by his portraits of horses and bulls . Not content with mere animal painting , and being ambitious to distinguish himself iu high historic art , he competed for a large picture of the " Triumph of tho Duke of AVcllington , " painting a vast allegorical work ; and carried tho day over tho heads of Haydon and Hilton . This work is now in Chelsea Hospital for which
, institution it was painted . Alany of his early works resemble Atorlaud ' s in their general style ; but there was a humour and a touch in them peculiarly his own , tho evidenco of original and independent genius . Mr . AVard was at all times a most indefatigable student . Up to eighty years of age ho always rose at four o ' clock in the morning , and was in his study at that time . George tho Third was one of his most constant patrons ; for this sovereign he painted several works ; he was also
employed by George the Fourth . For many years past Mr . AVard had lived at Cheshunt , Herts , and up to a few years of his death he came to London regularly once a year at the time of tho Alay exhibitions . The work of his which the public of fifty years ago most admired , and tho ono which procured for him the general designation of the English Paul Potter , is tho marvellous picture of " The Bull , " which picture is now the chief attraction of the Crystal Palace picture gallery . A fine specimen
of his landscape faculty is tho work called " A Scene in Lord do Tabley ' s Park , " now in the Vernon collection . Outside of his artistic works , Mr . AVard was a man of gentle manners , of conspicuous personal accomplishments , and of profound piety . His death was peculiarly simple
aud tranquil . He died full of honour and fame , and has left behind him the memory of a good artist and a true gentleman . The death of Colins , the French socialist writer , has created a vacancy in tho ranks of the champions of tho weak against the strong . Colins was a retired officer of cavalry , who had left the service at an early age , disgusted with the falsehood of the military career , to devote himself exclusively to tho search after truth in the great question of the rights
and privileges of the working classes . The energy and industry he displayed havo left as their record more than forty volumes of manuscript . Theso are not to bo published for some years to come , the times not being ripe for tho disclosures ho has made therein . An Englishman has borne the expenses of the previous publications issued by Colins , and is left sole legatee of his unpublished works . It is generally thought that he will cause thorn to appear in English .
The following announcements appear in the Critic : — " At the time of his death , Leigh Hunt was collecting a complete and final edition of his poetical works . The greater portion of them received a finishing touch only a month previously to his death , aud it is much to be regretted that lie did not live to sec tho proof-sheets . The literary world , however , will [ not bo disappointed , as [ his son , Mr . Thornton Hunt , the
wellknown journalist , has finished tho work begun by his father . Air . Thornton Hunt has also contributed two now chapters to the new edition of his father ' s autobiography , published this week by Messrs . Smith , Elder , and Co . —Mr . J . C . llobiusou , tho author of 'AVhitefriars , ' has just completed a new novel , the subject of which is historical . It will not bo published before the spring . —Mr . J . Payne Collier , the scholar
Shakspcrian , has in the press a new and complete edition of tho works of Edmund Spenser . The work will bo published in the spring , by Messrs . Bell and Daldy , in their 'Aldine l ' oets . ' --Mr . Buckle has nearly ready for publication the second volume of his valuable ' History of Civilisation . ' In this volume the mode of arrangement is much superior to that adopted in tho previous volume . "
Fine Arts.
FINE ARTS .
THE ART UNION OF GLASGOAV . Tire annual selection of paintings , for which the discrimination ot the committee of this society is responsible , is now exhibited in in ! . "' n at tllC Vl < r toriil Cross Ga ]] ei'y of ti , c E gyptian Hall , and win ueii ropay a visit from the connoisseur . The number of the pictures is small-onl y Sixty--but the hi gh character which distinguishes the whole collection is such as to make a morning spent
in their examination a trul y pleasant task , and justifies completely the peculiar system of the society which prevents the absurd exhibitions of want of taste and ignorance of art which have ere now too frequently characterized the choice of the supporters of similar institutions who have been left to their own unaided judgment . The success of this Art Union is , to a great extent , due to the principle which it initiated and which has been adopted b the
y Crystal Palace Art Union and by other associations of the kind all over the country . Wc may for a moment remind our readers in what this principle consists , and how it differs from the original London society . AVhen , tben , the subscriber to the London Art Union is fortunate enough to hold a prize , ho is bound to choose the value of that- prize ( except in the case of statuettes , & c ., published by the society ) from one of the exhibitions of the
current year . Not so in the Glasgow Art Union . The society itself makes a collection of pictures , and the subscriber , instead of gaining a money ticket , as in the London Art Union , to be expended in the galleries already opened , wins a ri g ht of choice from the collection previously formed , the value of the prizes depending on the degree of priority which they confer . The consequences of this are that the pictures chosen by the Scotch committee of
taste with the advantage of connoissenrship , and with a view to their collective effect , have been generally above the average in quality at the prices , and the exhibition as a whole has become more attractive than its metropolitan precursor . Tho quality of the works exhibited this year in Piccadilly is decidedly excellent , yet there are few dear pictures . Let therefore those who have little confidence in their own knowledge of the value of pictures
, and who would make a safe investment , entrust the thrifty Scot to bargain with their guineas . But the connoisseur would of course prefer to have the power of choosing revert unrestrictedly to himself , and it is needless to add that there will be always a large number of persons who would as soon commission a second person to choose a wife as a picture . The first in nominal value of the works of art exhibited is
undoubtedly the picture of the most artistic excellence , and moreover the subject of it is Scottish , which description will apply to but few of the others . This is The Tod Hunter of Mr . E . Ansilcll , to which has been allotted the high prize of . £ 350 . The scene is a Highland moor , in the delineation of which the peculiarities of the national scenery have been happily transferred to canvas , and wc would especially commend the perspective and atmospheric
effect . For the figures wc need only say that they well sustain the character of the painter as a depieter of animal life , whose efforts in that walk of art have been excelled perhaps by none but his great countryman , Landscer . The principal figure represents a stalwart Hi g hlander , who stands with a remarkabl y fine specimen of the genus Eeynard slung across his shoulder ' , which in accordance [ with the custom of the sister kingdom , has fallen a
victim to the rifle of the sportsman , instead of terminating his career in the English orthodox style , with a field of mounted red coats to assist at his funeral obsequies . This hunter is surrounded , with gillies and ponies , hounds and terriers , iu the drawing and colour of which the truthfulness to natnre is equal to the spirit which characterises them . Mr . John Facd , U . S . A ., has two works which rank next in importance—these arc the Bedouin Arab Exchanging a Slave for Armour ( No . 4 ) , and Job ( No . 2 . ) The former of these , though not the highest classed , is in our
opinion , possessed of the greater merit ; the subject ( which certainly is not a pleasing one ) is admirabl y handled , and the painting , especially of the arms and drapery—masterly—the whole of the accessories indeed show evidence of great skill and study . The anxiety of the Nubian slave girl is touchingly expressed , and Oriental indifference of the barterers as to her sentiments on the occasion is felicitously shown . The other work , which represents
the patriarch brought to the earth in the greatness of his despair , and surrounded by his consolers—though marked by very great ability , is not so truthful in its expression , nor so happy in the general effect produced . The figure of the most patient of men is well conceived , and his attitude is grand in its misery—but the friends who surround him arc merely the same fine eastern half robed figures whom we have seen so often before—without any
particular variety of expression in the present instance . The sky too , which is represented as overcast in accordance with the poetical view of the subject , partakes more of the leaden coldness of a Scottish than the lurid heaviness of an Arabian storm . The Picnic ( No . G ) , by Mr . D . Pasmorc , represents a deli g htful forest scene , with a village church in the distance , and a merry group of revellers in the foreground . This is a capital picture , though not one of hi gh pretension ; both the landscape and figures are beautifully executed , and the humorous points presented by the subject , arc duly taken advantage of . The Tinkers ( R . M . Junes )