Skip to main content

Full text of "Guido Reni"

See other formats 


SEPTEMBER,  1903 


GUIDO  RE^ 


PRK  E,  15  CENTS 


in; 


ri  D 


UC-NRLF 


V- 


\ 


\ 


K*^ttle!gi:affllustratE(iiIi0noj5raBj3 


J§3uelil&pntl)lu, 


GUIDO  RENI 


PART  45' 


'VOLUME  4 


MASTE  R  S    IN    ART 


THE       T    ^^^s 

PCIANS  llBRARY 

Just  Published 

JOHANNES  BRAHMS 

Edited  by       FORTY     SONGS       James  Huneker 

Issued  in  Thuo  Editions.        For  High  Voice.        For  Lotv  Voice. 

In  pa.per,  ea.ch,  $1.50.        In  cloth,  gilt,  $2.50,  post-paid. 
Contains  a  superb  portrait  of  Brahms,  a  biographical  and  critical  introduction  of 
rare  sympathy,  insight,  and  charm,  and  158  pages  of  music,  folio  size. 

No  lover  of  noble  song  can  do  without  this  unique  volume.    It  has  no  rival  in  Europe 
or  America  and  presents  the  very  cream  of  the  great  modem  song  composer's  work. 


«» 


Musicians  Library  Booklet,  with  list  of  Editors  and  J'olumeSy  sent  on  request. 

OLIVER  DITSON  COMPANY.  BOSTON 

Chas.  H.  Ditson  Qi.  Co.,  New  York  J.  E.  Ditson  (Si.  Co..  Philadelphia 


df 


BRAUN'S 
CARBON 
PRINTS 


FINEST  and  MOST  DURABLE 
IMPORTED    WORKS   of  ART 

ONE  HUNDRED  THOUSAND 
direct  reproductions  from  the  original 
paintings  and  drawings  by  old  and  modern 
masters.  If  Our  world-renowned  publica- 
tions of  the  most  celebrated  masterpieces  by 
Titian  number  300;  by  Holbein,  4005 
by  VELAsciUEE,  150;  by  Rembrandt, 
400  ;  etc.,  etc.  \  Illustrated  extract  from 
our  General  Catalogue  sent  on  application  ; 
price,  50  cents  (free  to  educational  institu- 
tions).    ^  Special  terms  to  schools. 

BRAUN,  CLEMENT  &  CO. 

249  Fifth  Avenue,   cor.    28th  Street 

NEW  YORK  CITY 

No  other  branch  house  in  America. 
Special  terms  to  schools,  architects,  and  decoratMS. 


Luxurious 

Travel 


Pointy 


of  excellence  in  a  Railway  Journey  are 

Good  Roadbeds 
Fast  Schedules 
Comfortable  Coaches 
Palatial  Sleepers 
Efficient  Dining-Car  Service 

and  these  are  some  of  the  Points  in   which  the 

Bosto?i  &f  Albany  R,  R. 

excels  in  its  train  service  from  Boston  and  the 
New  England  Territory  to  the  West. 

For  rates,  schedules,  etc.,  address 
A.  S.   HANSON,  G.  P.  A.  BOSTON 


In  answering  advertisements,  please  mention  Masters  in  Art 


MASTERS   IN  ART 


1*9^ 


jleto  93ooI^s  B^elattns  to  iLttcrature  anti  Srt  ^ 


AIDS  TO 
THE   STUDY 
OF  DANTE 

By 
CHARLES  A.  DINSMORE 

Illustrated.  Large  crown  8v<), 
gilt  top,  J1.50,  ntv.  Postage 
extra. 

The  purpose  of  this  book  is 
to  gather  into  one  volume  the 
best  that  has  been  written  about 
the  great  Florentine  poet  —  the 
literature  with  which  every 
Dante  student  must  be  familiar. 

WITNESSES  OF 
THE  LIGHT 

By 

WASHINGTON  GLADDEN 

l2mo.    Illustrated.    ^1.25  net. 

Postage  extra. 

Popular  studies  of  Hugo, 
Wagner,  Michelangelo,  etc. 


COMMENTS  OF 

JOHN   RUSKIN   ON  THE 

DIVINA  COMMEDIA 

Compiled  by  GEORGE  P.  HUNTINGTON 

With   an   Introduction   by   Charles    Eliot   Norton. 

Crown  8vo,  §1.25,  net.     Postage  extra. 

The  pass.iges  here  collected  constitute  a  com- 
prehensive account  of  Dante's  work,  and  are  of 
exceptional  interest  to  students  of  Dante  as  well  as 
to  readers  of  Ruskin. 

ESSAYS  ON  GREAT 
WRITERS 

By  HENRY  D.  SEDGWICK,  Jr. 

Crown  8vo,  $1.50,  net.     Postage  extra. 
Nine  sound  and  spirited  essays  dealing  with  Ma- 
caulay,  Thackeray,  Scott,  etc. 

HILL  TOWNS  OF  ITALY 

By  EGERTON  R.  WILLIAMS,  Jr. 

8vo,  ^3.00  net.     Postage  extra. 
A  description  of  the  wonderfully   picturesque  re- 
gions of  Central  Italy,  sumptuously  illustrated  from 
a  series  of  striking  photographs. 


THE  GREAT 
POETS  OF 
ITALY 

By 

Professor  OSCAR  KUHNS 

Illustrated.  Large  crown  8vo, 
;S2.oo,  net.  Postage  extra. 
A  clear,  readable  handbook 
of  Italian  poetry,  with  transla- 
tions of  the  most  brilliant  pis- 
sages  and  a  discussion  of  their 
authors. 


THE 

CHRIST  STORY 

By  EVA  MARCH  TAPPAN 

Crown  8vo.  Illustrated.    $1.50 

net.     Postage  extra. 

An  account  of  the  Saviour's 
life  written  for  little  children. 
With  many  reproductions  of 
famous  pictures. 


Houghton,  Mifflin  &  Company,  Boston,  Mass. 


THE  INTERNATIONAL  STUDIO 


Special  Summer 
Number,     1903 


4T0,    Wrappers 
Price,    %z   Net 


Now    Ready 
Order  at  Once 


iWti8ter0  of 

THIS  volume  surveys  pictorially,  by  means  of  profuse  illustrations,  both  coloured 
and  black-and-white,  and  also  textually,  by  means  of  separate  essays,  the  work  of 
three  of  the  most  eminent  and  representative  of  the  English  school  of  landscape-painters. 

JOHN  SELL  COTMAN,  DAVID  COX,  and  PETER  DEWINT 

IT  would  be  hard  to  find  three  landscape-painters  or  one  period  with  styles  that  offer 
such  marked  and  pleasing  contrasts,  ranking  both  as  water-colourists  and  as  oil- 
painters.  Cotman  is  treated  of  by  Lawrence  Binyon,  David  Cox  by  A.  L.  Baldry,  and 
Dewint  by  Walter  Shaw  Sparrow.  The  volume  contains  over  160  black-and-white 
cuts  and  20  full-page  colour  plates.    Order  from' your  bookseller,  or  from 


JOHN  LANE 


THE  BODLEY  HEAD 
67  Fifth  Avenue 


NEW  YORK 


In  answering  advertisements,  please  mention  Masters  in  Art 


MASTERS    IN     ART 


ASTERS  IN  MUSIC,'  which  has  recently  appeared,  has  been 
hailed  by  musicians,  the  press,  and  by  music-lovers  in  general, 
as  an  unqualified  success.  It  treats  of  the  great  musicians  of 
the  world  in  the  same  general  fashion  as  'Masters  in  Art'  treats 
of  its  painters.  The  first  (January)  issue  had  for  its  subject 
Mozart;  the  second  (February)  Chopin;  the  third  (March)  Gounod;  the 
fourth  (April)  Mendelssohn;  the  fifth  (May)  Grieg;  the  sixth  (June)  Raff; 
the  seventh  (July)  Verdi;  and  the  eighth  (August)  considered 


"^  iiaijttn  ^ 


and  contains  a  Portrait  of  Haydn  from  an  Engraving  after  a  Painting  by 
Rosier;  a  Life  of  Haydn  by  the  Editor;  Criticisms  on  Haydn's  Art,  by  the 
Editor,  Dwight,  Parry,  Hadden,  and  Runciman;  a  Haydn  Bibliography;  a 
brief  Classified  List  of  his  Works;  and  Editorial  Notes  on  the  Following 
Selections,which  are  given  in  full,  comprising  thirty-two  pages  of  piano  music: 
I.  Sonata  in  E-minor;  First  Movement.  II.  The  'Surprise'  Symphony;  First 
Movement.  III.  The  'Surprise'  Symphony;  Andante.  IV.  The  'Surprise' 
Symphony;  Minuet.  V.  The  'Surprise'  Symphony;  Finale.  VI.  Adagio,  from 
the  String  Quartet,  Opus  64,  No.  5. 

This  number  sent,  post-paid,  for  twenty  cents.  The  ninth  issue,  ready  Sep- 
tember 1,  will  deal  with  Bizet.    Subscription  price,  ;^2.00  a  year. 

SEND  ♦  FOR  ♦  PROSPECTUS 

WITH  .  SPECIMEN  •  PORTRAIT  •  AND  •  SAMPLE 

PAGES*OF*MUSIC 


42CI!)auncii^tttet'6aston 


In  answering  advertisements,  please  mention  Masters  in  Art 


MASTERS    IN    ART 


If  you  want  a 

velvet  skin,  don't  PUT  ON   preparations,  but  TAKE  OFF  the  dead  skin,  and 
let  the  new  perfect  cuticle  furnish  its  own   beantv. 


GIBSON     PYROGRAPHY 


L-  ac-iuire^l  lUu  KXCLl'SIVK  ri>:lit 


iBSUN  UESH;.NS  (or  PVR0(;R.\PHY.   Clmrli^  Duni*  ( 
lainmiH  tivtntf  |>eD-aii'l-ink  artHt,  tiin  workn  M-lHn|;  (or  labuloun  pun 
Eoirubljr  adaptoil  to  Pjrro^apbic  reproductiou. 

T.  &  C.  OUTFIT  NO.  95 

?-..'.".  \9  tcmpjrurily  offircJ  tor 


SbowD  abo^ 


$1.80 


Tliii. 


B^ttlr, 


H  a  hieli-em'l 

m   Poinl.  Cork   Han.lli 

AlootKjl  Ijiinp.  Two  Vi 


iin.l  i 


"liuli. 


Cork, 


Uiilb.    Meul   I'ni 
Stjimp«J  Prnctico  Wood,  mil  full  inKtruotion». 
I««llK'r<'tli'  Hci«.    For  wile  Hj  your  ilpaliT.  or  »rnt  liy  u«  C.O.D.  tor  ciami- 
uatioD.   Writ*  lor  our  I'in  G4-paef>  CaUlopio  with  wtlorwl  inirrtu  No.  Q  .'12—FREE. 

yS^      J^         IllMKlniti^  hundnnln  of  <lib».n  nnil  olliir  urtinic  .li'»iirni<  on  woo.1,  rcadj 
/T^  I   \    for  bumiDg.  together  with  all  Itiudtf  of  Pyographjr  outQU)  at  lowcal  prices. 
VcMlcaco/       Thi»  trtKle-marlc  on  everything  wo  mako.  It  meaiu  quality.   Call  for  T.  & 
^^ — . ^       c.  PyrovTHphlc  (ioo<l(. 

Thayer  &  Chandler.  162-164  W.  Jackson  Blvd.  Chicago. 

Ijiri-.,!  Makers  of  Ptroprophy  l'Oi«l."  in  tlje  WorUl 


Ot£f Tiers    erf   'Buildings 
A^HJoid  Liabilitjr 

from  damages  caused  by  ice  or  snow 

falling  from  roofs  by  applying 

T!l£  Folsom  New  Model 
Snow  Guard 

TRADE  MARK  A  ^  This  is  the  simplest 
and  onlv  perfect  device 
which  holds  snow  where 
it  falls,  prevents  slides, 
or  the  gathering  of  snow 
and  ice  at  the  eaves, 
which  so  frequently  causes  \1fcter  to  hack  up 
under  the  shingles  or  slates  and  damage  walls 
and  ceilings.  Folsom  Snow  Guards  are  made 
for  shingle,  slate,  tile,  or  metal  roofs,  both  old 
and  new,  and  are  applied  at  trifling  expense. 
Specified  as  the  standard  snow  guard  by 
architectsevervwhere.   Write  for  information. 

FOLSOM  SNOW  GUARD  CO. 

105  Beach  Street,  Boston,  Mass. 


1 


In  answering  advertisements,  please  mention  Masiers  in  Art 


MASTEHS    IK    ART      PLATE  I 

PHOTOGRAPH     BY     ANDERSON 

[  3:M  J 


335723 


GUIUO  HKXr 

THE  AKCHANGEL,  MICUAEL 

CHUKCH  Oi' SANTA  M  Alt  I A  BELLA  CONCEZIONE,BOMi 


MASTERS    IN    AKi 


PLATE  II 


GtJIDO  HEXT 
"itEATKlCE  CENCI" 

SO-CALLED  ., 

BARBEHIXI   PAIiACE,  HOME      i 


MASTERS   IN    AHT      PLATE   III 

PHOTOGRAPH     8Y     ANDERSON 


GITIIJI)  HK.Vr 

ST.    SKHASTIAX 

CAPITOLINE  GALLKHY,  KOME 


t        c    «•    c 


I 


MASTEHS  IN  AHT   PLATE  IV 

PHOTOGRAPH  BY  HANFSTAENQL 

[34,-,] 


GUIDO  KKJCr 
iSLTMPTlOX   OK  'J-HE  VrKGIN 
MUNICH  GALLERY 


MASTKHS  IN  AKT     PLATE  V 


GUri)0  HEXr 
TDUTHKUL  BACCHUS 


, 


^  1 

0 


i 


I 


ES§ 


MASTEHS  IN  ART     PLATK  VIII 

PHOTOGRAPH  BY   BRAUN,   CLEMENT   A  CIE. 
[353] 


GUIDO  REXr 

ST.  JOHN   PREACHING  IN  THE  WILDERNESS 

UULWICH  GALLEKY,  LONDON 


MASTERS    IN    AHT      PLATE   IX 

PHOTOGRAPH     8Y     ALINARI 

r  :!,-„-.  1 


(lUIDO    HKXr 
MASSACMK  OK  THE  IXKOCE.VT» 
BUJLOGNA  GALLERT 


I'OHTHAIT  OF  c;Uino  KENI.    HY    IIIMSKI.K  IKFIZI   (;  Al.l.KH  V  ,   FI.OKKNCE 

The  date  of  execution  of  this  portrait  has  not  been  determined,  but  the  hair,  mus- 
tache, and  imperial  are  already  white.  Malvasia,  Guido's  biographer,  describes  his 
appearance  as  follows:  "He  was  of  fair  stature,  well-knit,  and  of  athletic  figure; 
of  palest  complexion,  with  color  in  the  cheeks;  the  eves  sky  blue;  the  nose  with 
somewhat  elevated  nostrils  that  pulsated  when  he  was  angry— in  short,  most  hand- 
some, and  of  parts  and  members  corresponding." 


MASTERS    IN     ART 


iBnitao  Client 


BORN   1575:    DIED   l(i42 
SCHOOL    OF    BOLOGNA 

M.    F.    SWEETSER^  <GUIDO    REM' 

GUIDO  RENI  (pronounced  Gwee'do  Ray'nee)  was  born  at  Bologna, 
November  4,  157  5.  His  father,  Daniele  Reni,  an  accomplished  teacher 
of  music  and  singing,  immediately  set  about  instructing  the  boy  how  to  sing 
and  to  play  the  harpsichord,  flute,  and  other  instruments,  hoping  that  the  gen- 
ius which  appeared  in  all  his  lineaments  would  secure  him  eminence  in  music. 
But  the  old  musician's  hopes  were  fallacious;  the  child  left  his  harpsichord  as 
often  as  he  dared,  and  spent  his  time  in  making  sketches. 

At  that  time  the  Bolognini  Palace  was  a  nursery  of  the  arts  and  literature, 
and  Daniele  Reni  frequently  went  there  to  assist  in  the  concerts,  taking  his 
child  with  him.  Now  Dionisio  Calvaert,  a  famous  Flemish  painter,  who  had 
a  studio  and  a  school  in  the  palace,  by  some  means  saw  certain  drawings  of 
Guido's,  and  these  aroused  his  interest  so  thoroughly  that  he  besought  Daniele 
to  apprentice  his  son  to  a  profession  for  which  he  showed  such  a  natural  apt- 
itude. Daniele  at  last  consented,  but  with  the  condition  that  if  Guide  failed 
to  make  satisfactory  progress  within  a  stated  period  he  should  return  to  music. 
Guido,  however,  mastered  the  elements  of  his  chosen  profession  with  great 
rapidity,  and  soon  began  to  draw  from  the  nude  and  from  reliefs.  When  he 
reached  the  age  of  eighteen  he  was  promoted  to  the  painting  of  his  master's 
groundworks  and  to  the  composition  of  small  pictures  which  Calvaert  retouched 
and  sold  as  his  own  works. 

The  famous  Bolognese  family  of  painters  known  as  the  Carracci  were  now 
in  full  success,  and  had  opened  their  academy  for  the  free  entry  of  whoso- 
ever wished.  Guido,  becoming  completely  fascinated  with  their  manner,  was 
wont  to  visit  Lodovico  Carracci  secretly  and  observe  him  while  painting,  un- 
til at  last  the  Carracci  manner  began  to  appear  in  his  own  pictures.  His  mas- 
ter, Calvaert,  detecting  the  foreign  influence,  flew  into  a  rage,  and  rubbed  out 
some  of  his  most  careful  work;  but  the  lad  endured  these  reproaches  in  silence 
for  many  a  day,  until  at  last  Calvaert  attempted  to  punish  him  for  using  a  pro- 

1  The  biographical  sketch,  from  which  the  account  here  given  is  abridged,  is,  as  its  author  states,  ba^cd 
upon  the  life  of  Guido  Reni  by  Malvasia,  the  painter's  friend  and  contemporary.  Many  passages,  indeed, 
are  but  translations  of  Malvasia's  words. 

[359J 


24  MASTERSINART 

hibited  color.  Then  he  threw  down  his  palette  and  fled  from  the  studio  for- 
ever. In  his  twentieth  year,  therefore,  Guido  entered  the  school  of  the  Car- 
racci  and  devoted  himself  to  the  acquisition  of  their  style,  in  which,  durina 
the  next  few  years,  he  executed  sexeral  small  compositions. 

It  was  at  this  time  that  the  painter  Michelangelo  da  Caravaggio  intro- 
duced a  new  and  sensational  manner,  abounding  in  deep  shadows  and  intense 
lights,  but  in  other  respects  showing  a  slavish  imitation  of  nature.  The  Roman 
nobles  eulogized  his  works,  and  his  fame  was  made,  almost  e\ery  gallery  de- 
siring his  pictures.  One  of  these  was  placed  in  the  Casa  Lambertini  at  Bo- 
logna, and  the  Carracci  hastened  to  inspect  it  to  see  what  manner  of  art  Italy 
was  now  so  praiseful  of.  But  Annibale  Carracci  summoned  his  pupils  before 
the  new  wonder  in  art,  and  spoke  of  it  in  disparagement,  warning  them  against 
leaving  their  legitimate  rules  for  the  evanescent  fame  of  such  singular  pro- 
ductions, "I  well  know,"  added  he,  "another  method  of  rriaking  a  fortunate 
hit.  To  Caravaggio's  savage  coloring  oppose  one  entirely  delicate  and  tender. 
Does  he  use  lights  narrow  and  falling?  I  would  make  them  open  and  in  the 
face.  Does  he  cover  up  the  difficulties  of  art  under  the  shadows  of  night? 
I  would  expose  under  the  full  light  of  noonday  the  fruits  of  erudite  and  learned 
researches."  Guido  was  among  the  disciples  who  heard  these  words,  and  they 
seemed  to  him  the  voice  of  a  sacred  oracle.  He  at  once  entered  with  great 
earnestness  upon  the  development  of  these  suggestions,  refining  the  theory 
with  prolonged  studies;  and  at  last  earned  the  honor  of  being  the  introducer 
of  the  new  manner,  by  which  he  speedily  gained  a  reputation. 

But  Guido's  rapid  advance  did  not  fail  to  awaken  the  jealousy  of  his  fel- 
low artists,  and  their  enmity  finally  displayed  itself  in  an  attempt  to  place 
him  under  the  suspicion  of  the  Carracci,  who  had  hitherto  held  him  in  high 
esteem.  His  quiet  disposition  was  maligned  as  arrogance,  his  constant  labor 
as  an  insatiable  greediness.  Incited  by  these  conspirators,  the  Carracci  hard- 
ened their  hearts  against  him;  and  he,  seeing  that  his  rivals  had  triumphed, 
resolved  to  withdraw  from  the  Academy.  The  occasion  of  the  separation  was 
as  follows:  Guido  had  received  a  commission  to  paint  an  Adoration  of  the 
Magi  with  many  figures.  When  it  was  done  he  demanded  thirty  crowns,  but 
the  patron  demurred,  and  the  case  was  referred  to  the  arbitration  of  Lodovico 
Carracci,  who  decided  that,  as  the  picture  was  the  work  of  a  no\'ice,  ten 
crowns  was  a  good  price  for  it.  Guido  bowed  to  this  decree,  but  could  not 
conceal  his  sense  of  wrong,  and  left  the  studio. 

About  this  time,  in  1598,  Pope  Clement  viii.,  about  to  return  from  Fer- 
rara  to  Rome,  proposed  to  sojourn  in  Bologna,  and  the  municipality  prepared 
to  honor  him  by  raising  triumphal  arches  and  covering  the  houses  with  tap- 
estries and  frescos.  The  two  chief  candidates  for  the  task  of  painting  these 
frescos  were  Cesi  and  Lodoxico  Carracci,  and  the  votes  were  nearly  divided 
between  them,  when,  suddenly,  Guido  appeared  as  a  third  contestant,  and  was 
accepted  as  a  compromise  between  the  two. 

The  fame  of  his  works  had  now  spread  through  Italy;  and  as  his  Roman 
patrons  had  given  him  large  remunerations  and  generous  praises,  he  began  to 
desire  to  place  himself  under  the  protection  of  such  appreciative  nobles,  and 

[:uio] 


GU  IDO    RE  N  I  25 

finally  journeyed  from  Bologna  to  Rome  with  his  fellow  student  in  art,  Albani. 
The  two  young  men  found  occupation  enough  by  day  in  the  papal  city,  but 
their  evenings  were  spent  in  playing  cards,  and  thus,  perhaps,  were  laid  the 
foundations  of  all  Guido's  subsequent  misfortunes. 

In  Rome  Guido  devoted  himself  with  intense  assiduity  to  drawing  and  re- 
drawino-  the  antique  statues,  and  thus  attempted  to  familiarize  himself  with 
the  spirit  of  Greek  art;  and  was  soon  taken  under  the  patronage  of  the  Cav- 
aliere  d'Arpino,  who  began  to  oppose  him  to  Caravaggio.  Caravaggio,  be- 
side himself  with  anger,  libeled  Guido's  pictures  as  affected  and  fantastic, 
and  threatened  to  meet  their  designer  with  other  weapons  than  brush  and  pen- 
cil. He  doubtless  would  have  carried  out  this  menace  but  that  Guido  care- 
fully avoided  meeting  him  until  he  had  gained  enough  powerful  patrons  to 
render  an  attack  dangerous. 

The  Cardinal  Borghese  was  so  well  pleased  with  Guido's  work  that  he  de- 
sired to  make  him  his  court  painter  with  a  pension  and  establishment;  and 
it  was  accordingly  arranged  that  Guido  should  receive  nine  crowns  a  month, 
"besides  the  accustomed  portions  of  bread,  wine,  and  wood,  and  twenty-tive 
crowns  every  half-year  for  the  rent  of  his  house.  His  works  were,  moreover, 
to  be  paid  for  severally  in  the  form  of  presents.  Guido's  house  was  in  the 
palace  of  the  Senator  Fantuzzi,  and  there  he  opened  an  art  school  which  at- 
tracted scores  of  Roman  youths.  Borghese  soon  ordered  the  artist  to  fresco 
the  garden  pavilion  of  a  palace  which  he  had  lately  bought;  the  result  was  the 
marvelous  picture  of  the  'Aurora';  and  fresh  commissions  now  poured  m 
upon  Guido  in  great  numbers. 

He  was  next  ordered  by  Pope  Paul  v.  to  decorate  the  Papal  Chapel  m 
the  new  Quirinal  Palace,  for  which  he  was  to  receive  one  hundred  crowns 
a  month.  The  pope,  accustomed  to  go  to  the  chapel  every  morning  to  see 
Guido  paint,  once  graciously  told  him  to  replace  his  cap  upon  his  head,  and  \ 
for  the  future  not  to  remove  it  before  him.  When  Paul  had  departed  the 
artist  said,  "By  my  faith,  he  has  hit  it;  because  for  the  future  either  he  should 
not  find  me  here  or  else  I  should  most  certainly  have  kept  my  head  covered.jj 
Some  one  replied  that  such  a  course  would  have  been  a  great  mistake.  "No," 
said  Guido,  "I  should  have  begged  His  Holiness  to  pardon  me,  teignmg  that 
the  air  troubled  my  head  when  bare.  It  is  for  this  cause  that  I  will  never  go 
to  serve  kings,  because  I  should  not  wish  to  stand  bareheaded  in  their  pres- 
ence, since  such  an  act  is  not  seemly  for  men  of  our  profession."  One  day, 
when  the  pope  entered  unexpectedly  to  see  the  new  paintmgs,  he  found  Lan- 
franco  at  work  on  the  drapery  of  certain  figures,  and  exclaimed,  in  an  angry 
mood  "Now  I  see  clearly  what  I  have  for  some  time  suspected,  that  in  this 
contract  Guido  applies  himself  to  getting  money  as  earnestly  as  to  the  labor 
itself  he  devotes  himself  but  coldlv."  But  when  the  pope  returned  the  next 
day  Guido  said,  "Most  blessed  Father,  the  outlining,  sketching,  and  ground- 
painting  are  not  the  things  that  make  these  pictures  what  they  shall  be;  they 
are  only  as  a  document  of  Your  Holiness's  which  is  of  no  value  until  you 
have  placed  your  hand  to  it."  On  another  occasion  the  impatient  pontirt 
said,  "This  work   protracts  itself  a  long  while.    If  it  had  been   distributed 

[361] 


26  MASTERSINART 

among  the  other  Bolognesc  it  would  alreaciv  ha\e  been  finished."  The  art- 
ist replied,  "It  would  indeed  have  been  finished,  but  it  would  not  have  been 
from  the  hand  of  a  Guido."  Nevertheless,  having  hastened  the  undertaking, 
though  against  his  inclination,  he  completed  it  in  seven  monthsj  and  the 
Roman  court  hastened  thither  to  admire  and  praise  the  new  achievement. 

At  this  time  Guido  was  at  cross-purposes  with  the  papal  treasurer,  who 
told  him  one  day  that  his  pretensions  were  immoderate;  adding  that  if  such 
prices  were  to  be  paid,  he  himself  would  renounce  his  prelacy  and  become 
a  painter.  "1  do  not  quite  know,"  answered  the  artist,  "if  you  could  suc- 
ceed in  that:  I  know  only  that  as  a  prelate  I  should  probably  do  better  than 
you,  at  least  in  the  duty  ot  paying  salaries." 

In  spite  of  his  successes  in  art,  however,  Guido  at  last  grew  weary  of  the 
constant  envy  and  malice  of  his  adversaries;  and  being  moreover  thoroughly 
disgusted  with  his  treatment  by  the  treasurer,  finally  resolved  to  leave  Rome, 
and  in  1610  suddenly  departed  for  Bologna,  resolved  to  abandon  his  profes- 
sion. "Why  should  I  wish,"  he  said,  "to  waste  my  days  in  wrangling  with 
nobles  and  contesting  with  court  officials,  when  I  ought  to  work  in  gladness 
and  quietness.  What  outcries  do  I  hear  every  hour  about  my  long  delays  or 
the  exorbitance  of  my  prices!  In  little  more  than  three  years  I  ha\e  com- 
pleted four  grand  works,  each  of  which  required  all  that  time  to  do  it  justice, 
and  they  promised  me  seas  and  mountains;  yet  not  only  is  the  debt  unpaid, 
but  even  my  pension  is  complained  of,  which  they  would  not  do  in  the  case 
of  a  lackey."  With  such  captious  sentiments  did  Guido  greet  the  friends 
who  came  to  congratulate  him  on  his  return  to  Bologna  and  on  his  bygone 
successes  in  Rome;  and  gave  himself  over  entirely  to  the  arrangement  of  the 
pictures  and  antiques  that  he  had  brought  from  that  city.  He  sent  out  word 
that  he  should  paint  no  more  except  for  his  own  amusement,  but  should  in- 
stead take  up  the  traffic  in  ancient  pictures  and  designs. 

But  Guido's  ri\'als,  who  had  been  dismayed  at  his  reappearance  in  Bo- 
logna, now  reported  that  he  had  done  all  his  wonderful  works  far  away,  but 
that  when  he  returned  home  he  had  become  powerless;  and  they  also  spread 
a  report  that  he  was  a  man  of  arrogant  pretensions,  full  of  self-conceit  and 
confidence,  but  feeble  in  execution.  Wherefore  Guido  at  last  took  up  his 
brush  again  as  an  efficient  weapon  against  these  persecutors,  and  accepted 
every  commission  that  was  offered  him,  working  rapidly  and  with  a  masterly 
freedom.    His  first  important  work  was  the  'Massacre  of  the  Innocents.' 

In  the  meantime,  when  the  pope  heard  that  the  artist  was  no  longer  in 
Rome,  and  that,  moreover,  he  had  gone  away  so  dissatisfied  as  to  have  sworn 
never  to  set  foot  there  again,  he  flew  into  a  frenzy  of  rage.  The  cardinal- 
nephew  endeavored  to  condone  the  offence  of  the  treasurer  by  stigmatizing 
Guido  as  "wishing  to  absorb  more  money  than  all  the  others  together,  lag- 
gardly  in  his  work,  and  impertinent  in  manner."  But  the  pope  cried  out, 
"No  more,  no  more!  We  know  our  Guido  well  and  ha\e  always  found  him 
courteous  and  modest.  If  he  demanded  too  much,  what  business  was  it  of 
the  treasurer's?  Did  he  pay  it  out  of  his  own  money?  Let  Guido  be  given 
whatever  he  demands  if  he  will  return." 

[:n;2] 


GUIDORENI  27 

The  papal  mandate  was  borne  to  Guido  at  Bologna  by  the  cardinal- 
legate  himself,  who  was  not  politic  enough  to  treat  the  artist's  refusal  with 
dexterity,  and  spoke  menacingly  to  him.  Whereupon  Guido  boldly  answered  : 
"I  absolutely  will  not  go  to  Rome;  I  had  rather  be  torn  to  pieces.  It  is  not 
that  I  do  not  desire  to  kiss  the  feet  of  the  pope  once  more,  but  his  ministers 
do  such  things  as  I  know  are  net  only  not  intended  by  His  Holiness,  but  are 
also  displeasing  to  him."  These  words  offended  the  cardinal-legate  so  deeply 
that  he  attempted  to  throw  the  artist  into  prison;  but  Guido,  who  had  mean- 
while been  invited  by  the  kings  of  France  and  Spain  to  reside  at  their  courts, 
resolved  to  expatriate  himself  rather  than  become  the  inmate  of  a  Bolognese 
dungeon.  He  therefore  hid  himself  until  an  opportunity  should  arise  for  him 
to  flee;  but  his  friend,  the  Marquis  Facchenetti,  gained  him  over  with  sweet 
words.  "This,"  said  he,  "is  an  affair  concerning  your  pontiff,  before  whose 
throne  bow  even  those  royal  crowns  to  whose  protection  you  wish  to  flee; 
so  that  without  the  participation  of  His  Holiness  you  could  find  no  refuge 
there.  Wherefore  you  must  make  a  virtue  of  necessity,  and  return  \olun- 
tarily."  So  Guido  accepted  the  advice  of  his  noble  protector,  and  forthwith 
set  out  again  for  Rome. 

As  he  approached  Rome  he  was  met  by  a  long  line  of  carriages  pertaining 
to  the  Roman  cardinals  and  princes  who  vied  with  each  other  tor  the  honor 
of  bearing  him  into  the  city.  The  artist  was  liberally  remunerated  for  his  past 
labors;  a  carriage  was  placed  at  his  disposal;  various  delicate  articles  of  food 
and  wine  were  frequently  sent  to  him ;  and  it  was  arranged  that  he  should  draw 
from  the  treasury  eighty  crowns  a  fortnight  beside  his  usual  pension. 

But  these  honors  did  not  fall  upon  Guido  without  causing  the  courtiers  to 
murmur  at  such  a  promotion  shown  to  a  mere  painter;  and  the  treasurer 
made  a  renewed  outcry  against  him,  charging  that  the  work  with  which  he  was 
now  engaged  at  Santa  Maria  Maggiore  was  perversely  delayed  that  he  might 
the  longer  draw  his  pension.  Nexertheless,  the  chapel  was  finished  in  due 
time,  and  the  pope  visited  it  with  a  cortege  of  princes  and  prelates,  and  so 
admired  and  praised  the  frescos  that  Guido  was  advised  to  stay  some  time  at 
court,  since  the  applause  attending  his  last  work  appeared  to  be  repairing  the 
prejudices  of  the  long  delay  and  heavy  expense.  But,  finding  himself  unsea- 
sonably cut  off  from  his  allowance  at  the  banker's,  and  desiring  to  avoid  further 
trouble  with  the  treasurer,  Guido  again  departed  from  Rome,  and  returned 
to  his  own  city. 

The  Senate  of  Bologna  now  commissioned  him  to  paint  a  Pieta  with  the 
patron  saints  of  the  city.  This  was  finished  in  1 6 1 6.  In  1 6 1  S  there  came  an 
order  from  Genoa  that  one  of  the  best  artists  of  Bologna  should  be  engaged 
to  paint  a  picture  of  the  Assumption.  Guido  was  suggested  on  all  sides  as 
the  one  who  ought  to  execute  it,  but  he  demanded  the  enormous  price  of 
1,000  crowns,  though  his  former  master,  Lodovico  Carracci,  offered  to  do  the 
work  for  500  crowns.  But  nevertheless  the  younger  painter  received  the  com- 
mission; and,  referring  to  the  occasion  on  which  he  had  left  the  Carracci  stu- 
dio, made  Lodovico  aware  that  he  had  now  found  how  to  get  more  than  ten 
crowns  for  his  pictures.    Between   1614  and  1620  Guido  was  invited  by  the 

f:{(i:5] 


28  MASTERSINART 

Duke  of  Mantua  to  visit  his  court  and  paint  certain  frescos;  but  he  was  then 
so  busily  engaged  that  he  sent  his  best  pupils,  Gessi  and  Semcnti,  During 
the  same  period  Guido  was  urged  to  visit  Ravenna  by  Cardinal  Aldobrandini, 
and  went  thither.  The  painting  of 'The  Falling  of  the  Alanna'  was  the  chief 
production  of  this  journey. 

In  1621  the  superb  chapel  of  St.  Januarius  at  Naples  was  approaching 
completion,  and  several  of  the  foremost  artists  of  Italy  were  summoned  to 
decorate  its  walls.  Among  these  were  Domenichino,  Lanfranco,  and  Guido. 
But  their  engagement  lasted  only  a  short  time  on  account  of  the  fierce  hos- 
tility of  the  Neapolitan  artists.  Guido  had  designed  several  cartoons  for  the 
chapel  and  had  commenced  to  fresco  when  the  Neapolitans  began  their  per- 
secutions. He  was  followed  through  the  streets  by  armed  ruffians;  letters 
came  to  him  threatening  poison  and  the  stiletto;  and  his  servant  Domenico 
was  slain.  Afterwards,  another  of  Guido's  men  was  caught  by  the  Neapol- 
itans, who  ga\  e  him  a  sound  drubbing,  telling  him  that  such  should  be  the 
fate  of  every  one  who  roamed  about  in  cities  not  his  own,  taking  the  bread 
from  the  mouths  of  the  residents  thereof.  Guido  was  greatly  alarmed,  and 
secretly  fled  from  Naples  and  went  to  Rome,  where  he  remained  busily  en- 
gaged for  a  long  time. 

During  one  of  his  later  sojourns  in  Rome,  Guido  was  commissioned  to  paint 
a  picture  of  the  Repulse  of  Attila  by  St.  Leo,  to  be  placed  in  St.  Peter's  Church ; 
and  the  sum  of  400  crowns  was  advanced  on  account  thereof.  Nevertheless, 
he  delayed  so  long  that  Cardinal  Pamfili  (afterwards  Pope  Innocent  x.)  sum- 
moned him  before  the  Congregation  and  stated  the  grievances  against  him. 
The  papal  treasurer  also  summoned  him,  and  rudely  demanded  to  know  if 
he  never  intended  to  begin  the  work  for  which  he  had  been  paid.  The  artist, 
astounded  and  embittered,  answered  with  more  piquancy  than  relevancy, "My 
Lord  Cardinal,  the  pope  can  make  as  many  of  your  equals  as  he  chooses,  but 
to  make  my  equals  rests  with  no  power  but  that  of  God," 

The  truth  was  that  Guido's  most  malevolent  failing  had  now  involved 
him  in  serious  difficulties,  for  he  had  already  lost  at  the  gaming-table  the  en- 
tire amount  which  he  had  received  for  the  Attila  picture.  He  desired  to  de- 
part from  Rome,  but  was  in  great  trouble  because  he  could  not  repay  this 
unearned  advance  and  his  other  debts.  At  last  he  borrowed  enough  money, 
deposited  it  to  the  credit  of  the  Reverend  Fabric  and  fled  to  Bologna. 

When  Guido  once  more  took  up  his  abode  in  his  nati\e  city  the  saying 
that  a  prophet  has  no  honor  in  his  own  country  was  for  once  untrue,  for  he 
was  adored  by  the  people,  esteemed  by  the  nobles,  and  served  by  all;  nor  did 
any  one  ever  pass  through  Bologna,  however  great  they  might  be,  but  that 
they  esteemed  it  a  favor  if  they  might  see  Guido,  and  gaze  upon  him  while 
he  worked. 

He  was  accustomed  to  paint  with  his  mantle  about  him,  gathered  grace- 
fully over  his  left  arm.  His  pupils,  of  whom  he  had  a  great  number — at 
one  period  no  less  than  eighty,  drawn  from  nearly  every  nation  of  Europe 
—  \icd  with  each  other  to  serve  him,  esteeming  themselves  fortunate  to  have 
opportunities  to  clean  his  brushes  or  to  prepare  his  palette.    He  had  no  dearth 

[.•UU] 


GUIDORENI  29 

of  models  in  the  multitude  of  youths  and  disciples  which  surrounded  him;  but 
all  that  Guido  cared  of  them  was  to  refresh  his  memory  by  viewino-  their  limbs 
and  torsos,  and  after  that  ho  could  adjust  them  and  correct  their  imperfections. 
In  the  same  way  any  head  sufficed  him  for  a  model.  Being  once  besoucrht  by 
Count  Aldovrandi  to  confide  in  him  who  the  lady  was  of  whom  he  availed 
himself  in  drawing  his  beautiful  Madonnas  and  Magdalens,  he  made  his  color- 
grinder,  a  fellow  of  scroundrelly  visage,  sit  down,  and  commanding  him  to  look 
upward,  drew  from  him  such  a  marvelous  head  of  a  saint  that  it  seemed  as  if 
it  had  been  done  by  magic.  Better  than  any  other  artist  he  understood  how 
to  portray  upturned  faces,  and  boasted  that  he  knew  a  hundred  ways  of  mak- 
ing heads  with  their  eyes  lifted  to  heaven.  He  often  declared  that  his  favorite, 
models  were  the  'Venus  of  Medici'  and  the  wonderful  heads  in  the  Niobe" 
group. 

He  was  alway-s  in  great  fear  of  sorcery  and  poisoning,  and  for  that  reason 
could  not  endure  women  in  his  house,  abhorring  to  have  any  dealings  with 
them,  and,  when  such  were  unavoidable,  hurrying  them  through  as  rapidly 
as  possible.  Old  women  were  his  especial  detestation,  and  he  always  fled 
from  them,  and  lamented  grievously  if  one  of  them  should  appear  when  he 
was  about  beginning  or  closing  some  commission. 

During  the  last  fifteen  years  of  his  life  Guido  was,  as  has  already  been  hinted, 
the  prey  of  an  inordinate  passion  for  gambling,  and  lost  much  of  that  illus- 
trious fame  which  had  become  so  dear  to  him.  Being  often  reduced  to  ex- 
treme necessities  by  heavy  losses,  and  having  contracted  debts  which  it  was 
beyond  his  ability  to  pay,  he  gave  himself  to  painting  hastily  and  unworthilv, 
borrowing  moreover  from  all  his  friends,  and  selling  his  time  in  the  studio 
at  so  much  an  hour. 

At  one  time  such  pains  and  humiliations  seemed  to  have  taught  him  a 
salutary  lesson,  and  as  soon  as  he  had  paid  off  his  debts  he  deposited  his  gains  in 
the  bank  for  two  entire  years.  But  this  was  only  a  truce,  for  at  the  end  of  those 
two  years  he  returned  to  his  old  vice,  and  began  once  more  to  play  heavily,  f 
As  if  to  deal  him  a  harder  blow  than  ever,  fate  favored  him  at  first.  In  three 
weeks  his  gains  amounted  to  4,000  pistoles,  and  his  friends  advised  him  to 
be  content  therewith,  to  invest  the  money,  and  to  forswear  gambling  forever. 
But  he  disdained  all  advice,  with  the  result  that  in  three  evenings  he  lost  the 
4,000  pistoles  and  also  all  the  funds  which  he  had  accumulated.  But  the 
intrepid  old  artist  spoke  of  his  misfortune  as  a  matter  of  destiny.  Nay,  he 
even  rejoiced  at  it,  saying,  "Since  I  got  those  detestable  winnings  I  have 
never  known  the  tranquillity  which  I  enjoyed  before  they  came  to  afflict  my 
liberty.  Now,  please  God,  I  have  come  out  from  idleness  and  resumed  my 
duties.  I  have  lost  vice,  and  re-won  virtue,"  With  these  and  similar  argu- 
ments he  sealed  the  mouths  of  all,  and  praised  the  refractory  inclination  that 
now  more  than  e\'er  took  full  possession  of  him.  During  a  month  in  his 
rooms,  and  two  more  at  the  clubs,  his  adversaries  won  everything  from  him; 
wherefore,  pledging  more  and  more  his  work,  he  did  not  refuse  to  accept 
payments  on  his  time  far  in  advance,  until  his  debts  finally  passed  the  limit 
of  possibility  of  payment,  however  far  his  life  might  be  prolonged. 

[3G5] 


30  MASTERSINART 

He  now  observed  that  his  friends  had  grown  cold,  that  the  dilettanti  kept 
away  from  his  first  exhibitions,  and  that  in  the  assemblies  where  he  had 
formerly  been  attended  with  such  great  courtesy  he  was  now  shunned.  He 
prepared  a  number  of  canvases  and  sat  down  before  them  to  divert  his  mind 
from  its  crushing  cares;  and  also  endeavored  to  complete  many  of  the  un- 
finished works  then  in  his  studio;  but,  wearied  and  confused  by  their  multi- 
plicity and  hotly  besieged  by  creditors,  he  lost  heart,  and  did  no  more  than  to 
stand  musing.  Sometimes  he  suddenly  started  up,  and  for  a  long  time  walked 
to  and  fro  rapidlv,  talking  to  himself  and  sighing,  so  that  it  was  feared  he 
would  pass  into  a  delirium. 

Yet,  during  the  last  decade  of  his  life,  troubled  though  he  was  in  many 
ways,  Guido  executed  several  excellent  works.  He  had  numerous  com- 
missions from  ultramontane  sovereigns  as  well  as  from  those  of  Italy,  and 
painted  a  'Venus'  for  the  Duke  of  Bavaria,  an  'Europa'  for  the  King  of  Po- 
land, and  a  'Madonna'  for  the  King  of  Spain.  He  was  also  summoned  to 
France  to  paint  a  portrait  of  the  king,  but  he  declined  this  invitation,  simply 
saying,  "I  am  not  a  portrait-painter."  His  last  picture  was  a  'Nativity,'  and 
on  this  he  was  engaged  at  the  time  of  his  death. 

Guido  fell  sick  of  fever  on  the  sixth  of  August,  while  the  sun  was  in  Leo. 
Many  knights  and  nobles  called  upon  him  to  console  and  inspirit  him,  and 
among  these  were  the  Senator  Guidotti,  who  finally  induced  him  to  allow 

J  five  celebrated  doctors  to  examine  his  case,  and  to  be  removed  from  his  cham- 
bers, where  he  was  annoyed  by  the  noises  in  the  square.  As  soon  as  it  was 
known  in  Bologna  that  he  desired  to  be  carried  to  other  quarters,  many  of 
the  noblest  families  vied  to  receive  him  into  their  houses;  but  Guido  refused 
all  offers,  and  chose  the  house  of  the  merchant  Ferri,  whither  he  went  in  a 
horse-litter.  Here  he  was  served  and  attended  as  a  great  prince,  and  always 
watched  over  by  Ferri;  and  to  solace  his  weary  hours  concerts  of  musical 
bands  were  ordered,  and  the  performers,  passing  up  and  down  the  street,  filled 
it  with  great  and  continuous  harmony. 
^^  In  the  meantime  the  sacrament  was  exposed  in   various  churches,  and 

many  religious  orders  were  supplicating  in  Guido's  behalf.  Not  only  in 
Bologna,  but  also  in  the  surrounding  cities,  and  most  of  all  in  Rome,  prayers 
and  vows  were  ascending  for  the  recovery  of  the  greatest  living  artist  in  Italy. 
But  at  last,  strengthened  by  the  sacrament  of  extreme  unction,  and  in  the 
arms  of  the  Capuchin  fathers,  whom  he  had  always  held  in  great  \eneration, 
he  breathed  out  his  soul,  at  two  o'clock  of  the  night,  on  Monday,  August 
'8,  1642,  which  was  the  sixty-seventh  year  of  his  age. 

His  body,  robed  in  a  Capuchin  dress,  was  carried  to  the  sepulcher  with  the 
greatest  pomp  and  honor.  So  vast  was  the  crowd  of  all  ranks  and  ages,  and 
the  concourse  to  see  him,  both  in  the  streets  through  which  he  was  borne 
and  in  the  Church  of  San  Domenico,  where  he  was  laid  in  state,  that  the 
like  had  not  been  seen  before,  even  in  the  great  processions  wherein  the  city 
annually  celebrated  its  deliverance  from  the  Plague. 

[3(5G] 


G  U  I  DO    REN  I  31 

Clje  art  of  (guiUo  %tni 

PAUL     MANTZ  <LES    C  H  E  FS  -  D  '  CE  U  \- R  E     DE     LA     PEINTURE    ITALIENNE' 

AFTER  the  death  of  Michelangelo  and  of  Titian,  and  in  spite  of  the  sun- 
-ZA-set  glory  which  Tintoretto  and  Veronese  were  shedding  upon  Venice, 
the  shadows  began  to  gather  over  the  art  that  for  three  hundred  years  had 
made  Italy  glorious.  The  Roman  school  did  not  sur\ive  Giulio  Romano; 
Michelangelo's  disciples  were  bent  on  violence;  the  style  which  under  Cor- 
reggio's  touch  had  been  living  grace  faded  into  insipiditv;  and  even  in  Ven- 
ice the  predominance  of  the  merely  decorative  had  become  a  weakness.  All 
the  schools  of  Italy  were  ready  to  fall;  and  they  fell  together. 

The  immediate  causes  of  the  decadence  are  evident  enough :  pupils  proved 
false  to  the  teachings  of  their  masters,  imitated  their  weaknesses  rather  than 
their  excellences,  and  piled  falsification  upon  error,  and  exaggeration  upon 
falsification.  But  beneath  the  outward  and  superficial  symptoms  there  were 
underlying  and  moral  causes  for  the  downfall.  During  the  last  twenty  years 
of  the  sixteenth  century  the  whole  social  standard  of  Italy  had  been  lowered. 
Her  republics  existed  no  longer;  municipal  pride  was  dead;  and  she  had  be- 
come the  prey  of  rulers  who  were  but  the  hirelings  of  foreign  monarchs.  As 
a  result,  there  ensued  that  intellectual  decline  which  inevitably  accompanies 
political  decadence,  and  with  all  the  usual  symptoms.  Rhetoric  was  esteemed 
above  matter,  wit  above  wisdom;  and  the  simple  earnestness  and  energy 
upon  which  only  can  great  art  thrive  was,  if  not  extinct,  out  of  fashion. 

It  was  at  this  critical  juncture  that  the  city  of  Bologna  put  herself  forward, 
towards  the  close  of  the  sixteenth  century,  as  the  new  art  preceptress  to  Italy. 
The  impulse  came  from  a  family  of  Bolonese  painters,  the  Carracci,  who, 
seeing  clearly  enough  that  the  old  methods  and  traditions  had  lost  force,  pro- 
posed to  substitute  new  ones  of  their  own  devising.  It  was  the  theory  of  their 
teaching  to  revive  the  great  qualities  of  the  masters  of  the  beginning  of  the 
century.  They  proposed  to  achiexe,  by  selection  and  amalgamation,  a  com- 
bination of  all  excellences.  Their  pupils  were,  by  imitation,  to  unite  in  their 
own  works  the  best  qualities  of  Michelangelo,  Titian,  Correggio,  Raphael, 
Tibaldi,  Primaticcio,  and,  to  complete  the  ideal  mixture,  something  of  the 
grace  of  Parmigiano!  They  made  the  attempt  bravely.  Lanzi  has  pointed 
out  how  Annibale  Carracci  stro\e  to  exemplify  his  teachings  by  imitating  in 
a  single  work  Veronese  in  one  figure,  Correggio  in  another,  and  Titian  and 
Parmigiano  in  the  remainder.  Could  the  folly  of  the  theory  ha\e  a  clearer 
exposition  ? 

Nevertheless,  the  school  of  the  Carracci  had  great  vogue,  and  produced 
many  pupils  illustrious  in  their  own  day;  but  it  by  no  means  had  the  entire 
field  to  itself.  Hardly  had  its  "system"  been  announced  when  protests  began 
to  be  heard  from  all  parts  of  Italy.  The  loudest,  most  emphatic,  and  most  in- 
fluential voice  was  that  of  the  Neapolitan  painter  Michelangelo  da  Caravaggio. 

[8(iT] 


32  MASTERS    IN    ART 

Caravaggio,  after  a  period  of  study  in  Venice,  had  arrived  in  Rome  ready 
to  throw  down  the  gauntlet  to  all  rivals  whosoever;  but  for  the  Carracci  in 
especial  he  professed  the  most  superb  disdain.  He  condemned  their  teach- 
ings wholly.  A  painter  should,  he  asserted,  imitate  none  of  the  great  mas- 
ters. Nature  was  the  true  and  only  teacher;  and  if  the  artist,  pursuing  na- 
ture, should  encounter  ugliness,  triviality,  and  baseness,  he  should  not  shut 
his  eyes,  but  should  ecord  them  unflinchingly.  And  so  Caravaggio  took,  for 
choice,  as  his  models  criminals  and  bohemians,  drunkards  and  profligates. 
He  was,  however,  equipped  with  a  vigorous  personality,  talent,  skill,  and  a 
profound  knowledge  of  chiaroscuro;  and  his  undeniable  power  gained  him 
so  wide  an  influence  that,  as  Nicolas  Poussin  said  of  him  long  afterwards, 
"the  man  seemed  born  to  ruin  painting."  He  introduced  types  of  vulgar 
mold,  set  the  fashion  for  contrasts  of  light  and  shade  out  of  all  true  pro- 
portion, and  in  the  way  of  discoloring  the  Italian  palette  finished  what  the 
Carracci  had  begun. 

The  history  of  Italian  art  at  this  time  is  much  like  the  history  of  the 
progress  of  some  malady,  with  its  symptoms,  its  recoveries,  and  relapses; 
and  it  was  at  this  stage  of  the  disease  that  the  seventeenth  century  dawned, 
and  the  work  of  the  youthful  Guido  Reni  began  to  attract  public  attention. 
Those  who  recognized  the  parlous  condition  of  art  now  turned  to  him,  as 
they  had  before  turned  to  the  Carracci,  as  a  possible  savior. 

For  a  time  it  really  did  seem  as  if  Guido  might  arrest  the  decline;  but  be- 
fore long  his  own  moral  weakness  incapacitated  him  for  the  battle.  A  gam- 
bler of  unlimited  prodigality,  and  finding  himself  obliged  to  regain  by  his 
brush  the  money  he  had  thrown  away  at  the  gaming-table,  he  abused  his  own 
facility.  How  many,  alas!  how  very  many,  canvases  he  painted  during  the 
latter  part  of  his  life — Ecce  Homos,  Madonnas,  Magdalens,  St.  Sebastians, 
and  the  like — which  seemed  as  though  he  might  have  "improvised  them  in 
three  hoursorless,"asMalvasia  tells  us  he  sometimes  did, and  which  were  man- 
ifestly painted  with  but  one  aim,  that  of  pleasing,  with  a  minimum  of  labor, 
the  empty,  vapid  taste  of  the  day.  They  multiplied  under  his  brush  so  rapidly 
as  to  swamp  his  own  more  meritorious  productions;  so  that  instead  of  be- 
coming the  savior  of  Italian  art,  Guido  but  hastened  its  downfall. 

Yet  he  was  not,  as  some  modern  critics  seem  to  regard  him,  always  the 
hasty  painter  of  insipidities.  During  one  part  of  his  career  at  jeast  he  knew 
what  good  art  was;  and  as  an  executant  he  often  exhibited  really  great  qual- 
ities. Before  he  began  to  paint  with  the  sole  object  of  gaining  money  as 
rapidly  as  possible  he  drew  easily  and  correctly,  painted  broadly,  and  fre- 
quently composed  with  exemplary  skill.  His  coloring  was  sometimes  silvery 
and  delicate,  although  too  often,  even  in  his  better  works,  he  placed  the  high 
lights  in  over-violent  opposition  to  opaque  and  muddy  shadows,  and  his  color 
schemes  seem  to  lack  freshness. 

But  could  Guido  have  redeemed  Italian  art  even  had  he  always  painted  at 
his  best?  There  can  be  but  one  answer:  no.  The  inner  flame,  the  spark  of 
genius,  was  lacking  in  him  from  the  first.    He  was  a  skilful  practitioner,  and 

[368] 


GU  I  DO    RE  N  I  ii 

in  the  decadent  epoch  to  which  he  belonged  occupies  a  conspicuous  place; 
but  he  could  never  ha\e  ranked  with  the  great  masters.  —  from  the  French 

W.     M.     ROSSETTI  I  N    <  E  X  C  Y  C  LO  I'^,  D  I  A    B  R  I  T  A  N  N  I  C  A  ' 

GUIDO  RENTS  best  works  ha\e  beauty,  great  amenity,  artistic  feeliiitr, 
and  high  accomplishment  of  manner,  but  are  all  alloyed  by  a  certain  core 
of  commonplace;  in  his  worst  pictures  the  commonplace  swamps  everythine, 
and  Guido  has  flooded  European  galleries  with  trashy  and  empty  pretentious- 
ness, all  the  more  noxious  in  that  its  apparent  grace  of  form  misleads  the  un- 
wary into  approval,  and  the  dilettante  dabbler  into  cheap  raptures. 

WRITERS  on  art  have  generally  agreed  to  assign  to  Guido  Reni,  as  to 
Raphael,  three  successive  of  styles  or  "manners." 

The  first  dates  from  about  the  time  he  left  the  studio  of  the  Carracci  and 
set  up  for  himself.  At  this  period  he  preserved  the  impress  of  the  Carracci 
style,  but  was  evidently  still  more  influenced  by  the  manner  of  Michelancrelo 
da  Caravaggio,  in  spite  of  his  biographer's  statement  that  he  was  at  this  time 
attempting  to  introduce  a  new  method  quite  opposite  to  that  of  the  Neapol- 
itan master.  Guido's  works  in  this  early  Carracci-Caravaggio  style  —  his  first 
recognized  manner — show  an  energy  and  dignity  lacking  in  his  later  achie\e- 
ments.  They  are  marked  by  a  distinct  leaning  toward  naturalism  in  the  treat- 
ment of  large,  well-grouped,  strongly  muscled  figures,  though  there  is  some- 
times an  evident  effort  to  exhibit  an  anatomical  knowledge  plainly  out  of 
harmony  with  the  temperament  of  a  painter  so  naturally  predisposed  to  grace. 
These  features,  combined  with  smoky,  reddish  tones,  strong  contrasts  of  light 
and  shade,  and  overblack  shadows,  give  these  early  pictures  an  impressi\e, 
sometimes  even  a  violent  aspect.  Perhaps  his  best  works  in  this  manner  are 
the  'Madonna  della  Pieta'  and  the  'Massacre  of  the  Innocents,'  both  in  the 
Bologna  Gallery. 

Soon  after  Guido's  arrival  in  Rome  the  influence  of  Raphael's  works  be- 
came apparent  in  his  pictures,  and  to  his  previous  manner  a  second  gradually 
succeeded.  His  former  style  became  simpler  and  less  stilted,  his  color  warmer 
and  more  agreeable.  In  this  second  style  he  painted  the  world-famous  'Aurora' 
of  the  Rospigliosi  Palace. 

The  happy  period  of  transition  was  brief,  howe\er.  The  Carracci-Car- 
avaggio strength  gradually  faded  from  his  work,  until  he  seemed  about  to  be- 
come merely  a  paler,  fatigued,  and  enervated  Raphael;  and  then,  at  last, 
Guido  struck  into  his  third  manner,  in  which  he  continued  to  paint  during 
the  rest  of  his  life,  his  work  growing  feebler  and  feebler  as  his  character  weak- 
ened and  his  haste,  due  to  his  pressing  need  of  money,  increased.  It  is  never- 
theless the  works  in  this  last  style  which  gained  him  his  wide  contemporary 
popularity,  and  by  which  he  is  chiefly  known  to-day.  The  style  is  usually 
called  his  "silver  manner,"  from  its  coloring,  which,  at  its  best,  is  of  a  delicate 
pearly  silveriness,  but  which  too  often  degenerated  into  li\  idity  or  mere  pal- 
lid muddiness.  His  handling  at  this  time  had  become  wonderfully  facile,  and 
there  is  almost  always  a  certain  easy  grace  of  line  and  composition ;  but  the 

[30  y] 


34  MASTERS     IN    ART 

types  he  now  produced,  and  repeated  ad  fiauseam,  because  of  their  affectation, 
poverty  of  expression,  monotony  of  gesture,  insipid  ideality,  vapid  general- 
ization without  character,  and  mere  empty,  banal  grace,  are  at  their  worst  al- 
most insupportable  to  our  modern  eyes.  Among  the  better  examples  of  Guido's 
work  in  this  last  style  may  be  mentioned  'The  Assumption  of  the  Virgin,' 
in  Munich,  and  the  'St.  Sebastian'  of  the  Capitoline  Gallery  in  Rome. 

H.TAINE  'VOYAGEE^'ITALIE:ROMEET^APLES' 

GUI  DO  RENI  was  an  admired,  fortunate,  worldly  artist,  who  accommo- 
dated himself  to  the  taste  of  his  day,  and  aimed  not  at  nature,  but  at 
making  an  agreeable  effect  upon  the  spectator's  mind;  and  having  once  hit 
upon  a  taking  type,  he  repeated  it  constantly,  painting  not  living  beings  but 
combinations  of  pleasing  contours. 

Tastes  change  as  natures  change.  In  Guido's  day  true  energy,  real  pas- 
sion, and  native  force  had  disappeared.  Society  was  trifling,  gallant,  satiated. 
The  bold,  free  spirit  of  former  times  was  gone;  and  eff^eminate,  fastidious 
people  dislike  simple  and  strong  features.  They  require  conventional  smooth- 
ness, sweet,  languishing  smiles,  curiously  intermingled  tints,  sentimental  ex- 
pressions— in  a  word,  the  pleasing  and  far-fetched  in  everything.  Guido  Reni 
gave  this  society  exactly  what  it  demanded  —  conventional  physiognomies  and 
delicate,  languishing,  eff^eminate  types  of  expression  quite  unknown  to  the 
stalwart  old  masters.  —  from  the  French 

J.BUISSON  INJOUIN'S<CHEFS-D'CEUVRE' 

OUR  own  era  is  one  that  has  little  patience  with  mere  rhetoric,  whether 
in  art  or  letters.  Never  were  lovers  of  pictures  so  alive  to  the  appeal  of 
the  naive  innocence  that  marks  the  childhood  of  art,  never  more  sensitive 
to  the  charm  of  its  blooming  adolescence,  never  more  swayed  by  the  power  of 
its  full  virility;  but  let  art  betray  the  least  taint  of  decadence,  and,  no  matter 
what  its  redeeming  qualities,  we  turn  away  in  disdain.  Moreover,  modern 
criticism  has  come  to  make  almost  a  fetish  of  what  is  called  "sincerity"  in 
painting,  so  that  it  is  indeed  an  ill  time  to  attempt  an  impartial  judgment 
of  those  seventeenth-century  Italians  whom  our  grandfathers  viewed  with 
such  different  eyes. 

When  the  wonderful  cluster  of  schools  that  glorified  the  fifteenth  and 
sixteenth  centuries — the  veritable  Pleiads  of  art — had  declined,  the  city  of 
Bologna  sought  to  become  the  laggard  instructress  to  Italy  in  painting.  But 
what  remained  for  her  to  teach?  All  roads  had  been  explored,  all  achie\e- 
ments  won;  she  stood  at  the  end  of  the  path  of  progress.  She  had  acquired, 
it  is  true,  a  certain  facile  virtuosity  in  the  practice  of  what  she  had  learned 
from  others;  but  her  painters,  in  spite  of  their  pretensions  and  their  air  of 
triumphant  mastery,  were  after  all  but  rhetoricians  —  helpless  victims  of 
those  inevitable  laws  which  make  artistic  progress  subordinate  to  the  status 
of  the  epoch  and  the  race.  To  have  advanced  in  spite  of  the  ebbing  tide, 
they  would  have  required  even  more  strength,  more  originality,  than  was 
needed  by  their  greater  predecessors;   and  it  is  interesting  to  speculate  what 

[370] 


GUIDO    RENI  35 

rank  the  Carracci,  Domenichino,  and  Guido  Reni,  with  their  unquestionably 
rich  natural  endowments,  might  have  held  had  they  but  been  born  half  a 
century  earlier. 

Guido,  the  most  celebrated,  the  most  spoiled  by  contemporarv  applause, 
seems  indeed  to  have  begun  his  career  as  one  destined  to  do  more  than  plav 
the  role,  with  which  he  so  soon  became  content,  of  complaisant  reflector  of 
the  popular  taste  of  his  day  and  generation.  When  he  left  the  school  of  the 
Carracci,  and  while  he  felt  the  influence  of  Caravaggio,  he  manifestly  studied 
nature  lovingly  and  carefully,  and  painted  the  strongest  and  the  sanest  of  his 
works  —  the  'Massacre  of  the  Innocents'  and  the  great  'Pieta,'  for  examples 
— which  betoken  energy,  a  first-hand  observation  of  nature,  and  some  appre- 
ciation of  the  beauty  of  virility. 

But  the  immediate  popularity  which  came  to  him  in  Rome  seems  to  have 
undermined  his  stamina,  both  moral  and  artistic.  He  fell  a  victim  to  his  own 
easy  prowess  of  execution,  to  the  weak,  conventional  grace  of  his  own  fem- 
inine types,  and  to  the  search  for  a  superficial  expression  of  unreal  emotion. 
Yet  it  was  by  the  pictures  in  this  last  style  that  he  gained  his  overwhelming 
popularity,  and  it  is  by  these  very  pictures  that  contemporary  critics  seem  to 
judge  him  wholly. 

It  must  be  acknowledged,  however,  that  even  this  partial  judgment  is  not 
fundamentally  unjust.  Despite  the  promise  of  his  youth,  it  seems  clear  that 
GuitJo  could  never  have  become  a  great  personal  luminary,  even  under  more 
propitious  circumstances.  The  very  facility  with  which  his  nature  submitted 
to  every  varying  influence  marks  him  as  destined  from  the  first  to  be  no  more 
at  best  than  a  brilliant  reflector  in  art.  —  from  the  French 

THEOPHILE    GAUTIER  'GUIDE     DE    L'AMATEUR     AU     MUSEE    DU     LOL'\RE* 

A  PAINTER  whose  real  gift  was  the  gift  of  gracefulness,  Guido  gives  us 
canvases  remarkable  for  ingenious  arrangement  of  composition,  facility 
in  drawing,  and  freedom  and  certitude  in  handling.  But  it  was  not  these 
features  that  gained  him  his  great  popularity.  It  was  because  he  invented 
and  multiplied  a  type  which,  though  it  possesses  no  strength  and  expresses 
no  true  emotion,  appeals,  because  of  a  certain  graceful,  sentimental,  languid 
melancholy,  that  is  distinctly  mundane  and  sometimes  even  coquettish,  to 
those  who  are  not  yet  equipped  to  appreciate  art  of  a  higher  calibre.  —  from 

THE  FRENCH 


Cije  5^orfesi  of  (Bxii^o  l\tni 

DESCRII'TIONS    OF    THE     PLATES 
«THE     ARCHANGEL     MICHAEL-  PLATE    I 

"'"T^HE  single  devotional  figures  of  the  Archangel  Michael,"  writes  Mrs. 

A.    Jameson,  "usually  depict  him  as  combining  the  characters  of  captain 

of  the  heavenly  host  and  conqueror  of  the  powers  of  hell.    The  only  sim- 

[:!7  1J 


36  MASTERS     IN     ART 

ilar  representation  of  St.  Michael  which  as  a  work  of  art  can  compare  with 
that  by  Raphael  in  the  Louvre  is  this  celebrated  picture  by  Guido,  in  the 
Church  of  Santa  Maria  della  Concezione  (or  dei  Cappuccini),  Rome.  The 
moment  chosen  is  the  same,  and  the  treatment  similar.  In  Guido's  picture 
the  archangel,  in  blue  cuirass,  red  mantle,  and  violet  scarf,  poised  on  out- 
spread wings,  sets  his  foot  on  the  head  of  Lucifer;  in  one  hand  he  brandishes 
a  sword  and  in  the  other  holds  a  chain  with  which  he  is  about  to  bind  down 
the  demon  in  the  bottomless  pit.  The  attitude  has  been  justly  criticised,  for 
the  grace  is  somewhat  mannered;  but  Forsyth  is  too  severe  when  he  talks  of 
the  'air  of  a  dancing-master.'  Yet  we  do  not  think  about  the  attitude  when 
we  look  at  Raphael's  St.  Michael;  and  in  Guido's  it  is  the  first  thing  that 
strikes  us.  On  the  other  hand,  the  head  of  Guido's  archangel,  with  its  blending 
of  masculine  and  feminine  graces,  serene  purity  of  brow,  and  flow  of  the 
golden  hair,  surely  suggests  divinity." 

It  was  a  tradition  that  Guido  took  revenge  on  Cardinal  Pamfili  (afterwards 
Pope  Innocent  x.),  who  had  summoned  him  before  the  Congregation  in  Rome 
on  account  of  his  delay  in  executing  the  picture  he  had  contracted  to  paint 
for  St.  Peter's  Church,  by  representing  him  as  Satan  in  this  canvas.  Guido, 
however,  protested  that  there  was  not  the  slightest  truth  in  the  report;  but 
whether  by  accident  or  design,  the  face  of  the  fiend  in  the  picture  shows  no 
slight  resemblance  to  the  well-known  portraits  of  the  pope. 

'The  Archangel  Michael,'  one  of  Guido's  most  famous  works,  is  painted 
in  his  second  manner,  when  he  was  strongly  feeling  Raphael's  influence. 

'BEATRICE    CENCI'     (sO-CALLEd)  PLATE    II 

THE  most  generally  popular  and  widely  copied  portrait  in  Rome  is  this 
so-called  'Beatrice  Cenci,'  by  Guido  Reni.  It  eminently  possesses  the 
quality  of  popular  appeal  that  Guido  so  well  understood  how  to  impart,  yet 
it  cannot  rank  among  his  greater  works;  and  it  is  questionable  whether  its 
celebrity  is  not  rather  founded  upon  the  interest  attaching  to  the  pathetic 
name  of  Beatrice  than  upon  intrinsic  merit  of  the  painting  itself, 

Beatrice's  sad  and  terrible  story,  which  has  been  so  often  repeated  by  poets, 
novelists,  and  chroniclers,  stands  briefly  thus  :  She  was  the  young  and  mother- 
less daughter  of  Francesco  Cenci, a  wealthy  Roman  patrician,  whose  profligacy 
and  wickedness  of  all  kinds  was  so  monstrous  as  to  startle  even  the  Roman 
society  of  the  end  of  the  sixteenth  century.  He  imprisoned  his  second  wife, 
Lucrezia,  and  his  daughter,  in  a  remote  and  solitary  castle  in  the  Apennines, 
and  there  subjected  them  to  barbarous  treatment  of  all  sorts,  and  at  last  so 
grievously  insulted  his  daughter  as  to  palliate  and  almost  excuse  parricide.  It 
was  believed  that,  under  the  stress  of  this  treatment,  Beatrice,  then  about 
seventeen  years  old,  bribed  certain  ruffians  to  murder  her  father.  Arrested 
and  brought  to  Rome  for  trial,  she  was,  after  having  been  tortured,  condemned 
and  executed.  It  was  believed  that  she  was  extremely  beautiful,  though  of 
her  appearance  we  have  no  description.  The  legend,  with  some  circumstance, 
relates  further  that  the  present  portrait  of  her  was  painted  by  Guido  in  prison, 
and  on  the  eve  of  her  execution. 

[372] 


GUIDORENI  37 

That  some  of  the  details  of  this  romantic  story  are  false,  and  that  in  the 
liaht  of  modern  researches  Beatrice  seems  to  deserve  less  pity  than  has  been 
accorded  her,  does  not  concern  us  here.  What  does  concern  us  is  that  it  is 
impossible  that  Guido  should  have  visited  Beatrice  in  prison,  or,  indeed,  that 
he  could  ever  have  seen  her  at  all.  She  was  executed  in  1599;  and  after  a 
careful  weighing  of  all  the  evidence,  Signor  Bertolotti,  director  of  the  State 
Archives  in  Rome,  has  practically  proved  that  Guido  could  not  have  first 
arrived  in  that  city  before  1608.  Moreover,  his  biographers  make  no  allu- 
sion to  any  portrait  of  Beatrice — an  unlikely  omission  had  he  intended  this 
canvas  as  a  likeness,  even  if  an  imaginary  one,  of  the  romantic  girl  whose 
story  was  so  fresh  in  the  public  mind.  Indeed,  the  tradition  that  the  picture 
is  her  likeness  cannot  be  traced  back  further  than  about  ninety  years  from 
the  present  time,  and  it  is  probable  that  its  title  was  given  it  by  some  poet- 
ically minded  individual  who  conceived  that  so  might  Beatrice  have  appeared. 

A  number  of  critics,  their  faith  shaken,  perhaps,  by  the  discovery  that  its 
title  was  a  misnomer,  have  questioned  whether  the  picture  is  from  Guido's 
hand  at  all;  but  their  skepticism  seems  unfounded.  There  is  no  historical 
evidence  either  way,  and  the  tradition  that  ascribes  the  work  to  Guido  seems 
sufficiently  conclusive  when  borne  out  by  its  general  style  and  technical  ex- 
ecution. Moreover,  as  a  recent  writer,  Mr.  J.  A.  Trollope,  has  pointed  out 
in  an  interesting  review  of  all  the  evidence  concerning  the  picture  ('Mag- 
azine of  Art  '  1 88 1),  Guido  painted  at  least  two  other  heads— that  of  a  woman 
in  the  group  of  three  in  the  lower  left-hand  corner  of  his  'St.  Andrew  Ador- 
ing the  Cross,'  and  that  of  the  Hour  nearest  the  left-hand  corner  of  the  'Au- 
rora'—the  features  of  which  so  strikingly  resemble  those  of  the  Cenci  por- 
trait that  it  seems  unquestionable  that  all  three  were  painted  from  the  same 

model. 

The  picture  hangs  in  the  Barberini  Palace,  Rome. 

PLATE     III 

<  ST.    SEBASTIAN ' 

ST  SEBASTIAN  was,  according  to  the  legend,  a  noble  youth  who  com- 
manded a  company  in  the  Pretorian  Guards  under  the  Emperor  Diocle- 
tian, with  whom  he  was  an  especial  favorite.  He  had  secretly  become  a 
Christian,  however,  and  when  two  of  his  friends  were  being  tortured  on  ac- 
count of  their  religion,  Sebastian  revealed  his  own  faith  by  exhorting  them 
to  die  steadfast.  Then  the  emperor,  in  spite  of  his  love  for  the  youth,  ordered 
him  to  be  bound  to  a  tree  and  shot  to  death  with  arrows.  1  he  sentence  was 
carried  out,  and  Sebastian  was  left  for  dead ;  but  when  his  fneiids  came  to  bear 
away  his  body  it  w.s  found  that  he  still  breathed,  and  a  Christian  vv.dow, 
Irene,  nursed  him  in  secret  until  he  recovered  But  no  sooner  was  he  re- 
stored than  Sebastian,  instead  of  fleeing  from  Rome,  as  his  friends  besought 
him  to  do,  went  boldly  to  the  gate  of  the  emperor's  palace  and  when  Dio- 
cletian pa  sed  on  his  way  to  the  capitol,  cried  out,  «I  am  Sebastian,  whom 
GoThath  delivered  from  thy  hand  that  I  might  testify  to  the  faith  of  Jesu 
Christ  and  plead  for  His  servants."  Then  Diocletian,  in  a  rage,  commanded 
that  Sebastian  be  beaten  to  death  with  clubs  in  the  circus,  which  was  done. 

[373] 


38  MASTERS     IN    ART 

As  may  be  imagined,  this  picturesque  legend  has  furnished  an  attractive 
theme  to  many  painters,  and  the  subject  proved  especiallv  alluring  to  Guido, 
since  it  gave  him  an  opportunity  to  depict  an  Apollo-like  figure  in  the  bloom 
of  youth  (a  vehicle  for  graceful  form  and  fine  anatomical  modeling)  yet  in 
the  throes  of  half-ecstatic  agony — a  combination  that,  under  his  hand,  was 
sure  to  make  a  strong  appeal  to  the  sentimental.  He  repeated  the  composi- 
tion with  variations  in  the  minor  details  at  least  seven  times.  The  present  pic- 
ture, in  the  Capitoline  Gallery,  Rome,  is  perhaps  the  best  of  these  replicas. 
The  opaque  shadows  and  the  greenish  hue  of  the  flesh  mark  it  as  a  product 
of  Guido's  last  manner. 

'  T  H  E    A  S  S  U  M  P  T I  O  N    O  F    T  H  E     V  I  R  C  I  .\  '  P  L  A  T  E    I  V 

GUIDO  was  especially  celebrated  as  a  painter  of  Assumptions,  a  subject 
which  he  repeated  no  less  than  ten  times.  He  usually  chose,  as  here, 
to  depict  the  Virgin  in  a  glory,  with  outstretched  arms  and  face  upturned, 
borne  to  Heaven  by  angels  and  cupids. 

'The  Assumption'  shown  in  our  plate  is  from  the  Munich  Gallery. 
Although  one  of  Guido's  best  works  in  his  third  manner,  it  is  not  free  from 
the  insipiditv  that  marred  most  of  his  later  work. 

'YOUTHFUL    BACCHUS'  PLATE    V 

THIS  merry  little  picture,  in  the  Pitti  Palace,  Florence,  comes  as  rather 
a  relief  from  the  hand  of  a  painter  whose  favorite  subjects  were  saints 
in  religious  ecstasies  and  agonies. 

The  boy  Bacchus,  with  his  crown  of  grapes  and  garb  of  skin,  his  cup  and 
wine  bottle,  and  his  attendant  genius,  smiles  out  of  the  picture  with  such 
a  living  sparkle  in  his  eyes  that  it  is  clear  that  Guido  was  here  inspired  by 
no  conception  of  classic  antiquity,  but  by  some  mischievous  little  lad  who, 
perhaps,  ran  about  his  studio,  and  that  he  painted  in  a  plavful  vein.  The  figure 
of  Bacchus  is  firmly  drawn  and  modeled,  but  that  of  the  attendant  sprite  is 
less  careful  in  execution. 

'AURORA'  PLATE    VI 

THIS  fresco,  which  adorns  the  ceiling  of  the  garden  pavilion  of  the  Ros- 
pigliosi  Palace  in  Rome,  was  painted  in  Guido's  best  period,  during  his 
first  sojourn  in  Rome,  when  he  was  beginning  to  come  under  the  spell  of 
Raphael.    It  is,  by  general  consent,  regarded  as  his  masterpiece. 

It  pictures  the  brin^ers  of  dawn  gliding  o\er  clouds  still  tinted  with  the 
fading  shadows  of  night.  About  the  advancing  car  of  the  sun-god,  Apollo, 
the  Hours  dance;  before  it  sails  Aurora  herself  on  golden  clouds,  showering 
roses  upon  the  sleeping  earth,  and  above  a  youthful  cherub  bearing  a  flaming 
torch  personifies  the  morning  star.  Below  are  seen  the  sea  and  land,  still 
obscured  by  shadows. 

"The  grace  of  the  arrangement,  the  rhythm  of  the  gestures,  and  the  strik- 
ing onward  sense  of  movement  seize  the  spectator  at  first  glance,"  writes 
M.  Buisson.  "He  realizes  the  feeling  of  Taine  when  he  writes  of  the  'joyous- 

[374] 


GUIDORENI  39 

ness,  the  complete  pagan  amplitude,  of  these  blooming  goddesses,  with  their 
hands  interlinked,  all  dancing  as  if  at  some  antique  fete.'  The  twining  arms, 
the  flying  draperies,  which  merge  into  sweeps  of  carefully  calculated  line, 
seem  to  accelerate  the  forward  movement  of  the  Hours,  which  is  attain  ha- 
stened by  the  galloping  horses,  until  it  seems  to  culminate  naturally  in  the 
aerial  flight  of  Aurora  herself.  The  grace  of  the  poses,  the  broad,  supple  lines, 
the  exactitude  of  drawing,  the  sureness  of  the  composition,  the  distribution 
of  light  and  shade,  and  the  vitality  of  the  whole,  witness  a  consummate  skill." 

The  coloring  of  the  'Aurora,'  too,  is  more  successful  than  Guido's  usual 
achievements  in  this  respect.  The  hair  and  flesh  of  Apollo  are  of  a  dull 
golden  hue;  to  this  tint  the  yellowish-red  robe  of  the  nymph  nearest  him 
answers,  and  the  color  then  gradually  shades  from  blue  to  white  and  from  green 
to  white  on  either  side,  while  the  dun-colored  horses  harmonize  with  the 
clouds.  Behind  the  clouds  is  a  yellow  sky,  while  below  one  sees  a  bit  of  cool- 
toned  landscape,  giving  the  blue  note  essential  to  balance  the  draperies. 

On  a  closer  examination  the  weaknesses  of  the  picture  are  apparent  enough : 
there  is  some  lack  of  unity  in  the  composition;  the  Hours  are  not  of  a  hl^h 
type  of  beauty  nor  ethereal  enough  for  the  part  they  play;  and  there  is  more 
than  a  su>picion  of  affectation  in  many  of  their  poses.  Above  all,  the  figure 
of  Apollo,  on  which  the  attention  naturally  centers,  is  disappointing.  But, 
all  detractions  admitted,  the  'Aurora'  is  unquestionably  a  masterpiece  of  tech- 
nical skill,  admirably  fulfilling  its  decorative  intention,  and  replete  with  beautv 
and  vitality;  and  Burckhardt  pronounces  it  "taken  all  for  all,  the  most  accom- 
plished work  of  its  century." 

♦MADONNADELLAPIETA'TDETAir.]  PI,  ATE     \' 11 

THIS  picture,  now  the  chief  treasure  of  the  Bologna  Gallery,  was  ordered 
of  Guido,  after  his  return  from  Rome,  by  the  Senate  of  Bologna,  which 
commissioned  him  to  paint  a  Pieta  that  should  include  the  five  saints  most 
closely  connected  with  civic  traditions.  It  is  evident  that  the  painter  put 
forth  all  his  powers  upon  it,  and  it  ranks  as  one  of  his  best  works,  showing 
a  vigor  of  conception  and  of  execution  rare  with  him.  It  gives  too,  in  spite 
of  the  distinct  separation  between  the  upper  and  the  lower  portions,  the  high- 
est evidence  of  Guido's  skill  in  composition.  I'he  upper  portion  is  reproduced 
in  our  plate.  In  the  lower  half  of  the  picture  are  grouped  St.  Petronius,  the 
patron  of  Bologna,  St.  Carlo  Borromeo,  St.  Francis,  St.  Proculus,  and  St. 
Dominic.    The  picture  was  completed  in   1616,  in  Guido's  early  style. 

<ST.     JOHN     I' RE  A  CHI  NC;     IN    THE     WILDERNESS"  I'LATE     \III 

ACCORDING  to  his  accredited  biographer,  Malvasia,  Guido  depicted 
y~\.  this  subject  three  times.  The  present  example,  in  the  Dulwich  Ciallery, 
London,  represents  the  Baptist  as  a  youth,  seated  upon  a  rock,  his  figure,  about 
life-size,  relieved  against  a  cloudy  sky  and  wooded  background,  with  a  group 
of  eight  small  figures  at  the  right.  About  his  hips  is  a  gray  drapery.  The  pic- 
ture, probably  an  early  work  to  judge  from  the  brickish  red  of  the  flesh,  is 


40  MASTERS    IN    ART 

as  a  whole  superior  in  animation  and  vitality'  to  Guide's  usual  achievements. 
"There  is,"  writes  Hazlitt,  "a  wildness  and  gusto  about  the  figure  of  St. 
John,  and  an  exaltation  in  his  face,  which  is  in  full  accord  with  the  subject." 

'MASSACREOFTHEINNOCENTS'  PLATEIX 

ON  Guido's  return  from  Rome  in  1 6  1  0  he  had  to  face  a  storm  of  de- 
traction from  his  rivals,  who  industriously  circulated  the  report  that  his 
best  days  were  over  and  that  his  star  was  waning.  His  answer  was  this  pic- 
ture, commenced  soon  after  his  arrival  in  Bologna,  in  which  he  touches  his 
high-water  mark  of  dramatic  power. 

"Avoiding  the  depiction  of  the  actual  scene  of  butchery,"  writes  Burck- 
hardt,  "Guido  has  nevertheless  expressed  the  cruelty  of  the  murderers  ;  and 
thanks  to  the  truly  architectonic  arrangement  and  the  nobility  of  the  forms 
introduced,  has  been  able  to  dignify  the  agony,  and  elevate  the  horror  to  a 
tragic  dignity.  It  is  the  most  finished  dramatic  work  which  the  century  pro- 
duced in  Italy." 

The  picture,  which  has  become  much  darkened  and  obscured  by  time,  was 
taken  to  Paris  by  Napoleon's  marshals,  but  later  restored  to  the  Bologna 
Gallery,  where  it  now  hangs. 

•MADONNA     WITH     ST.     FRANCIS     AND     ST.     CHRISTINA'  I'LATE     X 

THIS  picture,  now  in  the  Gallery  at  Faenza,  is  a  fine,  though  not  famil- 
iar specimen  of  Guido's  work,  probably  dating  from  his  early  period.  It 
shows  St.  Francis  in  the  habit  of  the  Order  of  which  he  was  the  founder,  and 
St.  Christina  adoring  the  enthroned  Madonna  and  Child.  In  spite  of  the 
smoky  coloring,  which  has  become  darkened  by  time,  and  the  lack  of  strength 
in  the  faces,  this  picture  evidences  Guido's  power  as  a  composer,  and  pos- 
sesses a  dignity  of  effect  lacking  in  too  many  of  his  later  works. 


A     LIST     OF     THE     PRINCIPAL     PAINTINGS     BY     GUIDO     REN  I 
WITH     THEIR     PRESENT    LOCATIONS 

AUSTRIA.  BuDAPKsr  Gallery:  Crucifixion;  Lucretia  —  Vienna,  Academy:  As- 
.  sumption  —  Vienna,  Czernin  Gallery:  Female  Head;  Madonna  —  Vienna,  Im- 
perial Gallery:  Magdalen;  Madonna  with  St.  John;  Youthful  David;  Seasons;  Virgin 
and  Sleeping  Christ;  St.  Peter;  Ecce  Homo  {/"s);  Baptism  of  Christ  —  Vienna,  Liech- 
tenstein Gallery:  David  with  Goliath's  Head;  St.  John  Evangelist;  St.  Jerome;  Bac- 
chus and  Ariadne;  Adoration  of  Shepherds;  Christ  Child  Asleep  on  the  Cross;  Mag- 
dalen; St.  John  Baptist  —  Vienna,  Schonborn  Gallery:  Diana  —  BELGIUM.  Ant- 
werp, Church  of  Si.  Jacques:  Mad(jnna  —  Brussels  Museum:  Flight  into  Egypt; 
Sibyl  —  ENGLAND.  Hampton  Court:  Judith  with  Head  of  Holofernes  —  London, 
DuLWicH  Gallery:  St.  John  Preaching  in  the  Wilderness  (Plate  viii);  Death  of  Lucre- 
tia—  London,  National  Gallery:  Magdalen;  St.  Jerome;  Susanna  and  the  Elders; 
Youthful  Christ  and  St.  John;  Coronation  of  the  Virgin;  Ecce  Homo;  Lot  and  his  Daughters 
—  Windsor  Castle:  St.  Catharine  of  Alexandria;  St.  Sebastian;  Cleopatra — FRANCE. 
Besan^on  Gallery:  Lucretia;  Virgin  with  Sleeping  Christ  Child  —  Dijon  Museum: 
Adam  and  Eve  —  Lyons  Museum:  Crucifixion  of  St.  Peter  —  Paris,  Louvre:  Hercules 

1376] 


GUI  DO    REN  I  '••.'''..'..::*  '■.4J'' 

and  Achelous;  Dejanira  and  Nessusj  Death  of  Hercules;  Rape  of  Helen;  Annunciation; 
David  and  Goliatli;  Purification  of  the  Virgin;  Christ's  Charge  to  Peter;  Christ  and  the 
Samaritan  Woman;  Christ  Asleep;  Christ  in  the  Garden;  Ecce  Homo;  Magdalen  (/"j); 
St.  Sebastian;  Design  and  Color;  Hercules  Killing  the  Hydra;  H(3ly  Family;  Madonna, 
Child,  and  St.  John  —  Nantes  Gallery:  St.  John  Baptist  —  Toulouse  Museum:  Apollo 
Flaying  Marsyas  —  GERMANY.  Berlin  Gallery:  St.  Paul  and  St.  Anthony  in  the 
Desert;  Mater  Dolorosa  —  Brunswick  Museum:  Cephalus  and  Procris — Darmstardt 
Gallery:  Penitent  Magdalen  —  Dresden  Gallery:  Ninus  and  Semiramis;  Youthful 
Bacchus;  St.  Jerome;  Christ  Crowned  with  Thorns  (three  examples);  Christ  Appear- 
ing to  Mary;  Virgin  Adoring  the  Infant  Christ;  Enthroned  Madonna;  Venus  and  Cupid 

—  GOTHA   Museum:    Ecce   Homo  —  Leipsic   Museum:   Madonna;  St.   John;  David 

Mayence,  Electoral  Palace:  Rape  of  Europa  —  Munich  Gallery:  Assumption  of 
the  Virgin  (Plate  iv);  Apollo  Flaying  Marsyas;  Penitent  Peter;  Apostle  John;  St.  Jerome; 
Magdalen  —  Potsdam,  New  Palace:  Lucretia;  Diogenes  —  Stuttgart  Museum:  St. 
Sebastian  —  HOLLAND.  Amsterdam,  Ryks  Museum:  Magdalen  —  IRELAND.  Dub- 
lin, National  Gallery  of  Ireland:  Saints  Interceding  for  the  City  of  Bologna  — 
ITALY.  Bologna,  Church  of  S.  Domenico:  Transfiguration  of  St.  Dominic  —  Bo- 
logna, Church  of  S.  Michele  in  Bosco:  St.  Benedict  —  Bologna  Gallery,  Cruci- 
fixion; St.  Andrea  Corsini;  Ecce  Homo;  St.  Sebastian;  Coronation  of  the  Virgin;  Mas- 
sacre of  the  Innocents  (Plate  ix);  Madonna  della  Pieta  (see  Plate  vii);  Samson;  Madonna 
of  the  Rosary  —  Faenza  Gallery:  Madonna  with  St.  Francis  and  St.  Christina  (Plate  x) 

—  Fano,  Church  of  S.  Pietro:  Annunciation  —  Florence,  Corsini  Gallery:  Ecce 
Homo;  Lucretia  —  Florence,  Palazzo  Panciatichi:  Diana;  Endymion — ^ Florence, 
Palazzo  Strozzi:  David  —  Florence,  Palazzo  Torrigiani:  Lucretia  —  Florence, 
PiTTi  Palace:  Youthful  Bacchus  (Plate  v);  Rebecca  at  the  Well;  Cleopatra;  Charity; 
St.  Elizabeth;  Portrait  of  Old  Man;  St.  Peter  Weeping — Florence,  Uffizi  Gallery: 
Susanna;  Cumasan  Sibyl;  Virgin  of  the  Snow;  Portrait  of  Himself  (page  22);  Bradamante 
and  Fiordespina;  Madonna  and  St.  John;  Virgin  —  Forli,  Church  of  SS.  Bia(;io  e 
GiROLAMO:  Immaculate  Conception  —  Genoa,  Brignole-Sale  Gallery:  St.  Mark;  St. 
Sebastian;  Madonna  —  Genoa,  Church  of  S.  Ambrogio:  Assumption  —  Genoa,  Pa- 
lazzo Balbi-Senarega:  St.  Jerome  —  Genoa,  Palazzo  Durazzo:  Carita  Romana;  St. 
Jerome;  Vestal  Virgin  —  Girgenti,  C.'\thedral:  Madonna — Loreto,  Church  of  the 
Casa  Santa:  Archangel  Michael  (mosaic)  —  Lucca  Gallery:  Crucifixion  —  Milan, 
Brera  Gallery:  St.  Peter  and  St.  Paul;  Apostle  Reading  —  Modena  Gallery:  Cruci- 
fixion—  Naples,  Church  of  S.  FilippoNeri:  St.  Francis  of  Assisi  —  Naples  Museum: 
Infant  Christ  Asleep;  Vanity  and  Modesty;  St.  John  Evangelist  —  Naples,  S.  Martino: 
Nativity  (unfinished)  —  Padua,  Church  of  the  Eremitani:  St.  John  Baptist  —  Pieve 
Di  Cento,  Church  of  S.  Maria  Assunta:  Assumption — Pisa,  Palazzo  Uppezinghi: 
Divine  and  Earthly  Love  —  Ravenna,  Cathedral:  Elijah;  Fallingofthe  Manna  —  Rome, 
Academy  of  St.  Luke:  Fortune;  Cupid;  Bacchus  and  Ariadne  —  Rome,  Barberini 
Palace:  Beatrice  Cenci,  so-called  (Plate  11)  —  Rome,  Borghese  Palace:  St.  Joseph; 
Moses  Receiving  Tables  of  the  Law  —  Rome,  Capitoline  Gallery:  St.  Sebastian  (Plate 
III);  Magdalen;  Disembodied  Spirit  (unfinished);  Portrait  of  Himself — Rome,  Church 
of  S.  Gregorio  Magno;  St.  Andrew  Adoring  the  Cross;  Choir  of  Angels — Rome, 
Church  of  S.  Lorenzo  in  Lucina:  Crucifixion  —  Rome,  Church  of  S.  Maria  della 
CoNCEZiONE:  Archangel  Michael  (Plate  i)  —  Rome,  Church  of  S.  Maria  della  Vit- 
TORiA:  Portrait  of  Cardinal  Cornaro;  Crucifixion  —  Rome,  Church  of  S.  Maria  Mag- 
giore:  Frescos  —  Rome,  Church  of  S.  Trinita  de'  Pellegrini:  Trinity  —  Rome, 
CoLONNA  Gallery:  St.  Francis;  St.  Agnes  —  Rome,  Corsini  Gallery:  M.adonna; 
Salome;  Mater  Dolorosa;  St.  John;  Ecce  Homo;  Portrait  of  Old  Man;  Galatea;  Cupid 
Asleep;  Study  for  Crucifixion  of  St.  Peter  —  Rome,  Palazzo  Sciarra:   Magdalen  (his) 

Rome,  Palazzo  Spada:  Judith;  Rape  of  Helen;   Portrait  of  Cardinal  Spada — Rome, 

Doria-Pamphili  Gallery:  Adoring  NIadonna;  Penitent  Peter;  St.  Sebastian  —  Rome, 
QuiRiNAL  Palace:  Annunciation  —  Rome,  Rospigliosi  Palace:  Aurora  (Plate  vi);  An- 
dromeda—  Rome,  Vatican  Gallery:  Crucifixion  of  St.  Peter;  Virgin  and  Saints  — 
Rome,  Vatican  Library  [hall  of  samson]  :  Decoration  of  Cupola  —  Siena,  Church 

[••5771 


42  MASTERS     IN    ART 

OF  S.  MartinO:  Presentation  in  the  Temple  —  Turin  Gallerv:  Apollo  and  Marsyasj 
Cupids;  St.  Jerome  in  the  Desert;  St.  John  Baptist — RUSSIA.  St.  Petersblrg,  Her- 
mitage GallerV:  'The  Seamstresses' ;  Flight  into  Egypt;  Theological  Dispute;  Ado- 
ration of  the  Magi;  Rape  of  Europa;  Penitent  Peter;  St.  Jerome;  Clecjpatra;  David  with 
Goliath's  Head;  Adoration  of  St.  Francis  —  SCOTLAND.  Edinbi'rc;h,  National 
Gallery:  Venus  and  the  Graces;  Ecce  Homo  —  Glasgow,  Corporation  Gallery: 
Penitent  Magdalen  —  SPAIN.  Madrid,  ThePrado:  Cleopatra;  St.  Jerome;  St.  Peter; 
St.  Paul;  St.  Paul  Writing;  Magdalen;  Lucretia;  Madonna  of  the  Chair;  Assumption; 
St.  Sebastian;   Martyrdom  of  St.  ApoUonia;  St.  Apollonia  in  Prayer. 


(gutlro  %tni  3Biblio5rap|)j> 

A     LIST    OF     THE    PRINCIPAL    BOOKS     DEALING     WITH     GUIDO     RENl 

ALEXANDRE,  A.  Histoire  populaire  de  la  peinture:  ecole  italienne.  Paris  [1894] 
XJl.  Armstrong,  W.  Guido  Reni  (in  Bryan's  Dictionary  of  Painters  and  Engravers). 
London,  1889  —  Atwell,  H.  The  Italian  Masters.  London,  1888 — Baldinucci,  F. 
Notizie,  etc.  Florence,  1764-74  —  Bartsch,  A.  Le  Peintre  graveur.  Vienna,  1818  — 
BoLOGNiNi.  Armorini  Vite  dei  pittori  bolognesi.  Bologna,  i  841  —  Buisson,  J.  L'Aurore 
du  Palais  Rospigliosi  (in  Jouin's  Chefs-d'oeuvre).  Paris,  1897  —  Burckhardt,  J.  Der 
Cicerone.  Leipsic,  1898  —  Champlin,  J.  D.,  Jr.,  and  Perkins,  C,  C.  Cyclopedia  of 
Painters  and  Painting.  New  York,  1886 — Constable,  J.  (in  C.  R.  Leslie's  Memoirs  of 
John  Constable,  R.  A.).  London,  1845 — D' Argenville,  A.  J.  D.  Guidi  Reni  (in 
Decamp's  Vie  des  peintres).  Marseilles,  1843 — Delaborde,  H.  Guido  Reni  (in  Blanc's 
Histoire  des  peintres  de  toutes  les  ecoles:  ecole  bolonaise).  Paris,  1874 — de  Piles,  R. 
De  la  vie  des  peintres.  Paris,  1767  —  Eaton,  C.  A.  Rome  in  the  Nineteenth  Century. 
London,  1852  —  Gautier,  T,  Guide  de  I'amateur  au  niusee  du  Louvre.  Paris,  1882  — 
Hazlitt,  W.  Criticisms  on  Art.  London,  1853 — James,  R.  N.  Painters  and  their 
Works.  London,  1896  — Jameson,  A.  Sacred  and  Legendary  Art.  Boston,  1896  — 
Janitschkck,  H.  Die  Malerschule  von  Bologna  (in  Dohme's  Kunst  und  Kimstler,  etc.) 
Leipsic,  1879 — Jarves,  J.  J.  Art  Studies.  New  York,  1861 — Jervis,  Lady  J.  W. 
Painting  and  Celebrated  Painters.  London,  1854 — Kugler,  F.  T.  Italian  Schools  of 
Painting.  Revised  by  A.  H.  Layard.  London,  1900  —  Landon,  C.  P.  Vie  et  choix  de 
I'oeuvre  de  (Juide  (in  his  Vies  et  oeuvres  des  peintres).  Paris,  18  13 — Lanzi,  L.  History 
of  Painting  in  Italy.  Trans,  by  T.  Roscoe.  London,  1828  —  Larousse,  P.  A.  Guido 
Reni  (in  Grand  dictionnaire  universel).  Paris,  1866-90  —  LL'BKE,  W.  History  of  Art. 
New  York,  1878  —  Knackfuss,  H.,  Zimmermann,  M.  G.,  and  Gensel,  W.  Allge- 
meine  Kunstgeschichte.  Leipsic,  1897-1903  — Malvasia,  C.  C.  Felsina  Pittrice:  Vitede' 
Pittori  Bolognese,  etc.  Bologna,  1678  —  Mantz,  P.  Les  Chefs-d'cxuvre  de  la  peinture 
italienne.  Paris,  1870  —  Mantz,  P.  Guido  Reni  (in  La  Grande  encyclopedic).  Paris, 
1886-1902  —  Marino,  ilCavaliere.  LaGaleria.  Milan, 1620  —  Mengs,A.  R.  Works. 
London,  1796  —  Passeri,  G.  B.  Vite  de'  Pittori,  Scultori  ed  Architette.  Rome,  1772  — 
Pepoli,  C.  Delia  scuola bolognese  di  Pittura.  Bologna,  1873 — Rossetti,  W.  M.  Guido 
Reni  (in  Encyclopedia  Britannica).  Edinburgh,  1883  —  RosiNi,  G.  St'.ria  della  pittura 
italiana.  Pisa,  1846  —  Scannelli,  G.  Microcosmo  della  pittura.  Cesena,  1657 — ScoTT, 
W.  B.  Pictures  by  Italian  Masters.  London,  1874  —  Shedd,  J.  A.  Famous  Painters  and 
Paintings.  Boston,  1896 — Shelley,  P.  B.  The  Cenci  (in  his  Poetical  Works).  London, 
1878  —  Spooner,  S.  Biographical  History  of  the  Fine  Arts.  London,  1865 — Sweetser, 
M.  F.  Guido  Reni.  Boston,  1878  —  Taine,  H.  Voyage  en  Italic.  Paris,  1S66  —  WoR- 
NUM,  R.    History  of  Painting.    London,  1859. 


MASTERS    IN    ART 


L'HABERSTROH^&'SON 

MVRAL'PAINTERS  -AND  ^ 
INTERIOR^DECORATORS' 
WALbPAPERS'HANGINGS- 
AND-FVRNITVRE' 

IX'  PARK'STREET'BOSTON- 


g/^BSIERK^SORIHERK  MWIKeiSND^^liDlRniME  PROVINCU 


^/ec 


■^   I^eachedpythe  ^^ 

oston  ^ 
A«»Maine 


iios: 


^     ///i/s/ra{e(/^. 
aescr/pf/iJe  pampA/er 
^  fconfain/n^  comp/efe  /7!(7ps) 
Aaoejbeen  /ssuec/       •^ 
under  fAe^//oiz>/r?pf  /lUes. 
and  ivi// I>e  /naded 
apo/irece/pf  0^2^ /n  shmps 
(D  /o^  eacT^jboo/cz, 

/ — ►     c£fdulAjres/'J}^friramps/irre^,  ^XcrAc  <j}i//iapccy 


il  Railroad. 

FOR  ALL  PUBLICftTIONS  APPLY  TO 

PASSENGER  DEPARTMENT.  B.&M.R.R. 

BOSTON. MASS.  ^ 


ENGLAND 
EAKES. 
"RIVERS  OF 
NE.W^  ENGLAND. 
MOUNTAINS  or 

T<EW  ENOLAXn 

SEASHORE  OF 

ItEW  ENGLAND. 
PICTURESQUE 

NEW  ENGLAND. 

MliTOFIC  —  MliCtLlANtOUa 


Summer  TbuKi ST  Book^ 

CIVINO  LIST  OF  TOURS  AND  RATES.  HOTEL  AND  BOARDING  MOUSE  LIST. 
IVBLE   INFORMATION.  FREE. 


ALSO  COLORED  BIRDS  EYE  VIEW  FROM  MTWASHIMGTOM  SENT  ON  RECEIPT  OF  6^1!  IN  STAMPS 


lu  answering  advertisemciUb,  please  mention  Masikks  in   A  ■<  i 


MASTERS    IN    ART 


AMERICAN 

GARDENS 


t  /    HE  only  book  existing  that  shows  by  actual  examples  what  is 
J-      possible  in  gar den-??ia  king  in  Anierica.    Two  hundred  and  twenty - 

seven  charming  views  showing  sixty-one  gardens  in  addition  to  pla?is. 

Price y  $J.^O  net^  express  paid.    Invaluable  to  garden  planners  and 

gardeji  owners.     Send  for  circular  giving  details. 


BATES  &  GUILD  CO.,  Publishers,  42  Chauncy  Street,  Boston 


In  answering  advertisements,  please  mention  Masters  in  Art 


MASTERS    IN    ART 


^*geries;^lustratEti-i^^ 


A  PARTIAL  LIST  OF  THE  ARTISTS  TO  BE 
CONSIDERED  IN  'MASTERS  IN  ART'  DUR- 
ING THE  CURRENT  VOLUME  WILL  BE 
FOUND  ON  ANOTHER  PAGE  OF  THIS  ISSUE. 
THE  NUMBERS  WHICH  HAVE  ALREADY 
APPEARED  IN  1903  ARE  : 


FR; 


Part  37,  JANUARY 
Part   38,  FEBRUARY    . 
Part   39,  MARCH 
Part  40,  APRIL 
Part  41,  MAY 
Part  42,  JUNE 
Part  43,  JULY 
Part  44,  AUGUST 

PART      4  6,      THE     ISSUE     FOR 


ROMNEY 

ANGELICO 

.      WATTEAU 

RAPHAEL'S   FRESCOS 

DONATELLO 

GERARD    DOU 

CARPACCIO 

ROSA  BONHEUR 


^doicr 


WILL  TREAT   OF 


l^iM^  tie  C|)a\)anne2; 


NUMBERS    ISSUED   IN   PREVIOUS  VOLUMES 
OF  'MASTERS  IN  ART" 


BOL  I 


Bol  IL 


Part  I 
Part  2 
Part  3 
Part  4 
Part  5 
Part  6 
Part  7 
Part  8 
Part  9 
Part  10, 
Part  ii 
Part  12 


Part  25.- 
Part  26. 
Part  27. 
Part  28.- 
Part  29.- 
Part  30.- 


-VAN   DYCK 

-TITIAN 

-VELASQUEZ 

-HOLBEIN 

-BOTTICELLI 

-REMBRANDT 

-REYNOLDS 

-MILLET 

-GIO.  BELLINI 

-MURILLO 

-HALS 

-RAPHAEL 

*Sculpturt 


Part  13. 
Part  14 
Part  15. 
Part  16. 
Part  17. 
Part  18. 
Part  ig 
Part  20. 
Part  21. 
Part  22. 
Part  23. 
Part  24. 
\Pain 


RUBENS 
—DA   VINCI 
— DURER 

—  MICHELANGELO* 
MICHELANGEI.Of 
— COROT 
— BURNE-JONES 
— TER   BORCH 
— DELLA   ROBBIA 
—DEL  SARTO 
—GAINSBOROUGH 
— CORREGGIO 
ting 


I^OL  IIL 


-PHIDIAS 
-PERUGINO 
-HOLBEIN? 
-TINTORETTO 


Part 
Part 

Part 
Part 


-PIETER  Di-  HOOCH   Part 
-NATTIER  Part 

^  Draivings 


—PAUL  POTTER 

—GIOTTO 

—PRAXITELES 

—HOGARTH 

—TURNER 

— LUINI 


%\\  tJ)c  abobc  nanuli  i^^wt^ 
are  constantlp  hcpt  in  ^toch 

PRICE  FOR  SINGLE  PARIS,  15  CENTS  EACH 
PRICE  FOR  ANY  TWELVE  CONSECUTirE  PARTS, 
$l.r,0.  VOLUMEl, CONTAINING  PARTSl  TO  12,  INCLU- 
SIVE; VOLUME  2,  CONTAINING  PARTS  13  TO  24, 
INCLUSIVE;  AND  VOLUME  3,  CONTAINING  PARTS 
25  TO  3G  INCLUSIVE,  CAN  BE  SUPPLIED  BOUND,  IN 
BROWN  BUCKRAM,  WITH  GILT  STAMPS  AND  GILT 
TOP,  FOR  $3.00  EACH  :  IN  GREEN  HALF-MOROCCO, 
GILT  STAMPS  AND  GILT  TOP,  FOR   fS.riO  EACH. 


^xt  (gallcrirsi 

OF 

EDWARD  BRANDUS 

391  FIFTH  AVENUE  391 
Between   36th   and   37th   Streets 

NEW  YORK 


16,  RUE  DE  LA  PAIX,  16 

PARIS 

Crl^ibition  of  paintingjs 

By  the  Leading  Masters  of  the  French  School 


By   the    Old    Masters  of  the    Early   French, 
English,  and  Dutch  Schools 


Ipicture-Xigbtino 

Is  in  Itself  an  Art. 


Fine  paintings  are  otten  spoiled  by  ineftecti\  t 
or  poor  lighting. 


Zt\t  famous  j^rink  J^iiflftrm 

is  beintj  used  in  a  hirge  number  ot  the  tine-t 
galleries  in  the  covintry,  and  by  a  great  many 
prominent  collectors.  Covers  the  pictures  with 
a  strong,  even  ligiit ;  no  glare  in  the  eyes,  or 
spots  on  the  picture  space. 

Sin  -jDcal  alight. 

W'c  have  maile  a  special  studv  of  picture-light- 
ing, and  are  prepared  to  give  yon  the  best  re- 
sults attainable.  Galleries,  individual  collections 
or  paintings  successfully  lighted.  Investigation 
invited. 


I.  P.   FRINK, 
551  Pearl  Street,  New  York  City. 


In  answering  advertisements,  please  mention  Mastfrs  in  Ari 


MASTERS    IN    ART 


J^i^cond  i:(Utiou 


Letters  &  Letterin 


By  Frank  Chouteau  Brown 


TREATISE     ^A^ITH     TWO     HUNDRED      EXAMPLES 

of  standard  and  modern  alphabets,  for  the  use 

of  designers,  decorators,  craftsmen, 

and  all  who  have  to  draw 

the  letter-forms 

FEW  OF  THE  POINTS  OF  SUPERIORITY  OF  "  LETTERS 

tff  Lettering  "  are:  i.  The  greater  number  and  the  greater  range  ot 
examples  it  contains,  ii.  The  careful  selection  of  these  examples  for 
their  practical  modern  usefulness.  All  forms  of  merely  historical  or 
curious  interest  have  been  omitted  in  favor  of  others  of  intrinsic  worth 
adapted  for  present-day  uses.  in.  The  convenient  arrangement  of  these  examples. 
In  all  the  more  important  and  typical  alphabets  not  only  is  each  letter  shown  sepa- 
rately (missing  letters  being  supplied  when  the  alphabet  is  based  on  forms  taken  from 
inscriptions,  etc.),  but  word  formations  are  also  given,  which  exhibit  at  a  glance  how 
lettering  in  that  style  will  actually  appear,  iv.  Detailed  explanations  and  measured 
diagrams.  A  standard  form  of  every  individual  letter  in  each  of  the  two  basic  styles 
of  all  lettering,  Roman  and  Gothic,  is  shown  by  a  diagram,  with  a  detailed  description 
of  the  method  of  drawing  it.  v.  The  great  number  of  examples  of  the  work  of 
modern  letterers.  Typical  specimens  are  shown  of  the  work  of  the  most  notable  con- 
temporary designers,  French,  German,  English,  and  American.  Among  the  Americans 
whose  characteristic  letter-drawing  is  shown,  may  be  mentioned  Messrs.  Albert  R. 
Ross,  McKim,  Mead,  &  White,  architects,  Claude  Fayette  Bragdon,  Bertram  G. 
Goodhue,  Bruce  Rogers,  Edwin  A.  Abbey,  Edward  Penfield,  H.  Van  Buren  Magon- 
igle.  Will  Bradley,  Maxfield  Parrish,  Addison  B.  Le  Boutillier,  H.  L.  Bridwell,  Frank 
Hazenplug,  Edward  Edwards,  Howard  Pyle,  Orson  Lowell,  and  others,  vi.  The 
practical  qualitv  of  the  text.  All  historical  and  theoretical  discussion  has  been  omitted 
in  favor  of  instruction,  with  many  illustrative  examples,  as  to  how  lettering  should  be 
drazv7i,  and  the  a?sthetic  principles  of  combination,  spacing,  and  arrangement  with 
reference  to  design.  A  separate  chapter  is  devoted  to  the  needs  of  the  beginner,  in 
which  tools,  materials,  methods  of  procedure,  and  faults  to  be  avc-  'ed  are  discussed. 


Bates  &  Guild  Company 
42  Chauncy  Street 

BOSTON 


In  answering  ad\ertisenients,  please  mention  Masters  in  Art 


MASTERS   IN  ART 


€f)e  0c\x}  fork  ^^cfjool  of  3lrt 

(CHASE  SCHui  iL) 

57  WEST  57th  STREET,  NEW  YORK 

Sept.  7,  1903,  to  Sept.  6,  1904 

INSTRUCTORS 

William  M.  Chase  Robert  Henri 

Susan  F.  BissELL  F   Luis  Moka 

Howard  Chandler  Christy  Kenneth  Hayes  Miller 

Douglas  John  Connah  Theodoua  W.  Thayer 

Separate  Life  Classes  for  Men  and  Womfn  in  Drawing  and 
Painting  from  the  Nude.  Mixed  Classes  in  Portraiture,  Still 
Life,  Illustration,  Composition,  and  Design.  Open-.Air  Classes 
from  the  Costume  Model  and  Landscape  Painting.  Summer 
School  on  Long  Island. 

No  requirements  for  admission  to  any  of  the  classes.  Refer- 
ences required  of  all  students. 

For  further  particulars  in  reference  to  the  School,  apply  to 
DOUGLAS  JOHN  CONNAH,  Director,  57  West  57th  Street, 

New  York. 


SMITH  &  PORTER  PRESS 

'BOOK;W;ATES 

fg^  BOSTON 


THE  HIGH  RENAISSANCE 

This  will  be  the  subject  of  the  second  year  of  the  new 

OUTLINES  FOR  ART  STUDY 

issued  monthly  with  Penny  reproductions.  Send  for  announcement 
and  sample  copies, 

ART  AND  HISTORY  TOURS 

These  in  spring  and  summer  continue,  under  noted  critics,  the 
winter's  study.  General  tour.":  with  wider  interests.  Send  for  de- 
tails of  a  new  kind  of  travel. 

BUREAU    OF    UNIVERSITT    TRAVEL, 
201  Clarendon  Street,  Boston,  Mass. 


SCHOOL    OF   THE 
MUSEUM  •  OF  •  FINE  •  ARTS 


BOSTON,  MASS. 


INSTRUCTORS 

E.  C.  T.ARBELL 

F.  W.  BE 
PHILIP 
B.  L.  PRATT 
E.  W.  EMERSON 
A.  K.  CROSS 


.RBELL  ) 
iNSON  { 
HALE    ) 


Drawing  and 
Painting. 


Modeling 

Anatomy 

Perspective 

DEPT.  OF  DESIGN 
C.  HOWARD  WALKER 
DIRECTOR 


SCHOLARSHIPS 

Paige  Foreign  Scholarship 
for  Men  and  Women. 

Helen  Hamblen  Scholarship. 

Ten  Free  Scholarships. 

Prizes  in  money  awarded  in 
each  department. 

Twenty-eighth  Year 


For  circulars  and  terms  address 
the  manager 

Miss  EMILY  DANFORTH  NORCROSS 


^rt  ^caDentt  of  Cincinnati 

ENDOWED   for   HIGHER   EDUCATION  in  ART 
Money  Scholarships  Year's  Tuition,  $25.00 


Frank  Duveneck 
Thomas  S.  Noble 
V.  Nowottny 
L.  H.  Meakin 
C.  J.  Barnhorn 
Wm.  H.  Fry 
Anna  Riis 
Caroline  A.  Lord  ") 
Henrietta  Wilson  V 
Kate  R.  Miller      ) 


Drawing,   Painting,     Ctimfosilion, 
Artistic  ^natom),  etc. 

Fur  Modeling 

For  IVood-carving 

For  Design  and  China  Painting 

For  Preparatory  Drawing,  etc. 


36th  year:  Sept.  28th,  1903,  to  May  28th,  1904. 

J.  K.  GEST,  Director,  Cincinnati,  Ohio. 


IF    YOU    HAVE    AN 

■i 

A  N  G  E 

L 

U 

S 

YOU    CAN 

PLAY 

T  H  E     P  I 

A  N 

0 

des 

Invalides 


In  :tns\verin<;  advertisements,  please  mention  Masters  IN  Art 


MASTERS  IN  ART 


STRATH  MORE 
CHARCOAL  PAPER 

MADE  IN  THE   UNITED  STATES 

USED    AND    RECOMMENDED   BY 

MAXFIELD   PARRISH 

AND      MANY      OTHERS 

tage,  1  0  cents 

Try  It! 

Two  sample  sheets  will  be   mailed   to  any  address  on  receipt  of  pos 

MITTINEAGUE   PAPER 

1                                                                           H.  A.  MOSES,  Treasurer 

MITTINEAGUE,      MASSACHUSETTS, 

.  CO. 

U.    S.    A. 

ENGLISH   COUNTRY   CHURCHES 


^d  COLLECTION  of  plates,    100   in   number,  and 
\ZB     11x14  inches  in  size,  reproducing  photographs  of 
/^^'the   most  beautiful  old   English   churches,   for  the 
most  part  those  of  small  country  parishes.    Mr.  R.  A.  Cram, 
an  acknowledged   authority   on 
English    Ecclesiastical    Architec- 
ture, selected  the  subjects  with  a 
view  to  their   suggestiveness   for 
American   country  and   suburban 
churches.   The  work  is  now  in  its 
second  edition.    It  will  be   found 
most    helpful    by    building    com- 
mittees of  new  churches,  and  will 
prove  a   valuable  and   interesting 
addition  to  any  private  library. 

Price,  in  Portfolio,  $10.00 
Bound,  $12.00.     Express  paid 


BATES  &  GUILD  COMPANY,  Publishers,  BOSTON,  MASS 


In  answering  advertisements,  please  mention  Masters  in  Art 


mm^s^^^ 


LOANPERiODTT2 

HOME  USE 


h- 


FORM  NO.  DD6 


"'""Ba;S^^^-.a. 


®$ 


C0312SMM51 


I 


3ss7i;3  /\f2)62S: 


fclLci^-- 


'i-<**l*« 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 


1 


t-  • 


Jlles0t6*  ef|fti^etin0  $c  Sons 

Inyite    critical    inipection    of   their   latest   production 

The    Q^u  arter   Grand         usa 


Boston 


In  answering  advertisements,  please  mention  Masters  IH  Art