File:Art in America; a critical and historical sketch (1880) (14782922145).jpg

Identifier: artinamericacri00benj (find matches)
Title: Art in America; a critical and historical sketch
Year: 1880 (1880s)
Authors: Benjamin, S. G. W. (Samuel Greene Wheeler), 1837-1914
Subjects: Art, American Art
Publisher: New York, Harper & Brothers
Contributing Library: Smithsonian Libraries
Digitizing Sponsor: Smithsonian Libraries

View Book Page: Book Viewer
About This Book: Catalog Entry
View All Images: All Images From Book
Click here to view book online to see this illustration in context in a browseable online version of this book.

Text Appearing Before Image:
In this admirable school Mr. Hicks became anexcellent colorist, although of late his art has appeared to lose some of thisquality. He has painted landscape and genre, meeting with respectablesuccess in the latter, but portraiture has chiefly occupied his attention.His portrait of General Meade is a striking and satisfactory work. Thenthere was Richard Caton Woodville, who followed Whittredge to Diissel-dorf, and promised much in genre. His paintings show very decided AMERICAN PAINTERS. 87 traces of German influence, but behind it all was a strung individualitythat seemed destined to assert itself, and to place him among our fore-most painters. But lie died young, and (shall we not say?) happily forhim, since little fame and less appreciation are destined to the artistswho come ere the people are ripe for their art. George B. Flagg at onetime promised well for our genre art, but his abilities were too precocious,and unfortunately the splendid opportunities he enjoyed as a pupil of All-
Text Appearing After Image:
WHOO ! (WILLIAM H. BEARD.) ston, and as a long resident in London, do not seem to have been suffi-cient to give growth or permanence to his talents. About this time our frontier life was coming more prominently intoview, and that picturescpie border line between civilization and barbarismwas becoming a subject for the pen of our leading writers. Irving, Coo-per, and Kennedy, Street, Whittier, and Longfellow, were tuning the firstefforts of their Muse to celebrate Indian life and border warfare in proseand verse, while the majestic measures of Bryants Prairies seemed aprophetic prelude to the march of mankind toward the lands of the set- 88 ART IN AMERICA. ting sun. Evangeline, the most splendid result of our poetic literature,attracted not less for its magnificent generalizations of the scenery ofthe West than for the constancy of the heroine, and the artistic mindresponded in turn to the unknown mystery and romance of that vastregion, and gave us graphic pictures of the rude humanity

Note About Images