File:Great pictures, as seen and described by famous writers (1899) (14804672543).jpg

Identifier: greatpicturesassx00sing (find matches)
Title: Great pictures, as seen and described by famous writers
Year: 1899 (1890s)
Authors: Singleton, Esther, d. 1930, ed. and tr
Subjects: Painting
Publisher: New York : Dodd, Mead and Company
Contributing Library: Boston Public Library
Digitizing Sponsor: Internet Archive

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Art than to represent byany human medium this transcendent manifestation of thesuperhuman character of the Redeemer. It has beenattempted but seldom, and of course, however reverent andpoetical the spirit in which the attempt has been made, ithas proved, in regard to the height of the theme, only amiserable failure. I should observe, however, that theearly artists hardly seem to have aimed at anything beyonda mere indication of an incident too important to be whollyomitted. In all these examples the representation of avisible fact has been predominant, the aim in the mind ofthe artist being to comply with some established conven-tional or theological rule. Only in one instance has the vision of heavenly beati-tude been used to convey the sublimest lesson to humanity,and thus the inevitable failure has been redeemed nobly, or,we might rather say, converted into a glorious success. When Raphael, in the last year of his life, was com-missioned by the Cardinal de Medici to paint an altar-
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The Transfiguration. Raphael. THE TRANSFIGURATION 251 piece for the Cathedral of Narbonne, he selected for hissubject the Transfiguration of our Lord. Every one knows that this picture has a world-widefame j it has, indeed, been styled the greatest picture inthe world; it has also been criticised as if Raphael,the greatest artist who ever lived, had been here unmindfulof the rules of Art. But it is clear that of those whohave enthusiastically praised or daringly censured, few haveinterpreted its real significance. Some have erred in igno-rantly applying the rules of Art where they were in norespect applicable. Others, not claiming to know anything,or care anything about rules of Art, insisting on their rightto judge what is or is not intelligible to them, have givenwhat I must needs call very absurd opinions about whatthey do not understand. It has been objected by one setof critics that there is a want of unity, that the picture isdivided in two, and that these two parts not only do

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